Why You Should Upgrade to iOS 13 Right Now

When it comes to technology, maintenance is always better than repair. This is especially true with iPhone app development; failing to stay up-to-date means you risk losing your user base and becoming obsolete.

On the other hand, updating your mobile app pays off in spades. By delivering a faster, optimized experience, you’ll keep your audience coming back for more and future-proof your initial investment so more users can discover your product.

Apple recently released iOS 13 for iPhone and iPod touch. With a plethora of new features and capabilities, this iOS update has something to offer everyone, whether they’re a consumer or enterprise. Read on to see why you should upgrade to iOS 13 as soon as possible.

iOS 13 Is Already Taking Over the World

If there’s one thing to know about iOS users, it’s that they love embracing new technology. Each iOS update sees faster adoption rates than the previous iteration. Case in point: By September 3rd, 2018, 85% of active Apple devices were using iOS 11. Less than a year later, on August 6th, 2019, Apple revealed that 88% of users were running iOS 12.

iOS 13 is no exception to this rule. Although it was only released on September 19th this year, it has taken over the lion’s share of iPhone users: 50% of all iPhone devices are already using iOS 13!

While this ratio is certainly impressive, it’s really just the beginning for iOS 13. This update is compatible with 15 Apple devices (iPhone 6S or iPhone SE or newer). On top of this, Apple’s reach has been consistently growing across both consumers and enterprise organizations. So you can expect to see iOS 13’s adoption metrics grow rapidly over the next few months.

New Features, Limitless Possibilities

We’ve been tinkering with iOS 13’s new features at our Los Angeles-based development HQ for quite some time leading up to its release. Here are some of our favorite features!

Faster Speed, Better Battery Life

Perhaps the first thing you’ll notice after installing iOS 13 is how fast it is. Apps should launch approximately twice as fast as before! That’s due to app downloads and updates being optimized to become 50% and 60% smaller, respectively.

Unlocking with Face ID is also roughly 30% faster and more seamless. This feature’s field of view is now wider, so you can even unlock your iPhone while it’s on your desk without ever having to lift it up.

Because the new iOS 13 platform is smarter at charging (it curtails power input at the right times), you should also notice better battery life for your phone.

“Picture Perfect” Is the Standard for iOS 13

Apple’s Camera and Photos apps both received a ton of new features in iOS 13.

Portrait mode in the Camera app now offers more customizable lighting effects so you can increase or decrease lighting intensity. There’s also a new “High Key Mono” mode available.

The Photos app upgrade brings a mix of robust editing tools that allow you to tweak aspects like contrast, noise reduction, and shadows. These editing capabilities also work for video (which you can now rotate!), and you can even edit photos without replacing or destroying your Live Photo properties.

iOS 13 makes it easier to navigate through your photos. By leveraging machine learning, the Photos app can automatically declutter your photos and remove duplicates. The Photos app also has a new “Photos” tab which gives you a new way to browse your images. You can scrub by years, months, and days to find thumbnails of your images and videos organized by events and time.

iOS 13 is Easy on the Eyes with Dark Mode

Dark Mode has finally arrived with iOS 13. By inverting white and light colors for black and dark grays, it’s much less eye-straining than the standard presentation. Dynamic Dark Mode allows you to change between light and dark in accordance with the sun rising and setting.

Not only can dynamic wallpapers change according to the time of day, but widgets do as well. Native iOS apps like Messages, Photos, and Notes all come with built-in support for this new feature.

Reminders Gets a Revamp

Reminders received a huge overhaul with iOS 13. Now, as you type reminders, it will try to guess when to remind you. Siri will also try to identify which words you want to make actionable. If your reminders contain any names, it will remind you about these in Messages. Lastly, Reminders now allows for attachments and can sort much better than before.

Prioritizing Privacy and Rock-Solid Security

Numerous new privacy and security features come with iOS 13. Users with the new update can now employ system-wide location tracking protection. You also now have the capability to give an app permission to use location “just once.” Alternatively, if you permit an app to always use location, iOS will now provide detailed reports on this activity.

Apple also added “Sign in with Apple,” which utilizes Face ID to start a new account with revealing personal information. You can now hide information like email thanks to this feature. Apple will create a random email that forwards any received messages to your actual email address. Of course, you can always disable these random emails if need be.

Shortcuts to Automation

Instead of having you download the Shortcuts app, it now comes built-in to every device running iOS 13. The Shortcuts app now has an Automation tab which allows you to create both personal and home automation sequences based on triggers. For example, you can set up an Automation to tell you the day’s weather when you turn off your alarm after waking up.

Adapt and Get Ahead With iOS 13

We hope you’ve enjoyed this rundown of some of our favorite iOS 13 features. Don’t let your app languish and fall behind. Business is all about adaptability. At Dogtown Media, we pride ourselves on building the mobile future. Work with us to make your iOS app a part of it!

This list of new features barely scratches the surface of iOS 13’s potential — covering all of the new capabilities ranging from a smoother-sounding Siri to new Memojis would take quite a few more blog posts. If you have questions about specific aspects or benefits, contact our team of hardened techies today for a free consultation!