Apple has announced that the next version its mobile and tablet operating system, iOS 6, is coming later this year – in the “fall”. As part of the company’s annual World Wide Developer Conference keynote, Apple showed off new Siri features, a new mapping service, Facebook integration, FaceTime enhancements, Notification Center improvements, and new app called Passbook. When iPhone 4S was launched Apple announced Siri. For the first time Apple has improved Siri. Apple Senior VP Scott Forstall said on stage. Siri has also learned more about restaurants thanks to Yelp integration, and now has Open Table integration for getting a quick reservation.
Moreover Siri now has movie knowledge as well, giving you movie listings, trailers and details on different actors. Think voice-controlled IMDb-style functions. Apps can also be launched by Siri. Siri is now available on the new iPad. That’s important, because at launch it only had voice dictation but just as potent a chipset as the iPhone 4S.
iO6 has deeper integration of Facebook. Many thought why there were no Facebook-friendly functions. Now with iOS 6 there are – and lots of them. Facebook on iO6 will enable users to share photos, apps, and other content directly to your Facebook Timeline. Same as Twitter it can be integrated with the iOS Notification Center. Maps also integrates directly with Facebook, letting you send your location to the social network.
Apple has added to the iOS 6 Phone App. Instead of simply having to accept or decline a call, you can now reply with a iMessage or have your iPhone remind you to call back later. Now incoming calls can be dodged with an auto reply message via one swipe, and there’s a swipe up to get a reminder about it later. Smart reminders do things like tell you to carry out a phone-related action when leaving a location. Say you miss someone’s call, you can tell your handset to tell you to ring them when you leave home.
