On September 18th, 2013, the new Apple operating system, iOS 7 was released. The new operating system was downloaded by a whopping 200 million Apple users. The new system was redesigned for a completely different look and feel, including many changes to the look of the apps, iMessage, and iPhoto.
Apple announced their debut of the new operating system at an Apple Worldwide Developers Conference on June 10th, 2013, saying that iOS 7 would be available sometime this fall. The new update has been one of the biggest changes to the iPhone since it came out in June of 2007. Some of the many changes include different styled apps, a cleaner messaging outlook, and a huge improvement to taking pictures.
Apps
The apps on iOS 7 have been completely restructured. Now, instead of having a duller, typical look, they have a fresher look and feel to them. Personally, one of the best apps that has been updated has definitely has to be iTunes. Not only was there an exterior change to the app itself, but now instead of it just containing music, iTunes has now added an iTunes Radio. It works similar to its “sister app” Pandora, where you stream different stations of different artist to play your desired genres. Another interesting change was the Weather app. I enjoy the change simply because it has little details that make it look fresher—now instead of showing a miniscule picture of the weather next to each day, the entire background of the app is whatever the weather is rain, snow, sun.
Messaging
Messaging has also changed drastically. Instead of the original, more “bubble-like” design, messaging has now changed to a more “Android” look and feel. It looks un-original, and inefficient. Thousands of people have been experiencing many issues with messaging after downloading iOS 7, such as having to resend the same text multiple times because it wouldn’t go through. This is definitely one of the major downfalls of iOS 7.
Photos
Photos and the new iOS 7 Camera are one of the biggest changes to the iOS 7 operating system. Not only has the interior design changed, but now you can choose to take different style photos. This includes the option of taking a photo with a normal setting, noir, tonal, mono, fade, chrome, process, transfer and instant. You can also take a photo in panoramic or square view. This is definitely a plus to the iOS 7 update, because it allows iPhone users to edit their photos to enhance their quality.
Ranking
If you look online, there are many mixed feelings toward the new iOS 7 update. Some reviews say it’s great, some, not so great. If I had to personally rate this update on a scale from 1-10 I would rate it a 7. There are slight bugs that can happen, battery life has downgraded and certain apps aren’t tasteful to all, but overall the system seems pretty good. I would recommend it to iPhone users who are tired of their old system and want a fresh look. If you find iOS 6 suitable, I would say definitely keep it.
