With the announcement and appending release of the new iPhone 5c, and iPhone 5s occurring today at Apple’s event, iOS 7 took the main stage just as much as some of the new hardware. The iPhone 5c seems to be a device that has been somewhat built around the software that it is going to be running. iOS 7 is an up to date, fresh and modern take on the skeuomorphic operating system we had all grown to know and love. With that being said, iOS 7 comes packed with a tirade of new, and incredibly useful features that are making the new upgrade a whole lot more tasty.
Roughly an hour after Tim Cook left the stage, iOS 7 GM download was seeded to registered Apple developers. If you’re unaware, a golden master (GM) software release is the one that is exactly same as the software that will be seeded to consumers. In this case, the software feels both familiar, as I’ve been using all of the betas up to this point, but finally ready for a consumer side version.
We’ve put together a video walkthrough of iOS 7 GM, where I’ve outlined all of the new features such as new wallpapers and ringtones included in this version, and how it actually feels to be using the public release version. That can be found below.
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Whilst I’ve thoroughly been enjoying iOS 7, there’s a certain aspect to it which still doesn’t feel quite right to me. Currently on the iPad version of the software, iOS 7 simply feels like a blown up version of the iPhone or iPod touch iteration. Whilst it definitely should feel like this to a certain extent, it’s important for Apple not to forget that an iPad actually has significantly more screen real estate than an iPhone. This means that whilst there should be a definite similarity between the interface on iPad and iPhone, there are certain aspects – like the multitasking screen – where the large screen size could be used more intelligently. Why not stick a more advanced toggling system there, or perhaps space for customized quick app launching?
Whatever iOS 7 is, it’s most certainly a step in the right direction. iOS was becoming frighteningly behind the times, and iOS 7 seems to have reconsolidated Apple back into the mobile space. It’s only a matter of time to see whether it will successfully save them from the constant onslaught that Android is presenting.
You can Download iOS 7 GM for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch from iOS Dev Center.
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