With the traditional iTunes model rumored to be entering its final days in favor of a more brand-wide adoption of how such essentials are handled on iPhones and other devices, Apple boss Tim Cook and company had plenty to show off during Monday's Worldwide Developers Conference opening keynote address.
Among the reveals were a tour of fresh editions of iOS, WatchOS, and more. Some hardware-related announcements, as we've seen in the past, also took some spotlight time.
Catch the archived livestream of the San Jose Convention Center-set event here and/or click below.
For this particular bit of Apple pomp and circumstance, the proceedings were introduced with a black-and-white clip of various everyday creators utilizing Apple products while being soundtracked by the voice of Jack White.
From there, our guy Cook took the stage to welcome everyone to WWDC 2019. "We are so impaired by the millions of incredible Apple developers around the world. Your dreams . . . come across so clearly in the apps that you create, apps that enrich the lives of millions of people around the world," he said.
Cook then gave a rundown of all the announcements included in the brand's previous keynote, followed by a look at the space race drama series For All Mankind, an Apple TV original.
This trailer was a great bridge to Cook's next topic, multi-user functionality on tvOS. The feature will also include multi-user experiences for Music and Arcade apps. PlayStation DualShock 4 and Xbox One S compatability will also be introduced.
For Watch fans, tech VP Kevin Lynch—armed with a sick bird joke—announced Audiobooks, Voice Memos, and Calculator capabilities for the device. A new on-the-hour chime feature was also teased, hence the bird joke. The App Store is also making a proper debut on the device. Overall, it would appear that Apple is moving toward making the Watch a more standalone-capable device. The Watch will also come equipped with new colors of Sport Band and Sport Loop. Colors will include Dragon Fruit, Canary Yellow, and Cornflower.
WatchOS 6, meanwhile, will boast a fleet of fitness-related improvements. Activity Trends, for example, will allow for date-by-date comparisons in a user's activity level and a greater look at one's overall physical habits and how those habits fit into a larger health trend. A Noise app, helpfully, aims to help users avoid potentially hearing-damaging levels of loudness in the real world. A Cycle Tracking menstrual cycle feature will also be introduced. That feature will also be available for non-Watch devices.
Next, Cook took a dive into some iOS overhauls. After noting the 97 percent customer satisfaction level of the most recent iOS version, Cook took some indirect shots at "those other guys" with palpably lower rates.
iOS 13 marks a top-to-bottom effort aimed at speeding up all processes, including a boost in ID unlocks and overall performance. The new (and beautiful) Dark Mode, however, takes the cake among the iOS 13 highlights. A demonstration of Dark Mode, perhaps predictably, did indeed include a quick goth joke. Also, time-synced lyrics in Apple Music were shown off in the new dark-themed mode.
The Safari, Mail, and Notes apps will see their own share of updates. But the Reminders feature, as explained Monday, has been totally redesigned and will include in-message notifications among those tagged in a group reminder.
The Maps app will notably see its own overhaul, set to launch across the U.S. later this year with greater detail and more pinpointed location accuracy, as well as a fresh Favorites feature.
After some word on the new HomeKit-assisted routers and the Sign In With Apple feature, iOS 13's Messages updates were unveiled. The new Memoji Stickers feature gives you a packet of themed emoji for use across multiple apps and A9 (or later) devices.
The already stacked Camera modes, of course, will also see some boosts (and the addition of a new mode). Editing has also been improved, with tap-and-drag functionality easing the process. For video editing, you can now easily flip a clip and add an array of fresh filters. For those annoyed by the general clutter of their camera roll, Apple has improved its machine learning benefits to hide duplicates and better categorize within the Photos app.
Additional iOS updates will affect AirPods and HomePod users, including Audio Sharing and the addition of HandOff to the HomePod. A library of 100,000 radio stations, available on-demand, was also touted. For those utilizing CarPlay, 2019 brings a majorly redesigned edition of the on-the-go Apple assistant.
Noticeably absent from the prior presentations, the iPad then got a shot at taking center stage with the game-changing iPadOS. Home screen-pinned widgets, one-tap app switching, split-screen app capabilities, a new column view for Files, folder sharing via iCloud Drive, and thumb drive compatibility are among the highlights.
By Cook's promise, iPadOS will take the device to new heights. And with that promise, Cook turned the attention to the new Mac Pro. "It has a truly gorgeous design and remarkable performance to match," Cook said of the "most powerful" Mac (complete with stainless steel handles and optional wheels for transport) the team has ever created.
CPU-heavy users will be pleased, as the Mac Pro boasts 28-core Intel Xeon performance with 300 watts of power and up to 1.5 terabytes of system memory. Graphics performance, key for animators and appreciators alike, has been bumped up by way of integrating Thunderbolt throughout the system.
For those of us putting Apple's built-in music creation software to use, the new Mac Pro will ease the process of recording by allowing up to 1000 audio tracks and a 1000 software instruments in a Logic project. "It's a monster for running Logic," the team touted Monday.
Pro display-wise, we're looking at a jump to 32-inch 6K Retina with a 25 percent contrast boost. The new Mac Pro starts at $5999 and launches this fall. The Pro Display XDR, meanwhile, will be $4999.
Of course, with a leap in desktop experiences, the MacOS will also be getting some new features with the introduction of Catalina. Music, Podcasts, and TV apps will—as expected—virtually take the place of the combined iTunes experience. A new SideCar feature, which allows an iPad to act as a secondary display for your Mac, was also introduced.
All the software introduced today will be available to all users in the Fall.
