What’s Hot in iOS 17: A Tour of the New Features iOS 17

Good news for iPhone users (currently 1 billion)- You may now download Apple’s iOS 17, which significantly enhances the quality of life on your iPhone. This blog covers the new features iOS 17, so enjoy reading!

iOS 17 is the seventeenth major edition of Apple’s iOS operating system for the iPhone. It is the immediate replacement for iOS 16, which was made available a year earlier. At Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference on June 5, 2023, it was unveiled alongside watchOS 10, iPadOS 17, and macOS Sonoma. On September 18, 2023, a free software update for compatible iOS devices was made available.

Look at all the versions of iOS 17 released till now in the below table.

iOS Version 17 Releases

Versions	Release Date	What’s New?
17.0	September 18, 2023	Updates to phone, messages & facetime
17.0.1	September 21, 2023	Bug fixes & security updates
17.0.2	September 26, 2023	Resolves a potential bug that could prohibit data transfer
17.0.3	October 4, 2023	Bug fixes, security updates, resolve IPhone warmer issues
17.1	October 25, 2023	xAbility for Airdrop transfers
17.1.1	November 7, 2023	Bug fixes
17.1.2	November 30, 2023	Security fixes
17.2	December 11, 2023	Introduces Journal

You can easily install iOS 17 on any Apple smartphone, from 2018’s iPhone XS or newer. iPadOS 17 may be installed on any tablet, including the 2017 iPad Pro 10.5in, 2018 iPad (6th generation), and newer.

Like previous iOS versions, this new version introduces additional features and the Journal app. The new features iOS 17 aimed to improve the quality of life across all built-in Apple applications and iPhone mobile user interfaces. Compared to the iOS 16 upgrade, it is far superior in terms of stability, customization, collaboration, and dependability.

With the most recent iOS upgrade, your iPhone’s Phone App, Safari, FaceTime, Messages, and many other features have been improved, which will completely change the way you use your phone.

Let’s examine this iPhone makeover powered by new iOS 17 features without further ado.

Comprehensive Overview of New Features of iOS 17

As a leading mobile app development company, we have closely reviewed all the new features of iOS 17. Let’s cover the most anticipated features of the recently released iOS 17 operating system, which are enumerated below.

• Fresh Contact Posters

With iOS 16, we were able to customize our lock screens last year. This year, iOS 17 includes a similar update to improve the visual appeal of your iPhone’s contact cards.

The Contact Poster update is one of the amazing new features of iOS 17. When you place a call to someone, contact posters with your photo, text, and customizable colors appear on their phone and in their contacts app, giving you complete control over how you appear. These contact posters are accessible through phone apps and third-party app.

Check out how to add and edit your photo and poster.

You can select your own photo or use an Emoji, Memoji, or monogram. You can also change the chosen poster’s text, color, and other background elements.

• A New Journal App

iOS 17.2 includes a new app called Journal that makes it simple to develop journaling habits. These new features of iOS make it easier for you to record and recall significant life events. It provide customized journaling recommendations based on your images, music, workouts, and more. The journal is private, and only you have access to it.

You may also create goals and include images, music, and audio files with your journal entries. According to Apple, the Journal leverages machine learning on-device to recommend moments throughout your day for writing.

Here, you get started with Journal.

• Namedrop with AirDrop

The modern AirDrop function NameDrop makes it simple to share your phone number or email address with others. By only bringing their iPhone handsets together, users may exchange contact details, including their Contact Poster.

The iOS 17 release offers a redesigned method for sharing content with those in close proximity. Simply bring your phones close to one another, and AirDrop will begin to share content. For example, get two iPhones close to each other to activate SharePlay, allowing you to play music, movies, or games together to enjoy yourself with your own gadgets.

• Messages and FaceTime Upgrade

When someone doesn’t answer your FaceTime call, users can now leave them a voice or video message using these new features iOS 17. Moreover, you are able to have funny things like hearts, confetti, and fireworks appear on the screen with hand movements while on a FaceTime chat. Additionally, you can alternate FaceTime calls between your Apple TV and iPhone, just like switching from one gadget to another while on a call.

FaceTime is now also compatible with Apple TV 4K with a continuity camera feature that lets users initiate a FaceTime call on the TV or transfer an ongoing FaceTime chat from their iPhone to the TV,

According to Apple, message search has been improved, allowing you to respond inline by swiping on a text bubble. Apple users can let people know when they arrive at their destination using the check-in feature in Messages.

According to Apple, if users are not progressing toward their destination, the selected contacts can obtain information about the device’s position, battery life, and cell service status. This data is end-to-end encrypted, according to Apple. In an iMessage chat, you may access this option by pressing the “+” sign. Then, touch More until you see Check-In.

• All Messaging Tools in One Place

Another intriguing new feature of iOS 17 is having all your favorite messaging apps in one location for smoother conversation. Apple made aesthetic updates to the Messages app. When you hit the new + icon next to the text field, your most often-used applications appear as a vertical list. You may expand your list of apps by tapping the “More” button at the bottom. To view the scrollable list of apps, simply press it.

• Batch Edit Photos

You can now batch-edit a large number of images and videos in one go if you want your vacation shots to all look the same.

Let’s see how to do it

• Open a picture in your Photos app
• Select Edit to accomplish this.
• After making the desired adjustments, save the picture.
• Click the three dots in the upper right corner
• Select Copy Edits
• Select the next picture
• Tap the three dots
• Select Paste Edits.

After copying modifications, you can paste any number of photos, instantly giving a group of images a unified appearance.

For further information read this Guide.

• Live Voicemail and voice note transcription

Another one of the amazing new features iOS 17 is receiving voicemails which is now automatically transcribed into text and show up on your iPhone lock screen.

With this feature, you can leave a voicemail for the caller straight if you don’t answer the phone. The voicemail message is also available for reading in real-time transcription. You can, therefore, decide to answer the call if necessary if you notice that it is a delivery person.

With your privacy in mind, the feature is driven by the neural engine on your iPhone. On Google Pixel phones, Live Voicemail looks just like Call Screen.

See how to turn on voicemail.

• Sticker Mania

Creating memes and personalized stickers is now possible with Sticker Mania, a new feature of iOS 17. This incredible new tool allows you to make and save your own meme-worthy stickers, resize stickers from the emoji keyboard, create Live stickers from Live pictures, and even add special effects like borders and colors. You can also respond with a sticker to individual message bubbles in iOS 17.2.

• StandBy Mode

One of the biggest new features iOS 17 is for when your iPhone isn’t in your hand. When you flip your phone horizontally during the charging process, it switches to the new StandBy Mode.

When the iPhone is turned landscape while charging, the new Standby mode allows it to transform into an incredibly small smart display that shows the clock, widgets, photographs, and other information at a glance, including Siri interactions. When using Apple’s voice assistant, a new option eliminates the “hey” from “hey Siri.” This allows the assistant to process consecutive requests without requiring the user to repeat “Siri” each time.

Apple claims that StandBy looks great on a kitchen counter, workplace, or nightstand. It can be customized to show various clock faces, cherished images, or widgets, such as Smart Stacks, which surface the appropriate widgets at the right time. StandBy additionally shows larger notifications, incoming calls, and full-screen Live Activities.

Leading mobile app development companies believe that StandBy Mode is a brilliant method to make your iPhone useful. But it only works with iPhones with always-on displays (i.e., the iPhone 14 Pro, 14 Pro Max, 15 Pro, or 15 Pro Max), and it is more convenient to use when the phone is installed on a MagSafe dock.

• Updated Phone App call screen

Apple updated the entire phone call screen layout and included many new features of iOS 17 to make communication more engaging and enjoyable.

Checkout the below image; iOS 16’s phone app call screen is on the left, and iOS 17’s is on the right

The above image shows that a 3 × 3 grid has been created by combining all the buttons. The buttons’ locations have been changed, and the grid has been moved to the bottom of the screen.

The modifications are as follows:

• The End Call button is now positioned between the Add and Keypad buttons in the bottom row.
• FaceTime is in the center of the upper row.
• The phone app call screen no longer has the Contacts button.
• The Speaker and Mute buttons are now in opposite positions on the top row.
• The Keypad is now located at the right edge of the screen.
• Though redesigned, the Add user button is still in its old location.

With these modifications, users should find it simpler to use the calling interface and avoid inadvertently inviting others into their calls.

• Autocorrect is getting a ‘ducking’ improvement

The new features of iOS 17 include a comprehensive update to Autocorrection. A “transformer language mode” is now used by Autocorrect to improve word prediction. More grammar errors are corrected than ever before, and similar to Gmail’s Smart Compose, you can get predictive text recommendations as you type (you may turn this function off with iOS 17.2). These upgrades also include voice dictation, which reportedly uses a new speech recognition model for better accuracy.

• New Communication Safety Features

With iOS 17, Apple’s Communication Safety feature has been extended, which helps shield children from seeing adult content. These safeguards are now available with other iOS services and applications, such as AirDrop, Contact Posters, FaceTime messaging, and Live Stickers. It also functions with video files. Upgrades to Lockdown Mode contribute to defense against advanced cyberattacks.

Learn how to turn off sensitive content warning.

• iMessage Contact Key Verification

It’s a helpful new feature of iOS 17 if you’re a high-profile person who confronts unusual threats (like a government official or a journalist). To ensure your texts reach the intended recipient, utilize iMessage Contact Key Verification.

This feature has now been released, while Apple first revealed it last year. You can use Contact Key Verification to confirm the identity of the person you’re messaging to prevent communicating with someone posing as a friend or relative. To ensure that the codes match, users can cross-reference the Contact Verification Code they get with the person they are texting.

• Interactive Chat with Custom Stickers

One of the exciting new iOS 17 features is the Sticker Draw. In this new feature of iOS 17 you may access live stickers with words, emojis, and other items connected to current market trends in one location. You may access these stickers from anywhere on your smartphone using an emoji keyboard.

To use this feature, open a chat with someone, hit ➕ Stickers, drag a sticker onto the conversation, and send to utilize the Message app’s stickers.

• Interactive widgets

Although widgets have long been a favorite among iPhone users, Apple is now enhancing their usefulness by enabling custom mobile application developers to create widgets that you can interact with in an easy manner.

Widgets are a crucial topic to discuss when discussing the new features iOS 17. Widgets have changed, becoming more interactive and informative. This gives you more customization options because you can now put them wherever on your home screen.

Some of the lock screen and home screen widgets from the tech giant have already been updated. For instance, a recently released Home widget eliminates the need for an additional smart home app, or voice commands from Siri for controlling home accessories like door locks or blinds with a single swipe.

See how to add, edit, and remove widgets on iPhone.

• Enhanced AutoFill for PDFs

If you work with PDFs on a regular basis, you will be thrilled to use this tool. In addition to allowing, you to add details rapidly, the software employs machine learning to detect the fields in a PDF. Using the Notes app, you can now organize, read, annotate, and collaborate on PDFs.

• Transcribed Audio Messages

There is now more than just audio messaging to choose from. When you get a voice message on iOS 17, you’ll see an automatic text transcription below it. With these new iOS 17 features, audio sending is simple. Now, you can record an audio message, pause it, and return to it later.

Moreover, your device will automatically translate audio messages into text. This can be rather useful because it means that the spoken words in the audio message will be translated into written text.

In addition, as the recipient, you don’t have to keep the app open to hear incoming audio messages. Even if you exit the app, you can still listen to them.

• Apple Music

Users of iOS 17 can now collaborate on playlist creation with friends and family thanks to this new feature. You can add, remove, or alter the songs’ order and use emojis to respond to songs.

You can now add “favorite” albums and playlists in addition to songs. After that, you’ll be able to sort those favorites by category. Any song your “favorite” on iOS 17.2 will also be included in a Favorites playlist. Additionally, a new Focus Filter that automatically disables Listening History is available.

Other enhancements of the music app include a seamless cross-fading effect between tracks, an animated artwork interface, song credits, a new hovering style, and larger, more readable lyrics.

• Health Improvement

The iPhone’s health app now includes mental health capabilities that allow you to monitor your mood over time and track your daily emotions. You can take note of your mood and its root cause. Assessments for anxiety and depression are also available to see whether you could be at risk.

Additionally, a Screen Distance tool is available if you utilize Apple’s Screen Time program with your kids. This tool uses the TrueDepth camera to encourage youngsters to walk away from their phone if they hold it closer than 12 inches from their face for an extended amount of time.

Explore how to Log your state of mind in Health on iPhone.

How to make a mental health assessment in Health on iPhone.

• Adaptive Audio

The second-generation AirPods Pro has a brand-new listening mode-” Adaptive Audio. This combines Active Noise Cancellation with Apple’s Transparency mode to let you hear critical sounds while blocking out unwanted ones. Conversation Awareness will automatically eliminate background noise, turn down the media volume, and amplify the voices in front of you as soon as you start conversing.

• Offline maps

Are you planning to cut down on battery life or travel somewhere without service? You can download Apple Maps for offline use with iOS 17. Isn’t it among the great new features of iOS 17?

Apple has finally caught up to Google Maps, which has had it for years. Apple added the capability to download maps for offline use in iOS 17. A specified map area can be saved and used offline without internet access. Turn-by-turn directions are still available even without cellular service, and this cached map keeps information such as business hours and ratings. If you drive an electric car, you can now see the availability of charging stations on Maps.

• More Accessibility

The new iOS 17 features also include web accessibility best practices. According to Apple, iOS 17’s new accessibility features include a customizable assisted access interface for people with cognitive difficulties. The personal voice feature allows users who may be at risk of speech loss to create a voice that sounds like them. The point and speak feature is focused on assisting individuals with limited vision or blindness in reading text on tangible items.

Word From Author

The most recent iteration of Apple’s iPhone operating system, iOS 17, has been published. According to leading mobile app development companies, iOS 17’s significant communication app enhancements make the iPhone easier to use and make it more personalized. Among the new features of iOS 17, notable ones are StandBy, which offers an alternative way to use the iPhone while it is charging; AirDrop, which makes sharing files easier; and more intelligent input, which enhances typing accuracy and speed.

In addition to more general enhancements to messages and typing, Apple has persisted in advancing accessibility capabilities. However, we are now awaiting the journaling app and a few other features. Nevertheless, there are enough noteworthy new features iOS 17 this year to keep your iPhone updated with new features, and no need to invest in new hardware.

Learn to download iOS 17 in easy steps.

FAQs

1. What is the difference between iOS 16 and 17?

iOS 16 is the current iPhone operating system, while iOS 17 is a newer version. It offers improvements like better widgets and voicemail transcription, while iOS 16 focuses on lockscreen customization and message editing.

2. Will iOS 17 have third-party apps?

It depends on your location. With iOS 17.4, Apple began allowing third-party app stores for iPhones in the European Union (EU). This means users can download apps from sources other than the official App Store. You might need to contact the official support for other regions and wait for a formal announcement.

3. Is it okay to upgrade from iOS 16 to 17?

Upgrading to any new OS is always beneficial for enjoying new features and security updates. iOS 17 has exciting additions like better widgets and voicemail transcription. So, if you prefer using the latest features, upgrading is crucial. However, if you feel that a new update will slow down your iPhone, it is better to wait a while and observe any widespread issues.