Apple revamps OS

Apple has reworked its mobile operating system iOS with its seventh iteration. The platform has had a major overhaul with a new look and feel, six years of after the first operating system was launched on the original iPhone.

Apple claims that iOS7 has a simpler interface and has introduced a new function called Control Center; a quick-settings menu reachable with a swipe up from the bottom of the screen.

The platform’s Notification Center has been redesigned, and features such as iTunes Radio, a Music application, AirDrop file-sharing between iOS devices, and audio-calling using FaceTime have been introduced.

However, Van Baker, VP and research director at Gartner, said that an overhaul of its mobile platform is only one of the steps Apple must take in order to remain in its dominant position in the mobile space.

“Apple needs to continue to advance the platforms, and eventually they will need to introduce a new product category that is well accepted by the market. This is their history and the more time that passes before this happens, the more that the industry will question Apple’s ability to innovate,” he said.

He added that Apple is facing a real challenge from Android, and Google will slowly gain additional share in the tablet market that will allow developers to make more money from the Android platform.

“So Apple needs to further cultivate developer relationships and make the interaction with the company as frictionless as possible. I also believe that Apple will need to open up more services to the developers, such as Siri, to generate additional innovation.”

Jan Dawson, chief telecoms analyst at Ovum, warned that as iOS7 is “almost unrecognisable” from previous iterations, some people will love it, while others will not.

“Finding your Settings app is hard when the icon has totally changed, and the many people who easily get disoriented by their gadgets may well have a negative experience,” he said. “On the other hand, this is a clear statement from Apple that it acknowledges the need to refresh the user interface and is willing to do something pretty dramatic. Many of the new features Apple added to iOS 7 are fixes to problems rather than dramatic or clever new ideas.”