Apple's recent WWDC 2023 event delivered a tidal wave of fresh news and information regarding the company's new hardware, like the Apple Vision Pro, alongside upcoming software updates for operating systems like iOS 17. But unfortunately, not everything revealed at the showcase will be launching day one.
iOS 17 is set to launch sometime this fall, likely during September, as the company has been consistently releasing its huge new updates on that month for many years now. It's likely we'll have to wait a bit longer for certain features though, perhaps in the 17.1 update, which could launch sometime in October.
1. Apple Journal
You might think that the features being omitted at launch are small things that weren't discussed at WWDC 2023, but that's not that case. Perhaps the most shocking omission from the iOS 17 launch is going to be Apple's Journal, an application that received a considerable focus during WWDC 2023, and is perhaps one of the biggest additions coming to this update.
Journal is meant to remind users of "life's special moments," and the company will congregate their activity, music, photos, places they've been and people they've talked to into one app that is meant to inspire them to write. It utilizes machine learning to connect to other apps like Maps to see what big sights you've enjoyed recently, or people you've talked to through contacts. Even radio shows and fitness app can be curated into the application.
But unfortunately, this application won't be available at launch. Users will have to wait a bit longer than iOS 17's initial launch, but we do know that it'll come out later this year.
2. Internet AirDrop
AirDrop will be receiving several new updates with iOS 17, including the addition of NameDrop, but a key facet of this design will not be present at launch. During WWDC 2023, it was claimed that even if the user leaves AirDrop range while sharing something that's large (perhaps like tons of photos or a long video), it'll continue to send over the internet.
But it seems that Apple needs a bit more time to iron the kinks of this feature out, as it will not be available when iOS 17 launches this fall. While this isn't a big deal, and certainly can be lived without for a short period, don't be surprised if your AirDrop fails after walking away because you tried to send something huge.
3. Apple Music Collaborative Playlist
One Apple Music feature has been long-desired by users, with some even going so far as to utilize third-party apps that perform this task. Yes, iOS 17 will finally let multiple people edit, add and react to songs in a playlist. If I was throwing a party and decided that my closest friends could add songs to the playlist so we can play it in the background while we're hanging out, they can finally do so.
Alongside this, if we're trying to be a bit more selective about these music choices and not let certain songs we don't like slip through the cracks, each user can react to the songs on this playlist in different ways. By placing an emoji of your choice on a specific song, it will be visible to all other users. Unfortunately, this feature will need a bit more time, as it will not launch with the initial release of iOS 17.
