We’ve already seen the details of iOS 11 and the Homepod at WWDC. But what about everything else? Here’s a look at the huge amount of software, hardware and other goodies Apple revealed at the conference.
Apple TV
A dam has broken in the streaming wars: After years of rivalry, Amazon is officially coming to Apple TV. That gives Apple a gigantic leg up in the continuing battle for set-top supremacy.
Apple Watch
Siri was a big part of the Apple Watch’s updates. A new Siri watch face is designed to make Apple Watch more independent and useful by arranging everything into easy-to-use cards. Yes, it’s a lot like Google Now, but the notifications look better and appear more efficient and useful. The device is also getting a smorgasmord of new designs, including a Kaleidoscope and Toy Story themed faces.
There are also some visual upgrades added to the activity app which basically gives you sparks when you close a ring, and, more relevantly, adds a new virtual coach that learns how you move and pushes you to up your activity accordingly. Yes, your watch can now tell you to stop being such a slug. It’ll also communicate with gym equipment, so you can know exactly how much weight you’re pushing and how many steps you’re walking.
MacOS High Sierra
Yes, MacOS has a new update, as is becoming a yearly tradition. Apple made the odd distinction that Safari is the world’s “fastest desktop browser,” a fairly big distinction since desktop viewing of the web has been declining. But Safari now automatically blocks auto-play ads, and it’s also going to use “machine learning” to find and block anybody tracking your web usage. Unless, of course, it’s Apple tracking your web usage, since they’ve also announced upgrades to Spotlight, their desktop search feature.
Apple Photos is getting a substantial image editing upgrade, which is good news for amateur photographers and pros who need to do quick adjustments on their laptop. Apple also quietly did away with thirty years of the same file storage method with a big new upgrade, which we freely admit only huge nerds with lots of files actually care about. It also has better system crash protection, which Apple declined to detail, and naturally, improved graphics. Apple is working with Steam, Unity, and Unreal to bring VR to Macs, which may be too little too late, but hey, worth the effort, right? You can also add an external graphics card with a Thunderbolt enclosure, although there’s still the question of, you know, game compatibility.
iMacs And The iMac Pro
Apple paired High Sierra news with the word that the iMacs were getting an upgrade. With twice the memory capacity, a Fusion drive now standard on all models, better displays, more advanced Intel processors, and substantial graphics upgrades, they’re substantially better. And yes, a lot of this is part of the VR push, which is an odd theme for Apple. They did show off a really neat Star Wars VR tool, though, so we mean, they’ve got that going for them, which is nice.
The big news was the iMac Pro, which Apple claims is the most powerful Mac it’s ever made. It’s definitely beefy, with processor options of up to 18 cores, heavy duty graphics firepower, loads of Thunderbolt ports, and lots of other bells and whistles. This is Apple making another bid for the high end PC market, considering it costs $5000. Apple claims an equivalent PC would cost $7000, but still, once you get into used car money for a computer, your audience is limited. We’ll see how limited in December.
MacBooks
Apple is refreshing the MacBooks and MacBook Pro with Kaby Lake processors and the MacBook Air is getting a boost as well, although an unspecified one. Those are shipping today.