Apple released the iPhone in 2007 and the operating system that powers the phone has not changed much since then. Well, things are faster now and there are more advanced features but the home screen and a lot of other elements are still the same.
In 2020, iOS would turn 13 years old and it’s very likely that not a lot will change next year either. Leaked Apple reports suggest that the company will focus on improving the quality of the software rather than releasing major new features. iOS 13 was a debacle as many people reported that their phones would not work normally and the same was the issue with iPadOS 13.
While there is nothing wrong with iOS sticking to the “tried and tested” home screen. It is fine and it works. People use it and they do not mind as they have gotten used to it. But what about bringing something fresh to the table? Well, without innovation things can turn stale and if some other company is able to bring something new to the table, then Apple can risk losing its iPhone customers.
Apple won the smartphone game as it was able to push the race by bringing feature sets that no other company could. The harmony between the software and the hardware truly helped the company make the best smartphone experience. However, the iPhone will soon be 13 years old and we are moving beyond the postPC era as the focus moves to the wearables.
If Apple wants the iPhone to stay relevant in the upcoming years, it has to make the software experience more like a service and not as a device. Google is already working on bringing a new operating system for the smartphone code-named Fuschia which from the leaks suggests a “content or service” driven approach.
