iOS 18 brings support for call recording, RCS messaging, and more: Details

iOS 18 is the biggest platform update in the history of iPhone with changes spanning across system focusing on customisation, personalisation, and privacy

Apple has unveiled its upcoming platform update for iPhones, the iOS 18. Designed with intelligence at core, iOS 18 brings the biggest updates in the history of iPhone with changes spanning across systems focusing on customisation, personalisation, and privacy. Moreover, there are new apps and the existing native apps have been updated with new features. All of it and more are detailed below:

iOS 18: What is new

Apple Intelligence

On iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, iOS 18 brings support for Apple Intelligence, which is arriving in beta later this year. Apple said its intelligence draws on personal context to give insight that is most helpful and relevant.

The Apple Intelligence introduces new writing tools, allowing users to rewrite, proofread, and summarise texts in Mail, Notes, Pages, and even third-party apps. With Image Playground, which is integrated into apps like messages and more, users can choose and generate custom images based on three styles – Animation, Illustration, or Sketch. There is also Genmoji, which allows iPhone users to generate personalised emojis that are unique to them. There are also other AI tools that leverage Apple Intelligence such as the Clean Up tool in Photos that eliminates unwanted objects from pictures or Memories that lets users create stories by typing in a description.

There is a revamped Siri, powered by Apple Intelligence, coming later this year. In its new avatar, Siri would be capable of Natural Language Processing for understanding deeper context and the tone of the user’s command. It also gets deeper integration into the system with in-app function control and more.

As for the native apps, Messages and Phone have been updated with new features. Messages now supports RCS messaging and the option to schedule texts. Moreover, there are options available for formatting and text effects. Phone app has been updated with a new recording option, which announces that the call has been recorded to the person on the other side for privacy.

Here is a round-up of everything coming to iPhones with iOS 18

• Home Screen: Apps and widgets can now be relocated, and the home screen supports customisable colours and new app icons in dark mode.
• Control Centre: Introduces a new group of controls accessible with a swipe-up gesture, showing connected home devices and allowing for quick control customisation. Controls are also accessible from the lock screen, and the Action Button can invoke these controls.
• App Lock: Independent app locking, with hidden apps placed in a secure folder.
• Messages: Includes RCS messaging support, emoji and sticker tapbacks, scheduled messages, text formatting, integrated text effects, and satellite messaging for iPhone 14 and later models.
• Mail: On-device categorisation of emails into primary, transactions, updates, and promotions (coming later this year).
• Game mode: Mac’s game mode is coming to the iPhone.
• Photos: A comprehensive redesign simplifies accessing memories and organising photos, with built-in intelligence for creating collections.
• Audio: Siri supports gestures such as nodding, voice isolation for AirPods Pro, and personalised spatial audio for gaming, with "Need for Speed Mobile" as the first title to support this feature – coming later this year.