Apple has released iOS 7 beta 5 yesterday, less than a week after beta 4. I guess developer site hacking incident did disrupt the release cycle. After a day of use, I can see that battery life remains good. But it seems less stable (as betas go) and I’m getting more crashes. There are more UI tweaks especially on the Settings app: icons are more colorful (but still flat). Less like Android Jelly Bean :P
iOS 7 beta 4
Apple has released iOS 7 beta 4. This one took 3 weeks. Either the developer site hacking incident disrupted the release or they’ve shifted to a longer release cycle as the beta stabilizes. It certainly looks like the latter to me. Stability and battery life were already good with the previous beta 3 and didn’t look like it changed much with beta 4. Most of the obvious changes were UI tweaks. Unfortunately they still haven’t fixed the Safari and Settings icons :P
At this rate, there’s probably going to be one or two more betas before the golden master and then the final around September or October… Along with the new iPhone. Or iPhones since a budget iPhone is rumored to be in the works.
iOS 7 beta 3
Apple has released iOS 7 beta 3 to developers. Looks like it’s gonna be a 2-week cycle. The most visible change is the system font: thicker and more readable. Most importantly, it’s much more stable now. Haven’t experienced a crash or reboot since installing yesterday. Good going Apple!
iOS 7 beta 2
Apple has released iOS 7 beta 2. It feels much snappier. But more importantly battery life has vastly improved. Used to last half a day. Now it can last the whole day. Apps are less stable and prone to crash though.
iOS 7 beta
- New Look – the biggest and most discussed change, the “flatter” interface; Skeumorphism is out, simple and modern is in. Reminds me of Android Jelly Bean and Windows Phone 8. Colors are generally flat and simple, icons and text are generally slim and crisp taking full advantage of the Retina display. Generally because the application is not consistent. Looks like the style guide is not yet in place.
- Notification Center – updated with today, all notifications, and missed notifications. And no, the today view is not something Google Now innovated :P Still no swipe to dismiss.
- Control Center – a pull up tab with quick access to system settings for Airplane Mode, WiFi, Bluetooth, Do Not Disturb Mode, Orientation Lock, and brightness. It also has the media player controls and shortcuts for some apps (flashlight, clock, calculator, and camera).
- Folders – animated unless it’s on the dock. Also folder now have multiple pages just like the home screen.
- Multitasking – improved process list with screen preview of process. You can swipe up on the previews to close apps. Supposedly, apps can actually run on the background when the phone is awake.
- Settings – fugly icon, new interface that reminds me of Android Jelly Bean
- Safari – fugly icon, new interface, smart address/search bar, tabs no longer limited to 8. You can swipe left to close tabs.
- Camera – new interface, swipe left and right to choose between video, camera, square (think Instagram complete with filters), and panorama.
- Photos – new interface, new filing system (years, collections, moments)
- Siri – enhanced capabilities such as adjusting system settings and new data sources
- Flickr and Vimeo Intgration – similar to Twitter and Facebook integration.
Overall, I like where iOS is heading. But this beta is the roughest (and most sluggish) one I’ve ever tried. That’s not a good sign.