5 Things Not to Expect in iOS 18.0
We’re likely less than two weeks away from the public release of iOS 18.0. However, while that initial release will be chock full of new and exciting features, there are still a few big things Apple announced during its June Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) that we’ll likely be waiting a bit longer for.
With Apple’s Glowtime event scheduled for Monday, September 9, it’s a near-certainty that Apple will announce the release dates for at least iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and watchOS 11. If the company stays true to form, a Release Candidate (RC) version will be sent out to beta testers soon after, with a public release likely slated for the week of September 16.
However, this year, Apple took the unprecedented step of beginning an early parallel beta cycle for iOS 18.1. So far, those are only available as developer betas and are limited to devices that support Apple Intelligence — the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max (and equivalent M-chip powered iPads and Macs for iPadOS 18.1 and macOS Sequoia 15.1). We’ll likely see the iOS 18.1 beta program expand to other devices once iOS 18.0 is released, but it’s anybody’s guess when the final version of iOS 18.1 will come along.
When that does happen, iOS 18.1 will bring some of the features we’re waiting for, but others may be pushed to iOS 18.2 and beyond. Read on for five things that almost certainly won’t be coming in iOS 18.0.
Apple Intelligence
Perhaps the most game-changing feature for iOS 18 is one that few iPhone users will be able to take advantage of. Apple Intelligence is Apple’s version of the AI features that many of its rivals have been dipping their toes into for the past few years. However, because Apple is putting its own security and privacy spin on AI, device support will be very limited.
For iPhone users, Apple Intelligence will require an iPhone 15 Pro or later model. We expect the entire iPhone 16 lineup to support it, and likely even next year’s iPhone SE. In fact, it’s unlikely Apple will ever release another iPhone that doesn’t support its core AI features, but that doesn’t mean older devices aren’t being left out in the cold on this one.
So, unless you already have an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max or plan to buy the iPhone 16 when it launches next week, you won’t be missing much from iOS 18.0. However, those with supported devices will need to wait until iOS 18.1 lands before any Apple Intelligence features will be available.
Although we know that Apple Intelligence won’t be in iOS 18.0 at all, it’s hard to say right now which features we’ll even see in iOS 18.1. So far, the iOS 18.1 developer betas only include a few of the promised features, such as writing tools, summarization of messages, mail, and notifications, and, most recently, the Clean Up tool in Photos.
More exciting features like Genmoji and Image Playground have yet to arrive. It’s possible these could still appear in a later iOS 18.1 beta, but depending on when Apple plans to have iOS 18.1 ready for the public, these could be pushed off until at least iOS 18.2.
Lastly, regardless of which AI features we’re talking about, Apple only plans to have them available in US English for the initial release of Apple Intelligence. Apple is working on support for other languages but hasn’t said when that’s coming beyond “over the course of the year.”
ChatGPT Support
From the start, Apple said that support for handing off Siri requests to ChatGPT would come later, so it was never intended to make the cut for iOS 18.0.
There’s still no sign of it in the iOS 18.1 betas, and since it’s already slated to arrive behind other features, we’re guessing this means it’s more likely to show up in iOS 18.2 or even iOS 18.3. The good news is that Apple CEO Tim Cook has promised it will come by the end of 2024, but that could still mean December.
The good news is that you can still use the ChatGPT app in the meantime, and iOS 18 will make this even easier by letting you create a Vocal Shortcut to call it up. That’s a new accessibility feature that will be available in iOS 18.0 and on all supported iPhone models, too.
A Smarter Siri
If you were hoping that iOS 18 would make Siri smarter, you’re in for a bit of a wait. Apple hasn’t said much about when it will arrive, but reliable sources say that the most significant Siri improvements aren’t slated until early 2025.
That means they’ll most likely appear in the first iOS 18.4 betas, which are expected to land in early January. In that case, they won’t be publicly available until at least February.
While the new Siri UI should arrive as soon as iOS 18.1 and early developer betas show minor improvements in how Siri handles requests, the real “next-level” stuff that Apple showed off at WWDC is the personal context and on-screen awareness features. These allow Siri to act much more effectively like a personal assistant, ferreting out information from other apps and understanding what you’re asking about without explaining everything in detail. For example, if you ask Siri if you can make it to a family event after a meeting, it will be able to check your work calendar, find the event information in your email, and check travel times and predicted traffic between the office and the event and come back with an intelligent response.
Mail Categorization
Apple has also promised to improve the Mail app with on-device categorization to help organize your messages for you. This will work similarly to what Gmail and other webmail services have already been able to do for a while, except that it won’t rely on cloud-based algorithms — everything will happen on your iPhone.
For example, your most important emails will be sorted into a ”Primary” category while other things like receipts, newsletters, and marketing emails will get their own categories to keep them out of the way until you’re ready to deal with them.
This isn’t specifically an Apple Intelligence feature, so it should be available on all iPhone models supporting iOS 18. However, from the start, Apple said it would not be available until later this year. At this point, that’s probably iOS 18.2. Although Apple could surprise us and sneak it into a future iOS 18.1 beta, we’re guessing it has its hands full with Apple Intelligence right now.
Robot Vacuum Cleaner Support
Apple will be adding support for the core functionality of robot vacuum cleaners to HomeKit. This means you’ll be able to ask Siri to clean your floors, start your robot vacuum from the Home app, and even add it to automations and scenes so it can run automatically.
While it’s not coming until a later iOS 18 point release, we don’t imagine too many people will miss this one. There aren’t any HomeKit-compatible robot vacuums available yet, and only about four manufacturers support the Matter standard, and they’re not exactly mainstream. Even iRobot, which helped develop Matter for robot vacuums, has yet to announce its own Matter-compatible model.