10 Things Apple Needs to Do Next
Credit: Washington Post
It’s easy to say what Apple should or shouldn’t do, but that doesn’t mean it’s that simple. Apple’s a huge company with plenty of goals and ideas. But, that doesn’t stop us nerds from dreaming.
The iPhone was ahead of its time, Siri helped save voice control from extinction, and iPad showed us it was more than just a funny name. We don’t know for sure whether Apple has something revolutionary in store, but here are just a few simple ideas that could make the company and its offerings a little better. Continue reading to learn 10 Things Apple Needs to Do Next.
Send Siri Back to School
When Siri first launched it felt like voice control was finally getting an upgrade. It did at first, but then it started moving slower. And slower. Now, it seems like many other virtual assistants are giving Siri a run for its money. It’s time Siri hit the books.
Call Screening
With so much number spoofing and scams going on it would really be nice if Siri could make itself useful. Acting as an answering service, Siri could screen unknown calls, ask them what they need, and have them hold while it lets you know who’s calling.
Voice Recognition
Being able to recognize you from someone else would make Siri far more useful. It could limit sensitive information (or all information) when someone other than you attempts to ask questions. Additionally, it would make Siri on Apple TV and HomePod more versatile.
Contextual Responses and Memory
Siri seems to get lost in conversation. If it could remember more about what you’ve said in the past and what you’re saying now, it might be able to provide better responses.
Offline Commands
Siri can put your phone into Airplane Mode, but it can’t hear you after that. Your iPhone has built-in voice control, Apple could leverage that to give Siri some basic commands when you’re offline.
And More
There’s so much more Apple can do on this front. Make Siri aware of emergencies (like when you fall and you’re wearing an Apple Watch Series 4), give her a more natural voice (they’ve tried, but Alexa can still sing and whisper), and add the ability to call businesses and book appointments (Google’s making some headway here).
Take HomePod to the Next Level
One issue with the HomePod is the lack of control and customizability that’s available. Basically, you can talk to it, control your music, control your lights, and really that’s about it. That’s fine and all, but even Apple Watch has a handy-dandy app to make configuring it a little easier.
A HomePod app would help keep all the controls and functionality in one less confusing place. Even just adding a little more control in the Home app would be nice.
Whether Apple decides to add controls to the Home app, create a standalone app, or all of the above, any extra control is welcome.
Right now when you open the HomePod control in the Home app, all you see is “alarms” and “settings.” You can’t control music playback (this is done in AirPlay) and the settings are pretty limited. Of course, they're mostly limited by functionality.
Additional Functionality
That limited functionality is what makes this $300 speaker, just a speaker with a side of Siri. It could be the ultimate Alexa killer, and maybe the most awesome wireless speaker ever, but this minimalist approach to usability makes it fall short.
Apple should consider adding the ability to recognize different voices and to dynamically adjust Siri’s volume to the noise in the room and the volume of your voice (hell, even Alexa has a creepy whisper mode). Even just being able to set Siri’s volume different than the music playback volume would be welcome.
Apple TV control, notifications options, and third-party integrations would all be welcome as well.
HomePod mini
Of course, Apple claims HomePod isn’t really meant to be a virtual assistant on your desk. I don’t know if I buy that, but either way, I think a lot of us want one. A smaller HomePod geared at Siri requests would be a fantastic addition.
Fix Continuity and Handoff
Let’s briefly touch on this. Handoff and Continuity are smart features. If you’re not sure what they are, it’s essentially the ability to seamlessly move between Apple devices. Copy on one device, paste on another.
Open a Web page on one device, access it on another. Start an email on one
While it’s a great idea, it’s poorly executed. It doesn’t always work and is limited to very specific apps. This is one feature that could be (and should be) vastly improved.
Add a Streamable Family Movie Library
If you use family sharing you know you can share apps and media. Unfortunately, it’s not very streamlined. This becomes even worse for families who purchase movies. Your spouse doesn’t want to purchase their own and you’re probably not going to curate a separate library for your kids.
Apple lets families download movies purchased by all members of the family; but, there’s a catch: they don’t show up in the movie library unless downloaded. This means the main account holder can see and stream all the movies, but everyone else must download them.
Furthermore, if you marry someone with an existing library, you must switch between libraries (not as easy as it sounds) when using Apple TV to find movies. If the switching can’t be helped, at least make it easy and add it to iOS devices, please.
Add a Live TV Guide to Apple TV
Speaking of movies and Apple TVs, Apple TV makes it easy for users to cut the cord. What could make it even better is if Apple incorporated a standard live-TV guide to the Apple
CarKit
HomeKit helped make the smart home a reality, especially for users invested in the Apple ecosystem. But the car is still a separate story. CarPlay helps bring some functionality of your iOS device to your vehicle, but it falls short of integrating your car’s features with iOS.
While most automakers offer apps, most of them aren’t very good. By adding a CarKit API, car makers would be able to give you more control of your vehicles. Apple could offer a Car app that keeps all of that control in one place.
Remote Control
Being able to start your car, unlock or lock its doors, sound the alarm, and more are all great and available in many automakers’ apps. Being able to ask Siri, create automations, and more, would be even better. “Hey Siri, start my F-150” or “Hey Siri, unlock the Mercedes” could be phrases we all use in the future.
Status Report
Checking vehicle charge levels, fuel levels, warnings, tire pressure, and more. Being able to do this for every vehicle in one app—regardless of make or model—would be awesome. You could even receive notifications when something is wrong.
Again, many app makers already do this, but integrating to iOS would make for a better experience, and add functionality like Siri and Shortcuts.
Geolocation
Using your car’s GPS, CarKit could let you find your vehicle, be notified if it’s moved while in valet-mode, create boundaries for teenagers, and trigger HomeKit automations based on location.
Bring FaceTime and iMessage to the Masses
This will probably never happen, especially because these are features that help retain iOS users. But adding FaceTime to Android and Windows would be awesome for business meetings and iMessage on Android would be like giving a glass of ice water to a person in hell.
Put iWork on Windows
Another thing that probably won’t happen. Apple’s Pages, Numbers, and Keynote apps are all available via Web browser, but standalone apps would be awesome.
Believe it or not, iWork is a worthy competitor to Microsoft Office and Google Docs, but no one uses it, making it less compatible for so many people. Oh yeah, it’s also free.
Drop the Prices
Apple’s not keen on low prices. But, don’t tell them that. They argue you can buy Mac mini or iPhone SE. While this is true, it seems some Apple products are still too far up there. I’m not saying they need to drop prices a ton, but they need to find their way out of the clouds. Almost $1,500 for a fully-loaded iPhone just doesn’t seem right.
Squash More Bugs
This one really doesn’t need explaining. Apple’s grown quickly and had to find ways to scale quickly. In all of the hullabaloo, they seem to have lost their pesticide. It seems like each year we hear they’re focusing on improving the user experience rather than introducing new products, and each year it seems like they may have missed the mark. iOS 12 was a vast improvement, however, it still launched with plenty of bugs. Come on Apple, get your head in the game.
Overall, Apple’s Going to do Apple.
Apple doesn’t need to take anyone’s advice. They’re going to do their own thing and they have a multitude of smart, capable minds hanging out in their spaceship. That being said, it’s always fun to share a few thoughts on what we think they should do next.
What are your thoughts? What does Apple have