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Three New iOS Features Expected for iPhones Later This Year

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Apple finally enabled Universal Control in the macOS 12.3 and iPadOS 15.4 betas seeded a few days ago, but there are still at least three other features expected to be added to iOS later this year, including support for driver's licenses in the Wallet app.

apple-wallet-drivers-license-feature.jpg

Below, we have listed new features that are planned for future iOS versions, along with a few features that are set to be expanded.

Driver's Licenses in Wallet App

Starting in "early 2022," residents of select U.S. states will be able to add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age.

Last year, Apple announced that Arizona and Georgia will be among the first states to support the feature and said that Connecticut, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Utah will follow. Other states like Colorado, Delaware, Florida, and Louisiana already offer their own digital ID apps and could work with Apple on Wallet app integration.

Apple said select TSA security checkpoints will be the first locations where ID cards in the Wallet app can be presented, followed by retailers and venues in the future.

Apple has yet to enable the feature in the first beta of iOS 15.4.

Square-Like Payments

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman recently reported that Apple has been working on a new feature that will turn the iPhone into a payments terminal without any additional hardware like the popular Square Reader. The feature would allow an iPhone to accept payments when another iPhone or credit card is tapped on the back of the device.

mobeewave-payment.jpeg

Gurman said Apple may begin rolling out the payments feature with a software update "in the coming months," suggesting that it could be an iOS 15 feature, but it is possible that the feature could be announced as part of iOS 16 at WWDC in June.

Apple Music Classical

Last year, Apple announced that it had acquired classical music streaming service Primephonic. As part of the announcement, Apple said it plans to launch a dedicated classical music app in 2022 that combines Primephonic's best features with additional features and benefits. The app will be available to Apple Music subscribers "later this year."

primephonic-app.jpeg

It's unclear if the Apple Music Classical app will be made available to Apple Music subscribers at no additional charge or if it will cost extra.

Feature Expansions

Apple recently announced that 3D Apple Maps will be available in the Canadian cities of Montréal, Toronto, and Vancouver later this year.

MacRumors also uncovered evidence that Hyundai's luxury brand Genesis is planning to support Apple's digital car key feature, which lets users lock, unlock, and start their vehicles using a pass stored in the Wallet app on the iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature has been limited to select BMW models since launching in 2020. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Genesis will likely roll out support for the feature by the summer.

Article Link: Three New iOS Features Expected for iPhones Later This Year
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2022/01/30/future-ios-features/
Phone based ID, hotel room keys, etc only really have value to me if phones start to see 3-5x their current battery life. You go out sightseeing for a day, taking photos and videos with your phone, and you can wind up back at the hotel with a dead or near dead phone. I've done it, and trudged back down to the desk to get a keycard. Fortunately, I had my actual ID with me to show them, or I'd have been asking for a phone charger so I could show them my ID.

It probably works a lot of the time, but not to the point that I'd stop carrying a key card or my ID because of my phone.
 
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Driver's license in Wallet App is going to be a wonderful feature - especially when you are traveling and have to go through the airport security (TSA) while showing your boarding pass. It'll be nice not to worry about carrying anything. It is all on your iPhone. I’m pretty in the future sure it’ll be implemented on an Apple Watch too.

I’m hoping Nevada gets put on the list soon for the digital ID app. It will make traveling so much easier in here, Las Vegas, NV.

Another great benefit: You never have to worry about your driver license/ID being stolen. 🤩
 
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If I got pulled over by a cop for a traffic violation, the very very last thing I’d want to do is pull out my iPhone in clear sight to do a NFC to NFC connection or even worse- a visual inspection.
Nothing good can come from bringing your iPhone into sight when being roused by a law enforcement officer
 
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TheYayAreaLiving ? said:
Driver's license in Wallet App is going to be a wonderful feature - especially when you are traveling and have to go through the airport security (TSA) while showing your boarding pass. It'll be nice not to worry about carrying anything. It is all on your iPhone. I’m pretty in the future sure it’ll be implemented on an Apple Watch too.

I’m hoping Nevada gets put on the list soon for the digital ID app. It will make traveling so much easier in here, Las Vegas, NV.

Another great benefit: You never have to worry about your driver license/ID being stolen. ?
Click to expand...
But...the problem with using the phone as ID is the possibility of getting the phone taken from you while it is unlocked, as when stopped by the police for speeding, etc. One option I thought of is to enable Guided Access when power button is triple pressed, so the phone will be locked on the Wallet app. Otherwise Apple must implement something like this for digital ID to be viable. I would be unwilling to risk having to hand over my whole phone even if it is locked on the ID because it is still an expensive and important device, but without the lock, I don't think I will use it in place of the regular ID.
 
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now i see it said:
If I got pulled over by a cop for a traffic violation, the very very last thing I’d want to do is pull out my iPhone in clear sight to do a NFC to NFC connection or even worse- a visual inspection.
Nothing good can come from bringing your iPhone into sight when being roused by a law enforcement officer
Click to expand...
In clear sight? Unless the wallpaper on your phone is a picture of you committing a crime, I'm struggling to see the issue here of your phone merely being visible.
 
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I used to think people who worried about this kind of thing being problematic were spending too much money on tin foil. However, my opinion has changed in the last few years. This is incredibly convenient at first. But there is a temptation to eventually make this mandatory. Either outright, or deliberately punishing those who do not get on board.

That ends up giving lots of arbitrary power over the individual. Government can cancel your ability, perhaps, to have a valid drivers' license with a simple switch. To get all the information they want from Apple. Is Apple complying now? No. But maybe they will.

I'd accept this ONLY if it were a neutral third party. Backed up by some kind of encryption with no single controlling entity. Anything else is just putting in place the functionality for totalitarian abuse. Which is already underway in China.
 
Böhme417 said:
In clear sight? Unless the wallpaper on your phone is a picture of you committing a crime, I'm struggling to see the issue here of your phone merely being visible.
Click to expand...
As I recall this will be implemented using something similar to Airline passes in the Wallet. Visible on a locked screen.
 
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yaaaaaaaaay. I get to wait on our state government to drag their feet on adopting new tech quality-of-life improvements.

And are TSA agents really going to be trained and expected to know which states adopt this standard, and which ones don't? Can they realistically be expected to? "Sorry, sir. I need to check to see if the ID on your phone is issued in a state that allows this sort of thing." 10 seconds x 500 throughout the day (more?) = 83.33 minutes added to the line because they're can't just be an across the board federal level acceptance of digital ID.

Other than that. It's really great that adding an ID to Wallet is becoming a thing :)
 
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Sir_Macs_A_Lot said:
I like the first two features. Interested to see how Apple will monetize a service for public domain music.
Click to expand...
The compositions are often (though not always, depending on when they were composed) public domain; the modern performances are not public domain, though. Hundreds of new classical recordings are released annually and make the performers and labels plenty of money.
 
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now i see it said:
If I got pulled over by a cop for a traffic violation, the very very last thing I’d want to do is pull out my iPhone in clear sight to do a NFC to NFC connection or even worse- a visual inspection.
Nothing good can come from bringing your iPhone into sight when being roused by a law enforcement officer
Click to expand...
Nothing personal, but there is nothing in my phone that would incriminate me in any way. Have at it.. nothing to see there.
 
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I can see the convenience of having my driver's license on my phone, but I would definitely want to have a physical driver's license card in addition to the digital phone one. I wonder if that's going to be possible? If not, I'll stick with the analog version.
 
I also would like to remind you of “Apple Pay Later” but I don’t know if that is still rumored.
 
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