Apple released the iOS 13 beta to developers back in June, and I’ve been running it on my daily phone ever since. Surprisingly, it’s been one of the most stable betas I’ve used. The bugs have been minimal enough that they’re hard to notice.
More importantly, this feels like one of the biggest iPhone upgrades in years. I wouldn’t go back. I’d honestly give up a jailbreak for this one.
dark mode — We’ve been begging Apple for this forever, and somehow it was actually worth the wait. It looks even better than I expected. Mine automatically switches between light and dark at sunrise and sunset.
volume indicator — The giant volume box that used to cover the middle of the screen is finally gone. Apple moved it off to the side, and it’s wildly fun to adjust the volume just to watch it.
swipe keyboard — Apple finally added swipe typing. It was pretty inaccurate in the first beta, but it’s gotten noticeably better with every update.
iMessage profiles — You can finally choose the name and photo that appear on other people’s phones. I love this idea and wish Apple would take it even further, almost like a tiny profile showing what you’re currently listening to, watching or reading.
Reminders — Finally redesigned. It’s cleaner, colorful and actually fun to use now.
Maps — Look Around already feels better than Google Street View. I’ve compared the difference to replacing a ’97 pickup with a ’19 Tesla. Google Maps feels slow and sluggish by comparison; Apple Maps just feels smooth.
Find My — Find My Friends and Find My iPhone are finally becoming one app. There’s also apparently a new tag section coming that will let you attach a tracker to basically anything, similar to Tile.
Photos — Looking back through photos feels much better now. Search and categories seem noticeably more accurate, too.
CarPlay — The redesign looks great. The new home screen can show your map, music and other useful information together instead of making you bounce between everything.