Featured

IOS App Development Trends In 2020

IOS mobile platform is the second most popular operating system that possesses 25% of the global market share. This makes it a promising avenue for many businesses to explore and encourages many businesses to consider investing in iOS mobile application development

iOS never stops evolving and this fall 2020 we’re expecting the release of the iOS 14 operating system packed with features like improved Siri requests, AppClips for quick app reviews, digital car keys, and a lot more. Apple Inc. has always been supporting digital trends and technological advancements trying to fully integrate them into its products.

In this article, we review the iOS development trends and analyze which ones rule in 2020.

iBeacon

iBeacon is a fast-developing technology that helps many businesses to revolutionize their communication with their customers. It creates additional touchpoints brands use to advertise their products and provide personalized customer experience.

iBeacon uses a wireless transmitter that sends signals with Bluetooth technology on their customers’ devices when they pass near a shop or a certain location. Usually, these signals consist of push notifications or messages about new product lines or special discounts, making brands stand out and attract more customers. iBeacon is a promising technology for the service sector, especially for retail businesses.

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) provides the basis for many technological advancements such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, Robotics, Blockchain development, and others. It helps these technologies to analyze and process big volumes of raw data and make decisions based on this analysis.

AI is actively used for improving the business-customer relationship by providing customized recommendations based on a user’s content like AI-produced playlists in Apple Music, or chatbots for an improved customer experience available 24/7 like Starbucks Barista.

Market research firm Tractica states that AI will experience dramatic growth in the upcoming years, reaching its revenue of $126 billion by 2025, while in 2020 it’s market share estimates $23 billion.

AR and VR Integration

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (AR) are a popular tech trend for iOS developers. It goes beyond just the gaming sector and focuses on the development of real-time applications for various industries. For example, IKEA actively uses AR/VR technology by helping its customers to easily choose furniture for their homes and maps enhanced with AR facilitate map reading and navigation in a city.

Many iOS apps enhanced with AR and VR are built with the help of ArKit by Apple. ArKit is a well-equipped set of development tools that allows building standalone AR integrated iOS applications.

According to Statista, the AR tech market is growing right now and it’s expected to reach over $18 billion by 2023, while the VR market is expected to increase from $6.2 billion in 2019 to $16 billion in 2022.

Machine Learning

Apple Inc. launched its Core Machine Learning (CoreML) in 2017 and since then it’s been gaining popularity among iOS software developers. CoreML is a suite of tools that allows bringing Machine Learning (ML) models to iOS, making iOS apps smarter and highly responsive.

The examples of using ML on iOS are QuickType and Siri with improved language processing, or iOS camera that adjusts the frame automatically to the environment and allows one-touch intelligent photo editing. These core iOS features can be used to improve iOS-driven apps to a greater extent. For example, for better face identification purposes or integrated voice-search with Siri.

IoT Focused Apps

Another trend Apple focused its attention on is the Internet of Things (IoT). The company has developed a HomeKit framework that allows developers to interconnect and control accessories from various vendors, enabling them to exchange data. This way, HomeKit coordinates digital and mechanical devices in homes, providing a Smart Home experience or connecting wearable devices like wristwatches, smartphones, and others offering personalized iOS user experience.

HomeKit opens up a great opportunity for various companies to implement IoT for their business. For example, establishing controllable video security on business premises for improved security or for lighting control systems, and many others.

Swift 5 Programming Language

Apple has recently released its Swift 5 programming language with newly added features such as a stable Application Binary Interface (ABI) and binary compatibility. It means that new libraries will significantly facilitate the app development process for Apple devices. Undoubtedly, Apple will integrate Swift 5 in all its products. Though another outstanding benefit of Swift 5 is that now it’s easily reconciled with the Linux operating system.

Swift UI

Becoming more open for businesses, Apple has represented Swift UI to the development market. Swift UI is a set of tools that facilitates the creation of user interfaces for Apple platforms. Swift UI has a declarative syntax which means that your app code and design will be perfectly synchronized and work smoothly.

Besides that, it allows building cross-platform UI layers that can be easily implemented on iOS, macOS, watchOS, and TVOS platforms. Therefore, software developers now can study only the Swift UI framework to apply this knowledge over multiple devices. This results in faster development and a lower number of critical errors and blockers.

Privacy & Security

Privacy and Security are the trend that many users are most concerned about. This is particularly relevant as technologies penetrate deeper and deeper into our everyday lives. Therefore, Apple pays much attention to the security state of its devices. Apple constantly upgrades its security protocols and develops strict policies.

For example, each Apple device has a unique identifier (UID) that’s embedded into each phone’s hardware. These UIDs encrypt data by default, making it harder to breach, and iCloud services use end-to-end data encryption and use tokens authentication for secure access in the cloud.

Apple Pay – The Ultimate Mobile Wallet

Paying with a phone has become a new norm today. Therefore, there’s no surprise that online banking and eCommerce are the two industries that thrive. Every year the number of  mobile users willing to pay online is increasing.

Apple took care of its users’ finance and banking side and provided them with a Mobile Wallet app that has made the payment process quicker and smoother.

The Intelligent Siri

Virtual assistants are on the rise in 2020 and the number is only set to grow. Statista says that in 2019 there were 3.25 billion digital voice assistant units used around the world and in 2023 their number is expected to reach around 8 billion units, exceeding the world’s population.

Apple has been developing the technology of voice assistants for a while. Their unbeatable Siri has been keeping the leading positions among lots of voice assistants for years. Launched on iOS apps it’s spread among other Apple devices.

Summary

Apple Inc. is a company that treats each product with care. It invests large amounts of money into the development and implementation of the latest technologies in their devices. Therefore, if you choose to build your mobile application based on the iOS platform, you ensure that it’ll be a practical and secure solution with a high number of potential users. And the usage of iOS mobile app development trends in your application increases the chances of reaching these potential users, making your app more attractive to them.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *