Macworld
Every year, we are introduced to a new version of iOS (alongside Apple’s other operating systems) at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. It then marches through an extended beta-testing period before being released in September.
But all the new features don’t come with that initial release; many are planned to coming in updates 9 (iOS 19.1, 19.2, and so on) in the months following the big initial release.
While Apple hasn’t officially announced iOS 19, it has been hard at work on the big iPhone upgrade for quite a while and some rumors have started to leak out. It’s starting to look like iOS 19 will be a bigger change than we’re used to. Based on the most reliable leaks and rumors, here’s what you can expect when it arrives later this year.
Updated March 17, 2025: We now have a better picture of what to expect from iOS 19, and this guide has been updated throughout.
iOS 19: Release date
Apple typically released the latest version of iOS to the public on the Monday following the iPhone launch event. Here are the release dates for the most recent versions of iOS:
- iOS 18: Monday, September 16, 2024
- iOS 17: Monday, September 18, 2023
- iOS 16: Monday, September 12, 2022
- iOS 15: Monday, September 20, 2021
Based on recent history, we expect iOS 19 to release to the public on either Monday, September 15, or Monday, September 22.
iOS 19: New features
Major design overhaul
The headline feature of iOS 19 (and iPadOS 19, macOS 15, tvOS 19, watchOS 19…) is said to be a massive change to the user interface. We’re talking about the biggest change since iOS 7, when Apple dropped the skeuomorphic design in favor of flat symbolic icons, changed the lock screen, notifications, and more.
We don’t know what this new interface will look like or what interaction changes it will bring with it, but the rumors say it is loosely based on some of the concepts in the Vision Pro interface. New apps like Apple Invites and Apple Sports may give us some clues to the interface conventions we can expect, as they don’t have have interfaces that fit in with most of Apple’s older apps.
Apple
Siri delays and other Apple Intelligence features
Apple has been having trouble with some of it’s AI efforts, especially the Siri features that were supposed to come in iOS 18.4 (personal context, screen awareness, and in-app actions). These features have been pushed back until next year, which means they should come as an update to iOS 19 in early 2026. But there’s even some doubt that will happen.
A bigger Siri update, based on large language models (LLMs), that can hold natural conversations with the user, is now expected to come perhaps as part of iOS 20, where it was once thought to be an update to iOS 19.
So Siri will get new capabilities that we were supposed to have by now, and Apple is also said to be expanding the use of Apple Intelligence in more of its apps. We haven’t heard of specific examples, but Apple Intelligence could be used for things like Apple Music playlist generation, suggesting apps in the App Store, or in the Health and Fitness apps.
RCS 3.0
Apple’s current implantation of RCS (Rich Communication Services, used to offer more advanced texting features with Android users) is based on the GSMA Universal Profile version 2.4, which is a little dated. Version 2.7 came out last year, but hasn’t been implemented by Apple yet. It adds support for custom emoji reactions, editing editing and deleting messages, and improved spam handling. RCS 3.0 adds encryption for 1-to-1 messages.
Apple has announced support for end-to-end encrypted RCS messages on all it’s platforms “in future software updates,” so it is likely to add support for all the feature in RCS 2.7 and 3.0 in the iOS 19 cycle.
Home app upgrades
While not specifically mentioned in any of the current leaks or rumors, we find it hard to believe that Apple won’t have some significant improvements to the Home app, HomeKit, and related services in iOS 19.
Why? Well, Apple is expected to release a wave of new smart home products throughout 2025 and 2026. A new smart home hub is first: it’s rumored to be an affordable 7-inch tablet that runs a custom operating system (code-named Pebble). It will support Apple Intelligence, FaceTime, and tie in with other Apple services but isn’t expected to have an App Store.
After that, likely in 2026, Apple is said to be working on a new indoor smart security camera and a smart doorbell that would use Face ID to unlock your door the way it unlocks your phone. Further down the road, a smart home product with a movable screen on a robotic arm has been rumored, all of which will require deep integration with the iPhone and Home app.
The rumored “HomePad” was rumored to launch in the spring of 2025, but was delayed to the fall so it can have an interface that aligns with the big iOS 19 / macOS 15 interface changes. It’s hard to imagine Apple pushing a product like that into the market without some significant changes to the look and feel of the Home app.
Updated Camera app
Jon Prosser claims to have seen the Camera app in iOS 19, which is completely redesigned with a somewhat visionOS-inspired design. Options are condensed, the viewfinder takes up more space, and there’s lots of transparency.
Jon Prosser
AirPods live translation
One rumor from Mark Gurman at Bloomberg says iOS 19 is going to get “bolstered translation technology” and, as part of it a live translation feature for AirPods. The AirPods will need a firmware update as well, and it’s not clear which models will support the feature.
Your AirPods would send text to your iPhone where the foreign language would be recognized and translated in the Translate app (or the under-the-hood service that powers it), and translated audio sent back to your AirPods. Other earbuds have had similar features for years, so it will be interesting to see if Apple goes further or has superior functionality.
iOS 19: Beta
Every year, the new iOS is announced at WWDC with a beta test for developers released immediately (or at most, a day later). It often takes 4-6 weeks for the first public beta to be released, coinciding with the second or third build for developers. Apple releases the developer beta immediately after the WWDC keynote, which is expected to be on Monday, June 9.
- iOS 18: Monday, June 10, 2024
- iOS 17: Monday, June 5, 2023
- iOS 16: Monday, June 6, 2022
- iOS 15: Monday, June 7, 2021
What follows is a string of beta releases, typically eight or so in total, before the software releases in September. We expect the same schedule this year with iOS 19. You can get ready for the beta by signing up for the iOS beta program now.
iOS 19: Compatibility
We expect iOS 19 to be compatible with every iPhone that supports iOS 18. That includes:
- iPhone 16
- iPhone 16 Plus
- iPhone 16 Pro
- iPhone 16 Pro Max
- iPhone 15
- iPhone 15 Plus
- iPhone 15 Pro
- iPhone 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 14
- iPhone 14 Plus
- iPhone 14 Pro
- iPhone 14 Pro Max
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 mini
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 mini
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 11
- iPhone 11 Pro
- iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone XS
- iPhone XS Max
- iPhone XR
- iPhone SE (2nd generation)
Of course, it will also support the new iPhone 17 models that will launch around the same time, and the new iPhone 16e.
As always, some features won’t be available on older models, as they lack the hardware resources for it. We do think the Apple Intelligence and Siri improvements will be available for all iPhone 16 and later models, though.
Source : Macworld
