In the recently held WWDC 2016, Apple announced updates to all fours of its main operating systems: watchOS, tvOS, macOS, and iOS. The event was packed to the brim and we were bombarded with brand new iOS 10 features (and new features of the other OSes).
While we cannot wait to get our hands on all these updates, we are also a bit let down. As has been the case with every major update released over the past couple of years, there are some iOS 10 features that will NOT be available in India.
It’s sad, and so not fair, but there’s nothing we can do about it. Except maybe hope that we get to experience them in the next update.
Until such time, though, here’s what we’ll be missing out on —
Apple Maps
Apple Maps got some good upgrades. Of special mention is their integration with toll booths. However, it is still not optimised for India. Apple’s database is rudimentary when it comes to Indian cities. So those swanky demos you saw in the event are not gonna be available to us. Our advice? Just stick to Google Maps!
Apple Pay
Apple’s mobile payment technology has got the potential to be one of the best iOS 10 features. Unfortunately, we haven’t got the infrastructure needed to make it work here. We’d resigned ourselves to the idea of not getting Apple Pay anytime soon, but now it’s hurting us again because we’ll have to miss out on Apple Pay for Mac as well!!
Apple News
The News app has been completely redesigned from the ground up (following in the footsteps of Apple Music and iTunes). A lot more publications now support the app’s subscription model. However, the News available is not yet available in India. We’re hopeful that just like Apple Pay, Apple News will be coming to India soon enough.
Siri (Some Features)
Siri has gotten a lot smarter. The reason for that is not just an improved natural language algorithm, but also its deeper and more complete integration into iOS 10. However, some of its good features, like “Find things near me” (which will show you all the restaurants/theatres/public transport near your location) will not be available to us.
That’s again because of its dependence on Apple Maps to find that information, which by itself isn’t very reliable. We don’t know if Siri will integrate with Google Maps that well. If it does, great, otherwise we can kiss this feature goodbye as well!
HomeKit
Haha. Seriously!? Did you really expect to have a functional HomeKit? A feature so cool it turns your iPhone into Dumbledore’s Elder Wand? You just wave your phone around or mutter a few words, and your entire house transforms from a slumber party to a Dj club right in front of your eyes!
We crib about the high costs of just the iPhone. Imagine how much hue and cry we’d raise if we had to furnish an entire smart home. And do you have any idea how very data intensive a smart-home is? Let’s just say your 249 ka data recharge isn’t going to make the cut.
Bottom line is that it could well be over a decade before the general Indian population even starts thinking of this a feature worth using. Right now, it’s just science fiction.
Bonus rejection: Single Sign-on
Apple TV now eliminates the need for multiple sign-ins for different channels. Basically, for every channel you wanted to add to Apple TV, you had to go through the painstaking process of having to sign up each time.
Now, you can add all your channels by signing-in just once. Which is a relief, really, because have you ever tried typing on an Apple TV? It’s a torture!
But it isn’t going to be of much use to us because none of the channels here support Apple TV. Our choices with regard to online streaming right now consist of YouTube and Hotstar only.
Apple has been paying a lot of attention to India lately, however, when we see such awesome iOS 10 features missing, it makes us wonder if we’re really that special? We understand that it’s not a problem from Apple’s side, rather we are unable to supply the infrastructure to them. So it’s really upto our Government to move things along…
C’mon Modiji, give us some achche din already!
