Apple announces iOS 17 with new Journal app, better autocorrect

San Francisco, June 6 (IANS) Apple has announced a new OS (operating system) version for iPhone users 'iOS 17', which includes a new Journal app, more accurate autocorrect, a new display mode for your nightstand, and more.

The new iOS 17 release also upgrades the communications experience across Phone, FaceTime, and Messages, makes sharing even easier with AirDrop, and provides more intelligent input that improves the speed and accuracy of typing.

"With iOS 17, we've made the iPhone more personal and intuitive by deeply considering the features we all rely on every day," Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of Software Engineering, said in a statement.

Journal is a new app that helps iPhone users reflect and practice gratitude through journaling, which has been shown to improve well-being. Using on-device machine learning, personalised suggestions can be provided to help inspire a user's journal entry.

Journal is built to protect a user's privacy and ensure no one -- including Apple -- can access a user's entries, with the ability to lock the app, on-device processing, and end-to-end encryption.

Moreover, autocorrect has received a comprehensive update with a transformer language model, a state-of-the-art on-device machine learning language model for word prediction, improving the experience and accuracy for users every time they type.

It also receives a refreshed design to better support typing, and sentence-level autocorrections can fix more types of grammatical mistakes.

Further, the company introduced StandBy with iOS 17, which will give users a full-screen experience with glanceable information designed to be viewed from a distance when the iPhone is on its side and charging.

StandBy is perfect on a nightstand, kitchen counter, or desk, and can be personalised to display a range of beautiful clock styles, favourite photos, or widgets, including Smart Stacks, which surface the right widgets at the right time.

With iOS 17, the Phone app has received a big update with personalised Contact Posters, providing a new way for users to express themselves.

FaceTime now supports audio and video messages so when users call someone who is not available, they can share a message that can be enjoyed later.

Messages get significant updates with iOS 17, including an all-new stickers experience with new emoji stickers and the ability to create Live Stickers by lifting subjects from photos.

The developer beta of iOS 17 is now available to Apple Developer Programme members, and a public beta will be available next month.

Apple also announced tvOS 17 with an all-new Control Center, along with other enhancements that provide a more personalised experience that works even better with iPhone.

In an exciting update to Apple TV 4K, FaceTime now extends to the biggest screen in the home.

Powered by Continuity Camera, users can initiate a video call directly from Apple TV, or start the call on iPhone and then hand it off to Apple TV, to see friends and family on their television.

tvOS 17 is now available as a developer beta, and it will be available as a free software update this fall.