Many thought that "side-loading" apps would become a thing starting with iOS 17.0. It didn't happen.
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Apps outside of the App Store are on the way, but what about iMessage?
But now it seems to be happening, and it must: Apple has until March 2024 to allow the installation of apps outside the App Store. It is the Apple blog 9To5Mac that has discovered code references to the feature in iOS 17.2 which was just launched in the second beta version. It is very common to find upcoming features hidden in beta versions of the company's OSes.
Even more poignant is the following revelation from the same online newspaper (ed. note: italics have been added by us:)
“Digging even further, we found a new, unused right that will allow third-party apps to install other apps. In other words, this will allow developers to create their own app stores .”
The API, “Managed App Distribution,” “allows for downloading, installing and updating from external sources. It can also check if an app is compatible with a particular device or iOS version, something the App Store already does,” writes 9To5Mac.
This will probably not be possible in all parts of the world, but limited to the EU area. It will be interesting to see if Americans who want to "sideload" can do so in an unofficial way. Perhaps it will be enough to use a VPN .
When we look ahead to iOS 18, which will be launched in September next year, a major overhaul of Siri is expected, which will finally be equipped with "Large Language Model (LLM):"
"More specifically, Gurman states that iOS 18 with the new Siri will be able to auto-complete sentences more effectively and not least answer more complex questions. Auto-generated Apple Music playlists and integration in “Pages” and “Keynote” are also on the way. Now the question is which iPhone models will be able to use the new AI functions.”
At the same time, Apple is fighting to have its iMessage messaging service labeled as a "gatekeeper" service by the EU as that would mean (this will be decided by March 2024, as we understand it) that it would have to open up the proprietary messaging standard, eventually implementing RCS that Google really wants them to.