iOS 16 will bring some new updates to the way it detects event-based SMS messages for users in India. Apple released iOS 16 beta 2 for developers and it looks like a feature that is available on its Mail app will be supported in iMessage as well. According to a report by Apple Insider, the latest beta version of iOS will allow the operating system to detect event-based SMS messages. For example, the next time you book a flight or train ticket, iOS 16 will detect the message automatically on your iPhone. The time and date of the journey will be detected by Siri, which can create a reminder.
The report also states that the event captured by the operating system will be highlighted in the messages thread. While it’s unconfirmed how the UI looks, there is a possibility that the iMessage app is borrowing a feature. We’ve seen this previously in the Mail app. When you receive an invite or travel booking, iOS creates a summarised notification at the top and offers to add them to the calendar. We could expect to see a similar UI in the iMessage app as well.
Another addition to the latest update is the support for backup to your iCloud account without the need for a Wi-Fi connection. With the next update, many users can backup their devices to the cloud using their LTE and 5G data. Previously, Apple users were required to be connected to a Wi-Fi connection to upload their data and to update to the latest software. With iOS 15, the company allowed users to update the firmware on iPhones and cellular models of the iPads using the data plan they have.
More control over SMS
While the new event detection is a welcome change for users in the country, it would have been better if there were more ways to manage SMS messages. It’s not like we’re asking for total control, but once in a while, it would be great if I could decide which messages are not spam. iOS 16 will be changing the way that spam messages are filtered and are expected to add more sub-categories. However, it's all decided by third-party apps. There have been incidents where a message was incorrectly sent to the spam filter. There is no way to move them to the main list without disabling the SMS filter feature.
Updating our devices to the latest software over LTE has been a benefit for users like me who doesn’t mind using up their daily quota. And a bit of battery. I could just get everything done without having to use another Wi-Fi connection. Backing up the devices to iCloud using our mobile data helps to cloud data updated even if we’re not able to access a Wi-Fi connection.
