New look, new features in iOS 7
New look, new features in iOS 7
3:21

New look, new features in iOS 7

Services & Software
iOS 7 is finally here and it has a completely new look, new features, re-worked interfaces for the core apps, and plenty to show off. I'm only gonna cover a few of the changes here, but there's plenty more to check out in my full review. When you first start up iOS 7, you'll notice immediately the new passcode screen, colorful icon designs, and flattened buttons. This is the first time there's been a major redesign since the iPhone was released in 2007. So, it can be a little jarring at first for longtime iOS users. Still, I got used to the new look pretty quickly and I like what I see so far. To get started, let's check out the new Control Center. A feature already available in Android OS, the Control Center gives you easy access to adjust your most used settings and all it takes is a swipe up from the bottom of the screen. From here, you can get to common actions like turning on Airplane mode, setting up Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and you get a slider for quickly adjusting brightness. You also have music controls and buttons across the bottom for quick access to the flashlight, setting your alarm, opening the calculator, and bringing up the camera. You can access the Control Center from any screens. You don't have to dig through the settings anymore. Next, let's look at Safari. Apple's mobile web browser finally has a unified search and address bar at the top, so you can just type in a search term or URL and you're off and running. You'll also notice the flat design at the bottom with back and forward buttons, the share button, bookmarks, and a button to see all your open pages. Browsing through open web sites is a much better experience than before, letting you swipe to browse, tap to open the page, or swipe to the side to close it. Now, let's check out music. The redesign shows a lot more white space and you'll notice there are still buttons at the bottom for Genius features, playlist, and artists, but over on the left is a brand-new edition of iTunes Radio. Here, you'll be able to create a station based on an artist or song, then hear a mix based on your selection. You also can simply pick a genre and start listening. I've been using iTunes Radio, and so far, it works great. Next, let's look at the camera app. Along with the new look, you can now swipe to switch between video, still, square-shaped, and pano shots. You also have a new colorful icon in the lower right that lets you bring up quick filters you can pick before you take a picture. When you wanna browse your shots, the photos have got some cool changes as well, sorting your photos by year in a huge mosaic. There, you can touch and drag to see specific images. You also can simply touch the year to drill down to show photos by date and location. There's a huge improvement over the wallet photos we used to have in previous versions. The last step we'll check out is messages. You'll notice the flat chat bubbles no longer have that 3D look, but one new feature will definitely come in handy. A quick swipe to the left shows the time each text was sent where you only had a general sense of the time in previous versions of the OS or it may not seem like a big deal. Texting is now a major form of communication and I know I'm not the only one who would like to know exactly when texts are sent or received. There's a lot more to look at, but in the interest of time, we couldn't possibly get all the new changes. Read my full review for a complete breakdown of new features in iOS 7. Thanks for watching, everyone. This has been a first look at iOS 7. I'm Jason Parker for CNET. See you next time.

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