Recently, Zach Epstein over at BGR got his hands on Apple's (AAPL -1.22%) upcoming version of iOS 7 and wrote an in-depth review after spending a week with the beta software. Epstein's biggest problem with iOS 7 is the same problem he had with previous versions of iOS: The software isn't necessarily getting any smarter. He argues that iOS 7 is more concerned with design elements than it is with introducing new levels of functionality. This isn't encouraging news for Apple investors, as the competition has been working diligently to dethrone Apple's premium reputation.
Sure, iOS 7 will introduce a host of new features that technically give iDevices more functionality, but in terms of user experience, iOS 7 is still grounded in the same old "open then close" linear user experience as previous iOS versions. For those hoping Apple would take the world by storm with iOS 7 by making it "smarter," I'm afraid they're going to be disappointed.
Rome wasn't built in a night
If Apple investors can learn anything from BlackBerry's history, it's that major software overhauls can take a long time to introduce. When BlackBerry 7 proved to be inadequate against the competition, it took the company about 18 months to release BlackBerry 10.
Instead of Apple waiting more than a year between software releases, the company is likely using iOS 7 as a stepping stone into the future of iOS. To that end, iOS 7's most notable feature is its concept of layering functionality on top of apps, which paves the way for apps to be more interconnected in the future.
Does it matter?
The question I'm left wondering is if iOS 7 isn't innovative enough, will it hold back iDevice sales? Although user experience is an extremely important aspect of the consumer decision-making process, it's not necessarily the most important. It's likely that price will ultimately dictate the level of widespread iDevice adoption. Unless Apple releases a low-cost iPhone to compliment iOS 7, there likely isn't enough "innovation" in iOS 7 to improve Apple's iDevice prospects.
