At WWDC 2025 subsequent week, Apple is anticipated to preview its upcoming OS iterations. Whereas the hearsay mill has instructed massive modifications coming to iOS 26, iPadOS 26 and most just lately, visionOS 26, watchOS 26 will not be too far behind. As per a report, the Cupertino-based tech big may lastly introduce assist for a extremely requested function on the Apple Watch — third celebration Management Centre widgets. This might probably enable customers to select from related actions moreover the staple Wi-Fi, Battery, and Focus Mode choices.
watchOS 26 Updates at WWDC 2025
9to5Mac reports that watchOS 26 will allow builders to include their very own third-party widgets into the Apple Watch’s Management Centre. It’s stated to come back with a completely customisable format via the iPhone. Customers could possibly add, take away, or re-order the widgets within the Management Centre in a less complicated method in comparison with the present technique.
With third-party widgets, Apple is anticipated to reportedly supply extra Management Centre choices to select from, aside from the usual Airplane Mode, Battery, Do Not Disturb, Flashlight, and Wi-Fi choices.
Nevertheless, this isn’t the one change alleged to happen this yr. Earlier experiences point out that the corporate is all set to revamp the nomenclature of its OS updates. It’s stated to be transferring away from an iteration-based technique in direction of a year-based one. Thus, if this transfer involves fruition, iOS 19 could possibly be modified to iOS 26, iPadOS 19 to iPadOS 26, watchOS 12 to watchOS 26, and so forth.
At WWDC 2025, Apple Watch is anticipated to get a number of upgrades, courtesy of watchOS 26. This contains AI capabilities powered by Apple Intelligence, though the smartwatch wouldn’t run the AI fashions straight.
The corporate has additionally confirmed it is bringing an accessibility feature from the iPhone to the smartwatch. Stay Pay attention turns the iPhone right into a distant microphone to stream content material on to AirPods, Made for iPhone (MFi) listening to aids, or Beats headphones. With watchOS 26, customers will be capable to view Stay Captions for Stay Pay attention on their paired Apple Watch, whereas listening alongside to the audio.
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Snapchat Launches Apple Watch App With Scribble, Dictation Support; Lens Studio Now on iOS
Bonfire Social, a brand new framework for constructing communities on the open social net, launched on Thursday throughout the FediForum online conference. Whereas Bonfire Social is a federated app, which means it’s powered by the identical underlying protocol as Mastodon (ActivityPub), it’s designed to be extra modular and extra customizable. Meaning communities on Bonfire have extra management over how the app capabilities, which options and defaults are in place, and what their very own roadmap and priorities will embody.
There’s a decidedly disruptive bent to the software program, which describes itself as a spot the place “all residing beings thrive and communities flourish, free from non-public curiosity and capitalistic management.”
In different phrases, its mission is to construct social software program the place individuals get to make the selections, not Massive Tech platform makers like Meta or Google.
The group itself runs as a nonprofit funded by donations and grants, and it doesn’t take enterprise capital. Its code is open supply, and it really works in collaboration with the communities and researchers that use it to construct and improve on-line digital areas.
Bonfire Social, now supplied as a 1.0 Launch Candidate forward of the general public launch, is only one illustration of what Bonfire affords. Bonfire calls it a “taste.”
Picture Credit:Bonfire
Every taste is a preconfigured bundle of Bonfire extensions, options, and defaults, form of like a beginning template. When a neighborhood opts to run a specific “taste,” it will get to control the app because it sees match, including its personal extensions and figuring out its personal roadmap for product adjustments. This places the social software program again beneath customers’ management, as a substitute of being topic to the whims of a platform maker with ever-changing characteristic units and algorithms.
The group is already creating different flavors, like Bonfire Group and Open Science, and the Bonfire software program lets some other neighborhood create their very own model.
In Bonfire Social, customers will acknowledge acquainted options, like feeds and instruments to observe customers, share posts, create person profiles, flag or block content material, and extra.
Picture Credit:Bonfire
Nevertheless, it additionally affords different instruments and options that conventional social networks could not have, like instruments for customizing feeds, assist for nested discussions, the power to host a number of profiles per person, rich-text posts, and entry management options.
Customized feeds are a key differentiation between Bonfire and conventional social media apps.
Although the thought of following customized feeds is one thing that’s been popularized by newer social networks like Bluesky or social browsers like Flipboard’s Surf, the instruments to really create these feeds are maintained by third events. Bonfire as a substitute affords its personal customized feed-building instruments in a easy interface that doesn’t require customers to grasp coding.
To construct feeds, customers can filter and type content material by sort, date, engagement stage, supply occasion, and extra, together with one thing it calls “circles.”
Picture Credit:Bonfire
Those that lived by the Google+ era of social networks could also be aware of the idea of Circles. On Google’s social community, customers organized contacts into teams, known as Circles, for optimized sharing. That idea lives on at Bonfire, the place a circle represents an inventory of individuals. That may be a gaggle of buddies, a fan group, native customers, organizers at a mutual support group, or anything customers can give you. These circles are non-public by default however will be shared with others.
One other distinctive characteristic on Bonfire Social is Boundaries, which allow you to management who can see or have interaction along with your content material. As an illustration, you would share a submit with numerous your circles, however solely permit one particular circle’s members to remark.
Picture Credit:Bonfire
Bonfire additionally helps threaded conversations (nested discussions) the place replies can department out into their very own sub-threads. This may be helpful for communities the place deeper discussions and collaboration are extra priceless than these the place everybody competes for consideration.
Picture Credit:Bonfire
Plus, Bonfire customers can customise the app utilizing one of many 16 built-in themes, or they will design their very own structure and choose their very own colours and fonts.
Accounts on Bonfire also can host a number of profiles which have their very own followers, content material, and settings. This could possibly be helpful for individuals who merely want to have each private and non-private profiles, but additionally for individuals who must share a given profile with others — like a profile for a enterprise, a publication, a collective, or a mission crew.
Picture Credit:Bonfire
Different options out there at launch embody PWA assist for cell units, neighborhood blocklists, customized emoji assist, full-text search (with decide out), direct messages, non-public group discussions (additionally with nested threads), and extra. Extensions, which add completely different options, will be enabled or disabled by each admins and customers. Admins merely resolve what the defaults are.
Meaning customers may activate or off options they don’t like, even core options corresponding to likes or boosts (the federated model of the retweet/repost).
As a result of Bonfire is constructed on ActivityPub, it additionally federates with Mastodon, PeerTube, Mobilizon, and others.
The software program is supposed to be self-installed, although work to develop a hosting network is beneath means. For individuals who simply wish to kick the tires, a demo instance is available.
WWDC 2025 kicks off subsequent week with Apple anticipated to preview the newest working system (OS) iterations for its units, however that might not be all. As per a report, the corporate will announce a number of new options for its audio merchandise such because the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4. It might deliver new head gestures which can enable customers to toggle Dialog Consciousness to regulate quantity by shifting their head. Additional, the AirPods may additionally be capable to detect when a consumer has fallen asleep to pause music playback.
AirPods Professional 2, AirPods 4 New Options
9to5Mac reports that Apple will introduce as many as 5 new options for the AirPods Professional 2 and the AirPods 4 subsequent week. The corporate is alleged to increase head gestures to incorporate Conversational Consciousness quantity adjustment. This will likely enable the AirPods to routinely decrease the media quantity when an individual’s voice is detected, through a head gesture. It can then return to the unique noise-control setting when the dialog ends, as per the report.
One other function reported to make its approach to the AirPods is sleep auto-pause. Because the title suggests, it could detect if the consumer has fallen asleep to pause music playback. The function might enhance upon the prevailing functionality which works by organising a sleep timer. Nonetheless, it stays unknown if it might have standalone performance or work in tandem with the Apple Watch.
The report states that Apple might introduce digicam management on the AirPods Professional 2 and the AirPods 4 at WWDC 2025. It’s purported to let customers toggle the iPhone or the iPad’s digicam by pinching or clicking the AirPods’ stem.
In the meantime, the Cupertino-based tech big may additionally deliver Audio Combine, a function which it debuted with the iPhone 16 collection, to its audio lineup. It leverages machine studying to separate different parts from speech and regulate background sounds and reverb. Whereas it could not have all the three modes which are at the moment out there on the iPhone, Apple is reported to be growing “studio high quality” for the AirPods.
The final function which the iPhone maker is at the moment mentioned to be engaged on is aimed toward bettering the pairing expertise in shared iPad fashions. That is reported to show significantly helpful in school rooms the place a single system is utilized by a number of college students. It could streamline the method of connecting AirPods to iPadOS, with fewer guide interventions required.
Extra particulars are more likely to floor subsequent week when Apple takes the wraps off its newest bulletins throughout WWDC 2025.
