The first details on what Apple Inc. can be expected to announce its Worldwide Developers Conference next Monday have started to emerge.

The traditionally software-centric event is unsurprisingly set to focus on iOS, Bloomberg reported today. The publication’s sources said Apple will unveil a new release of the operating system designed not only to create more ways for users to interact with their devices, but also to help them do so in a more mindful manner.

The update will reportedly bring a set of tools designed to help consumers keep their mobile usage in check. According to Bloomberg, the features are part of a “Digital Health” initiative from Apple and will become available in a new section of the iOS 12 settings menu. They’re intended to provide users with an easy way of checking how much time they spend on their devices, information that could help foster healthier browsing habits.

Digital Health should enable Apple to maintain a level playing against Android P. The next release of Google Inc.’s mobile platform, which it unveiled earlier this month, will introduce a similar usage dashboard that shows how much time a consumer has sunk into different apps.

New AR experiences

If the leaks are to be believed, augmented reality will be another major focus of WWC. Apple is expected to unveil a heavily upgraded version of ARKit, the development toolkit it provides for building AR-infused iOS apps.

The new release reportedly includes a mode designed to “let users play AR games against each other in the same virtual environment.” The multiple support is set to be joined by a capability that will make it possible to place virtual objects at different locations.

Depending on how it’s implemented, this feature could provide a major boost for certain apps. Navigation services, for example, would benefit from the ability to more easily overlay location-specific markers and other cues on the user’s view.

Localized enhancements

The other iOS enhancements set to debut at WWDC will reportedly be on the more standard side. Sources told both Bloomberg and Axios that Apple has pushed back several of the more ambitious features it had originally planned to announce in order to prioritize the operating system’s stability. Presumably, the goal was to avoid the criticisms that were leveled against the current version’s reliability at the time of its release.

According to the tipsters, one of the planned enhancements that got pushed back was a refresh of the iOS home screen. But several others have made it through. These apparently include a new feature for snoozing notifications, plus unspecified improvements to FaceTime, the Stocks app and Animojis.

Apple plans to unveil iOS 12 alongside updates to a number of its other products. Today’s Bloomberg report claims that the company could, among other things, reveal a new integration between macOS and iOS, which might be part of the long-rumored initiative known as Marzipan. An “unverified” leak from last week claimed WWDC will also see the introduction of a Spotify app for the Apple Watch.

Image: Apple