Technologies
My iOS 17 Wishlist: Every New Feature I Want to See at WWDC
Apple’s annual developers conference is today. Hopefully these iPhone features make an appearance.

Today is the day. Apple is set to hold its Worldwide Developers Conference keynote presentation on Monday, in which CEO Tim Cook and gang are expected to announce the next major version of iPhone software, iOS 17. Though rumors point to the software update being overshadowed by new Mac hardware and a long-rumored and yet-to-be-announced AR/VR headset, the next version of iOS should still boast significant improvements.
It could include a feature that lets you view more items on your lock screen, according to a Bloomberg report. The lock screen would reportedly show calendar appointments, weather and notifications, similar to Android devices circa 2019 and smart displays like the Amazon Echo Show. This would follow on the heels of iOS 16, which brought a major overhaul of the iPhone’s lock screen that made it more customizable.
With iOS 17, iPhone owners could also gain the ability to sideload apps, according to a different Bloomberg report. Sideloading means you can download an app on your iPhone without using Apple’s App Store. The potential inclusion is likely meant to ensure compliance with new European regulations due to kick in next year.

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While I find those rumors fun to ponder, they can also be a distraction from the many other things I think Apple needs to add or improve in iOS. The additions I want range from significant changes, like adding support for the Apple Pencil for Pro Max and Plus models, to smaller, quality-of-life improvements, like adding a volume button to the iPhone’s virtual Apple TV remote. We have to wait until WWDC kicks off later today to see what actually unfolds, but here’s my iOS 17 wish list.
Bring ‘Visual Look Up’ to the Camera app

In iOS 16, Visual Look Up got a nifty shortcut that lets you cut out the subject of a photo just by tapping and holding on the image.
Visual Look Up launched with iOS 15 in 2021 and can recognize objects in your photos such as plants, food, landmarks and pets. In iOS 16, Visual Look Up expanded to let you lift an object out of a photo or PDF by tapping and holding, essentially creating a sticker you can share with others.
But there’s a catch. Visual Look Up works only after you take a photo. I hope iOS 17 lets you do the same thing straight from the camera viewfinder. For example, if the camera were open and pointed at flowers, I could tap the Visual Look Up icon to see what kind of flowers they were without taking a photo of them. You can do that with Live Text, and Google Lens does something similar on Android phones. I realize this isn’t a radical change, but it would streamline things a bit.
Add a volume button to the iPhone’s Apple TV remote

Sometimes you lose this little guy and need to use your iPhone to control your Apple TV.
If you own an Apple TV, you’ve no doubt misplaced the tiny minimalist aluminum remote control at some point. Fortunately, you can use a virtual remote on your iPhone to do nearly everything the physical Siri remote does, except change the volume. Apple, please add a volume button to the iPhone’s Apple TV remote.
Technically, when you use the Apple TV remote on your iPhone, you can press the physical volume buttons to control the TV volume. But this doesn’t work on every TV’s audio receiver, such as mine. I’d guess there are many people who, like me, just want the virtual remote on the iPhone’s screen to mimic the physical remote’s button layout; most importantly including the button for volume.
Bring fitness tracking to the iPhone

You can start workouts from your Apple Watch, but not from your iPhone (without a third-party app).
If you’re an Apple Watch user, you understand the convenience of recording a workout. But if you aren’t wearing your watch or don’t own one, there isn’t a way to record basic exercises like walking, running or cycling without a third-party app. I’d like to see Apple expand the Fitness app so you can record workouts even without a Fitness Plus membership.
Add a pro camera app

The Photo Pro app on Sony Xperia 1 and 5 series phones gives you an interface that looks identical to a professional mirrorless camera.
It’s time for Apple to revisit the iPhone’s Camera app. For years, it was the gold standard of simplicity, offering a «see what you get» preview for photos, videos and effects with minimal, easy-to-navigate controls and modes. But as Apple has added more functionality, especially for ProRaw photos and ProRes video recording on iPhone Pro models, the Camera app has started to feel cramped. It tries to remain a one-size-fits-all app at the expense of higher-end features like manual camera controls.
I’d like Apple to make a separate pro camera app, along the lines of how it created a standalone app for classical music. Apple Music Classical tackles the special challenge of categorizing, searching for, and discovering classical music, something the default Apple Music app isn’t geared toward. Similarly, the pro camera app could be a place for creative types to access camera controls, settings and features beyond those in the basic camera app. Sony has been quite successful with this sort of approach in its Xperia 1 and 5 series phones, and Samsung has a separate Expert Raw app to complement its main one. Now it’s Apple’s turn.
Let me customize the Dynamic Island

The Dynamic Island was a great addition to the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max.
The Dynamic Island works well. It’s like having a shortcut at the top of your screen no matter what you’re doing on your iPhone. Glancing at my Uber ride status from my lock screen or in the Dynamic Island just makes sense. But I want more from the Dynamic Island, especially if iPhone 15 rumors are right and non-Pro iPhone models get it too. I’d like to see Apple let people customize their own Dynamic Island in a curated way.
In 2016, with iOS 10, Apple rolled out the iMessage app store for stickers and games. I don’t think we need a Dynamic Island app store, but something like the ability to pin a Memoji sticker as a Dynamic Island icon would be great. Admittedly, as creative-minded as I am, I don’t have a brilliant example of exactly what I want. I just think the Dynamic Island is another way people could make their iPhone feel more personal. Customization was a big theme with Android this year at Google I/O, with the introduction of AI and cinematic wallpapers. Of course, Apple could view the Dynamic Island like it does Apple Watch faces and want to control how it’s changed, instead of letting people go hog wild.
Add Apple Card functionality to other credit cards

The Apple Card lives on your iPhone.
If you have an Apple Card, you get to experience one of the best mobile financial experiences on any phone today. Apple’s signature credit card lives virtually in the Wallet app. At first glance, it appears like any other Apple Pay card. But when you tap its digital avatar, you see the card’s balance, rewards, upcoming payment info, and transactions. I’d like Apple to open that functionality to non-Apple credit cards.
If your Bank of America credit card is in Apple Pay and you have the Bank of America app on your phone, wouldn’t it be great to access similar functionality in the Wallet app? Expanding access would be convenient for iPhone owners and could bolster Apple Pay and the iPhone’s Wallet as serious financial tools.
Make widgets interactive
Widgets can be pinned to your home screen and resized to your liking.
Widgets on the lock screen and home screen can do two things: show information (like the weather) and launch the corresponding app when tapped (e.g., the weather app). Widgets haven’t changed much since Apple introduced them with iOS 14. It’s time for a refresh.
What if you could use the podcast widget like a mini-podcast player, or order your favorite burrito bowl straight from Chipotle’s widget? Adding more functionality to widgets could make it easier to multitask on the iPhone.
Add Apple Pencil support

What if you could use an Apple Pencil on the iPhone?
I’ve been writing iPhone and iOS wish lists for years, and one addition that’s made my roundup every time is adding Apple Pencil support to the iPhone, specifically for Pro Max and Plus models. The 6.7-inch screen isn’t that much smaller than the 8.3-inch screen on the iPad Mini. But one supports Apple Pencil functionality and the other doesn’t.
Also, if iOS 17 did include Pencil support, Apple could make a smaller version of its stylus and call it the Apple Pencil Mini. Maybe it could attach to the back of the iPhone Pro Max or Plus using MagSafe?
Bring the iPad’s split-screen view to iPhone Pro Max models

The multiple windows on the iPad and iPad Pro.
The iPhone Pro Max has been part of Apple’s lineup since 2019. The 11 Pro Max has a 6.5-inch screen, while the 12 Pro Max, 13 Pro Max and 14 Pro Max all have a 6.7-inch display. Last year, Apple introduced the iPhone 14 Plus, which also has a 6.7-inch screen. Those large screens feel wasted when it comes to software. Some iOS apps like Mail and Messages can take advantage of the extra space in landscape orientation to show a column of message previews next to the currently opened message. But otherwise, there isn’t much else in iOS that’s optimized for big iPhone screens.
I’d like Apple to bring some iPadOS features to iOS 17 just for Pro Max and Plus models, especially its split screen multitasking view. It would be wonderful to have Safari open on one side of the phone and launch Messages on the other.
Revisit ease of use vs. security

Some iPhone owners are being targeted for an unusual crime.
Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal’s Joanna Stern and Nicole Nguyen ran a series of stories about how a thief who steals your iPhone and knows its passcode can lock you out of the most important parts of your digital life. This crime isn’t widespread, but Stern and Nguyen showed that it’s more common than you might think.
At the core of the issue is the balance between security and ease of access. The same tools Apple put in place to help people who get locked out of their devices and accounts are being used by savvy criminals to lock people out of their phone and accounts while gaining access to their money and services. There’s been a bunch of coverage on the topic in recent months, and it sounds like these tools help far more people than the criminals who take advantage of them.
I don’t think there’s an easy way for Apple to «fix» the issue, but I hope with iOS 17, the company takes a moment to reconsider the impact these tools can have on people and even offer other security features to foil the thieves behind these crimes, like Apple did with AirTags.
At the end of the day, I’m excited for WWDC this year. And while I do hope there’s a fancy, cool AR/VR headset, my heart is holding out for iOS 17 and all its new features.
Technologies
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Technologies
Tariff Impacts Are Real: These 13 Companies Have Confirmed Price Hikes
More and more companies are confirming price hikes as President Trump’s tariffs are poised to take effect — most recently, a popular smart lighting brand.
In many cases and for many products in the US, the biggest impacts of President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariff plans haven’t hit yet — but they could soon, unless the 90-day pause on some rates is extended. Still, numerous companies have already hiked prices or said that they’ll increase in the near-future — including, most recently, a popular and CNET-approved brand of smart lights.
The fact of the matter is that tariffs — a tax placed on the importing of certain products into a country — will ultimately cause prices to go up, with Walmart characterizing these eventual price hikes as «inevitable» during its earnings call last month. Given Trump’s push to place historically high tariffs on goods from almost every country in the world, you can also expect these price hikes to hit a huge variety of products.
This truth has begun to sink in for a lot of Americans. About 38% of consumers feel pressured to make certain purchases before tariffs cause their price to go up, according to a recent survey conducted by CNET. About 10% of respondents said they’d already made certain purchases in hopes of avoiding future price hikes, while 27% said they’d delayed purchases of products costing more than $500. Overall, these concerns about prices were felt the most around popular tech pieces such as smartphones, laptops and home appliances.
To help you keep score, I’ve put together a list of all the companies that have either confirmed or warned of price hikes due to Trump’s tariffs. As other companies make such announcements, you can expect new names to be added here.
Continue on for all those details, and for more, find out why it’s best if you wait on buying a new iPhone.
One item you won’t find on this list yet? The original Nintendo Switch, which will see a currently unspecified price hike on Aug. 1, but only in Canada for the time being. If that increase makes its way south of the border, we’ll let you know.
Best Buy
Without getting into specifics, Best Buy CEO Corie Barry told the Wall Street Journal late last month that it has already raised prices on certain products as part of its response to the tariffs.
e.l.f.
Known as an affordable option in the beauty world, e.l.f. announced in late May that it would be implementing a $1 price hike across its product line in response to the tariffs. CEO Tarang Amin claimed that the reaction from customers was positive, on account of the company’s transparency.
«We’re not trying to pull anything over on anyone,» Amin told Fortune. «This is exactly what we’re facing, and they understand.»
Macy’s
Speaking to CNBC in late May, Macy’s CEO Tony Spring said that price hikes will be implemented on some products due to tariffs, while also emphasizing that other tactics — like discontinuing certain products altogether — will also be a response to rising costs.
Mattel
Known for brands like Barbie and Hot Wheels, Mattel sounded the alarm over likely price increases during an early May earnings call. While it’s unclear how much the toymaker’s prices have increased since then, the company told investors that it would be, «where necessary, taking pricing action in its US business,» or to put it plainly, raising prices for consumers to mitigate the impact of tariffs.
Nikon
Camera-maker Nikon will introduce price hikes in response to Trump’s tariffs, effective June 23. This move will only target lenses and accessories the company makes and sells, so the cameras themselves are safe for now.
«We will be carefully monitoring any tariff developments and may adjust pricing as necessary to reflect the evolving market conditions,» a statement from Nikon explained. «We wish to thank our customers for their understanding and know that we are taking every possible step to minimize the impact on our community.»
Philips Hue
Parent company Signify announced that prices for its popular and highly regarded Philips Hue brand of smart lights will see price hikes effective July 1. The company also confirmed that this decision was made «as a direct result of tariffs.»
«Signify reserves the right to modify prices based on new or additional tariffs becoming effective in the future,» the company’s official statement explained.
Ralph Lauren
Sales at the luxury goods retailer Ralph Lauren have apparently remained steady amid recent uncertainty, but the company is still forging ahead with a plan to combat tariff impacts by raising prices more than it had already intended to, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Shein and Temu
Trump’s tariffs have made a notable target of China, hitting the country with a 30% rate only after initially hiking it all the way to 145%. Online retailers like Shein and Temu rely on direct shipments from markets like China in order to offer the rock-bottom prices that made them famous, so it’s little surprise now that they’ve had to raise prices.
The Trump administration has furthered the issues faced by these companies by doing away with a rule known as the «de minimus» exception, which used to exclude smaller purchases under $800 from import taxes. With that rule gone, Trump’s China tariffs will now apply to both bulk orders of industrial building materials and those shoes you’ve been looking to buy from Shein.
Subaru
Subaru has hiked prices across almost its entire line. The increase ranged from $750 to $2,055, depending on the model, with only the EV Solterra avoiding any change.
As has become a trend with some companies, Subaru avoided attributing the price hikes to Trump’s tariffs, citing only the common refrain of «market conditions.» Trump has notably disparaged companies that explicitly lay the blame for price hikes on his policies.
«The changes were made to offset increased costs while maintaining a solid value proposition for the customer. Subaru pricing is not based on the country of origin of its products,» a Subaru spokesperson said in a statement to Car & Driver.
Stanley Black & Decker
In an earnings report published April 30, toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker addressed «Price Actions in Response to US Tariffs,» stating that it had «implemented an initial price increase in April and notified our customers that further price action is required,» and was also looking into ways to shift its supply lines to minimize the impact of tariffs.
Volvo
The price impact of tariffs at Swedish automaker Volvo are confined, for now, to just one model: the electric EX30. Initially it was set to start at $34,950 in the US — a competitive price for an EV — but tariffs targeted at imported cars forced the company to raise the price to $46,195, a 32% bump.
Walmart
The biggest grocery chain in the US, Walmart is perhaps the most prominent company yet to announce imminent price hikes due to Trump’s tariffs. During the company’s earnings call in May, CEO Doug McMillan said price hikes would begin by the end of May and impact things like food, electronics and toys.
For more, see why buying refurbished tech helps you dodge tariffs and helps the planet.
Technologies
This Unique Controller Is Cool but Pointless for Most Gamers
The Turtle Beach Stealth Pivot has a unique 2-in-1 feature, but most people will never use it.

Pro-level game controllers have been becoming more mainstream over the past several years, offering gamers a host of new features not found on the controllers that came with their systems. These features include extra mappable buttons, swappable gamepads and other customizability options.
However, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a controller that offers two dedicated button layouts within the same device. The Stealth Pivot from Turtle Beach lets you physically rotate the gamepads to reveal a whole new, previously hidden, button layout — all without having to remove anything. It’s a unique take on what a controller can be and I’m here for it.
What I like about the Stealth Pivot
I’ve been impressed with Turtle Beach controllers for a while now, and the Stealth Pivot continues continues the company’s streak of great hardware. The buttons are clicky and responsive and the whole thing feels wonderful to hold. The design is nearly identical to Microsoft’s own Xbox controllers, which is a good thing.
The Stealth Pivot keeps many of the same pro features as its Stealth Ultra controller (and many other pro-level controllers), including adjustable triggers and four additional, remappable buttons. The Connected Command Display is carried over as well, although it’s much smaller than the Ultra’s 1.5″ screen. Amazingly, it keeps all the same features , including being able to adjust buttons and social media notifications.
On the connectivity side, you’ve got a wired connection for Xbox (there’s no wireless support), a 2.4GHz dongle for PC and Bluetooth for mobile devices and compatible smart TVs. There’s a headphone jack at the bottom and the USB-C port for charging or Xbox connection is up top. You can play and charge at the same time, which is a nice bonus.
Two controllers for the price of one
The biggest feature of the Stealth Pivot by far is its rotating gamepads. Basically, you twist down the two joysticks, unlock the gamepads, then literally rotate them 180 degrees to reveal the other set. This second set has a layout typical of controllers designed for fighting games, or really, any game where additional buttons are valuable. So instead of joysticks, there’s a D-Pad on the top left flanked by two two buttons. On the right side, the ABXY cluster shifts downward to make room for two additional, mappable buttons.
So now, instead of having to buy multiple controllers or remove and swap out gamepads (like PDP Victrix Pro controllers), in just a few seconds you can switch from snapping headshots in Call of Duty to beating up bad guys in Mortal Kombat or Tekken. It’s certainly not something I’ve ever seen on any other controller and it works surprisingly well. You can even save up to five digital profiles on the controller so you can have different layouts for each game.
I was impressed by just how good the buttons and everything are on the Stealth Pivot, even with having to cram double the amount of most everything into the same space. Granted, the controller is a bit thicker than most other controllers, but it’s not that noticeable. The hardware and engineering that went into this controller is remarkable.
What I don’t like about the Stealth Pivot
There are some compromises that come with this quick-switch capability, however. The first is that Turtle Beach wasn’t able to include its microswitch buttons, which personally I prefer over the more standard buttons on the Pivot. The joysticks are still Hall Effect, which is nice, but the rest of the buttons are standard. The buttons aren’t bad, they just aren’t as good as on the company’s other pro controller.
Secondly, making room for those rotating gamepads means space had to come from somewhere and the most obvious place was the battery. Turtle Beach says the Pivot gets about 20 hours of battery life, which is probably a bit optimistic. I wouldn’t say it’s terrible, but it’s not great. This is somewhat mitigated by the fact that you have to be physically plugged into your Xbox anyway, and you can play while charging — but PC users may want to keep a cable handy.
Also, while you can use the company’s Control Center II app to customize the controller on Windows, Xbox, iOS and Android, the app itself is not very good. The UI is basic and there are some annoying bugs including the inability to rename profiles on the Xbox version. It’s also hard to tell if anything saves after you make changes. There’s no indicator or save button anywhere, and while it does save things in real-time, it would be nice if it let you know it’s happening.
Lastly, it’s disappointing that you can’t connect wirelessly to the Xbox. Wired is fine, and it avoids battery issues, but wireless is obviously more convenient.
Should you buy the Stealth Pivot?
The Stealth Pivot is a really solid controller even without the dual personalities. Personally, I’m not really into fighting games so I don’t need the second set of controls. And super hard-core, e-sport-level gamers would probably want something like a Fight Stick or a more dedicated fighting game controller.
However, if you’re a more casual gamer who enjoys fighting/button heavy games alongside games that use joysticks — and wants to level up your fighting style — the Stealth Pivot might be worth a look, especially since it’s only $130. That is more expensive than a standard controller, but for everything you get with it, that’s a hard price to beat.
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