Apple's iOS 18 upgrade for the iPhone will overhaul the Control Center. WWDC 2024, commencing on June 10, will unveil this upgrade, as recent reports suggest.

In Bloomberg's Power On newsletter, Mark Gurman reported that the Control Center will have a music widget and revised HomeKit controls. He noted that the iPhone's control center will be upgraded with a "new music widget" and improvements in the operation of smart home appliances.

In addition to the Control Center overhaul, Gurman suggested a sleeker Settings app with better organization, search, and layout. MacOS should also get these upgrades, per Gadgets 360.

According to 9to5Mac, the Apple iOS 18 upgrade will allow users to freely arrange app icons and widgets on their home screen for the first time, abandoning the grid style. This modification would enable iPhone users to customize widget-app icon gaps, previously only available on Android devices.

Customizing app icons is another major iOS 18 upgrade. Reports indicate that his new feature will let users alter app icon colors across the system. Users might make all social networking icons blue or finance symbols green.

Apple iOS18 Upgrade Includes New and Improved Siri

Moreover, Gurman suggested improvements to the large language model that powered Siri. Users can chain commands and ask follow-up questions without repeating the inquiry with these changes. AI may be added to Music, Keynote, Pages, and AppleCare.

Gurman referred to iOS 18 as "one of the biggest" improvements to the iPhone, despite the lack of anticipated hardware surprises at this year's WWDC. This includes the next Apple TV, reported for the first half of 2024.

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$12.3M Apple Store Fraud Scheme Busted

As iPhone fans anticipate the upcoming iOS18 update, authorities advise the public to be cautious about fake iPhones. TechTimes reported that Apple lost at least $12.3 million in a complex fraud operation involving counterfeit iPhones, according to US authorities.

The multi-year plan to target Southern California Apple Stores led to the detention and prosecution of five Chinese nationals.

They accuse Yang Song, 40, of Corona, Junwei Jiang, 37, of East Los Angeles, Zhengxuan Hu, 26, of Alhambra, Yushan Lin, 30, and Shuyi Xing, 34, also of Corona, of using Apple's customer service to plan this complex operation.

They reportedly returned 16,000 counterfeit iPhones, iPads, and other Apple items to Apple Stores in Pasadena, Beverly Hills, Sherman Oaks, and Irvine between December 2015 and March 2023.

Prosecutors say Song and Jiang worked with Chinese colleagues to send fake Apple iPhones to the US. These fakes matched warranty-protected Apple device IDs.

The defendants claimed these gadgets were defective and covered under warranty by returning them to Apple Stores. Unaware of the deception, the Apple Store staff would replace or repair counterfeit gadgets, giving the fraudsters legitimate Apple items. These authentic Apple devices were transported to the US and foreign affiliates, mostly in China, for a profit.

US Attorney Martin Estrada said the defendants stole over $12 million in items using Apple's customer-service procedures. They falsely returned or tried to return over 16,000 counterfeit Apple gadgets, costing Apple a lot of money.

Moreover, Real AppleCare owners may lose warranty repairs and assistance due to counterfeit devices using stolen IDs.

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