Imagine buying a brand-new, fully-updated smartphone straight off the shelf. That’s what one of the world’s biggest smartphone vendors is aiming to do by rolling out a new technology for updating the operating system of handsets held in-stock in stores, ensuring that consumers take home a product that’s 100% safe and functional.
According to Bloomberg, Apple is planning to test a novel system for updating iPhone operating systems directly in its stores, before the handsets are sold. The company is said to have developed a system in the form of a shelf on which iPhone boxes can be placed. This system reportedly has the ability to turn on the iPhone wirelessly, update iOS, then turn off the device, all without anyone having to open the box and handle the smartphone. Apple could deploy this solution in selected US Stores before the end of the year.
The benefit to customers would be far from trivial. Indeed, when you buy a new smartphone, one of the first things to do once you’ve activated your account (Apple on iOS or Google on Android) and transferred your data is to update the operating system. In any case, this is highly recommended in order to take advantage of the latest security updates, correcting identified vulnerabilities.
Looking specifically at the latest iPhone 15, for example, on sale since September 22, 2023, no less than three updates to iOS (17) have been rolled out in just a few days. It would therefore be worthwhile for any new buyer to acquire an automatically updated device.
It remains to be seen whether this technology will be reserved for iPhones alone, or whether iPads and Macs will one day be able to benefit too, and whether other manufacturers will adopt similar technology. – AFP Relaxnews
