iOS7

Much has been said, both positive and negative, about the look of Apple's iOS 7, though new information reveals the design showed off at WWDC on Monday was merely a work in progress, meaning those initial impressions are likely to change in the months ahead.

According to The Next Web, people familiar with Apple's latest mobile operating system said the iOS 7 beta, as well as the preview shown at the WWDC keynote on Monday, is a "mid-stride" snapshot of the work being done behind closed doors.

While not mentioned during Apple's WWDC keynote, iOS 7 will support Hotspot 2.0, a relatively new Wi-Fi technology that allows compatible devices to seamlessly connect to compatible hotspots without user interaction.

The new feature is based on the Wi-Fi Alliance's Passpoint project, which looks to automate connections to certified hotspots quickly and securely. This means iOS device users will one day no longer have to search for, select, and manually connect to certain access points.

Apple has played the game long enough to keep its secrets heavily guarded, but a close look at some of iOS 7's lesser-known features hints at a few hardware changes we should count on (or not) for the next iPhone -- and maybe for the next iPads, too.

It doesn't take an OS upgrade to guess that Apple will improve its camera's still-life and video capture hardware. That's a given.

Touting it as the biggest change to iOS since the launch of the first iPhone, Apple on Monday took the wraps off a drastically redesigned iOS 7 that marks a new direction for the company's mobile operating system.

Virtually everything about the look and feel of iOS has changed with version 7, including a refined typography, all new icons, and a dynamic color scheme. The new operating system was spearheaded by Apple's lead designer Jony Ive, and engineering head Craig Federighi.