iOS 17 TipKit to Help Developers Show Users Hidden Features: All Details

iOS 17 was unveiled at the Worldwide Developers Conference 2023 by Apple alongside many other products and devices. Apple also introduced a new developer toolkit that will help developers familiarise people with their mobile apps by displaying how-to guides. Developers would usually create their own introductory or tutorial-type sessions or rely on those offered by a third party. They will now have the choice of a native solution on iOS platforms. Software updates iPadOS 17, macOS Sonoma, watchOS 10, and tvOS 17 were also introduced at the WWDC 2023.

According to Apple, the new TipKit tool will contain templates similar to what users are currently used to sharing in system apps. These will be customisable to reflect the developer's own app's look and feel. Furthermore, Apple claims that developers would be able to customise when and when their tips appear. That is, the advice does not have to be limited to onboarding. Tips might also be introduced as users start learning a new portion of the app, or they could be set up to be activated by specific rules.

With the ToolKit, developers would be able to avoid bothering users who are familiar with recommendations, such as those who had already found how specific features in the application functioned.

Developers might also specify when a tip should be displayed, such as after a user has visited a specific app section or utilised a specific function several times. As the user continues to learn about the app, the developers could provide them with a tip that might help them make use of advanced features or lead them to an undiscovered feature.

Apple will use TipKit to add native tips to its own apps, such as FaceTime, Photos, and iMessages, in iOS 17. This will assist in guiding users and eliminate misunderstandings by making seeing tips a more standard experience across the platform.