Updated 2016-09-20: macOS Sierra has been released too! All of the shipping copies of our apps get cool new OS features like Universal Clipboard and Tabbed Windows automatically. For more information on app-specific updates and how OmniPresence for Mac works with the new iCloud Documents & Desktop sync feature, please see this support article.
It’s that time of year again! By now, some of you are already knee-deep in iMessage Stickers, and another large portion of you may have set up a repeating OmniFocus action to check area Apple Stores for Jet Black iPhone 7 Plus availability.
In updates that are out now, OmniGraffle, OmniPlan, and OmniOutliner are all ready for iOS 10. One of the things I’m most excited about is the ability to copy and paste between iOS 10 devices (e.g. iPhone and iPad) in all our apps using Universal Clipboard. When macOS Sierra comes out next week, you’ll be able to copy and paste between iOS and your Mac too.
OmniPlan for iOS shipped an update yesterday that supports iOS 10 (but doesn’t require it) and features App Lock—that’s the name we’re giving the ability to protect your Omni app behind a password or TouchID, to keep someone who grabs your device off your desk (be it a child or just a clumsy person) from accessing or changing your data. We’ll be bringing App Lock to all of the Omni iOS apps in the future: it’s been a popular request in all of our customer support queues and forums.
The Omni app that saw the biggest amount of work for this year’s new iOS release is OmniFocus. In June when we watched the WWDC Keynote we were excited to see that in watchOS 3 we’re finally able to do some of the things on Apple Watch that we’ve been wanting to do (and you’ve been asking us to do) since that device was introduced. We’ve re-written OmniFocus for Apple Watch for the third time in two years with great results: you get much-improved performance, a new extra-large complication, and an app that responds to the Digital Crown.
Performance is probably the best part of watchOS 3, but that Digital Crown part is the coolest. In the bottom row of the OmniFocus for Apple Watch home screen, where we used to display the continuity tile, we now give you the ability to flip between three options: Continuity (what we did before), a Custom Perspective (if you’ve purchased Pro), and Next Up (this is the item that we used to show in the Glance, based on selections you made in OmniFocus Settings). The fact that you can flip between the options so easily (with the Crown or a swipe up or down) means that OmniFocus gains a bunch of power without having another area of the app that needs setting up. One more thing—Glances are gone in watchOS 3, but if you add OmniFocus to Apple Watch’s dock, you can still see a summary of your day at a glance.
The OmniFocus improvements for iOS 10 aren’t limited to Apple Watch; we’ve also revamped the Today extension to add more power and flexibility. You’ll notice the most-requested change right away in the top right corner: a New Inbox Item button! That top row is rounded out by tappable summaries that take you directly to specific areas of the app. The rest of the widget shows the items you’ve chosen in OmniFocus Settings (or a Custom Perspective if you have Pro), with a cool new iOS 10 wrinkle: if you tap the Show Less button, you’ll get a single line display that lets you work through your actionable stuff one item at a time. Finally, iOS 10 adds that same compact view to the top of the 3D Touch Quick Actions, so you can peek at your next item with a force-press on the OmniFocus app icon.
So when can you get these updates? The OmniPlan, OmniOutliner, and OmniGraffle releases are available now in the App Store. OmniFocus 2.17 has been delayed by a day or so [update: we shipped OmniFocus 2.17 on September 20] because we’re raising the minimum OS requirement (to iOS 10) and need to sneak in one more bug fix release, 2.16.1, so that we don’t orphan customers who aren’t able to update their OS right away. If you’d like to be notified of the 2.17 release, the best thing to do is to follow @OmniFocus (or me, @kcase) on Twitter. Thanks for reading and enjoy iOS 10!
