Apple's iOS 10.3 update, now in beta, will eventually limit how often an app can harass users about leaving a review -- and might also include a floating keyboard for smaller iPads, early adopters noted on Tuesday.
Source: Steven Troughton-Smith via Twitter
The update includes a new Reviews API that will limit pop-ups to three times per year, and give people the ability to turn off such pop-ups entirely, according to Recode. Users will also be able to submit reviews without leaving a host app.
The API will only eventually become the single way for developers to ask for reviews, presumably giving them time to strip out their existing systems.
Some iOS apps have become notoriously aggressive, popping up frequent messages regardless of how often a person dismisses them. For developers, better ratings on the App Store can increase exposure and hence sales or ad revenue.
The floating keyboard, noticed by developer Steve Troughton-Smith, is hidden from the public and must currently be enabled through code settings. It also appears to be limited to 7.9- or 9.7-inch iPads, and in finished form may ask people to flip a toggle located under the same menu as languages and emoji.
The keyboard is iPhone-sized, and can be dragged around much like Picture in Picture video windows. Together these suggest that the option is meant to offer easier one-handed typing.
Released earlier on Tuesday, iOS 10.3 also upgrades devices to the Apple File System -- APFS -- and includes a Find My AirPods app, addressing the complaints of some AirPods owners.