iOS 11 release date, features news: Updates may include group FaceTime and a smarter Siri

Craig Federighi, senior vice president of Software Engineering for Apple Inc., talks about the company's Siri assistant.Reuters/Stephen Lam

The new iOS update is anticipated to be launched this 2017, and among its speculated features are a group FaceTime capability and a Siri that can adapt to the user's usage habits.

Apple will be releasing a new iOS update that is expected to be introduced this year. According to reports, the new iOS 11 might be unveiled at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) this coming June.

Apple is keeping the new iOS features under wraps, but with the anticipation of its launch this year, there are several speculations on what the new iOS will bring Apple users.

According to Israeli website The Verifier, one of the anticipated features of the new iOS 11 is a group FaceTime capability with the use of iMessage. With this enhancement, Apple users can have multi-person calls with up to five people with iMessage, making the communication app at par with Skype and other competing services.

Another speculated feature of the new iOS 11 is an advanced Siri that can adapt to the user's usage behavior, which is similar to Samsung's virtual assistant Bixby.

Siri will be deeply integrated with iMessage and iCloud, and will be developed to have contextual learning capacities. With these updates, Siri will have an expanded command pool by offering different actions based on the user's context in the new iOS 11 update.

One example is when a user is having a conversation through iMessage on where to eat, Siri will be able to suggest a good place to eat and how to get there.

Meanwhile, another feature expected from the new iOS 11 is a completely refined Apple Music, according to Bloomberg. The new updates on Apple Music are anticipated to focus on video specs, since the company has already announced that it is working to enhance the music app.

The new Apple iOS 11 is expected to debut this 2017.