Apple has announced the latest version of its mobile operating system, iOS 7, which will be available this fall. The delay in the launch is probably so the company can release the new software along with the new iPhone.

The announcement of the popular phone has been kept on a bi-annual schedule, with the updated version of each phone following the year after the new one’s release. (Ex. iPhone 4 released in 2010, and the iPhone 4S released in 2011.)

For many years, iOS has looked basically the same, with new features and capabilities added with each new update. Now Apple has taken a drastic leap forward with its design. All of its app icons have been redesigned to not look round; multitasking involves double pressing the home button and swiping between screens and apps. Even safari, mail, and the way you unlock the phone have changed.

Some of you who use the popular operating system Android, a major competitor with iOS, may notice that some these changes sound a lot like what Android offers. I would say that you are right. Apple has stolen a few ideas from Google’s operating system in the past with features like the notification center, and how it swipes down from the top. Is this new design purely their own invention, or are they trying to sooth customers by making their product just like their competitors?

Apple is keeping most of the basic designs of iOS, to keep current users familiar with their phones, iPods, and tablets. Most of the mandatory apps have kept their symbols the same, as not to confuse users. Some, however, have been completely re-designed, such as Game Center. Instead of the four iconic game symbols, the chess piece, baseball bat, rocket ship, and dart board, the app symbol is now a series of multicolored, overlapping bubbles sitting on a white background.

All other apps have been taken back to the basics; simple background colors with main symbols consisting of lines and shapes, with the favorite shape of iOS 7, the circle. Pretty much only Video, Mail, and Notes are the only apps not including at least one circle in the design.

Will the new operating system be a hit with costumers? Only time will tell when the iPhone 5S hits the shelves along with iOS7 in the fall. You can see pictures and features of iOS 7 on the front page of Apple’s website, www.apple.com.