iOS 11 could finally give us the drag and drop function we've always wanted

If this leak is to be believed, working on your iPhone is about to get a lot easier.
 By 
Brett Williams
 on 
Original image replaced with Mashable logo
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

If a recent leak is to be believed, Apple's upcoming iOS 11 could finally bring a long-awaited feature to the iPhone that'll make working on mobile even easier.

Typically, working on iOS means you're stuck cycling between various apps. Sure, if you're using an iPad, the Split View feature gives you the opportunity to work with two apps open in tandem ... but the process of migrating any of the info you're working with from one app to the other, most likely by copy and pasting from one app to another, is awkward at best.

Those days of frustratingly clunky multitasking could be over with the next version of Apple's iOS. Developer Steve Troughton-Smith spotted a potential fix in an iOS 10 beta: a new drag and drop functionality, which would presumably streamline the process of transferring data between apps.

The functionality showed up beside the Split View on the beta's Feedback menu, which clearly makes it a multitasking feature.

Before you get too excited about potential amped up productivity coming to your iPhone, there are a few caveats. Split View is currently only available on iPads, so there's no guarantee that the smaller-screened iPhone will get the new functionality.

The particular beta version Troughton-Smith captured might not be a great indicator, either — as Apple Insider points out, the build he was using is associated with a 10.3.2 beta, not the more recent 10.3.3. The publication was unable to reproduce Troughton-Smith's findings when they tested for the feature.

Troughton-Smith also spotted a new "Files" listing in the App Store leading up to WWDC, which has since been deleted. That could mean that iOS 11 will also beef up direct file management on our mobile devices.

Thankfully, we won't have to wait long to find out if these new features will make it into iOS 11 — the new OS is expected to be unveiled at Apple's WWDC keynote later today. You can follow all the news from the keynote with our coverage of the event, which starts at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.

Topics iOS iPad iPhone

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Brett Williams

Brett Williams is a Tech Reporter at Mashable. He writes about tech news, trends and other tangentially related topics with a particular interest in wearables and exercise tech. Prior to Mashable, he wrote for Inked Magazine and Thrillist. Brett's work has also appeared on Fusion and AskMen, to name a few. You can follow Brett on Twitter @bdwilliams910.

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