WWDC has been gaining fame over the years. It started out as a low-key event for developers but it has become one of the main events of the company that everyone is looking forward to. If you do not know what WWDC is exactly, we tell you everything you should know in this article.
What is WWDC
WWDC is the acronym for Apple Worldwide Developers Conference , which is Spanish means World Conference of Apple Developers . As its name indicates, it is a congregation of all the developers who work on Apple operating systems to know all the news that the company has to announce. In a classic way this is an event that has been intended for developers but that over the years has been gaining more and more prominence among users.
Traditionally it is celebrated in California in June, with exceptions due to force majeure. Most of its events have been held at the Morscone Center in San Francisco, but since 20017 it has been held at the McEnery Convention Center in San José. Please note that this conference covers several days, usually one week. But at the beginning of each conference there is an inaugural presentation that announces numerous novelties that will work throughout all those days.
As a curiosity, the first WWDC event was held on May 7, 1990, with WWDC 2005 being one of the first to feature major announcements regarding hardware or software.
WWDC Interest
As we have previously commented, this is a conference that is very focused on developers. During the days that this lasts, numerous talks and courses are held that are highly focused on software and hardware. For example, when a new version of the operating system is released, it is explained how a specific application can be integrated into it, or how the new functions included can be exploited. All these courses give developers the necessary knowledge to create incredible applications to enrich the ecosystem.
But the most media moment of the entire conference is undoubtedly the opening presentation. This is traditionally held on the first day of the conference and kicks off with interesting announcements. These announcements include the new versions of the operating system: iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS and macOS. In addition, some hardware such as a new Mac or any other type of accessory can also be presented. This is obviously what the users of this conference highlight the most, although as we say there is much more behind it. But this world is extremely interesting only for people who know how to develop and work actively in that environment.
How to attend a WWDC
Attending a WWDC is not an easy task since there is always a lot of expectation to go. Obviously you have to meet a series of requirements such as being a developer and belonging to the Apple Developer Program, Apple Developer Enterprise Program or being a development student. But it is not something free, since the entrance has a price that exceeds 1000 euros, so the decision you are going to make must be quite thoughtful. Once in California, Apple does not bear the cost of lodging or transportation. If you are a developer interested in this type of event we recommend you attend but if you get a ticket.
Although the price is very high, every time they put the tickets on sale they sell out quickly. To get it, when the date of the conference is officially announced, a form opens to get and buy this ticket. Normally the capacity is quite limited restricting itself to 10,000 people. Apple has also recently opted to raffle a few entries to avoid technical problems leaving a developer off the hook. In addition, if you are students you can go totally free if you manage to win one of the contests that they propose every year from Apple.
WWDC release timeline
As we have previously commented, WWDC has been held since 1990, but it was not until 2005 when it began to gain importance for users. Until then, it had maintained the essence of being a conference exclusively for developers without media interest like the one it has now. But since they started making important announcements like new generations of operating systems and even hardware, it has been gaining importance. If you are curious to know the main news that were announced in each of the WWDCs, we will tell you about them below. It is important to note that these developments are those announced in the inaugural presentation of the WWDC.
WWDC 2019
- Celebration date: June 3 to 7.
- Venue: McEnery Convention Center in San José (California)
- Important announcements: Presentation of iOS 13, iPadOS 13, watchOS 6, macOS Catalina and tvOS 13. The highlight was undoubtedly the separation of the operating system for iPhone and iPad. In terms of hardware, the long-awaited Mac Pro was presented with the wonderful Pro Display.
WWDC 2018
- Celebration date: June 4-8.
- Venue: McEnery Convention Center in San José (California)
- Important announcements: the opening presentation was marked by a total absence of hardware. Only the release of iOS 12, macOS 10.14 Mojave, watchOS 5 and tvOS 11 were seen.
WWDC 2017
- Celebration date: June 5 to 9, 2017.
- Venue: McEnery Convention Center in San José (California)
- Important announcements: Apple at this conference presented macOS High Sierra, iOS 11 for iPhone and iPad, watchOS 4 and tvOS 11. In the hardware section, the iMac Pro designed for professionals and the HomePod that would revolutionize the smart speaker sector stood out.
WWDC 2016
- Celebration date: June 13-17, 2016.
- Venue: Moscone Center and Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco.
- Important announcements: iOS 10, tvOS 10, watchOS 3 were introduced and the naming of the Mac operating system was changed from OS X to macOS, with macOS Sierra.
WWDC 2015
- Celebration date: June 8 to 12, 2015.
- Location: Morscone Center in San Francisco.
- Important announcements: iOS 9, OS X El Capitan and watchOS 2 were presented. In terms of services, both Apple Pay and Apple Music came to light in addition to a new application called Apple News.
WWDC 2014
- Celebration date: June 2 to 6, 2014.
- Location: Moscone Center in San Francisco.
- Important announcements: At the inaugural conference on June 2, Apple introduced iOS 8 and OS X Yosemite as well as a new developer toolkit.
WWDC 2013
- Celebration date: June 10-14, 2013.
- Location: Moscone Center.
- Important Announcements: Both iOS 7 and OS X Mavericks were introduced. In terms of hardware, we saw some surprises such as the MacBook Air put in an envelope by Steve Jobs or the Mac Pro, dubbed the Apple trash.
WWDC 2012
- Celebration date: June 11-15, 2012.
- Location: Moscone Center.
- Important announcements: presentation of iOS 6 and there was also a lot of expectation for the Mac operating system. Such was the expectation that the tickets sold out in a few minutes and all to see the legendary version of OS X Mountain Lion.
WWDC 2011
- Celebration date: June 6 to 10, 2011.
- Location: Moscone Center.
- Important announcements: the first signs of OS X Mountain Lion that was officially presented in 2012 were seen. In addition, what was expected was the launch of iOS 5 and also the presentation of its cloud, iCloud.
WWDC 2010
- Date of celebration: from 7 to 11 June.
- Location: Moscone Center.
- Important announcements: without a doubt this is one of the most mythical presentations, as it was the first time the new iPhone 4 was seen. This is a mythical team that has accompanied many of us and that marked a before and after within the company . To this announcement is added the new iOS 4 operating system.
WWDC 2009
- Date of celebration: from June 8 to June 12.
- Location: Moscone Center.
- Important announcements: The opening presentation was marked by important announcements. These included iPhone OS 3.0, a sample of OS X 10.6, the new MacBook Pro 13 ″ and updates to MacBook Pro 15 and 17 ″. In addition, the new iPhone 3GS was presented. Unfortunately one of the anecdotes of this WWDC is that it could not be presented by Steve Jobs due to his illness, with Phill Schiller being the protagonist.
WWDC 2008
- Date of celebration: from June 9 to June 13.
- Location: Moscone Center.
- Important announcements: the App Store arrived this year to iPhone and iPod Touch with a stable version of the iPhone SDK. In addition, the iPhone 3G was introduced.
Curiosities
As a curiosity, WWDC 2020 was the first conference to be held entirely online. This occurred due to the global pandemic by COVID-19. Both the inaugural conference and all the courses were made through the company’s website and all the media they had. This set a precedent in the company that many other large companies had to follow, bringing together thousands of people in one venue.
Something that has characterized the WWDC a lot is how fast the tickets run out. For example, at WWDC 2013 the tickets sold out in just 71 seconds setting a real record. But here the curiosity did not stop, since the tickets for WWDC 2011 sold out in 2 hours and those for WWDC 2012 sold out in 1 hour and 20 minutes.
