iOS 19 will simplify connecting to captive Wi-Fi networks, like those at coffee shops, hotels and gyms, on multiple devices
Apple’s iOS 19 update coming this fall will reportedly include a feature that can synchronize captive Wi-Fi access details across the iPhone, iPad and Mac.
Instead of having to fill out a web form on a captive portal separately on all your devices to access the internet, you will need to do this once on one device and Apple will sync those details across all your other iPhones, iPad and Macs.
“This new feature will let you enter that information on one device and have it sync to your other products,” wrote Mark Gurman in the latest edition of his PowerOn newsletter for Bloomberg. “That should make things a bit more convenient next time you need to access a new Wi-Fi network.”
iOS 19 will sync captive Wi-Fi login details
Also called “subscription” or “Wi-Fi hotspot” networks, captive networks (802.1X ) are like regular Wi-Fi networks, but they rely on a captive portal to manage access instead of traditional password-based connections.
You pick a Wi-Fi network on your iPhone, but instead of the password prompt you log in to the network using a special webpage. After logging in, you can access the internet. Some captive Wi-Fi networks may impose usage fees.
Captive Wi-Fi networks are commonly found in coffee shops, internet cafes, hotels, airports and other locations, like Starbucks or Panera. Apple’s support page has detailed information on using captive Wi-Fi networks on your iPhone or iPad.
Will AI obsolete the iPhone?
Gurman’s newsletter focuses on Apple’s current state of business. The author argues that Apple’s innovation engine is slowing, but said that a product blitz around 2027 could turn things around with new product designs and form factors such as all-glass iPhones, foldable devices, smart glasses and others.
Gurman also touched on a testimony by Apple’s services boss Eddy Cue at the ongoing antitrust trial against Google’s search monopoly. Among other things, Cue said Apple is prepping to boost Safari search with AI tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude, Perplexity, DeepSeek and Grok after the company saw a decline in Safari searches for the first time in more than twenty years.
The executive hinted that AI could obsolete the iPhone, Apple’s golden goose, ten years from now. “I worry about this for Apple. We’re highly successful — that doesn’t mean we’re going to be around 10 or 20 years down the line,” Cue told the court. “People still are going to need toothpaste 20 years from now, 40 years from now. You may not need an iPhone 10 years from now, as crazy as that sounds.”
Gurman argues that Cue said this to protect Apple’s lucrative search arrangement with Google, which sees it receiving more than $20 billion each year for traffic acquisition. “But his point holds true nonetheless,” wrote Gurman, “If Apple doesn’t innovate and falls behind the times, it will be easy prey for competitors.”
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