Apple has announced iOS 8 at the WWDC 2014.
The new mobile and tablet operating system introduces new interactive notifications in an overhauled Notification Center, which allows you to pull down messages from the top of your device’s screen to respond to the message instantly. You can also accept/deny calendar invitations using this new feature, too.
Spotlight will also allow users to search for apps on the App Store, along with points of interest and restaurants, among other things. Its heavy push to the forefront of the iOS 8 presentation mirrors that of its appearance in the newly announced Mac OS X Yosemite.
The company also announced QuickType for iOS 8 with predictive texting, a feature which has been previously implemented in devices built by other manufacturers but is just now being featured in iOS devices.
QuickType will see the built-in keyboard offering three suggestions when a user types a word, thus allowing for – yes – quicker typing. QuickType. Geddit?
Apple also made some new announcements regarding Siri, the operating system’s voice recognition system, which will now come equipped with integrated Shazam support. This means that it will now be able to search for music by listening to a snippet of a song.
A new Family Sharing feature is also being added, which will enable multiple devices to share the same content, including photo streams. An example of a photo stream was given where families were able to share holiday snaps with each other after a vacation. Apple is also enabling family members to share their purchases with each other, with all apps, music etc. purchased on one device able to be shared with the others.
iOS 8 will also feature a new HealthKit app, which will monitor users’ heart rates as well as sending messages to their doctors. Scary stuff.
iOS 8 will launch in beta today for developers, and will release in the fall to the general public.
Header Image: Apple
