Along with the features that were demoed on stage, an iOS 8 graphic displayed some additional functions that went largely under the radar, many of which look quite interesting. For example, iOS 8 will apparently display battery usage by app, a handy feature that will let users monitor the battery drain of specific apps, shutting down those that are drawing too much power.


Image courtesy of Evan Coleman

iPads will gain the ability to take Panoramic photos like the iPhone, while the Camera will gain an instant burst mode, a timer mode, and separate controls for focus and exposure. iBooks will support an auto night mode and the ability to organize books by series, while notifications will include travel time.

A mysterious Tips app, which was first depicted in an early screenshot of iOS 8, is also mentioned, though it is unclear what this app will do. It is possible Tips will provide iOS users with information on lesser known iOS features, serving as a tutorial app for those who want to learn the ins and outs of their devices.


Click to make larger

An "In Case of Emergency" card will be added to iOS 8, displaying contact information and possibly health-related information as well. Users will be able to use Siri to purchase iTunes content, Notes gains a new rich text editing feature, and RSS feeds are displayed within Shared Links in Safari.

Other mentioned features offering unknown functions include Place cards in other apps and Speak Screen.

Finally, there are also several accessibility improvements coming, including an Alex voice, Braille keyboard, improved zoom, and multi-device support for MFi hearing aids. Guided Access, which limits an iPad or iPhone to opening a single app, will gain time limits, a countdown timer, and Touch ID integration.

These are of course, only a small selection of the hundreds of new features and minor functions that will likely be added to iOS 8 as it is in development. iOS 8 is available to developers immediately, while the public will get access to the new mobile operating system later this year.

Hi everyone,

As you may have heard, Apple announced this morning at WWDC that with the launch of iOS 8, they are supporting the use of third-party keyboards. Big news! We wanted to make sure to let you all know what our thoughts are, directly from Ben Medlock and Jon Reynolds, SwiftKey’s co-founders:

“We’re delighted Apple has decided to embrace the importance of opening its platform to third party keyboards. For more than four years, SwiftKey and our millions of users have pioneered faster, easier typing on touchscreens, leading the industry with next-word prediction and smarter autocorrection. Our technology features on more than 200 million devices to date and we can’t wait to reach more. We first brought a taste of our technology to iOS in January this year with the launch of the free note-taking app SwiftKey Note. Are we going to build SwiftKey Keyboard for iOS 8? Of course we are. We’ve already started.”