Foreshadowing the release of the new iPhone 6, Apple has introduced its new iOS 8. It includes several minor new perks and features that add up to form a fairly attractive image. In my short review I want to highlight some of these new features and discuss them. So, let us take a look at what has changed since the previous version, shall we?
Apple Pay
It seems that Apple has fully embraced new NFC technology. This allows the new iOS 8 to be compatible with checkout counters at various stores that also support this technology. This is being referred to as Apple Pay. You can now save all your credit and bank card information on your smartphone. You can do this by scanning your card with the iPhone camera. All your information is then stored using Passbook. You can then use your phone to pay for your purchases, just like you would use a credit card (you still need to confirm your fingerprint, though).
More options for messages
The App Store is being dominated by third party messaging apps nowadays. Not surprisingly, considering the fact that they more customization options for your messages. It seems that Apple has taken note of this. They have added a new option called details page to the default messaging app. It allows the user to monitor such things as contact information, their location on the map and more. They have also added a microphone button so that you can quickly record yourself or something happening around you and share it instantly (sy doing un upward swipe motion).
Changes to the keyboard
A lot of people weren’t too happy with Apple’s default keyboards, so they made sure to implement some changes. The new keyboard makes texting and mailing much easier. It is also using QuickType and it is content sensitive. QuickType functions much like autocorrect, but it also supports 16 different languages. If you give it enough time to learn your speaking and texting habits, it will even start to differentiate various conversation styles and will adapt accordingly.
Improved spotlight search
Spotlight function in iOS 8 has been improved and expanded significantly. For example, you can now use it to search for something on the internet. Finally, no longer do you have to use the search function to find a particular e-mail or application. Now, all you need to do is just type the first letters of the word you are interested in and the spotlight will find it for you. If you are looking for a movie, it will even include the movie’s length.
Widgets
There have been a lot of widgets added to your default iOS 8. But the thing is, they do not look like traditional widgets. They are actually implemented into the notification center and they actively interact with supported apps on your phone.
These are most of the major changes to the new iOS. Sure, they do not sound like much, but they really make a difference and provide quite a different experience compared to the older versions of iOS that you are used to.