It’s cited as the biggest iOS release ever, with developers, consumers, bloggers and enthusiasts going wild over the new upcoming iOS 8, due to be released this Autumn (“Fall”).
The steady onslaught of favourable press for iOS 8 was of course predictable, but many of the features on iOS 8 are far from as innovative as they seem. I never exactly get enthused by new Apple releases, but when a company has the courage to call their new release “utterly indispensable”, I can’t help being critical. Some of the new features are showcased on their website:
iCloud Photo Sync
iOS 8 contains a new photo app that automatically sync photos across all apple devices. Great – exactly what Bit Torrent Sync has enabled users to do for over a year now. The iCloud Photo Sync app gives the same result as a free, cross-platform app that is way more secure than storing your personal files in the cloud. Granted it contains a photo editor too but I’ve always found photo editing on phones a little messy with the details, and again – there are numerous free editing apps already.
Improved messaging
According to Apple’s website, the new messaging service allows you to “Tap to add your voice to any conversation. Send a video of what you’re seeing the moment you’re seeing it. And easily share your location so they know right where you are.” So it’s a built in Whatsapp. Mindblowing. Next.
Details
The third feature that the iOS 8 page introduces is “details”. New shortcuts, managing mail, convenient way to respond to notifications. I’m sure the improvements are handy but “utterly indispensable”? Not convinced.
Smart Keyboard
The new iOS 8 features a keyboard that suggests contextually appropriate words to complete sentences. I genuinely think that’s a really handy feature if it works properly. What I’m less excited about is how the keyboard will take into account your tone in text and emails separately. I can’t really see that being helpful, I’m sure I’m not the only one who occasionally text clients and emails family. If it can pick up your tone based on the contact, that could be helpful, but do we really need an app to remind us how to use our own personalities? I mean, it’s obviously picked up the tone I’m using from me; I know how I speak, so why do I need an app to remind me that occasionally I use the word “endeavor” when I know that that’s part of my pretentious personality anyway? It’s unnessecary, I don’t need an iPhone to remind me what I tell it that I am.
Family Sharing
Another syncing feature. Family Sharing allows your family to share any books, music or videos that they buy. Well, by family it means “up to six people”, but hey, we can’t be too lenient on file sharing now, can we? Or maybe Apple just assumes that larger families are unable to afford more than six iPhones between them? You’d have to ask them why only six people can use this feature. But as nice as it is to listen to Abba or Dolly Parton with mum every once in a while, I’m sure I can’t be the only one to be almost completely uninterested in what my parent’s listen to. If only there was some kind of app that allowed me to get hold of Dad’s Bat of Hell Trilogy whenever I fancied. Alas, I must wait until Fall to be able to bond with them.
Health
If you happened to walk anywhere near a TV during the last couple of weeks you would have probably have heard the phrase “Go, you chicken fat, go!” blaring out at you. Jokes aside, the new health app looks fantastic. Having a platform where all the health data syncs together for a thorough, personalised experience looks so handy. I look forward to never using it.
SDK
Seriously, this is perhaps the only real innovative feature that iOS 8 has to offer. Apple is giving developers the tools to improve what their apps can do, making use of iCloud, Touch ID and many more. Sure, other platforms have been giving these developers similar tools for ages, but Apple providing them with the app store will be a real game changer for developers.
A new iOS isn’t indispensable, the users and the developers who make it something special are. Never forget that.