Apple’s new iOS 8 update for iPhone and iPad has a lot of new features but what you might not see are a number of hidden features. Here are the top 10.
iOS 8 was released earlier this week for iPhone 4S and newer, iPad 2 and later and the iPod Touch fifth generation.
The new operating system also comes pre-loaded on the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
Here are the top 10 hidden features:
1. SEE WHAT APPS ARE USING MORE BATTERY POWER
Battery power on our smartphones needs to be conserved to make the device run longer and iOS 8 allows users to see which apps are impacting your battery more than others.
Go to Settings > General > Usage > Battery Usage and after a few seconds you’ll see a list of apps and features with a percentage next to it.
You can also look back at either the last 24 hours or the last seven days to get an even broader look.
2. USE SIRI TO FIND OUT THE NAME OF A SONG
Ever heard a song and wondered what it was called? Usually you unlock your phone, look for the Shazam app and click to listen.
Now you can just ask Siri to name the tune. During the song ask “what song is this?” and it will bring up the answer and an option to buy the song using the same Shazam service.
3. FIND OUR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE WEATHER
The Weather app in iOS 8 has had a bit of a makeover and is now powered by The Weather Channel instead of Yahoo.
You’ll still find current temperature and forecasts but if you scroll down the screen you’ll also see other info like sunrise and sunset times, chance of rain percentages, wind speed and direction, visibility and the UV index.
4. ADD CREDIT CARDS
When making an online purchase your iCloud keychain can remember your credit cards but if you want to use a new card you don’t have to manually type in all of the numbers and expiry date.
You can use the camera to scan all of the information off your card and put it into the required fields.
5. HIDE PHOTOS
With iOS 8 you can manage your photo albums with a new feature that allows users to hide some of your photographs.
If you press and hold an image you’ll see the options Copy or Hide appear. When you select Hide the photo will be removed from collections and years and move it to a folder called Hidden.
6. RECOVER DELETED PHOTOS
Now with iOS 8 when you delete a photo or video it isn’t deleted right away. Instead they move to a Recently Deleted folder where they remain for up to 30 days before disappearing forever.
You can go in and delete the photo again to make it disappear right away or you can actually recover the photo back into your albums.
7 ACCESS FAVOURITES AND RECENT CONTACTS FASTER
A double click of the home button can open up a screen not only to show recent apps and provide an easy way to shut them down but it also shows your favourite and recent contacts.
Tap on one of those contacts and it gives you the option to call, message or FaceTime them.
8. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE CAMERA ROLL?
Many people who have installed iOS 8 had a moment of panic when they couldn’t see their camera roll and their thousands of photos.
They’re still there – but just arranged in a different way.
Instead of Camera Roll you’ll now see Recently Added which is the grouping of your pictures and videos from the last 30 days.
Click on the Photos tab in the bottom left corner to see your photos organised by location, date and years.
9. EXPOSURE CONTROL
We love taking photos with our iPhone and now iOS 8 adds Exposure Control to help you take even better pictures.
Now after touching to focus, simply slide your finger up and down the screen to adjust the exposure to lighten or darken your image.
10. SEND LAST LOCATION BEFORE BATTERY DIES
Find My Phone is a great feature to help locate a lost phone but once the battery dies you’ve lost all contact.
Now there is a Send Last Location option so your missing iPhone can transmit its last position before the battery dies.
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