7 Amazing New Features in iOS 8 You Need to Know

The release of Apple’s new operating system has unleashed a bevy of new features and updates in an ongoing effort to improving user experience. Subtle changes can have a major impact on functionality, and Apple’s improvements have aimed to do just that. Available as a free upgrade to iPhone’s 4s and newer, here’s some of what you can expect!

-Photos

Apple’s photos now have a comprehensive searching method that allows you to search by time, location, date or album. You can even use a smart search function by entering keywords that pertain to the photo you are looking for.

Advanced editing features allow greater photo manipulation, as you can choose to manually adjust settings like brightness or shadowing.

-Typing

It’s been long overdue really. iPhone has not messed with the functionality of its keyboard since pretty much its conception. They have finally stepped it up a notch with the introduction of typing predictions that are so advanced it can even differentiate between the contacts you are messaging and adjust its predictions accordingly.

-Messaging

Now, a simple swipe or tap to your phone can easily send image, audio and video files. It is also possible to mute and exit group conversations, as well as quickly send locator maps to an acquaintance you are meeting. No more dreaded repetition by having to reenter an address into a search engine!

-Health Application

One of the proud revelations at this year’s Apple reveal, Home Kit will be available on iPhone’s 5s or newer! Installed motion processors get to use the new Apple Health App, which logs physical activity.

-Apple Pay

Another innovative reveal this year was Apple’s mobile payment system, called Apple Pay. An upgrade to iOS 8 system means you can start using this convenient wireless payment method on the iPhone 6 or 6 plus.

-Sharing

In a generous move by Apple, the new Family Sharing Feature allows a user to share pretty much any of their iTunes purchases, like books or movies with users they have approved.

-iCloud Drive

Similar to Google Drive or Dropbox, the iCloud Drive allows you to browse, edit and share files across different Apple Devices. Mac users beware however! You’ll have to wait until the OS X Yosemite operating system update is released later this year.

With such a diverse range of upgrades it’s kind of hard to choose our favorite (Although a speedier typing experience thanks to predictions is a definite contender). What are you most looking forward to, and why?

(Omnie Solutions is an enterprise application development company providing custom web and enterprise mobile application development services for leading mobile platforms like iOS, Android, and Rim to global business. Follow Omnie Solutions on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn).

Artificial Intelligence and Email- A Good Idea?

It could probably be reasoned that anyone over the age of say, twenty-one could use a personal assistant. Truthfully, the same could be said for people under that bracket as well, but it doesn’t count because they’ve already got assistants- they’re called parents, duh! For the rest of us however, it’s pretty safe to say that mom and dad aren’t calling to remind us about deadlines and responsibilities (darn it!). And unless you’ve reached the status where you’re actually afforded an assistant, managing our day-to-day lives is really a solo act, isn’t it? For now, maybe.

A Palo-Alto based company by the name of Robin Labs has announced the onset of a new Android application called Less.Mail. The premise is that the App utilizes artificial intelligence to help you manage and respond to your emails. An intriguing video released by the company shows a user going about his everyday tasks as Less.Mail voice alerts and reads incoming messages aloud. The user then issues a simple command, such as “No, thanks- but please decline politely”. Less.Mail proceeds to draft a polite rejection email, which it presents to the user for approval before issuing the final response.

See the video here:

Both the potential and potential drawbacks are clearly seen here. If the AI is as advanced as Robin Labs has made it appear to be, it could be a huge convenience for professionals and students everywhere. As it’s been demonstrated in the video, being able to respond to your emails while en route to your destination would be an obvious time saver.

Of course, the flip side to that equation is equally known to anyone who has ever been a victim of auto-correct’s well-intentioned, but ultimately flawed services. At the end of the day, could a machine really be trusted to accurately convey your messages? Especially when those messages are addressed to, oh, I don’t know- your boss?

Despite that sobering comparison, Robin Labs is confident that Less.Mail will work optimally. The company’s CEO Ilya Eckstein has reasoned that “Approximately 80% of our emails are routine”, which clearly indicates that the program can adequately adapt to and generate accurate responses due to recurring themes.

At this point, the App is available by invite only. If you agree with Eckstein’s logic, and you’d like to take Less.Mail for a spin, you can apply for an invite here: http://robingets.me/lessmail/

If you’re a skeptic, or Elon Musk, hang back while others test the accuracy of Less.Mail’s AI first. The reviews will surely pour in soon enough!