All you need to know about WWDC 2014

Apple’s WWDC 2014 has come and gone, and sadly no major device announcements, however the biggest news from WWDC 2014 was the announcement of iOS 8 which is set to be release this autumn.

It isn’t really much of a surprise that Apple didn’t make any new hardware announcements as they rarely do at its annual WWDC; however there were a few exciting software updates for the iPhone, iPad and Mac.

Here are the 4 biggest announcements from WWDC 2014:

iOS 8

The next generation iOS has been announced and will be available to iPhone and iPad users this autumn. The new features include:

• The keyboard will now use predictive typing, guessing the next word you are going to type and can adapt those suggestions depending on who you are talking to.
• Mail – swipe to delete emails, the ability to mute a thread, tap to talk feature which lets you send out audio snippets.
• Active Notifications allow you to respond to notifications without leaving the app you are in.
• Siri enhancements now including song identification via Shazam
• iCloud Drive shares files between your Mac, iOS device and Windows.
• Family Sharing – up to six members can share iTunes content across their devices, including apps, music and movies. You will also be able to access each others calanders, reminders and photos.

Keep in mind that with new iOS launches we can expect new hardware too, iPhone 6? iWatch?

The Health App

The rumours were true regarding the Health app but the new app is just called Health.

Health will be similar to the Passbook app, that allows you to store boarding passes, cinema tickets and coupons. Health will draw in data from other third party apps like Nike, keeping all the data under one roof.

Developers will be able to integrate their apps by using a service called HealthKit.  

HomeKit

The HomeKit will allow its users to control lights, locks, thermostats, switches and more via an iOS 8 app.

Hopefully developers will start to create some great software and products that will work with the HomeKit by the time iOS 8 is released this autumn.

Mac OS X Yosemite

Apple’s new desktop operating system was also announced and is officially called Yosemite.

Apple has redesigned the user interface, giving it a cleaner look not so dissimilar to the iOS 7 appearance.

With your iPhone you can now make and receive calls from your Mac and receive text messages (even if you don’t own an iPhone).

Safari has also been redesigned and AirDrop now works between iOS and Mac. The free update will be available this autumn as well.

 

Now that WWDC 2014 is over, we can now look forward to the new hardware releases later this year!