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Apple Launches iOS 8: How Does It Impact Existing iOS App Compatibility?

At IndusNet, we are committed to helping you remain updated with the latest technology and to be your technology delivery partner. On that note, we specifically aim to breakdown some of the changes within iOS 8 that will affect your app and cause compatibility issues.

As Apple does every year, the Cupertino-based company has launched iOS 8 for all its mobile devices above iPhone 4S and iPad 2 (including both the devices) & on the newly announced Apple Watch. The new operating system will also be available on the iPod touch 5th generation. The new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus feature 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch screens respectively, adding to the plethora of sizes and resolutions available on iOS devices.

Isn’t iOS 8 supposed to auto-scale to every screen size?

Of course, the iOS features auto-scaling, which means, all applications will supposedly work just fine on larger screens. Only, this is not completely true. If you have an iOS application and are wondering how the new iOS 8 will affect your application, read on.

iOS 8 cannot change the User-Interface and User-Experience to make use of the bigger screen sizes and resolutions. Moreover, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus come with newer features such as horizontal viewing, dense content adjustments among others, which need to be incorporated specifically.

If you already have an iOS application, it is very important for you to release updates for your users so that they have the best UI/UX. At IndusNet, we are committed to helping you optimize your iOS apps, no matter which Apple device your users use.

iOS 8 has tons of features on which you can capitalize

Before you decide whether you need to make drastic changes to your application or just minimal alterations, it would be prudent to take a look at some of the new features of iOS 8. These new features can be used to enhance the UI/UX on your app, so that you can use them for your business.

Of course, not all of these features are applicable to every business but some of them may be. Do take a look at all the new features and if you think one or many of these features could be used within your application, contact us for customizing and updating your app to iOS 8.

• Custom Actions – Apple now lets its users to assign actions with just the touch of a button. One can print documents, assign a photo to a caller or do just about anything they probably would wish to do.From an app developer-point of view, this would mean one could possibly make it easy for users to add watermarks, add something to a calendar or a wish-list or even engage in translations easily. It all depends on what your specific business requirements are and certain changes can be made with the help of Custom Actions.
• Extensive sharing – Earlier, one could only share with Facebook and Twitter. In fact, Twitter was the first social site to be integrated within iOS. Facebook came later on. Now, Apple has thrown open its sharing-options doors to every developer. This translates to you being able to decide if your users get to share something over your app, while using another.
• Customizable predictive keyboards – Apple is already touting its new keyboard as the smartest ever. The newly integrated Quicktype keyboard is similar to SwiftKey and Swype in some ways, but a lot different and even more effective in other ways. The word suggestions now depend on whom you are texting.This means, predictive texting will now be able to choose slangs when texting to a friend and more flowery words when writing to your editor. Or perhaps, it can suggest formal words when writing to clients.
  
  Moreover, the predictive keyboards can be customized easily, which means, you can create new keyboards so that they can be used system-wide. Later on, a preferred layout or input method can be chosen as well.
• Integrated recording – Recoding has never been easy on iOS. Not anymore. iOS 8 makes recording more integrated and if you have an application that requires this feature, it can easily be integrated.
• Handoff – The new Handoff feature allows users to pick up from where they left while using different devices. If you started to type an email on the iPhone, you can choose to do it on the iPad at a later time, without having to reopen windows or type again.
• AirDrop – Apple has enabled its AirDrop facility to run between devices running iOS 8 and OS X 10.10 Yosemite. Those who own both iOS and Mac devices will find this feature very useful. If your app or your business can gain from users sharing files between their own devices, this is a feature you could probably make use of.
• Instant hotspot – Setting up personal Wi-Fi hotspots was always cumbersome on iOS devices. One had to go to the settings and then search around in order to turn on the personal hotspot. Not anymore. Instant Hotspot allows users to access the Internet on computers or iPads without having to fiddle with the settings.
• Interactive notifications – More items can be viewed in the Notifications Centre. Whether adding widgets that let users know about package deliveries or reading the latest news headlines, widgets can be used creatively by developers. It all depends on how you want to integrate widgets within your app, so that users can use them on their iOS devices.
• Inter-app communications – As mentioned earlier, Apple has thrown its sharing-doors open to developers. This means, inter-app communication became a lot easier. No matter which application you want your app to communicate with, our iOS developers can help you achieve your goals.
• Widgets – Widgets have long been the privilege of Android users. Many iOS users often didn’t like the widgets or so went the assumption. However, it is becoming increasingly important to use the widget facility. iOS 8 allows developers to create widgets within the iOS ecosystem.
• Document picker – Apple has completely changed the way the iOS handles documents. You can now open and edit documents using more applications and also share them between apps without any hassles or creating multiple copies. Documents had long been a problem when it came to using iOS devices. Not anymore. Our developers can help you integrate document editing and creation within your app, if your business can benefit from that.
• Health App – This application will help users to gather details such as calories burned, blood sugar, cholesterol, heart rate and other information in one place. If you run a health business, Apple’s HealthKit API will surely help.
• HomeKit – Apple has also decided to incorporate smart home electronics within iOS 8. The HomeKit framework allows developers to create apps that help users to stay in their couches and control all the switches in the house, for example.Someone knocked at the door? Remain seated on your couch and let your iPhone open the door. Siri is also integrated within HomeKit, which means, you can give vocal commands to your iPhone to turn off all electronic gadgets in the house, before going to bed.

At IndusNet, it is a constant journey of keeping up with Apple’s innovations

We do understand that most businesses and companies do not want to risk meddling with their existing iOS apps. However, iOS changes every year and throughout any given year, Apple releases updates, making subtle and significant changes to the platform. This means, we must constantly be waiting and watching for announcements made by Apple. At IndusNet, we follow changes made to iOS by Apple carefully so that we can help our clients grow their business and optimize existing apps.

All of the updates may not be useful for your business. However, it is important to understand and know of any of these new features can help you to stand apart from your competitors. Most consumers will migrate to iOS 8 in the next couple of months. Before it is too late, you will need to make changes to your existing app in order to keep up with the changes. Apple also stops providing support to technologies it believes are no longer relevant.

How IndusNet can help

We can help you to put together all this information together and customize solutions that are tailor-made for your business. In order to provide the best UI/UX experience to your users, one needs to plan early about avoiding non-compatibility issues. With this in mind, we are happy to announce that we will offer a free no-obligation consultation with any of our experts to evaluate possibilities with the new iOS 8. Please contact our app development team for a free consultation.