iOS 8 Release Date Confirmed

Apple confirmed the iOS 8 release date today during the special Apple Event where the company also announced the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, two new iPhones coming later this month.

The iOS 8 release date is September 17th and it will arrive for older iPhones, iPads and iPod devices. The iOS 8 release is a free update that you can install over the air as a download or when you connect to iTunes.

iPhone and iPad owners can expect the iOS 8 release time around 1PM Eastern, 10 AM Pacific on September 17th.

There are exciting new iOS 8 features that users can look forward to using on their device that day, but there is normally a huge rush that could lead to some issues upgrading on the iOS 8 release date.

The iOS 8 release date is confirmed for September 17th.

If you plan to buy a new iPhone on the iPhone 6 release date, it may not be worth upgrading. The iPhone 6 release is two days later and it comes with iOS 8 installed.

The free iOS 8 release date brings iOS 8 to many older Apple devices inlcuding;

• iPhone 5s
• iPhone 5c
• iPhone 5
• iPhone 4s
• iPod Touch 5th generation
• iPad Air
• iPad mini Retina
• iPad mini
• iPad 4
• iPad 3
• iPad 2

There is no support for iOS 8 on the iPhone 4 or iPad 1. If you want to update and you are using a jailbreak you should definitely wait as it may be a while before we see an iOS 8 jailbreak release date.

Here are a look at our top 10 iOS 8 features that you can look forward to on these devices. After using iOS 8 for months these are some of the best features Apple offers in this free update.

1. Texts, Calls, Hotspot & Handoff – Your calls and texts show up on Mac and iPad and you can easily use the iPhone hotspot as well as bring your work with you between devices when you switch from one to the other.
2. Notifications –  Quickly reply to notifications without leaving the app they are in.
3. Better Messages – Send voice and video messages. Leave and do not disturb individual Group Message threads.
4. New Keyboard Features & Third Party Keyboards – Apple adds predictive text and allows keyboard choices finally.
5. iCloud Photo Library – Access all your photos and videos in full resolution from anywhere. Paid storage starts at 20GB for 99 cents a month.
6. Family Share – Share apps, movies and more without using the same Apple ID and approve In App Purchases with a notification.
7. Siri Always Listening – When plugged in you can say, “Hey Siri.” and Siri will launch so you can use the assistant.
8. Smart Sharing – You can now share to more than the stock list of Apps that Apple picked. This changes based on the apps you have installed.
9. FaceTime Call Waiting – We make a lot of FaceTime calls and we can finally switch calls easily using iOS 8.
10. Touch ID Support for Apps – Touch ID now works in third-party apps which makes it possible to secure other apps using your fingerprint.

In the coming days we’ll share advice on how to get ready for the iOS 8 release date and how to install iOS 8.

iOS 8 vs iOS 7 Walkthrough - Home Screen

> 1 / 19

We start our iOS 8 vs iOS 7 walkthrough with the iPhone home screen, which is where you'll start your iOS 8 experience after an update this fall.  These screens are incredibly important as you see them anytime you turn on the iPhone or need to choose an app to launch. There is no way around using them, so Apple needs to make sure they work just right.  As you can see in the iOS 8 vs iOS 7 comparison above, there is no change between the home screen in the new iPhone software. Apple changed the status bar and some other small visual changes in iOS 7, but there are no updates for iOS 8.   We could see Apple change the home screen slightly for iOS 8 for the iPhone 6. The new iPhone will feature a larger 4.7-inch display with a higher resolution. This is something Apple may use to add more icons to the screen. Or they could stick with the current layout, it's tough to tell.

> 1 / 19