iOS 8 Hidden Features Video: Battery Usage By App, Hidden Photos, Siri Hands-Free, and More

Apple released iOS 8 to the public today, giving millions of users their first look at the new operating system. Along with all of the major features, like Continuity, Notification improvements, Messages upgrades, and the introduction of third-party keyboard/Touch ID access, there are also dozens of other minor tweaks and changes that have been introduced in iOS 8, both ahead of the OS's initial launch to developers and across the beta testing period.

Outlined in the video below are some of the most interesting and handy tweaks in iOS 8, including automatic credit card scanning, expanded weather options, quick access to contacts, a hands-free mode for Siri, hidden photos, and more.


We've been collecting and cataloguing minor feature changes to iOS 8 since the first beta was released, documenting the development of new features and providing a one-stop location for all the changes that have largely gone under the radar.

A complete list of all of the hidden features in iOS 8 can be found in our dedicated Hidden Features Roundup, which also serves as a way to see the progress iOS 8 made over the course of the beta testing period.

For example, in beta 4, Apple introduced a Tips app that offers iOS 8 users information about all of the new features in the operating system. Beta 5, meanwhile, added location information to photo collections in the Photos app, and beta 4 saw a Control Center redesign.

We've also compiled a walkthrough of all of the major features introduced with iOS 8, which can be found in our iOS 8 Roundup.


iOS 8 can be downloaded immediately for free. It can be installed on the iPhone 4s and later, 5th-generation iPod touch, iPad 2 and later, and the iPad mini.

Related Forum: iOS 8

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

dave420 Avatar
134 months ago
I know the file isn;t. But the OS needs 4.6GB of my 16(13.6) GB to do an update. I have to delete 30% of everything on my phone just to update...sigh More than slightly annoying.

I've seen at least a dozen of these posts today, but when people ask that Apple increase the base storage from 16 GB everyone is in here swearing up and down they don't need the increased storage.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bpeeps Avatar
134 months ago
Battery usage by app? Oh man, I can't wait for the iPhone 6 threads breaking down battery usage to all of their 400 apps. Is my battery life still good? Angry Birds takes up like 47%!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mappyman Avatar
134 months ago
Looks like Android now.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ugahairydawgs Avatar
134 months ago
I know the file isn;t. But the OS needs 4.6GB of my 16(13.6) GB to do an update. I have to delete 30% of everything on my phone just to update...sigh More than slightly annoying.

You could update through iTunes if you don't want to delete anything.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AlecZ Avatar
134 months ago
Battery usage by app is something I've always wanted but have forgotten about until now. It's one of the things Android had that iOS should have had before.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
doelcm82 Avatar
134 months ago
Looks like Android now.
It actually looks a lot like iOS 7. But there are many enhancements.

----------

great update.

overall my phone feels a little more "premium" and durable in hand-- also seems to be a little more water-resistant. anyone else notice this?

I missed that. But I'm finding you strangely attractive, all of the sudden. Have you done something with your OS?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)