Apple iOS 8

iOS 8

Apple iOS 7 made its mark in design, but iOS 8 (free) is all about you, the user. From added features to improved navigation, you'll simply have a better experience using your iPhone and iPad. With version 8, Apple continues to extend iOS's reach, as the new functionality isn't just about what you can do on your phone or tablet. It's also about how iOS devices communicate with one another and Mac computers. It's about how your whole family can now share an iTunes account, with one person managing permissions for other family members to buy apps, music, books, and movies. It's about how easily you can communicate with other people. iOS 8 brings functionality that users have been craving for some time, improved navigation, and subtle design changes to an already solid mobile operating system.

catch-up with its app offerings, though the selection has already improved by leaps and bounds since the OS's debut. Of course, there are plenty of apps in Google Play that can't work on iOS even if the developers wanted to port over a version, due to aspects of the operating system itself being locked down. Until version 8 of iOS, custom keyboards were among those disqualified apps; skins and launchers are still not available for the iPhone or the iPad.

One potential game-changer is Apple Pay, the company's mobile NFC payment system, which will be available soon. Yes, it's quite similar to Google Wallet, which has been around for a few years, except that Apple includes fingerprint authentication. But that's not why it's a potential game-changer. It's Apple's reach with both retailers and customers, particularly in the U.S. and Canada, that could push mobile payment systems over the tipping point.

Design and Navigation
In iOS 8, you'll notice small design changes in only a few places, not the sweeping black-and-white-to-technicolor transition we saw from iOS 6 to 7. The Control Center will catch your eye, as will the photo-sharing options. The visual changes remove unnecessary outlines and dividing lines, opting instead for more shading, and they're not obvious unless you compare iOS 7 and iOS 8 side by side. Without the direct comparison, you might feel as if something has been updated, but you might not be able to put your finger on exactly what.

I double-tap the home button a hundred times a day on my iPhone and iPad, so I love that now the multitasking bar pulls up not only currently running apps, but also recently contacted friends. Photos and names of contacts with whom I've swapped text messages recently appear at the top. It's a great way to use more of the screen real estate. The primary multitasking functionality is still here, too, so you can jump between apps and force-quit them by dragging up if they stall.

Another improvement to navigation that's just fantastic is that you can reply to an incoming text message by simply pulling down on the notification when it arrives.