Some analysts yawned at the developments that came from the 25th annual Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) Worldwide Developers Conference - but they're actually big news for the innovative tech giant.
Some Apple followers found it disappointing that there was no mention of a smartwatch, a retooled set-top box, or an iPhone with a larger screen. Instead, Monday was all about user engagement and user experience.
Wowed industry experts called the announcements "groundbreaking" and a "warm-up act" of things yet to come.
"What's important about the Developers Conference, and what not enough people are paying attention to, is that Apple is setting itself up as a leader in a field that's been the 'holy grail' for the last 10 years," Money Morning Defense & Tech Specialist Michael A. Robinson told FOX Business Tuesday. In fact, that's why Robinson thinks AAPL stock is heading to $1,000, as he explained in the following video.
What we did get from the Developer Conference is that Apple's Mac OS X software underwent a dramatic redesign. It now brings Apple's desktop and smartphone software closer together. The world's biggest tech company dubbed the new desktop operating system (OS) "Yosemite," named after the national park. Standout features include translucent menu bars and new icons.
Apple also introduced a new feature called "Continuity." Continuity expands upon the company's AirDrop software, permitting users to move work back and forth between iPhones and Macs with a tap of a button.
Meanwhile, a new "handoff" feature allows Mac owners to use their computers to send and receive text messages and phone calls - even to non-iPhone users.
Several of Apple's new updates unveiled Monday highlighted streaming capabilities, enabling users to seamlessly sync data across all Apple devices in real time. Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook explained that the company's operating systems, devices and services "all provide an integrated and continuous experience across all our products."
Here are a dozen highlights of Apple's new operating systems - available this fall.
12 Cool Features from Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL)
HomeKit: The plethora of apps used to turn on lights, unlock doors, and lower the stereo sound are now available from one new Apple hub on the iPhone and iPad called HomeKit. Apple device owners will also be able to use Siri, Apple's intelligent digital personal assistant, to speak such commands. Say "get ready for bed," and Siri could switch off the lights, close the garage door, and adjust the thermostat.
Siri: Speaking of Siri, she'll be showing up in more places. Users will be able to buy songs on iTunes via Siri. Or, ask her to find a particular song.
HealthKit: Apple's new health-monitoring app logs a number of statistics such as users' footsteps, heart rate and sleep activity. Additionally, the app is able to pull data from third-party fitness and health monitoring hardware and can be accessed by a doctor or hospital. For example, the Mayo Clinic has revamped its app so that if a patient's vital signs (blood pressure, pulse, insulin levels) appear concerning, HealthKit can proactively alert a healthcare provider to respond to the patient.
Caller ID in All Places: When a user's iPhone rings, caller ID alerts will show up on Macs and iPads as well. Moreover, a user can answer a call on these devices and also make calls from them.
Messages: Apple has made it easier to respond to messages. When a text arrives, the message will pop up on the top of the screen. A user can simply swipe down to type a reply rather than having to open the texting app. Users can also respond or compose a text message via voice. Plus, the new iOS 8 for mobile includes group messages. Users can send audio and video messages and leave a group text with a new "do not disturb" feature. There's also a self-destruct feature akin to Snapchat.
Email Attachments: Yosemite, Apple's upgrade for computers, allows for much bigger email attachments - up to five gigabytes. This works when emailing non-Apple users as well as Apple users.
Keyboard: Coming to iOS 8 for iPads, iPhones, and iPod Touch is a new keyboard feature that lets users "swype" their fingers to compose.
Quick Type: iOS 8 features predictive typing with machine learning capabilities. Quick Type also provides the ability to name group text messaging threads or exit overly chatty threads.
iCloud: Unveiled Monday was iCloud Drive, an online storage offering that lets users store files and sync not only with other Mac devices, but also with computers using Microsoft Corp.'s (Nasdaq: MSFT) Windows operating system. The change also marks a step away from the company's current app-focused cloud services, allowing users to share files regardless of the application that created them.
New Photo App: Coming next year is a new picture app allowing users to store and sync photos across all Apple devices in their original resolution. Should a picture be edited on one device, it will be updated across all devices.
Battery Usage by App: Current versions of iOS let a user see how much storage space each app installed takes up and how long the phone has been used since its last charge. The new iOS 8 will offer battery usage reporting by app (something Android users have enjoyed for years). So, if a user thinks a specific app is eating up battery life, this is where they can go and find out.
App Store Renovation: Apple is adding search tools to its App Store, making it easier to find apps among its some 1.2 million (and continually growing) collection. Also, the 300 million people visiting the App Store every week will be able to buy multiple apps at one time.
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