Apple upcoming mobile operating system, iOS 8, will apparently be focused on connected health and smart home features.
The Cupertino company will launch iOS 8 this evening at WWDC 2014 and according to a new report it will have two key focus points.
The New York Times has published a new report citing “a person briefed on the product”, which outlines that iOS 8 will introduce a new health-tracking app, reportedly called HealthBook.
The app will supposedly let you track fitness stats such as steps taken, your heart rate and it will be capable of sleep tracking somehow.
At least initially, Apple’s health app will work in conjunction with third-party fitness devices and services, but should later connect to Apple’s first smartwatch dubbed the iWatch.
This may mean that Apple’s iWatch will have similar functionality to the Samsung Gear 2 and Samsung Gear Fit when it launches hopefully later this year.
Apparently Apple should also announce its first smart home efforts, with iOS 8 being used to connect smart home devices, potentially like lightbulbs and thermostats.
“Apple always has the potential to turn a niche into a mainstream proposition when it enters a market,” said Jan Dawson, Jackdaw Research telecom analyst. “I think Apple’s entry could really transform both the health and fitness device space and the smart home market.”
This new report helps substantiate the earlier rumours of Apple taking a big step into the fitness market, which is already pretty packed with the likes of the Misfit Shine, Jawbone UP24 and others.
At the end of May, an FT report revealed that Apple would use its WWDC conference to launch its first smart home platform.
It may well use Apple’s existing iBeacon indoor positioning system to work with its smart home features.
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