Last week, Apple released iOS 8.3, which had a lot of bug fixes as well as a cool Emoji keyboard. Apple is planning on releasing iOS 8.4 very soon, and it will have a lot of new features related to its Music App. The actual release date will probably before iOS 9 arrives in the late summer or early fall.
According to Gotta Be Mobile, Apple intends to release an update for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch with a release date sometime this summer. This would be iOS 8.4, and it would have a lot of new features as well as the usual round of bug fixes.
The biggest selling point of the new features is the Music App, which has a new design for iOS users to explore their music collection easier as well as making it a whole lot more fun. The Music App allows the user to add their own image and description, as well as enjoy pictures of their favorite artists in the artist view. Albums and playlists that have been recently added are now at the top of the library, which makes clicking something new very easy.
There will also be a MiniPlayer so the user can see what is playing and control playback while he or she browses the music collection. There is also Streamlined iTunes Radio, which allows the user to discover new music with iTunes radio, and quickly return to favorite stations Recently Played.
There is also an improved Now Playing, which "showcases your album artwork the way it was meant to be", as well as an "Up Next" icon that allows users to find out what songs from the library will play next.
It would appear that iOS 8.4 will focus entirely on the music, bringing it back to its iPod Classic roots. There will even be a Global Search that will allow the user to search from anywhere in the Music app by tapping on the magnifying glass.
For those who do not use any Apple products and are not aware of iOS, the company has actually released eight individual and incremental iOS 8 updates since the release of iOS 8 last September. Each of the updates delivered not only new features but fixed bugs for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.
The good news is that the iOS 8.4 Beta is now available to download and install, provided that you are a member of Apple's paid developer program. Sadly, there doesn't seem to be a public iOS 8.4 Beta, and there isn't word of whether or not Apple will release iOS 8.4 to the public ahead of its release.
There also hasn't been any word of an official iOS 8.4 release date, but like the Beta, it should be good for all iOS powered devices including the iPad 2 and the iPhone 4S.
It is also not know whether or not iOS 8.4 will be the last update of iOS until iOS 9 comes along, projected to be released at some point in the summer. For those that want to see a preview of iOS 9 should be a reservation for Apple's WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) 2015 in San Francisco from June 8-12.
