Although
OS X Yosemite is out and most Continuity and Handoff features should already work, two important ones -- Instant Hotspot and SMS Relay -- won't function until iOS 8.1 is released on Monday,
notes AppleInsider. The former automatically tethers a Mac, iPad, or iPod touch to an iPhone, while the latter lets people receive SMS/MMS messages from an iPhone on the above devices. Instant Hotspot requires the paired devices to be on the same Apple ID and the iPhone to have tethering enabled by a carrier.
The predominant focus of iOS 8.1 though will be Apple Pay. On the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, users will be able to pay at retail, online and in apps using Touch ID and supported debit and credit cards loaded into Passbook. Apple Pay will also work on the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3, but only in apps and for online buying, since the tablets lack the necessary NFC hardware for swipe transactions.
Top