iOS 8.1 Beta Includes Features for Upcoming iPad’s with Touch ID and Apple Pay

Apple has already begun seeding the first beta version of iOS 8.1 to developers. Of course, with big updates to an operating system comes tech info on what those updates will be. Acccording to developer Hamza Sood, iOS 8.1 includes Apple Pay content and shows evidence of Touch ID support for the next generation of iPad.

Sood posted a few images to Twitter, revealing what Apple Pay will look like this October when it is released to the public. The payment service will allow users to manage their credit card information similar to Safari Keychain, but with a few additional security features.

Sood also noted that Apple has included coding to provide support of Touch ID for the iPad Air. According to the coding, it looks like the next generation of iPad Air will also include the NFC chip and Apple Pay compatibility. From Sood’s tweet:

ABOUT_PAYMENT_TEXT_IPAD

Pay with iPad using Touch ID. With Apple Pay, you no longer need to type card numbers and shipping information.

Personally, I find this new information to be positive. It always seems like Apple is intentionally keeping the iPad behind the times, compared to the iPhone, when it comes to technology. The camera features are pathetic on the iPad and for some unexplainable reason Apple did not include Touch ID with the first generation of iPad Air or iPad mini with Retina display, even though the technology existed on the iPhone.

It doesn’t matter if the majority of people probably won’t use their iPad in a retail store to buy merchandise. Just having the option is a big deal. Photography on the iPad is a perfect example of why Apple should be maintaining comparable tech specs on both devices. Whenever I am in a tourist location (like Disneyland or Fisherman’s Warf), I see hundreds of people using their iPad to take photos and video. Excluding the iPad population from new technology is just unnecessary.

Hopefully, Apple will update the next generation of iPad Air with a better camera, too.

[Via: MacRumors]

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