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Apple Updates iWork Apps for iOS With Support for Scribble, New Image Picker, Editable Shapes and More

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Apple today updated its iWork apps designed for iOS devices, introducing new iOS 14 features and support for Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.

iworkappsios.png

All three of the apps now support the Scribble feature that was introduced in iPadOS 14, allowing Apple Pencil owners to handwrite anywhere in any text field within the iWork apps, with the written text then converted right into typed text.

The new feature will let Apple Pencil users write out Pages documents, Numbers spreadsheets, and Keynote presentations without having to swap over to the keyboard to fill in data.

Apple has also added new editable shapes in each of the apps along with support for the redesigned iOS and iPadOS 14 image picker. Full release notes for each app are below:

Pages
  • Use Scribble to write by hand with Apple Pencil, and your words will automatically convert to text. Requires iPadOS 14.
  • Select from new report templates to help you get started.
  • Enhance your documents with a variety of new, editable shapes.
  • Easily find pictures and videos using new zoom and search capabilities in the redesigned image picker. Requires iOS 14 or iPadOS 14.
Keynote
  • Use Scribble to write by hand with Apple Pencil, and your words will automatically convert to text. Requires iPadOS 14.
  • Use the new Outline View to focus on the structure and flow of your content without other distractions.
  • Play YouTube and Vimeo videos right in your presentations.
  • Movie export now supports a wide selection of formats and frame rates.
  • Hold the option key while dragging an object to duplicate it.
  • Easily find pictures and videos using new zoom and search capabilities in the redesigned image picker. Requires iOS 14 or iPadOS 14.
  • Enhance your presentations with a variety of new, editable shapes.
Numbers
  • Use Scribble to write by hand with Apple Pencil, and your words will automatically convert to text. Requires iPadOS 14.
  • Forms are now easier to create and customize. Add a form to any table or use the new Basic Form template.
  • Improved performance when working with large tables.
  • Easily find pictures and videos using new zoom and search capabilities in the redesigned image picker. Requires iOS 14 or iPadOS 14.
  • Enhance your spreadsheets with a variety of new, editable shapes.
Apple has also updated the Mac versions of Pages, Keynote, and Numbers with new report templates and editable shapes.

All of the new updates are available from the iOS App Store and macOS App Store as of this morning.
Apple's iWork apps for Mac and iOS are free downloads for all users.

Article Link: Apple Updates iWork Apps for iOS With Support for Scribble, New Image Picker, Editable Shapes and More
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/09/22/iwork-apps-ios-14-update/
I wonder if the iPhone 12 will support pencil soon , or maybe a iPhone similar to the note series ?
 
Maconplasma said:
When was the iWork suite not free? It's always been included with a new Mac. That is still considered free especially since Microsoft Office 365 doesn't come free when you buy a PC.
Click to expand...

They were paid apps! They were 80 bucks... then reduced to $20 in the Mac and $10 in iPhone EACH...
Even iMovie and Garage Band you had to pay for them, then they made it free for new iPhones and Macs, later (only a couple of years ago) for older devices free as well.
 
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Maconplasma said:
When was the iWork suite not free? It's always been included with a new Mac. That is still considered free especially since Microsoft Office 365 doesn't come free when you buy a PC.
Click to expand...
Let's not forget that any Apple computer costs more than an equivalent Windows PC by more than the cost of Office (which can be as low as $20/yr). So when you buy a Mac, is iWork really free? Not to mention that the majority of the business world uses Office, not iWork.
 
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iWork is this amazing piece of software that I forget about until that one person shares a keynote file and a dozen people email me asking how they can open it in PowerPoint.
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Konigi said:
So it looks like even the 1-day notice before iOS 14 release was too sudden for Apple's own developers. Took them a few days to implement the new features into their apps?
Click to expand...

Their app developers get pulled to work on the OS near GM, so they rarely get it done on time.
 
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Does Pages let you save stuff natively in Word format, or is it still a multi-step process to (if memory serves) 'export' the file?
 
GeoStructural said:
They were paid apps! They were 80 bucks... then reduced to $20 in the Mac and $10 in iPhone EACH...
Even iMovie and Garage Band you had to pay for them, then they made it free for new iPhones and Macs, later (only a couple of years ago) for older devices free as well.
Click to expand...
Ah I didn't know you were digging back that far in the past many years ago.
 
dmylrea said:
Let's not forget that any Apple computer costs more than an equivalent Windows PC by more than the cost of Office (which can be as low as $20/yr). So when you buy a Mac, is iWork really free? Not to mention that the majority of the business world uses Office, not iWork.
Click to expand...
Very few people pick a Mac over a PC just so they can get iWork for free. There are other reasons for the Mac price premium.
 
Can you back up these iWork documents, say a numbers file, up on an regular USB stick as you could with an excel/word file?
What happens when you then want to open it on Windows?
 
Maconplasma said:
When was the iWork suite not free? It's always been included with a new Mac.
Click to expand...
No. My 12” PowerBook most certainly did not include iWork. And neither did my 15” Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro. I had to get in my car and drive to the Apple Store (or Micro Center) and pick up the box off the shelf. And I had to carefully consider whether I wanted to pay the $60. And I only considered it after Numbers was added to the suite.

I think I actually waited and purchased the boxed bundle that included the Snow Leopard, iLife, and iWork discs.
 
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Pages and keynotes are fine and good alternatives to moffice suite. But i cant say the same for numbers.

still lacking a lot of compability imprivments with ms office which is the mainstream software of business world. Ms offices best feature is it is compatible with ms office. :)

it does not open excel files filtered coloumns.

apple is not giving it free, its fee is included in the hardware you buy from apple. Not many people would pay for it if it was price tagged and sold seperatedly. Almost everyone has excel word files need to view or edit and then you would have to pay for iwork which is only half compatible with files pisses you.

they realized they have to make free to sell you the hardware.
 
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rforno said:
Does Pages let you save stuff natively in Word format, or is it still a multi-step process to (if memory serves) 'export' the file?
Click to expand...
It’s still an Export process, which works very well. I use Pages to proofread Word documents occasionally and export them with the tracked changes perfectly intact. No big issue. I also save a copy of the Word version to Files (in the same folder as the Pages version). All on my iPad with no hassle at all.
 
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DinkThifferent said:
I LOVE the 'auto center' feature for images that you paste in documents. I really had to get used to pages, but now i prefer it over Office.
Click to expand...
I stopped using Office several years ago and have used Pages and Keynote for preparing all my documents and presentations since then. I find them much easier to use then their Office equivalents (on my iPad). Obviously, each person’s experience will be different. (I don’t work with spreadsheets but I’ve been told that Numbers is not as good as Excel).
 
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GeoStructural said:
I like that the iWorks suite is now free (they weren’t a few years ago) but they are so behind other suites, I wish Apple invested more on them to at least be on par with the competition.
Click to expand...
Apple hasn't wanted Pages, Numbers and Keynote to be as complex as Word, Excel and Powerpoint because they wanted to make them easier to use. It's certainly true, Apple's versions are often dumbed down versions of Microsoft's productivity apps, but for so many people, myself included, that's just fine for what we need day to day for work or home use.

I do remember the initial launch of iWork and still have several years' worth of installation cd's. I also remember the year they went from paid to free apps, as I had just downloaded the iWork suite and paid for it literally days before and wrote to Apple to get a refund, which they did.
 
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I've always loved Pages. It's so much better for me. Word can do a lot more, but unless your a power user using most of the features, I think its probably better and easier to use than Word. Plus you can export it as a `.doc` and remain compatible with the rest of the world. At my last job they insisted that everyone use Word, I never even installed it and my bosses never knew.
 
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be careful when using the newest versions of iWork if you've got other devices running the previous version. The new version will open a file made from a previous version, but it will save it in the new format which none of your other devices will be able to open <if they're running an earlier version>. If it happens to be an important file - you're royally screwed.
 
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