Apple iOS 8 Release Date Nears: New iOS And OS X Yosemite Rumored To Launch Separately

The iOS 8, Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) upcoming mobile operating system and OS X Yosemite, the company’s next version of the Mac OS, may not be launched on the same day despite tighter integration of their features, according to a report on Tuesday.

Although new versions of the iOS and OS X typically have different release schedules, Apple’s recent announcement that it would begin integrating the two platforms had suggested that the company might launch both software products on the same day. However, Apple is now rumored to “stagger the releases” by launching the iOS 8 in September, alongside the iPhone 6, while rolling out the OS X Yosemite nearly a month later in October, 9to5Mac reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Apple used the same release schedule last year by launching the iOS 7 along with the iPhone 5s in September and the OS X Mavericks in October. According to 9to5Mac, Apple has brought in engineers and user interface design experts from the iOS development team to work on Yosemite and prepare it for a fall launch.

The sources also told 9to5Mac that Apple is expected to roll out a public beta of Yosemite either later this month or early in August.

During the Worldwide Developers Conference, or WWDC, in June, Apple announced two new features -- “Continuity” and “Handoff” -- for tighter integration between iOS and OS X. While “Continuity” allows users to make phone calls through Yosemite and receive an Internet connection via an iPhone running iOS 8, “Handoff” allows users to finish off emails they have started drafting on an iPhone, by using a Mac running Yosemite.

Here is how Apple described the features:

Greater continuity between iPhone, iPad and Mac, including Handoff to start an activity on one device and finish on another, along with Instant Hotspot and the ability to make and receive calls and send SMS and MMS messages from your Mac or iPad.

The Launch Date

According to a Business Insider report, since Tim Cook took over as Apple’s CEO in late 2011, all iPhone models have launched in September, always two days after the release of a new iOS version, “a successful formula” that Apple is likely to follow this year too.

As for the release of new iOS versions, Apple has been following a 100-day formula over the past two years. The company introduced the iOS 6 on June 11, 2012, and released it after 100 days on Wednesday, Sept. 19, followed by the launch of the iPhone 5 on Friday, Sept. 21.

In 2013, Apple introduced iOS 7 on June 10 and released it after a 100-day gap on Wednesday Sept. 18. The iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c were launched after two days on Friday, Sept. 20.

Apple announced the iOS 8 at this year’s WWDC on June 2, and counting 100 days from that date brings the calendar to Wednesday, Sept. 10. And, if Apple follows the same release cycle, iOS 8 could debut on Sept. 10, while the iPhone 6 may launch on Friday, Sept. 12, according to Business Insider.