( CNN ) You ca n't get a new iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus until Friday , but iOS 8 , the latest version of Apple 's mobile operating system , went live on Wednesday . The free download is available to anyone with an iPhone 4S , 5 , 5C or 5S . IOS 8 is n't the radical upgrade that iOS 7 was , but it has a handful of new features that you 're bound to enjoy . Here 's a look at a few of our favorites . ( Is there another feature you 're looking forward to using ? Let us know in the comments . ) Device Continuity . When Apple 's Mac operating system , OS X Yosemite , is released , probably in late October , it will pair with iOS 8 for the tightest integration ever between devices . Users will be able to do things like answer phone calls on their laptop , receive texts on a desktop computer and move a document in progress from an iPhone to an iPad to a computer with a single swipe . iOS 8 : How to get it , and whether you should . That feature , called Handoff , works with apps including Mail , Safari , Pages , Numbers , Keynote , Maps , Messages , Reminders , Calendar and Contacts . Widgets . Until now , Apple has kept strict controls on how apps -- other than its own -- appear on the iPhone and iPad . Basically , they get a tiny , uniformly sized box for each app , and that 's that . But in iOS 8 , it has given developers the ability to create widgets for the devices . Now , they 'll be able to create simple , standalone tools for things like checking the weather or monitoring data usage . But the function , which has long been available on Android devices , will be limited to the `` Today '' screen under the device 's Notification Center . Keyboard changes . Apple says iOS 8 brings the biggest changes to the system 's keyboard since the iPhone was introduced . For one , Apple will begin allowing third-party typing apps , so tools like Swype , the finger-dragging system popular on Android , will be coming soon . The system 's native typing system will get some tweaks too , largely in the form of QuickType , a Google-style predictive text system . The system will predict the next word you want to type based on what you 've written in the past and let you add the entire word with a single tap . Its predictions will change based on the people you 're communicating with and the format you 're using ( say , email vs. text ) . What 's that song ? Siri is now integrated with Shazam , an app that recognizes music and other media playing around it . iOS 8 users will be able to simply ask Siri `` what song is playing ? '' and get everyone 's favorite digital assistant 's best guess . Family Sharing . Apple wants you to have one big happy iPhone and iPad-using family . In the new system , up to six people will be able to share purchases from iTunes , iBook and the App Store without having to share a single account . Family Sharing also automatically creates a family photo album , letting anyone on the plan share to it . There 's a shared family calendar so anyone ( OK , let 's face it , so Mom ... ) can keep everyone abreast of plans and an `` ask to buy '' function that automatically pings parents , letting them give or withhold permission when a child tries to buy something from Apple . Hands-on with the new Apple Watch . See Apple 's new iPhone 6 in 60 seconds .
iOS 8 , Apple 's new mobile operating system , rolled out Wednesday . It 's two days before the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus hit stores . New features include a major keyboard update . Continuity lets you share documents between Apple devices .