On the ‘Built-in Apps’ page in the iPhone 5s and 5c section of Apple’s website, although the actual app screenshots look the same, Apple is using new (flatter) iOS icons for the iLife and iWork suites designed to match the style of iOS 7. The iPhoto and GarageBand icons are identical to the ones that were leaked last week in the iCloud Storage preferences.
However, this is the first time the new iOS 7 style iMovie, Pages, Numbers and Keynote icons have been seen. Although iMovie looks relatively similar to its skeuomorphic counterpart, the other icons look drastically different featuring bright gradients and white icon glyphs.
Moreover, the same Apple product page reveals that GarageBand will also be going free in the near future (via MacRumors):
It seemed odd that GarageBand was left out of the free software bundle last month. Obviously, Apple is looking to rectify this by moving to a freemium model with the app; offering the core functionality for free but making In App Purchases available for extra instruments and sounds.
Also, the website copy reveals new tidbits about the upcoming additions to the suite.
As a replacement for the now-defunct Cards app, in line with our report from this morning about printing integration into iPhoto, Apple will integrate photo book creation and print features directly into iPhoto for iOS. This will offer a more streamlined experience for users, as only one app (which customers are encouraged to download the first time they open the App Store on their new device) deals with photo management, photo editing and printing.
For Keynote, Apple seems to be expanding the flexibility of the suite. The new version will offer 30 different template themes to start from, a substantial increase from the 12 the app currently has. The copy also talks about a new feature for the iMovie app called iMovie Theater. Apple’s description is unclear on exactly what this feature is, but it seems to somehow simplify the process of sharing your movies across your devices.
Apple is expected to show off its newly-redesigned versions of iLife and iWork on Tuesday, at its media event.
