Apple Updates iWork Suite with Yosemite Redesign, iCloud Drive Support, Deeper iOS 8 Integration

Following the launch of OS X Yosemite earlier today and the announcement that iOS 8.1 with Apple Pay and bug fixes will be released on Monday, October 20th, Apple released an update to its iWork suite that brings a redesign for Yosemite and better integration with iOS 8.

On iOS 8, iWork has been enhanced with iCloud Drive support and compatibility with third-party storage providers. In the new Pages (version 2.5), for instance, you can create a new blank document as usual, or import an existing one from iCloud Drive or third-party apps that advertise the documents they contain, such as Transmit or Readdle’s Documents.

Testing storage providers in the new iWork for iOS 8.

In my first tests with the feature, I managed to open .pages files from Documents into Pages 2.5 and everything worked reliably and consistently. Pages’ new document picker showed a variety of options including iCloud Drive and PDF Expert, but tapping the “More” button also showed more storage providers for apps that I had installed on my devices, such as Dropbox and Quip. However, I couldn’t import files from those two apps as they didn’t appear as available options after activating them.

Integration with iCloud Drive extends to the apps’ image picker, which has been updated with the ability to pick images from iCloud and insert them in a document. Pages can now insert images in tables, headers, and footers, and you can take a photo or video right from the app without switching back to the Camera app.

All apps in the iWork suite have received support for Handoff today, which will allow you to continue your activity in editing a document on a modern iPhone, iPad, or Mac. A feature exclusive to Pages on the iPad, you can now use a color picker to pick and sample any color as well as access a custom color mixer.

On OS X, iWork has been updated with the same changes brought to iOS 8 (iCloud Drive, better image support, Handoff) as well as a new design for Yosemite with refreshed layouts and toolbar icons. Apple’s iWork apps for OS X had been criticized in the past for removing power user functionalities and introducing incompatibilities with their new file formats, and today’s updates confirm that Apple has been listening to its user base. The OS X updates to iWork feature various AppleScript and file format improvements – notably, files generated by the apps should play nicely with Dropbox and Gmail now.

Apple’s updated iWork apps are now available on the App Store and Mac App Store. You can find the full changelogs below.

Pages 2.5 for iOS

Support for iCloud Drive

Support for third-party storage providers

Updated file format makes it easier to send documents via services like Gmail and Dropbox

Instantly switch between iPad, Mac, and iPhone with Handoff

More color options including new custom color mixer on iPad

Use the color picker to sample and apply any color available in your document

Take photos and videos right from the app

Insert inline images in tables, headers, and footers

Inter-table alignment guides

Column and row labels in tables

Usability improvements for resizing and positioning charts

Improved accessibility

Improved bi-directional language support

Export ePub files with video

Numbers 2.5 for iOS

Support for iCloud Drive

Support for third-party storage providers

Updated file format makes it easier to send spreadsheets via services like Gmail and Dropbox

Instantly switch between iPad, Mac and iPhone with Handoff

Column and row labels in tables

Instantly rearrange data in tables with new transpose feature

More colour options including new custom colour mixer on iPad

Use the colour picker to sample and apply any colour available in your spreadsheet

Take photos and videos straight from the app

Inter-table alignment guides

Print floating comments

Usability improvements for resizing and positioning charts

Improved accessibility

Improved bi-directional language support

Keynote 2.5 for iOS

Support for iCloud Drive

Support for third-party storage providers

Updated file format makes it easier to send presentations via services like Gmail and Dropbox

Instantly switch between iPad, Mac, and iPhone with Handoff

More color options including new custom color mixer on iPad

Use the color picker to sample and apply any color available in your presentation

New Trace animation

New presenter display layouts

Pair Keynote with nearby iOS devices using Multipeer Connectivity

Take photos and videos right from the app

Inter-table alignment guides

Print floating comments

Column and row labels in tables

Usability improvements for resizing and positioning charts

Improved accessibility

Improved bi-directional language support

Pages 5.5 for Mac

All-new design inspired by OS X Yosemite

Instantly switch between iPad, Mac, and iPhone with Handoff

Support for iCloud Drive

Updated file format makes it easier to send documents via services like Gmail and Dropbox

New sidebar for comments and tracked changes

Filter comments and tracked changes by author

AppleScript support for Mail Merge

Insert inline images in tables, headers, and footers

Move tables easily with improved table selection

Inter-table alignment guides

Improved cell border styling

Usability improvements for resizing and positioning charts

Improved bi-directional language support

Keynote 6.5 for Mac

All-new design inspired by OS X Yosemite

Instantly switch between iPad, Mac, and iPhone with Handoff

Support for iCloud Drive

Updated file format makes it easier to send presentations via services like Gmail and Dropbox

Move and resize items to fully customize your presenter display

New Trace animation

Pair Keynote with nearby iOS devices using Multipeer Connectivity

Move tables easily with improved table selection

Improved cell border styling

Inter-table alignment guides

Print floating comments

Usability improvements for resizing and positioning charts

Improved bi-directional language support

Numbers 3.5 for Mac

All-new design inspired by OS X Yosemite

Instantly switch between iPad, Mac and iPhone with Handoff

Support for iCloud Drive

Updated file format makes it easier to send spreadsheets via services like Gmail and Dropbox

Instantly rearrange data in tables with new transpose feature

Inter-table alignment guides

Improved cell border styling

Print floating comments

Usability improvements for resizing and positioning charts

Improved bi-directional language support