iPhoto completes Apple iLife suite

Yesterday, Apple introduced iPhoto for the iPad and iPhone and updates to iMovie and GarageBand, designed to take advantage of the retina display and 5MP iSight camera on the new iPad.

Apple yesterday introduced iPhoto for iPad and iPhone and major updates to iMovie and GarageBand, completing its suite of iLife apps for iOS.

iPhoto includes breakthrough Multi-Touch features so that simple gestures can be used to sort through hundreds of photos, to enhance and retouch images using fingertip brushes and share photo journals with iCloud.

iMovie gives the ability to create trailers as you record HD video on an iPad and iPhone.

GarageBand introduces Jam Session, an innovative and fun feature that allows a group of friends to wirelessly connect their iOS devices to play instruments and record live music together.

Jam Session automatically synchronises the tempo, key and chords of your Touch Instruments so everyone sounds great. After jamming, everyone’s tracks are automatically collected on your iOS device for you to edit and mix. GarageBand also introduces Smart Strings, a new Touch Instrument that allows you to play an entire string orchestra with just one finger, and the new Note Editor allows you to fine tune a Touch Instrument recording instead of replaying it from scratch. Integration with iCloud keeps your GarageBand songs up to date across your iOS devices, and you can share your finished songs directly to Facebook, YouTube and SoundCloud.

Each app takes full advantage of the Retina display on the new iPad for sharp and realistic images and video. The new iPad also features a 5 megapixel iSight camera so you can record, edit and watch 1080p HD video on the device.

‚With the introduction of iPhoto, we’ve brought the entire suite of iLife apps to iOS and users are going to love it,‚ said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. ‚Whether brushing an effect onto a photo, shooting a movie trailer or jamming with friends to record a song, iPhoto, iMovie and GarageBand let you make amazing creations on iPad and iPhone.‚

iPhoto, Apple’s popular photography app, has been completely reimagined for iOS to take full advantage of the Retina display and intuitive Multi-Touch gestures on iPad and iPhone. Simple gestures can be used to select and compare photos side by side and flag the best shots. iPhoto gives you full control over colour, exposure and contrast, and you simply touch the parts of the image you want to change. You can enhance pictures by adding Apple-designed effects with just a tap, or apply adjustments exactly where you want them with fingertip brushes.

In addition to posting photos to Facebook, Flickr and Twitter, you can beam photos between your iPhone and iPad: stream photos and slideshows to your Apple TV with AirPlay: and use iCloud to publish photo journals to the web and share your stories with friends and family in a whole new way.

iMovie’s new Theater view lets you preview and choose from nine templates in a range of genres including Fairy Tale, Superhero and Romance. Trailers feature customisable graphics with soundtracks written by legendary composers such as Academy Award-winner Hans Zimmer and performed by world class musicians like the London Symphony Orchestra. You can also share your movie trailers to YouTube, Vimeo and Facebook, and use AirPlay to stream them to Apple TV in high definition resolutions up to 1080p.

Apple also updated its iWork for iOS apps to take advantage of the Retina display of iPad and to offer 3D charts so you can create and view 3D bar, line, area and pie charts. Pages now includes support for landscape orientation on iPhone and iPod touch, and Keynote gains new builds and transitions including Iris, Shimmer, Wipe, Flame, Swing and Fade Through Color.

Pricing & Availability

iPhoto, iMovie 1.3 and GarageBand 1.2 are available today for $4.99 (US) each from the App Store (www.itunes.com/appstore). Keynote 1.6, Pages 1.6 and Numbers 1.6 are available today for $9.99 (US) each from the App Store. Updates are available for free to existing customers.

*