Faucet of iOS 8 leaks take aim at Notification Center, Game Center

sincity · March 14, 2014

iOS fans have had a veritable smorgasbord of leaks this week that could offer insight into what Cupertino is planning for its mobile OS this year - and there's still more to come.

9to5Mac is wrapping up a busy week of iOS 8 rumors and leaks by detailing a number of other areas Apple appears interested in tweaking, according to an unnamed source allegedly familiar with what the company is considering for the next release.

First up is a more streamlined Notification Center that removes the third and seldom-used "Missed" tab, sticking to the far more useful "Today" and "All" views to make the information presented there easier to access.

The built-in Messages and Voice Memos apps are also said to get modest overhauls, with the former adding an option for automatically deleting message threads after a certain period of time, with a more refined button arrangement in the latter.

RIP Game Center?

Moving on to potentially larger changes with iOS 8, Apple is said to be considering the removal of its Game Center app, instead pushing its somewhat limited functionality into apps that actually tap into the social gaming service.

Although few drivers are actually using CarPlay now that iOS 7.1 is available, Apple also appears to be working on cutting the Lightning cord requirement, allowing compatible vehicles to work wirelessly over a presumably ad-hoc Wi-Fi network instead.

Last but not least, a new developer API is rumored to be in testing that provides an "XPC" service, which apps can use for better data sharing and communication between each other.

Earlier rumors this week revolved around changes to Apple Maps, the potential for iTunes Radio to become its own app and the possibility of new Preview and TextEdit apps, but keep in mind this is all just speculation and hearsay until company executives walk on stage and make it real.