Apple’s newest smartphone ‘parental control’

Presenting “Family Sharing” Photo: Dean Takahashi

Apple unveiled a whole slew of features coming in the next iterations of its operating systems for the iPhone (iOS 8) and Macs (OS X Yosemite), coming to a device near you in the fall. Among them was an iOS 8 feature called “Family Sharing,” a little bundle of convenience and control.

The feature will “let up to six users share any apps or media content they buy using the same credit card. Users will also be able to share family photo albums, calendars and more,” reports the Los Angeles Times. This way (here’s the parental control part), “if a child tries to buy something with their Apple device, the purchase will not go through until the parent approves a notification they receive on their gadget.” According to VentureBeat.com, Apple says “Family Sharing also permits kids to ask parents automatically if they can purchase a new app.” It may even save families money.

Related links

• My ConnectSafely co-director Larry Magid also touched on what’s coming with OS X Yosemite
• PC Magazine put together a wish list for iOS 8 before Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference. Here‘s “What We Wanted vs. What We Got.”
• The L.A. Times’s article highlighted 10 features Apple announced.