Apple iOS 8 keyboard update allows for system-wide barcode scanning

Apple unveiled dozens of new features in its upcoming iOS 8 operating system for iPhone, iPods and iPads at their World Wide Developer Conference on Monday.

Of particular interest to those who use iOS devices for light inventory management or asset tracking is the support for custom 3rd party keyboards.

Android has supported 3rd party keyboards for years, but the feature is new to iOS. Third party keyboards are commonly used to offer different ways of entering text, by swiping, for example.

Custom keyboards can be used for more than just typing. They can also be developed with a new “scan” button that, when tapped, uses the camera to scan a barcode and enter the text or numbers from that barcode anywhere you can type: web pages, email, other apps, etc.