Apple has sold more than 800 million mobile devices, chief executive Tim Cook told a developer conference in San Francisco yesterday, saying 130 million customers had bought their first iOS device in the past 12 months.

Apple yesterday released new mobile software, called iOS 8, at its annual conference. The software lets people respond to messages while working in other applications and speeds access to contacts.

The company also showed products called ICloud Drive and Maildrop for storing and sending files, and an updated version of its Mac operating system dubbed Yosemite.

With the storage feature Apple will save a person’s files on its servers so they can be accessed from any device.

The mail service makes it easier to send large files.

Make calls

The new Mac software also has a feature called Handoff, which makes it easier to work on documents between Mac, iPhones and iPads. It also includes ways to receive and make calls from the Mac if an iPhone is charging or is not available.

Apple also introduced a health application it coined “Healthkit”, which collects and stores data from multiple sources in a single place.

The iPhone maker is working with the Mayo Clinic on features around the app, while Nike will integrate Healthkit into its own products.

With its iOS 8 mobile software, Apple also showed new search features that give customers direct links to relevant web pages if they are making certain common queries, which will let a user avoid Google.

The company’s rivalry with Google was evident at the conference. Mr Cook made several digs at Google’s Android mobile software, including criticising it for having weak security.

The updates offer a glimpse of Apple's direction since the death of co-founder Steve Jobs. With iPhone and iPad sales no longer the source of growth they once were, Mr Cook has been under pressure to deliver another hit. – (Bloomberg)