iOS 8 secrets: More security, better battery life

A new operating system brings with it a whole raft of new features, and iOS 8 is no different. There's a lot of stuff buried in this new release, and here I'll show you six cool new secrets.

Feel free to share your favourite iOS 8 secrets in the TalkBack section.

See also:

• Apple needs to address iOS updating before it creates toxic hellstew of its own
• USB security for a BYOD environment
• iPhone 6 Plus is the king of BYOD smartphones
• The pros and cons of iPhone 6 Plus ownership

Want to see which apps are draining your battery the fastest? Tap on Settings and got to General > Usage > Battery Usage to see a breakdown over the past 24 hours and 7 days.

This screen also gives the time since the last charge, and the standby time.

Apps can consume a lot of battery either because you're using them a lot, or because they have a bug that's causing them to behave badly.

Use Siri? How about being able to use Siri in a hands-free way when your device is connected to a power supply? Simple. Head over to Settings > General > Siri and switch on Allow "Hey Siri."

If you get along with Siri – and not everyone does – then this is a great way to control your iPhone in the car.

Mobile sites can be great, but sometimes you want to the full site. This is easy to do in Safari in iOS 8. Tap on the address bar and then swipe down to reveal Request Desktop Site. Tap on this to get the full site.

Got some photos that you want to hide? Tap and hold on a photo and you'll get an option to hide it. It'll still be visible in your albums, but won't been available in Moments, Collections, or Years.

Want to tone down your iOS 8 experience by getting rid of the colors? Simple. Head to Settings > General > Accessibility and select Grayscale.

If you're having problems focusing on things in iOS, this is one way to help remove a lot of the distractions.

This is a great personal safety feature.

Head over to the Health app and click on Medical ID and fill in your details. You can then choose to display this on the Lock Screen by clicking the option. This way, even if your device is locked medical professionals can click on Emergency and then Medical ID to see your important information, such as allergies and blood type.