OneDrive for iOS and web improved with new features and refinements

OneDrive is being improved by the Microsoft team responsible for its growth and cross-platform drive. Both the iOS app and the desktop app have been updated first, with the Android and Windows Phone apps set to get their own polish shortly.

Cortana in Windows 10

Users who upgrade or install a fresh version of Windows 10 when it is released will be able to speak to Cortana to ask questions and search the OneDrive cloud storage at the same time. This could cut down on the searching time hunting through folders of files to see if the file you want is even on OneDrive or not.

Music in OneDrive Available on Xbox Music

Music stored in OneDrive will also be able to the Xbox music service.

More Storage, Better Cross-Platform Support

Photos stored in OneDrive for viewing on the desktop, phone or within your inbox can be accessed more easily with OneDrive than ever before. A new layout brings your photos to the fore with greater clarity, the ability to curate each photo to add messages to friends and family.

The iOS, Android or Windows Phone app can be used to backup photos. The Camera Backup feature doubles the storage from 15 GB to 20 GB which is enough space to upload 12,000 digital photos. Add photos from different devices and then keep them stored only in OneDrive to save the limited storage space on your mobile device.

View Photos in an Improved Way

Photos previously could be viewed singularly from a folder. They now can be grouped together by date and location to help the user see all the photo they took at a particular place or at a particular time.

Now there are Albums too. These Albums help photos take center stage. The thumbnals shown are larger to the image detail is easier to see before tapping on the image to expand it, there is almost no border between images so more of the image can be shown, and a collage can be seen from the photos taken. Tapping on a photo makes this a full screen experience now to take advance of larger screen phones and tablets. Details about a photo can also be pulled up via a menu option now to keep the nitty gritty out of the way.

Photos and Videos Together

Photos typically are stored in one folder and videos in another. The latest version of OneDrive does away with this restriction by collection relevant photos and videos together in a single Album. This way photos taken on the phone on vacation and video shot on the beach don't have to be located separately with a lot of messing about. This makes it easier to find the images and video content that you're looking for and to quickly share it with others.

OneDrive for Desktop

OneDrive is improving how users with Windows 7 or Windows 8 can work with their photos. Connect up a device to their Windows version and the software can be configured to automatically import photos from the devices they plug into the computer.

Screenshots Sync Direct to OneDrive

OneDrive can now be configured to copy screenshots directly to OneDrive without needing to copy them over manually or import them.

Getting photos from a USB flash drive, digital camera or external hard drive has never been easier with OneDrive.

The Camera Imports folder will be used to save these imported images into so it will be easy to find them. Screenshots will be saved to the new Screenshots folder but they are also sent to the clipboard when they are taken for easy access too. There is just a backup copy of the camera shots and screenshots should you need it and choose to leave these settings on automatic.

Search Improvements

Search has been improved with the help of the Bing search services and Bing images. Search inside Office documents and Adobe PDF files with exact text contained inside the file. Search for images using text contained inside an image using OCR technology, or the time the image was taken or the location. Tags can be used manually for images which can later be used for searching and OneDrive also automatically intelligently adds tags to photos too.

Also, see our Tips and Tricks for how to get more out of OneDrive.