Apple might be preparing the perfect storm of wearables, health apps and smartphone sensors for its fall line-up.
The latest rumor claims the iPhone 6 will have a barometer/air pressure sensor, making it useful for mountain climbing, hiking and a whole bunch of other intensive activities you will probably never actually use it for.
Developers discovered hints about the possibility of an iPhone 6 barometer in iOS 8 and the latest version of Xcode 6, which reportedly have new APIs that refer to hardware-based altitude measuring capabilities.
With help from these developers, 9to5Mac tested the API in question on the iPhone 5S and received a negative result, indicating that the feature will likely be launched on future iOS devices.
A first time for everything
In addition the site discovered references to ambient pressure tracking capabilities in iOS 8, lending more credence to these assumptions.
Barometers, which measure air pressure, temperature and other weather-related data, are already found in several Android devices. But the iPhone 6 would be the first Apple gadget to have one.
However all these features could easily be rolled into the iOS compass app to make it less useless.
Combined with the rumored iWatch and the HealthKit features arriving in iOS 8 in the fall, Apple's ecosystem of devices could soon comprise the perfect arsenal for daredevils and adrenaline junkies.
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