Earlier this morning, Apple rolled out an update for its popular ‘iBooks’ e-reader app. The app, which is universal across compatible iOS devices, gained a host of new features including AirPrint support. Additionally, Apple introduced an organizational tool called “Collections,” and the ability to view fully illustrated books.
In previous versions of the app, users with sizable libraries were forced to scroll through shelves of books to find the title they sought. This could prove especially tedious in thumbnail view. With Collections, users can group their books by genre–or however they see fit–into manageable shelves. Navigating between Collections requires only a simple swipe to the left or right of the screen.
Though the newly enabled AirPrint support does not afford you the ability to print your purchased iBooks, you can use the feature to wirelessly print PDF documents or notes from within the app. As previously mentioned, the update also enables compatibility with fully illustrated books. These titles range from classic children’s stories, to art and photography books. Today alone, Apple released over 100 new titles in the illustrated books category. While these high resolution images look fantastic on any iOS device, illustrated books look especially amazing on the iPad’s spacious screen, and the razor sharp Retina displays of the iPhone 4 and 4th gen. iPod touch.
If you do not already have iBooks installed on your iOS device, it is available for free here