Apple is pouring more shock and awe features for its iOS 7-powered smartphone lineup that consumers will get via the successive releases of the iPhone 5S and the phablet-size iPhone 6, starting later this year.

These fresh handset capabilities are showcased this week thanks to the new inventions from the tech giant and another that Google provides.

Personalised Internet radio streaming

In the past months, numerous tech sites have been picking up iRadio, which embodies Apple's online radio system that will be integrated with the in-placed iTunes infrastructure. This week, a new patent confirmed underway works to push the exciting project into reality, Apple Insider said in a report.

Touted as the killer move by Apple to neutralise similar services like Pandora and Spotify, iRadio, according to the patent filing is an entirely different animal, laced with features that are not found on rival Internet radio brands.

Titled by Apple as 'Playlist Configuration and Preview', the online music streaming feature relies heavily on "radio playlist curation method that, if implemented, would be one of the most customizable and feature rich on the market," the Apple Insider report said.

The core attraction for users is the ability to manipulate the playlist through drag-and-drop navigation that would remove a song from the track listing or advance a favoured tune into the priority list of songs queued for playing.

A combo port for USB connectivity and memory expansion

Another patent from the company allows the insertion of USB connector or memory card in a single device slot, which improves the form-factor of Apple-made gadgets while giving them expansion capabilities.

At the moment, the technology for Mac notebooks and the main object is to reduce the number of ports deployed with the portable machine without sacrificing usability. It is not far off, however, that the feature will be extended to iOS devices - iPhones, iPads and iPods - that give users more options in increasing functionality and even productivity. Note that in the redesigned iOS 7, Apple is opening the door for the seamless integration of its two device platforms. It is hardly surprising that in the future, design, functions and features of Macs and iPhones overlap.

One notable benefit from the invention is the likelihood that future builds of iOS devices will accommodate extra memory and Apple is doing it with its signature style.

Updated Google Earth

This week, Google dispatch a new version of Google Earth for iOS device users, giving the application the Street View feature. The addition, according to Apple Insider, permits iPhone users to explore Street View without switching from Google Maps to Google Earth.

One updated capability highlighted in the popular app is the "updated direction search that visualizes walking, biking and driving directions in 3D instead of a top-down view," the same report said.

And the best thing about this feature is it's readily available. Starting Wednesday this week, Google Earth is live for free download, which means no need to wait for the separate iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 release dates to enjoy this powerful app.