iPhone 4.0 New Features
So Apple finally is unveiling their 4.0 version of the iPhones operating system. There was big speculation and high hopes for a few features (like multitasking) that people really wanted included (and as with most big iPhone features like mms, copy and paste, etc., feel should have been included a long time ago).
Well thanks to Engadget’s coverage of the event, we have the new features summed up for you below:
1. Multitasking – probably the biggest requested feature (alongside Flash support). Apple says this took so long to implement because they were “working on the right way to do it to not slow down the foreground apps in the process”. How it works is if you are in an app you can double click the home button and a small dock comes up of up to four running apps. You can use this dock to quickly select between the four running apps. (Someone please comment if you know how many apps can run simultaneously, it looks like 4 from their demo).
Along with multitasking, comes local notifications (as opposed to push notifications). These allow apps to notify you when they finish a task, you receive a message, etc. without the need to access Apple’s push server.
2. Folders – These work just like Android’s folder system. Put a folder on your desktop and you can put multiple apps into it. When you click on it it brings up a selector for any of those apps (I.e. Make a folder called “Games” and stick all of your games in it. When you click on the folder Games it opens a window showing all of the games you put it in).
3. Backgrounds – Groundbreaking, I know. I have nothing really to say about this, they allow changing the background on your iPhone now.
4. Enhanced Email – Enhanced means the following:
1. Unified mailbox – you can have all of your mailboxes consolidated into one mailbox so you don’t have to switch between them to check different accounts (gmail, yahoo, exchange, etc.).
2. More than one exchange account is allowed now.
3. Organize email by thread. Just like how gmail works, shows all of the emails between you and the person you are emailing in a threaded format like an IM conversation. For those of you that hate that, don’t worry it’s an option you can turn off and on.
4. Open attachments directly from the email app.
4. iBooks for iPhone – Simply a port from the iPad for the iPhone and iPod. Allows you to purchase books from Apple and read them on your phone/iPod.
5. Enterprise – Apps that can be distributed wirelessly, multiple exchange accounts for syncing calendars, mail, and contacts. Better data protection, and support for Exchange Server 2010.
6. GameCenter – It is basically a gaming social network. This is kind of a big deal as far as it directly competes with Microsofts recently announced XBox Live for Windows Phone 7. Be interesting to see what they do with this (or more importantly what the game developers do with this…)
7. iAd – apples answer to AdMob. You can embed these apps into your iPhone/iPad/iPod app and Apple gives the developer 60% of the revenue. These apps are a little different to adMob etc as they are almost apps themselves. When you click on the Toy Story ad at the bottom of you app your using, it opens a separate interactive app. The new app has movie posters, downloads, a game, and character info that the user can play with (all the while engrossed in Toy Story branding). Then when you close it you are back in the original app. An interesting approach to say the least. This would require advertisers to create (or pay Apple to create Id assume) these kinds of interactive ads. This is another step for the ad to get to the end user, well see if advertisers see the added value in the long run.
So there you have it, the main new features of the iPhone 4.0 OS. The os is set to release in Summer and the same for the iPad but in Fall (ouch).
Wow so now the iPhone does what Android has always done. 🙂
Harold: Not quite. You won’t be able to install from other market or locally. You won’t be able to buy / install apps that Apple doesn’t like (like WifiTrak and WiFiFoFum). You won’t be able to escape the iTunes choke on files moving in and out of the device. The key failings are still going to define the new iPhone OS. If the user wants an open platform where they can access images / music / video / apps / app-files from any source, then iPhone remains a poor choice.
wow. I love how apple takes features that smart phones had since pocket pc 2002.
apple only updates and creates things when others pave the way. then for some reason people think apple did first.
Harold, Nithin,
Almost, but you forget that Steve Jobs invented these new features.
Reality Really hurts we all understand this is the number one phone on the market and there is no other phone with such large amounts of memory and we all agree that they are all trying to compare to the iphone, But my Favorite is How much i LOVE the way it communicates with my 24″ mac.
YUPPP!!!! Reality really Hurts
Sue the bastard for imitating Android and others
Guys, I have both Android and Apple. I have used Android extensivley for a year (swapping os’s, installing apps, cmd line stuff) and have recently purchased a IPOD Touch 3g (2 months ago). I have got to say that I enjoy the IPOD sooooo much better. The quality of the product, the apps and the screen resolution not to mention the animation really outways the obstacles or abilities you guys mention above. All my life I have always bought the off brand or look a likes of products just because the other product was way more expensive. I feel this way in this case. To me the Android phone is like a gheeto version of the Iphone. No multi-touch? WTH? Sorry just my opinion.
i own both android g1/rooted with nexus 2.1 os..
and i phone 3g
i had my android g1 since 2 weeks before release date. and recently purchased my iphone from at&t about 2 months ago..
i have to say the iphones games are better but then again im not to much of a gamer..
as far as apps and pricing android apps are way more reasonable and to me alot more useful and overal better in that department..
battery life i have to say my g1 outlast iphone by atleasst 2 hours of full use..(facebook,internet ,text,phone)
ive had more freezes on this iphone in 2 months then i have had in 2 years of owning my g1..
so from a hardcore phone user.. i have both rooted and jailbroke both phones although i love the gaming on iphone when i have time..
my apps are more important.. and multi tasking is as well i hate i cant keep pandora open and go to my ttext with out it closing out.. on iphone..
so i guerss whatever iphone cant do…
ANDROID DOES!…
OH AND AT&T REALLY KILLS WITH $30 IPHONE PLAN ON TOP OF $30 TEXT DATA PLAN..
COMPARED TO $35 UNLIMITED TEXT/DATA/ANDROID PACKAGE!
Nooo….. Now i cant annoy people who say iphone is better than hero with saying the words ‘Yeah, Nice Wallpaper Matey’ lol
Ummm….there are iphone apps that allow unlimited free texting. Also there are apps like “Line2” that allow you to make and receive calls over your data plan or wifi. These apps save on your minutes.
People follow brands. Apple stayed alive with the ‘i’. Which I believe was the original iPod, and they saved AT&T in the process. I work for Verizon, and use T-Mobile. So I don’t have any favorites just what i’ve seen in my day to day routine. I feel like Android was Google’s “keystone” in the arch of the company (it brought everything together, keeps everything up and stable). While others like Apple and Palm are scratching their heads trying to figure a way to not say “Oh Shit” we got beat, they are just making little changes so everyone doesn’t laugh and then the gigs up. Also, I use Android… hah!
OK to all the “apple lovers” enjoy your “enhanced applications” and your lovely lil g.u.i far as I’m concerned android does everything iPhone does but WITHOUT limitation and BTW if your phones jailbreaked say goodbye to your apple Apps store. Cuse you cant access it soon anymore oh and also soon say goodbye to adding music to your iPod that was made on a PC cuse apple is banning that furthermore say goodbye to adobe products on apple as well… do you seriously want to back up a company that treats people like that? If so sign on the dotted line. People will always jump to the “oh everyone has one I need it to” phone (iPhone) but pay attention apple is loosing sales from android and its open source! But I guess people like spending a lot of money on a company that keeps on limiting features only to make you buy another version of it not even 6 months later at a higher price at least Google is trying to offer choice apple offers nothing but rotten apples. Maybe a lot of people should read up on what’s going on in the tech. world and see how apple is treating companies and developer’s at the moment. So go ahead and buy a iPhone all your doing is buying a phone you truely do not own and just being with the “in crowd” android is for people who actually want to have full access to their phone and rather be individual then like everyone else. And another thing apple was wrong with how they treated adobe and for firing people who worked for them for having anything to do with android. Technology is ment to be shared and competition only makes it get better. So have your iPhones the rest of us android people will gladly enjoy our open source freedom : ) oh and btw android has Google voice free texting and free calls you might want to look into that and multi touch? Dude obviously you have not herd about how to get multi-touch on your phone with a simple hack for the g1 and other android phones they just updated the nexus with multi-touch no offense to you bud but come on don’t bash what you don’t know.
Love how apple takes old technology and covers it in wows and makes it look like something that is new and has never been done before. Ooh arent you cleaver Apple.
Customisation is the key. A decent Camera is a must with a flash and a lower price. Flash player as well?
I’ll stick to Android thank you very much. Why do you people who have Apple phones think it’s the best thing in the world. Old technology!
The only good thing I can find about Apple phones at present is the App market.
But let me ask any Apple phone fan on this site one thing… If you could get every App you loved on the Apple market on an Android phone, would you buy an Android?
I think the Apple fans are really App fans, not hardware fans. If you are a hardware fan, have you ever tried an Android phone?
If Apple bring out a 5.0MP camera+flash and make out it’s fantastic on the 4G i’m gonna wet myself laughing. I’m just waiting.
But.. If they make it 8.0MP+flash I might just for once raise an eyebrow.
But yeah who am i kidding. 8MP my arse! … watch this space.
(Android HTC Hero user waiting to upgrade to the HTC Desire :-D)
i have to say that apple is a joke introducing so called new features to there phones when many phones before them have had these features for years. Iv personaly tried an iphone 3gs and a se x10 i would prefer the X10 any day over the iphone. im currently using an N900 which is a great phone only problems here is with the apps….
After using Hero rom on jail break G1 for over a year.
G1 kills the iphone with everything except speed, resolution and app.
Now the HTC Desire has completely changed the WW2 weapons to the 21 century. It’s fast, can understand your voice, much more advanced software then the iPhone. The screen resolution and game quality comparable to the PlayStation.
There are so many surprises that the HTC Desire brings to a G1 user.