Computer giant Apple has unveiled a brand new version of its operating software for the iPhone, stunning the tech community with 100 new features in the upgrade.
The company made the announcement at a special invitation-only press event held overnight, where it also revealed a new software development kit for application developers.
Apple says the third version of the software will be released sometime during the northern hemisphere summer, putting an Australian release at between June-August.
Some tech commentators believe the software upgrade is such a major change that Apple may also launch a new version of iPhone at that time.
The upgrade will come free for current iPhone users, but will cost iPod Touch users $US10.
Major new features
A number of features that were widely predicted to be included were confirmed, such as the ability to cut, copy and paste text, send pictures via text messages, and view and create messages in the widescreen “landscape” mode.
While most mobile handsets have been able to send multimedia messages for years, Apple has been late to the game. Apple senior vice president Scott Forstall said it was “not obvious” how to fix problems with sending multimedia and copying text.
The new features will allow users to copy links in the Safari browser or a “note” and paste it into an email or text message. Any photo on the device can also be attached.
Unexpected surprises
But several new features were announced that were not expected. One major new upgrade is the inclusion of a “spotlight” function, which allows users to search through the entire iPhone for photos, text messages and emails.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the day was that the upgrade will unlock a Bluetooth chip embedded in both the iPhone and 2nd-generation iPod Touch devices that has until now been left dormant.
This will allow users to wirelessly connect to other devices, and has led analysts to speculate that new features such as wireless syncing and headphone connectivity may be announced.
Push feature
The iPhone will now also support “push” technology. Already popular on Research in Motion’s BlackBerry devices, this function will allow iPhone users to be notified the instant they receive a new email.
Currently, iPhone users are only updated about new messages when they open the specific mail application on the device. The technology also opens up avenues for chat applications such as Microsoft’s MSN Messenger, and will help sustain battery life.
Application fun
A new software development kit was announced that will allow applications to sell minor upgrades and new products in the program itself.
This may quash rumours that a Premium App store was on the horizon that would offer programs for up to $US20 per application.
While many of the new features in the kit are minor, they include the ability to search Google Maps while in other applications and even communicate with hardware devices.
The Apple team demonstrated this by connecting an iPhone to an FM transmitter, and then used the iPhone to control the transmitter’s volume and tuning settings.
And much, much more…
The upgrade will also include several minor new features and abilities. While the company has not announced a release date for the upgrade, it said the new OS will be available in the American summer, putting an Australian release around late winter.
Apple also announced that the company has sold over 17 million iPhone devices, but that number jumps to over 30 million when including the iPod Touch.
It also revealed that in the last eight months, there have been over 800 million application downloads from the App Store, and it expects downloads to increase when the new changes take place.
Other new features include:
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Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
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