Finally, Apple has unveiled the next major iPhone firmware iPhone OS 4.0 at an event held at their One Infinite Loop Campus in Cupertino at 10am PT, 1pm ET today. The latest iPhone OS 4.0 has come with great new features and we are going to list all of them here. The iPhone firmware 4.0 features are up to our expectations. Checkout what we expected in iPhone OS 4.0 here.
iPhone OS 4.0 comes with 100 of new features but 7 of them are big ones. Checkout the iPhone OS 4.0 Features list below.
iPhone OS 4.0 Features List
Here’s what Apple has come up with in iPhone OS 4.0. Checkout the complete list of iPhone OS 4.0 features. Lets start with the 7 big features of iPhone firmware 4.0.
1. Multitasking
One of the big and most anticipated iPhone OS 4.0 feature in Multitasking. To activate multitasking on iPhone Os 4.0 double click the home button and a window raises that shows all the apps that are running. Like a dock you can call up. User can also go to home page. The simple UI puts all the apps at the bottom that are running and you can scroll through the list.
Apple is providing seven multitaking services as APIs to developers.
- background audio
- VoIP
- Background location
- Push notifications
- local notifications
- task completion
- fast app switching
Update 1: Checkout Multitasking in action.
Multitasking enabled in iPhone 3G and iPod Touch 2G
Smooth App Switching animation found in beta 2.
2. Folders
Apple has introduced Categories like features in iPhone OS 4.0 named Folders. You can put similar apps into a folder. To do so, simply tap and hold an app, it will start jiggle, just drag one app on top of another and it instantly makes a folder. It also automatically names the folder based on the categories of these apps, or you can rename. The folder icon becomes a multi-icon icon.You may create as many folders as you like and drag this around anywhere you want. You can also put a folder in the dock.
The folder feature enables you to use over 2000 apps, before iPhone OS 4.0 it was 180 apps.
3. Enhanced Mail
The first feature introduces under Mail enhancement is unified inbox. All of your mail is in one inbox. So, you can add more than one Exchange account. Now if you want to focus on one account, Apple has added fast inbox switching. You can also organize by thread in iPhone Os 4.0.
apple has also added open attachments ability in the Mail.app in iPhone OS 4.0. But you need a 3rd party app to view the attachment. So, here’s what’s new in Mail.app:
- Unified inbox
- Multiple exchange accounts
- Fast inbox switching.
- Threaded message
- Open attachment with apps
4. iBooks for iPhone OS 4
Yes, apple has introduced iBooks for iPhone via iPhone OS 4.0. Using iBooks, you can buy your books once and read them anywhere. You can wireless sync your books between platforms.
5. Enterprise
Here are the features for Enterprises added in the iPhone firmware 4.0.
- Better data protection
- mobile device management
- wireless app distribution
- Support for multiple Exchange accounts
- Exchange Server 2010
- new VPN options.
6. Game Center – Social Gaming Network
Apple introduces social gaming network in iPhone OS 4.0 to strengthen it’s gaming platform. Bye Bye Plus+ and Open Feint.
7. iAd – Mobile Advertising Platform
The 7th big feature of iPhone Os 4.0 is the most anticipated mobile advertising platform iAd. Apple has a plan to earn more via iAd platform with a 60/40 revenue split. This what Steve Jobs said about the iAd:
“When you look at ads on a phone, it’s not like a desktop. On a desktop, search is where it’s at. But on mobile devices, that hasn’t happened. Search is not happening on phones; people are using apps. And this is where the opportunity is to deliver advertising is.” “This is a pretty serious opportunity, and it’s an incredible demographic. But we want to do more than that. We want to change the quality of the ads too.
Because iAd is in the iPhone OS itself, we have figured out how to do interactive and video content without ever taking you out of the app.” “For devs to add this to their apps is really simple. They can do it in an afternoon. Apple is going to sell and host the ads, and we’re going to do a 60/40 split.” Steve Jobs also demonstrated a completely interactive ad, almost like a sub-app inside the application. Embedded video, toys to play with. Then he just tap on a poster and added it as wallpaper.
—
Let’s review the 7 major features in iPhone OS 4.0: Multitasking, folders, enhanced mail, iBooks, enterprise, Game Kit, and iAd. These are just seven of the 100 new user features. Other features include: Gift apps, Spell Checker Bluetooth Keyboard, File and delete Mail search results, Home screen Wallpaper, Places in Photos, Top to focus video, 5xdigital zoom,Web search suggestion,Search SMS/MMS, iPod Out, Card DAV, Sync IMAP, Notes, Birthday Calendar, Choose image size in mail messages, Persistent Wifi, Top hit in search, Larger Fonts for Mail/SMS and alerts, Nested Playlist and more…
iPhone OS 4.0 beta is available to developers only but we will try to grab you a copy of iPhone firmware 4.0. The firmware will be available to the masses this summer along with the iPhone 4G which is expected to be unveiled at WWDC 2010. iPhone 4.0 will come to iPad this fall.
iPhone OS 4.0 will be released for the 3GS and iPod touch 3rd gen. And, for iPhone 3G and iPod touch 2nd gen, they will run many things… but there are some things they won’t run, like multitasking.
Stay Tuned.. More in coming on iPhone OS 4.0. You can follow us to Twitter, Join our Facebook Fan Page, and also Subscribed to RSS Feed to receive latest updates on iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad jailbreak and unlocking stuff.
Update 2: Download iPhone Os 4.0
Update 3: iPhone OS 4.0 Screenshots and Videos
Update 4: iPhone OS 4 Keynote
Update 5: iPhone firmware 4.0 beta 3 is out now:
Update 6: Orientation Lock and iPod Widget found in iPhone 4 beta 3