iPhonity.com

Turn-by-turn GPS navigation in the new iPhone

With the announcement of iPhone OS 3.0, we knew that real-time, turn-by-turn navigation would soon become a reality on the iPhone. It was just a matter of when and how, and it looks like we finally got our answer on Monday.

Joining Apple onstage at the WWDC 2009 keynote, longtime GPS manufacturer TomTom unveiled its application for the iPhone, bringing maps and voice-guided directions to the smartphone. The biggest boon for drivers is the addition of the audible prompts, since the current iPhone is only able to provide text-based instructions through Google Maps. In addition, TomTom will offer a car kit for the iPhone, which includes a vehicle mount and car charger.

The TomTom app is expected to be available this summer, but as CNET’s Erica Ogg and Kent German point out, the big question is how much this will cost. Mapping and navigation software isn’t cheap, so it’ll be interesting to see where they put the pricing on this app and how it compares with Sprint Navigation on the Palm Pre. Also, I have to wonder, would Garmin have been better off going the app route instead of launching its own Nuvifone line of GPS-enabled smartphones, which has yet to see the day of light?

The New iPhone: iPhone 3G S

The most talked-about bunch of updates Apple unveiled at WWDC came from its iPhone 3.0 software upgrade, which purportedly adds 100 new features to the iPhone. Critics have long stressed the need for cut, copy, and paste features across the iPhone OS, and those features are now built in. Also, all key apps in the iPhone now feature landscape mode to maximize screen width. And in the U.S., iPhones on the AT&T network will finally feature MMS support later this summer.

Search features have also been enhanced in iPhone 3.0 with the addition of Spotlight. This will enable users to search not only their contacts, but also calendar entries, notes, e-mail, and even apps on the device.

iTunes will now allow iPhone users to purchase or rent movies directly from the device, and Apple has added parental controls that will restrict the kinds of movies, shows, and apps that children can run on the phone or iPod touch.

For Mobile Me customers, Apple will offer a service called Find My iPhone, which will locate a lost or stolen device (if it’s turned on).

As promised in a previous iPhone announcement, iPhone 3.0 includes push notification for instant messaging and other applications.

Perhaps the most exciting update for iPhone 3.0 is the addition of tethering capabilities. At last, users who are away from their Wi-Fi network will be able to use the iPhone’s cellular broadband connections to connect their laptop to the Internet. This feature will work via USB or Bluetooth, and is supported by 22 carriers in 44 countries.Unfortunately, AT&T is not one of the carriers supporting this feature, which leaves U.S. iPhone customers wanting.

The iPhone 3.0 software is available to developers today, and ships to customers next Wednesday.

Along with the updates iPhone software, Apple is releasing new iPhone hardware. The iPhone 3GS will sell for $199 in a 16GB version and $299 in a 32GB version. The existing iPhone 3G will continue to be available at a price of $99. (All prices with a 2-year AT&T contract.)

The iPhone 3GS will be faster than the iPhone 3G, and will include video capture, voice control, built-in support for Nike+ accessories, hardware encryption for Exchange users, and improved battery life. The phone will be available on June 19.

Some more rumours about 2009 iPhone.

Apple iPhone Apps, a site with no known track record (which is also down right now) just leaked a July 17 release date and a bunch of specs for the next iPhone. They look fishy.

The July 17 release could technically be possible, since it’s on a Friday and Apple’s been releasing their iPhones on Fridays, but the specs are weird.

• 32GB and 16GB storage (up from the current 16GB and 8GB models)
• $199 and $299 price points to be maintained
• 3.2-megapixel camera (up from the current 2-megapixel camera)
• Video-recording and editing capabilities
• Ability to send a picture & video via MMS
• Discontinuation of the metal band surrounding the edge of the device
• OLED screen
• 1.5 times the battery life of the current models
• Double the RAM and processing power
• Built-in FM transmitter
• Apple logo on back will glow
• Rubber-tread backing
• Sleeker design
• Built-in compass
• The camera, GPS, compass and Google map combined will identify photo and inform about photo locations
• Turn-by-turn directions

So what’s weird? The OLED screen, for one. The 1.5x battery life, for two. And a rubber-tread backing/sleeker design for three. It’s still quite cost-prohibitive to use OLED screens on devices, and it’s difficult to see how Apple could shrink down the size of the device to make it “sleeker” while at the same time making the battery 1.5x. Maybe because they’re using an OLED screen?

It’s all very pie in the sky, so don’t take it as literal proof that the next iPhone will have this. And the rubber tread backing may or may not be this leaked image from MacRumors, which isn’t quite rubber, but more of a matte feel than the current version.

Blackberry Storm 2 may hit Verizon stores in June.

As if June wasn’t packed enough with new smartphone launches, there are rumors that the RIM BlackBerry Storm 2 may just hit Verizon Wireless stores in the same month.

BlackberryOS.com says it received a tip from an “insider” (a senior-level Verizon employee, apparently) who says Verizon has been training its tech support on the Storm 2 all week and that they’ve been told to be ready to support the smartphone by the end of May. Though the tipster could not give a specific release date, she said it would be out by the end of June at the latest.

The next-generation Storm was confirmed by RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie in early May, though he did not provide much information about the device. There’s some speculation that the new Storm will forgo the SurePress touch screen and will have Wi-Fi.

Perhaps Verizon was feeling a little left out of the party with Sprint’s Palm Pre launch and the imminent iPhone announcement. And while hope springs eternal that the BlackBerry Storm 2 will be better than the first, what does this mean for current BlackBerry Storm customers?

iPhone OS 3.0 to feature voice control and feedback

Sources speaking to Ars have discovered evidence of new voice control features coming to iPhone OS 3.0. Apparently going by the code name “Jibbler,” it looks like it will provide not just voice synthesis, but also voice recognition for the upcoming iPhone OS 3.0.

Not much information is known at this time, but according to our own people familiar with the matter, Jibbler appears be an enhancement to the iPhone SpringBoard application, the Finder-esque app that acts as a launcher and will support the newly announced 3.0 Spotlight search. Jibbler may be controlled via the iPhone headset—button squeezes could be used to record short voice segments from the user, which Jibbler will then interpret. Voice synthesis can then be used to give the user a response, similar to the latest generation iPod shuffle, which can “read” playlists and track names—the difference being that the iPhone hardware itself could handle real-time voice synthesis.

Our sources turned up references to classes and methods named VSSpeechSynthesizer, VSRecognitionSession, SBVoiceControlDisableHandlerActions, SBSensitiveJibblerEnabled, and SBVoiceControlSoundCompletion. SB refers to SpringBoard, and VS likely refers to Voice Services. The separate Voice Services classes leave open the possibility that Apple may eventually allow access to these services via the official SDK. There’s no indication whether these voice features will be tied to newer hardware expected this summer or if the features will be compatible with existing iPhone hardware.

Besides the coolness factor that the voice control features add to the iPhone, they also bring the promise of voice-controlled dialing, a feature that other phones have had for some time. Also, it could aid in hands-free operation for safety in certain situations, like driving, and act as an assistive user interface method for those with some sight impairments.

by arstechnica.com

New features discovered in iPhone OS 3.0

Developer sources familiarizing themselves with betas of Apple’s iPhone 3.0 software have uncovered a handful of additional tweaks and improvements to the system in recent weeks, including changes to Safari’s window handling, new battery status indicators and notification preferences, as well as the advent of data detectors in certain apps.

Safari

With the release of iPhone 3.0, Safari will let you close out and clear all your open browser windows without having to first create a new blank page to get rid of the contents of the last active window.

For example, you can have eight open Safari windows in the existing version of the iPhone software, seven of which you can close rapidly by using the red “x” icons in the upper left-hand corners of the pages. However, there’s no “x” icon to close out the last page standing. Therefore, the only way to get rid of the contents on this last remaining page is to first create a “New Page,” then cycle back to the page and close it out.

With iPhone 3.0, Apple has enabled the option to close out the lone remaining page. Once the “x” icon is triggered, the page disappears and a new blank page quickly slides into view. This process is reportedly difficult to capture in a screenshot, though an example illustrating part of the process can be seen below.

Battery indicators

Meanwhile, it appears that iPhone 3.0 will also introduce an option of showing you how much battery life you have left on your iPhone or iPod touch in a numerical percentage.

Resource files contained within the new version of the device’s Springboard application include 22 new PNG files to facilitate this option. Half are numerical characters (and a “%” sign) in black typeface for representing healthy battery level percentages while the other half are in red typeface for when battery life falls bellow a certain threshold.

It appears, though it’s not confirmed, that users will have the option of selecting how their battery status indicator appears in the menubar — such as an icon-only view (per current versions of the software), an icon + numerical view, or a numerical-view only. This would be similar to fast user switching menu option for Mac OS X that lets you display the accounts by “Name,” “Short Name,” or “Icon.”

Push Notification preferences

Also visible in the latest betas of iPhone 3.0 software is a new Push Notifications preference pane that will allow you to enable or disable any of the three types of notifications that third party applications can push to your handset: Sounds, Alerts and Badges. Alternatively, notifications can be disabled as a whole. This should provide users with tighter control of their battery usage.

Data Detectors

Finally, it’s also noted that Apple is enabling Data Detectors in a variety of new applications. Data Detectors automatically detect text fragments like email addresses, phone numbers, and street addresses, so you can execute actions on those fragments via touch selections — like dialing a phone number automatically by clicking on it or adding it to your address book.

The example above shows Data Detectors in action in the new Notes application. The detectors are only visible and executable when viewing a note, not while editing one.

Variable scrubber speeds

These shots just came in, showing the ability to change scrubbing speeds in the iPod application.

by appleinsider.com

4G IPhone Could Be on Verizon

Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg took advantage of a recent chat with the Wall Street Journal to talk a bit about Apple. Seidenberg said that Apple never wanted to make a version of the iPhone for Verizon’s CDMA network, since it wouldn’t be able to be as widely distributed as the GSM-based models it eventually produced. Uh, yeah, Ivan, thanks for joining the rest of us over here in the nation of Duh.

Mr. Seidenberg also addressed the notion of Apple Inc.’s iPhone ever coming to the Verizon Wireless network, saying it is more likely that Apple would be willing to work with the carrier under the fourth-generation, or 4G, network, which follows the same technology standard as AT&T Inc.’s 4G plans.

That technology, which we’ve discussed before, is called LTE and is the next step along the GSM standard after the current 3G incarnation. Among U.S. providers, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon will all be transitioning to LTE for their 4G networks, a process expected to happen over the next few years. Rival Sprint is meanwhile planning on using a version of the WiMax standard for its next-generation infrastructure.

This shows a bit of a softening towards Cupertino on the part of the Verizon CEO. Back in June 2008, he told the Financial Times that “Steve Jobs will eventually get old,” adding that Apple was still a small player in the mobile industry and the iPhone was unlikely to become a mass-market hit.

Of course, that was right around the launch of the iPhone 3G. Several million handset sales later, perhaps Seidenberg is rethinking his dessert plans, and eyeing a piece of that sweet Apple pie.