Today, Google released a new and improved version of their web-based Gmail and Calendar WebApp solution. We previously discussed many of the features that are included in this update, the floating menu bar one of the main points.
Today we’re happy to announce a new and improved experience when you access Gmail and Calendar through the browser of your iPhone and Android-powered devices. What’s new? For Gmail, we’ve improved the user interface to make it easier to message on the go, and we’ve introduced “Floaty Bar,” which makes sure common actions such as archive and delete are only a click away (check out the video tour below). You can also start the application, compose mail, and open recently read messages even when you’re offline. With the new Calendar, you can edit or respond to an event and, like Gmail, the app is accessible even without a network connection. To quickly navigate between Gmail, Calendar, and other mobile applications, you can use the classic links that now always appear across the top of the screen. The “more” menu provides easy access to the full list of applications. To read more about what’s new, take a look at the Gmail and Calendarposts on the Mobile blog.
Google says they’re focusing on web apps over native apps in order to provide faster updates and universal access across all handsets (iPhone, Palm Pre, and Android)
Macrumors posted what appears to be an actual screenshot supporting the evidence for video recording in iPhone 3.0, along with a digital compass and voice control.
Video recording has been the latest speculation in rumor buzz for the next-gen iPhone. The screenshot above shows that video recording will be integrated into the camera app with a switch to go back and forth between the camera and video camera. Similar to the digital compass in the Android G1, which gives the ability to rotate Google Street View by physical moving the phone, the iPhone will feature this hardware in the next revision. Voice control and voice dialing, another missing and highly-wanted feature, is also said to be included.
iPhone 3.0 OS and the next-gen iPhone is slated for this June and new discoveries are still rolling in! This will definitely be a great year.
When the iPhone 3.0 software was released to developers a few weeks back, many hints toward video recording were found in the new operating system. First the MobileMe video upload screen, second we saw video MMS, and now iPhone 3.0 has turned up resources files that point towards video recording and even editing and trimming. The application may be similar to Apple’s Voice Memo app which was added in 3.0 and allows the ability to trim and record audio.
In other news, driver support for a new Broadcom Wi-Fi chip suggests the inclusion of high-speed 802.11n in the future iPhone. This new chip would offer support for low power 802.11n and is said to be included in the iPhone and iPod Touch set to be released later this year.
Now we just need the rumored 3.2 or 5 megapixel camera to be included with the next gen iPhone and we’re golden!
The recently changed wireless terms of service banning video streaming and P2P activity caused an uproar among AT&T customers. The company sent Engadget the following statement retracting the new TOS:
The language added on March 30 to AT&T’s wireless data service Terms and Conditions was done in error. It was brought to our attention and we have since removed it. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
Digitimes is reporting, along with previous speculations, that the next generation will sport a 3.2mp camera. Omnivision has signed a contract and received an order from Appple to begin production of 3.2 megapixel CMOS image censors. This updated camera will most likely find it’s way into the new 2,1 hardware to be released at WWDC this year.
A 5mp camera is also rumored to be on it’s way into another Apple product this year. No word on whether it’s for built-in iSights, tablets, or even the iPhone 3,1 hardware update? We can only hope it’s the latter, but the rumors have just begun!
According to Apple Insider, AT&T is trying to increase the coverage, reliability, and speed of it’s 3g network for the coming of Apple’s next-gen iPhone. The new iPhone hardware is expected to be released this summer, perhaps during WWDC in June as they did last year.
The current network supports up to 3.6Mb/s, however AT&T also stated they have capabilities to go to 7.2Mb/s, with 14.4 and 20Mb/s in the next few years. The next gen iPhone is reported to have high-speed HSDPA (7.2Mb/s), which would require and improvement to AT&T’s network.
Apple has been evaluating a portion of the network upgrade already accessible to its engineers for testing purposes and is genuinely impressed with its speed. A person familiar with the situation commented that Apple iPhone engineers have “never gotten pages to load as fast as they were loading on the new routers.”
The previous iPhone releases all featured upgrades before the release of the 2G EDGE upgrade and the HSPA upgrade before the iPhone 3G last year. Will AT&T be able to complete this speed increase before the third generation iPhone is released?
As the iPhone 3.0 easter egg findings unfurled shortly after the beta was released, a ‘Publish Video’ option was found. This happened when trying to upload images in the photo gallery to MobileMe. The initial findings speculated that Apple would be releasing a method of publishing video from the iPhone through MobileMe, which also played into the video recording rumors set for the third generation iPhone. The error has since been corrected and now correctly reads ‘Publish Photo’
It has also been noted that the email/mms photo sending limit has apparently been raised to an unlimited amount. The limit was initially set to 7 photos in the first 3.0 beta.
As reported earlier, Apple released a 2nd beta of the iPhone 3.0 OS, focusing on overall stability. The new seeded firmware now allows the iPhone to support up to 11 pages of applications, equaling up to 180 apps! This is available on both iPhone and iPod Touch.
The new limit has been confirmed by TheLoopBlog as shown in the screenshot above, as well as a friend of mine. The iPhone currently supports up to 9 pages, making a total of 148 applications. Many users have already reported that they’ve run out of room from hitting the barrier of 9 pages. If you ask me that’s a lot of apps, but at least they will be happy once iPhone 3.0 is released allowing for their app obsession.
With just only 2 weeks after the release of the iPhone 3.0 Beta 1, Apple has released the SDK and firmware for 3.0 beta 2. If you’re interested in reading about the features included in the first beta release, be sure to check our write up on iPhone 3.0 OS. Beta 2 version is now available at the Apple Developer site, so head over and get your download going.
We’ll be sure to keep you updating on any new features or findings within the Beta 2 build. The official iPhone 3.0 release is still scheduled for this Summer.
An interesting application from Apple has surfaced on the use of alternative security measures from the U.S Trademark and Patent Office. These stealthy methods would grant the user access to the handset through fingerprint or facial recognition. Another interesting find in the document labeled “Embedded Authentication Systems in an Electronic Device”, is the use of a jailbroken phone to represent these new security measures.
Continue reading for descriptions and images of these new features.
