iPhone OS 3.0 Preview Event Wrapup

    AuthorWayne Dixon

    Info about the iPhone itself

    • The iPhone is now in 80 countries.
    • 17 million iPhones sold.
    • Including iPod Touch, over 30 million iPhone OS units sold. (iPod touch not as popular as iPhone 13.7m).
    • 800,000 downloads of SDK since last march.
    • 50,000 individuals & companies joined iPhone Dev program.
    • 30,000 (60%) hadn’t developed for mobile platform prior to that.
    • Over 25,000 apps in the App Store today (03/17/2009).

    Curiousity over submission process….

    Scott Forestall, being the iPhone head, is the one who shows the preview of the iPhone.

    • Major update to OS with over 1000 APIs with iPhone OS 3.0. The same 30% fees still apply.
    • Developers are asking for subscriptions, additional levels of charging, and new content for apps.
    • Difficult to sell one application per book.
    • Today they’re supporting all of these business models.

    Demo of purchasing new content from within an app

    • Can purchase a game with 10 levels, when done, another 10 levels.
    • Another example, city guides. One ‘generic’ app, and separate ‘city packs’.
    • It’s all tied into the iTunes store, so you stay within the app, and have to authenticate with your iTunes password.
    • Developers pick the price of in
    • app content. Same 70/30 ratio.
    • Free apps cannot charge for content. Free Apps are just that, free.

    Peer to Peer connectivity

    Example: Kids want to play games back and forth.

    • iPhone 3.0 has standard framework for finding other devices in the same area, no wifi needed.
    • Automatic discovery over bluetooth No pairing needed.
    • Bonjour
    • powered for everything. (this is going to be huge). Think printing.

    Accessories

    • Accessory support is next level.
    • iPhone OS 3.0 can talk directly to an accessory.
    • iPhone can control speaker’s EQ, for example.
      • FM Transmitters – FM Signal can be controlled from the iPhone’s display.
      • Enabling some over bluetooth using ‘standard built-in protocols’ or developers can create custom protocols

    Maps

    • Taking maps application and making it a PUBLIC API, so devs can embed maps in their apps.
    • Pinch zoom, satellite view, hybrid, standard, custom notes, and Tri<-angulation from both Wifi and Cell networks.
    • Even reverse geo
    • coding. This enabled Core Location as the basis for turn by turn navigation apps.
    • The catch with ‘maps, is that you have to bring your own’. Due to licensing, Apple’s maps can’t be used within applications.

    Push Notifications

    • late on this one… duh….
    • Within two months of launching, over 1000 apps, and 100000 downloaded.
    • Re-architect server for push notifications, they have been working on this the past six months.
    • Background processes not good for customers, battery life and the like, don’t allow the Phone to sleep.
    • Apple has tested background applications on Blackberry, Windows Mobile, and other platforms and found that battery life was drained by 80% or more.’
    • When using iPhone Push notification, standby time only dropped by 23% when testing an IM application.
      Apple has been working with 3rd party developers to test this. Most likely AOL, Yahoo, and Google.
    • 3rd Party Server pushes notifications through to apple and the user’s iPhone. Sounds and text alerts are all they can push. It scales. (I see a market for a 3rd party to run an iPhone push notification service ).
    • Push notification is a ‘unified, generic service for all developers.’ It Maintains battery life, performance and optimized for mobile networks.
    • They are working on getting push notifications for all 80 countries.

    NEW APIs

    • Proximity sensors
    • iPod Library access.
    • Streaming Audio over HTTP, even through firewalls.
    • Data detectors, built in VoIP APIs.

    Developers working on push notifications

    Meebo

    (good choice). (Seth Sternberg)

    • 35 million people sending 5 billion IMs per month.
    • Moving natively to the iPhone (this is huge).
    • Supports AIM, MSN, and a new network
    • Push was the last thing they needed to build a truly great experience’.

    EA

    (Travis Boatman)

    • 10 games on the App store
    • The Sims 3.0 Demo. Walking around the house, customizing the house. New Feature available, able to purchase right in the app, without leaving.
    • Going to media center and play music right from user’s iPod Library.

    Oracle

    (Hody Couch)

    • 5 apps in the store. Enhancing some of the apps with the new iPhone SDK
    • Product shortage, alert, open
    • Without leaving the app, user can email customer to warn about stock.

    ESPN

    (oke Okaro)

    • Instant alerts
    • Custom sound played with sport scores
    • Streaming video within App
    • Uses new media player to allow more customized streaming based on network.
    • Over 50 million alerts per month, major reason why push was redesigned.

    Life Scan

    (Anita Mathew)

    • Simplifying Diabetes management
    • Check blood sugar, reader can transmit to iPhone using bluetooth or Dock Connector.
    • Add notes, record readings and help plan meals.
    • Displays Data on content footer, calculate insulin and glucose content.
    • Can communicate with greater diabetes community, alert friends and family of current health.
    • Can list data and turn the iPhone or iPod touch to an interactive graph.

    Ngmoco

    (Neil Young)

    • iFund company, exclusively does iPhone Games
    • New types of Social Play for games

    Touch Pets

    • Push notification for a ‘play date’ with someone else’s dog.
    • first social pet game with a social network
    • Users can buy toys, in game, for their pets to play with.
    • New Toy packs cost $0.99.

    LiveFire

    • First person shooter.
    • Shake to jump.
    • Can send notification to a friend to jump into the game.
    • buy new weapons, in game.
    • Looks a lot like Quake 2.

    Smule

    (Dr. Ge Wang) (Ocarina iPhone Music App Creators)

    • Leaf Trombone
    • Invites users to Learn wacky new instruments and participate in massive online social music learning
    • Lets users play music with a Guitar Hero like user interface, and can even play duets.

    More SDK Information

    New Features for Customers (Over 100 according to Apple)

    Copy & Paste

    (Finally, people can stop complaining)

    • Double tap a word to present a ‘cut, copy, paste’ popup dialog box.
    • Two icons appear for customizing selection. Double tap an empty space to bring up a bubble, and paste.
    • Works across ALL applications (read a new API).
    • Can also copy web content.
    • Shake to bring up a dialog with ‘Undo/ Cancel’ options.
    • Note: opened SMS App (camera icon in the lower left)
    • Will paste with formatting preserved.

    Multi-Photo Mailing

    • Action button in Photos.app allows users to tap multiple photos to select and paste into a message (good for mobile blogging).
    • Cocoa Touch supports these photos natively, allowing developers to create better applications.

    Landscape Mode

    • All Applications can now have Landscape Keyboard, like Safari has.
    • Mail.app, notes.app now have landscape mode.

    Messages App

    (Replaces SMS.app)

    • Forward and delete individual messages
    • MMS Support
    • Send and Receive file, contact cards, audio files, and locations.

    Voice Memos.app

    (New Application)

    • can record voice memos, lectures, can use built
    • in microphone
    • Supports external microphone (since iPhone OS 3.0 can talk to accessories directly)
    • Edit, Trim and share memos over messages.app or Mail.app

    Calendar.app

    • Two calendar types
      • CalDav
      • Calendar Subscriptions
    • Uses .ics format to subscribe to different calendars (no talk about syncing multiple calendars)

    Stocks.app

    • More Details about stocks available

    Search

    • Adding search to address book.app
    • Searching being added to all ‘Key’ applications.
      • Mail (Will continue search on server if desired
      • Address Book
      • Calendar
      • iPod
      • Notes (Entire body or just title search)
    • Spotlight comes to iPhone OS 3.0 (Search Entire Phone)
    • Flick to the left from the home screen to bring up Spotlight User Interface
    • Searches across all supported apps, contacts, iPod, Mail, and Calendar.
    • If you have a bunch of applications on your device, search is useful.

    Other New Features

    • Notes Syncing to both Mac and PC with iTunes
    • Wi-Fi Auto login for hotspots
    • SHake to Shuffle on iPhone and iPod Touch
    • Stereo Bluetooth now supported (A2DP)
    • Anti-phishing now in Mobile Safari
    • Safari will remember logins
    • Support For More languages, keyboard layouts
    • Parental controls extended to Movies, TV Shows, and Apps (Ratings for Apps, allowing previously disallowed apps?)

    Youtube.app

    • Subscribe to channels, share, and save favorites

    Other Information

    • Developer Beta available Today.
    • iPhone being added to 15 more countries to the 62 they already have. Now up to 77 countries.
    • iPhone OS Will ship this summer (?) Free for All iPhone 3G Customers, and original iPhones can use it too.
    • Not all features will be available on the Original iPhone (like Stereo Bluetooth)
    • Update will cost $9.95 for iPod Touch.
    Wayne Dixon
    Author
    http://www.waynedixon.com
    I'm into everything technology related, particularly anything Apple related. I enjoy programming and tend to lean towards server-based technologies over client-based. You can contact me on twitter, via e-mail, or follow me on friendfeed.
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