When iPhone 3.0 is released it looks like TV shows, movies and music videos will be available for purchase and viewing directly on the new device. Three mobile ads from Apple were found in the latest version of TwitterFon that linked to "iTunes Movie Rentals," "iTunes Movies" and "iTunes TV."
When touched, the ads led to a video area in Apple's mobile store that was under construction. Screenshots of the portal show various genres and featured items, however video content is not yet available.
If news from Chinese manufacturers means anything, Apple is clearly planning on an iPhone-like device that would fill the gap between the iPod Touch and the MacBook. The latest reports and rumors are interesting, to say the least, and point towards a possible 2010 release of the product.
It sounds like elements of the iPhone OS have already been adapted for a larger touch screen with similar multi-touch capabilities. The new Apple media pad would simultaneously compete with netbooks and portable gaming systems such as the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS.
First quarter mobile phone sales may be off almost nine percent from last year, however the smartphone market continues to heat up. Gartner reports that Apple has doubled its market share from last year, with sales of 3.9 million iPhones in Q1 2009, representing 10.8 percent of global smartphone sales.
Nokia still leads the pack with 41.2 percent, although this is a decrease from last year's 45.1 percent market share. Research In Motion sales also jumped from 13.3 percent market share in Q1 2008 to 19.9 percent during the same period this year, partly due to the popularity of the BlackBerry Storm.
Apple has posted two job opportunities that could give further insight into the hardware and advanced capabilities coming our way on the next generation iPhone. Video recording and an improved 3.2 megapixel camera have been confirmed.
It seems Apple is ready to develop some exciting ways to take advantage of the new hardware. The following is an excerpt from a job description from Apple:
Palm's answer to the iPhone, the Palm Pre will be hitting shelves on June 6. The device debuts at $299 with a $100 mail-in rebate, however at Best Buy the cost will be $199 flat.
The device will compete with Apple's iPhone, the Blackberry Storm, and T-Mobile's G1. Sprint is expecting shortages of the device as consumer demand initially will outpace supply.
Only one month after the initial release of push notification, Apple has invited iPhone OS 3.0 developers to participate in high-volume tests of the system. If all goes well, push notification is expected to be operative for general users with the release of iPhone 3.0.
Push notification saves the iPhone battery by allowing apps to receive information without actually running in the background. Recent reports have indicated that Apple is considering allowing a limited number of apps to run in the background, however this taxes iPhone resources.
New information has leaked regarding iPhone 3.0, allegedly from a member of Apple's hardware development team. Along with a list of features and specs, the source indicated that July 17th will be the release date for the new iPhone.
The list of features below, should it be correct, would be impressive. We've heard rumors of an OLED screen before, however this doesn't make the prospect any less interesting. This design upgrade alone would dramatically improve battery life.
Wouldn't it be great if every time you jumped to the iPhone home screen Pandora kept streaming music? The only application that Apple currently allows to run in the background is the iPod, however if recent reports are correct, this could all change.
Pandora is just one example of how useful allowing apps to run in the background could be. Another likely use would be keeping an instant messaging chat connected. Rumors have been swirling about just how Apple would implement background processing considering the limited resources of iPhone hardware.
Only a week after the previous release, Apple has made iPhone OS 3.0 beta 5 available. Several new tweaks and features are apparent as the final release date for the new operating system approaches. Apple has also announced that all AppStore applications submitted for approval must be OS 3.0 compatible going forward.
First of all, leaked screenshots have confirmed rumors of a built-in digital compass (magnetometer). Along with the GPS and accelerometer, the compass could improve navigation and make a variety of "augmented reality" applications possible by overlaying graphics on top of live video.
The latest iPhone OS 3.0 beta version is live for developers, and requires installation of the iTunes 8.2 pre-release for activation. Questions and speculation have arisen over a reference to Blu-ray included in the "About iTunes" window of iTunes 8.2.
The text reads: CD, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, and music and video-related data from Gracenote, Inc. Could it be possible that Apple has decided to acquire licensing for Blu-ray technology after all?
