iPhone OS 3.1 Features: Non-Destructive Video Editing, Voice Control Over Bluetooth and More

[Bernie-D]

Some people use their phone laying sideways in bed or on the couch. A rotation inhibitor option is needed (for non-jailbroken phones) now more than ever, since more default apps on the phone now support auto rotation depending on orientation.

If you've ever tried to read email or view web pages on the iPhone in 3.0 while laying sideways, and can't because the screen keeps maddeningly rotating unless you hold it at *just* the right angle to read, you'll know what I mean.

See my earlier post!

 

[SoftPretzel]

My only complaints since day one was the ability to have more options for mail alert (more/longer vibrates, louder alert) and more options for text message alert.

I don't see these discussed very much, so I am curious if anyone else wants these same things?

Oh and the battery life still sucks....just sayin...

I agree with this. Maybe even have a separate tone to help distinguish repeat alerts from new ones.

I also agree with others wishes to stop auto rotate in mail and sms. I would like for there to be a button that allows the user to manually rotate.

And I also agree with others who have said that they would like alerts that don't overtake the screen focus.

 

[arian19]

Does anyone think it's important to have
1. Group texting from contact groups
2. Calendar birthday subscription visible on iPhone

or am I the only one??

 

[bassjunky]

Well, I'll throw in my $.02 for my first post here. The 3GS is my first iPhone and I love it.

I have a Pioneer 7900bt stereo in my truck, one of the features is built-in bluetooth. In order for me to enter contacts into the stereo, I have to initiate the transfer of a contact over bluetooth from the phone. My previous HTC Tilt had this functionality (as do many phones), but the iPhone does not. Therefore, I can't see who calls me (unless I pull the phone out of my pocket), I only get the number they're calling from displayed on my head unit.

Not the biggest problem, but a feature I miss. No OBEX/vCard transfer over bluetooth. Bummer.

 

[QCassidy352]

And you're making this update out to be less significant than it is. Bluetooth control over voice functions is pretty huge. Speed increases are always welcome. They're solidifying the 3.0 OS, which is what people should expect from a .1 release.

Stop being satisfied and reasonable! If you're not angrily ranting about something you have no place on this site! How can you not realize that a .1 update is the time to implement dozens of new, barely tested features??

 

[JonboyDC]

And being able to turn landscape mode off? Why would you be holding your phone sideways if you don't want landscape mode engaged?

The problem comes up when you're laying on your back and holding the phone above you. At that point, it's neither upright nor in landscape, even though you may be looking at it in portrait mode. The accelerometer gets confused and will randomly switch the screen between landscape and portrait.

 

[yocko]

i would really like to have inside the little keyboard globe, the language it is using. now i always have to guess whether my last email/text was in spanish in english or in dutch.... just a few letters would simply solve that

 

[RITmusic2k]

My wish list:

...

6. Destroy all competing iPhone "killers" via EMP

And they can even call it the iPhone Killer!! Steal their competitors' marketing thunder and destroy thousands of dollars of equipment in one blow!

Anyway. I think this update is a sign of good things to come... I'm anticipating voice-controlled app launching eventually.

My only personal wish list item for the moment is that they continue expanding the video editing functionality to include the stitching of two videos together. With this, along with the nondestructive editing feature in the 3.1 beta, it would become possible to create full in-camera-edited movies.

 

[Krafty]

Ever since i installed 3.0 and had push as a setting for new information in settings ,contacts,mail,enz, my 2G becomes realy warm and the battery is drained in a couple of hours with out touching it.

This feels to me like there is something going wrong in the software that makes the processor work non stop, therby draining the battery.

I hope this is solved in 3.1 too, i can't use push the way it is now.
It did work with mobile me in 2.2.1 without any problem and i already miss it now.

Also Wifi reception has gone down at least 30% since 3.0 hope that is getting fixed to.

One thing i learned "again" from this is that iPhone is a computer not just a phone so i won't be going with the x.0 version next time around.

I noticed that Mail is running in the background when mine acts like that. I use SBSettings to kill it. However, Push and Fetch are both off (seeing as Push Notifications never worked on my 2G) and Mail sometimes still decides to run.

 

[Data]

I noticed that Mail is running in the background when mine acts like that. I use SBSettings to kill it. However, Push and Fetch are both off (seeing as Push Notifications never worked on my 2G) and Mail sometimes still decides to run.

Can you see that in processes on sbsettings and also kill it from there?
I have sbsettings installed to kill my 2 and 3g data connection ( i don't have a subscription for that yet), but never killed any processes or something like that yet with sbs.

 

[cocky jeremy]

I want an option to turn off all landscape keyboards, system wide. I hate, hate, hate landscape!!

 

[Krafty]

Can you see that in processes on sbsettings and also kill it from there?
I have sbsettings installed to kill my 2 and 3g data connection ( i don't have a subscription for that yet), but never killed any processes or something like that yet with sbs.

Go to the SBSettings Preferences (labeled "More"), and turn the "Processes" toggle on. After it resprings, when you press the Processes toggle, it should bring up all the programs that are running.

You can also use MemTool which can kill + free up some RAM.

 

[BC2009]

I don't understand all the "hating" on either side.

Forgot one:

- All iPhone 3GS models now have the ability to detonate all Palm Pres in a 100 yard radius.

I think the best thing that happened to iPhone was the Palm Pre. A solid competitor
can only help the consumer. It is hard though to not react to what the "haters" are
saying on either side (look at me posting this).

Seriously though, I firmly believe that without Palm Pre you probably would not be
seeing Turn-By-Turn GPS, Voice Control, Copy/Paste/Undo, and Bluetooth Stereo,
and Push Notifications. Many of these things are in response to Palm Pre having them
OR in response to Palm Pre not having to give iPhone a clear advantage.

Its no different than CPU manufacturers do.... They create a chip that runs at X Ghz,
then they sell it initially at 0.5 X Ghz, then a few months later at 0.7 X Ghz, then
eventually at 1.0 X Ghz. They slowly disseminate improvements so you can increase
revenue. Then if your competitor tries to beat your best product, you turn around
and trump them with the cards you are still holding.

All Palm did was make Apple play their trump cards. Look at performance.....
Palm Pre JavaScript outperformed iPhone 3G on OS 2.0 significantly. In fact
Palm touted the speed at CES in January. However, Apple released OS 3.0
and equaled the Palm Pre JavaScript performance, and then released the
3G-S and trumped the Palm Pre.

Isn't that great for consumers? I hope Palm Pre comes out with WebOS 1.1 and
finds a way to kick butt over iPhone 3G-S -- wouldn't that light a fire under Apple?
I think my iPhone 3G-S is the best phone I've ever owned -- I sure hope somebody
comes out with one that is even better.

BTW: Big decision factors on my choosing iPhone 3G-S over Palm Pre:
- Palm Pre and WebOS still has the feature gaps like Apple did with early iPhone
- Palm Pre multi-tasking is great, but does not include the most basic multi-tasking
I use due to Sprint network : phone call and internet access at the same time

-------------------------
Black 32GB iPhone 3G-S (much improvement over the Apple IIgs)

 

[iphones4evry1]

I expect we will see this update during Apple's fall iPod event. I also think that will be the day that AT&T announces MMS and Tethering.

One question, is the iPhone 3G technically capable of voice control. That is strictly software and doesn't have any extra hardware to drive it, right?

Since Apple and AT&T have already announced publicly that MMS would be supported "by the end of summer," I'm expecting that this 3.1 update will be released by August 31st, and at the same time that AT&T enables MMS. This 3.1 Beta could go on until August 31st. Heck, we're already in July now. I won't be sitting here every day waiting for the end of summer; I'm going to enjoy my summer.

It's possible that voice control requires more processing power and RAM, and that the regular 3G is very slow when using voice control.

 

[p0intblank]

Well that was fast! Can't wait to try this out.

 

[Chris Grande]

Here ya go.

The shadow on the phone icon is strangely darker than the others.

 

[rasher]

this should be a 3.0.1 release

 

[dwsolberg]

I have 2 3GS's and 2 3G's in my house. The reception on the 3GS's is awful compared to the 3G.

Also, app icons labelling with the wrong app name.


Does 3.01 go anywhere to resolving this?

I have the same problem with the app names labeling with the wrong name. I have good reception where I live, but I've noticed some problems when I'm out and about.

 

[Shasterball]

Does anyone think it's important to have
1. Group texting from contact groups
2. Calendar birthday subscription visible on iPhone

or am I the only one??

I think you are the only one...

 

[QCassidy352]

Seriously though, I firmly believe that without Palm Pre you probably would not be
seeing Turn-By-Turn GPS, Voice Control, Copy/Paste/Undo, and Bluetooth Stereo,
and Push Notifications. Many of these things are in response to Palm Pre having them
OR in response to Palm Pre not having to give iPhone a clear advantage.

So if the Pre and iphone share a new feature, the iphone added it to keep up, and if the Pre doesn't have it, the iphone added it to beat the Pre? You're fitting reality to your theory rather than the other way around.

Basically, you have Apple's MO confused with Dell's. Dell sees what others are doing and changes their products to match.

Apple works on their own timelines and with their own design goals. (example: unwillingness to enter the netbook market or offer a mid-range tower). Apple has its own roadmaps and sticks to them. Of course they want to beat the competition, but they see acting, rather than reacting, as the way to do that.

I'm not blindly praising them here - frankly, sometimes I wish they'd worry a little more about matching competitors' specs/features/prices. But that isn't how they work - not with the mac and not with the iphone.

 

[jknight8907]

i would really like to have inside the little keyboard globe, the language it is using. now i always have to guess whether my last email/text was in spanish in english or in dutch.... just a few letters would simply solve that

Doesn't the language of the word 'space' on the spacebar change? When I tap the globe it goes from saying 'space' to 'espacio'.

 

[designgeek]

How about AT&T still dragging their feet . . . shocker.

"iPhone 3GS will now have the ability to use any competent network in the United States"
screw AT&T.

I just want my wifi strength back.

 

[Mess]

have they fixed bluetooth A2DP so you can actually skip songs with a bluetooth headset? previous / next don't work with 3.0

I too hope they sort this out. It's very annoying. It's like a job half complete.
Please fix it apple.

 

[sladey]

what's up with the ability to delete a single call from recent calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What are you hiding? Drug Deals? Mistress? Do tell...

 

[Goona]

So if the Pre and iphone share a new feature, the iphone added it to keep up, and if the Pre doesn't have it, the iphone added it to beat the Pre? You're fitting reality to your theory rather than the other way around.

Basically, you have Apple's MO confused with Dell's. Dell sees what others are doing and changes their products to match.

Apple works on their own timelines and with their own design goals. (example: unwillingness to enter the netbook market or offer a mid-range tower). Apple has its own roadmaps and sticks to them. Of course they want to beat the competition, but they see acting, rather than reacting, as the way to do that.

I'm not blindly praising them here - frankly, sometimes I wish they'd worry a little more about matching competitors' specs/features/prices. But that isn't how they work - not with the mac and not with the iphone.

Why are you wasting your time with these people. They think Apple sit around doing nothing except waiting for the competition to release something before they start working.