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iOS 5 to Finally Deliver Over-The-Air Updates?

Nice, but not essential. I usually have the patience to wait until I'm home to install an update. Unless it's an iOS update..

More important to me is over-the-air syncing. That would be a killer!
 
blah, I don't want to chew through my data plan, and wait for the update to download with over the air updates.
I'd be happy if I could just do them over my own WiFi... and sync over WiFi while I'm at it.
 
xxBURT0Nxx said:
something tells me you are not going to be able to back up 64gb (potentially 128gb) of data to the cloud free of charge.
Click to expand...
initial backup over wifi (required) then future incremental (smaller) backups could be over 3G. the iPhone already tells you when an app is to large to update w/o wifi - it's already been training us about what we can and can't do w/o wifi.
 
The issue with Verizon (and probably other carriers) isn't a "mother may I..." issue of sending the updates over 3G, the issue is probably exempting the OS updates from any transfer caps.

In other words, to not have the 500MB iOS update apply to the 200MB or 2GB/mo or 5GB/mo data cap. This might require Apple to grease the skids with a little cash for Verizon and AT&T, or limit updates to WiFi only.

That said, Apple in general needs to get a better handle on their update package sizes. I've got 3 Macs, 2 iPads and 2 iPhones on my home internet connection. Its 300-500MB (occasionally more) per Mac each time Apple releases a OSX point release (about every other month), 500MB for each iOS update (every other month) times four devices. So I'm looking at a maximum of 3.2GB of just Apple updates each month. This doesn't include updating iTunes, iPhoto, MS Office, etc.
 
In short, this confirms that iOS 5.0 will now have incremental updates, which is similar to how Microsoft updates Windows with incremental updates. Apple should have done this when iOS 4.0 came out, though....
 
mrpither said:
initial backup over wifi (required) then future incremental (smaller) backups could be over 3G. the iPhone already tells you when an app is to large to update w/o wifi - it's already been training us about what we can and can't do w/o wifi.
Click to expand...

who determines what qualify as future incremental backups? What if I do my initial (required) backup over wifi, then add 5gb of photos? Don't think the wireless carriers are going to go for that.

But that's besides the point... i was referring to apple giving everyone free cloud storage.

As of January this year, over 160 million iDevices have been sold. Consider maybe an average of 20gb per device and apple is looking to give out 3.2 billion GB of cloud storage to it's customers. Something tells me this is not going to happen. You think they want to let everyone back up their 64gb iPod touches to the cloud. You think apple or att/verizon is going to be ok with people backing up their 32gb iPhones to the cloud? No way, not a chance...
 
LillieDesigns said:
I drop calls like mad with AT&T. Wonder if it's about time to head over to Verizon, especially if it starts beating AT&T to the punch with features like these.
Click to expand...

I can tell you in San Francisco, a Droid on Verizon is at least 10-100 times better than an iPhone on AT&T.
 
Žalgiris;12517653 said:
So you never charge your iPhone or iPod? I'm all for wireless sync if the current method also stays.
Click to expand...

what does charging your phone have to do with being tied down to a single iTunes?

srxtr said:
When are they going to introduce wireless battery charging???
Click to expand...

still don't understand the craze with wireless charging since you have to leave the device on the pad to charge it... what makes that so much better than dropping it into a dock?
 
Žalgiris said:
Single? There are multiple?
Click to expand...
what are you talking about?

once you sync your iDevice to one itunes account, you can't plug it into a different computer and transfer their photos, apps, music, etc. to your device without completely restoring it to that itunes account. This has nothing to do with never charging your phone.
 
How is this system implemented? As our iPhones are online (unless manually disengaged) 24/7, Apple must be communicating with it to determine whether your iPhone needs an incremental update. As such, the user has to engage the update, correct? It is not automatic?

As I quickly read the article my first (knee jerk) reaction was control and jailbroken iPhones being tracked and harder to use if Apple implements such a feature.
 
xxBURT0Nxx said:
what are you talking about?

once you sync your iDevice to one itunes account, you can't plug it into a different computer and transfer their photos, apps, music, etc. to your device without completely restoring it to that itunes account. This has nothing to do with never charging your phone.
Click to expand...

So you think because it's wireless it will allow you do that? That's a big assumption. Charging was about the fact that wireless syncing at least for me only makes sense if you can charge at the same time (induction charging) otherwise it will be slow and battery draining. I sync my iPhone at least once a weak and i put 10-12 GB of music and videos on it everytime. For such amounts wireless sync is pointless. Of course people sync different amounts of data and at different frequencies, but they sync.
 
AT&T already does ota updates for Android phones.
The update notice tells you that the download will begin once you connect to wifi.
Keeps you from blowing through your data plan.
Makes sense that they would do it for the iPhone too.
 
Wireless updates
Wireless sync
Wireless music cloud
Improved wireless notifications

These things seem likely in iOS 5.0.

My wish list:

Wireless file storage
Wireless charging
Wireless headphones included (haha jk...not likely)

EVERYTHING MUST BE WIRELESS! Lol...then the iPhone would have zero openings. Jony Ive would love that.

Revamped UI, more touch gestures, and more fine-grained settings to customize the phone even further, without needing to jb would be great too. Dynamically updated home screen icons and a new dashboard view for lock screen would be great as well!

I'm switching to Verizon. Are you?
 
Since it is so big, it should be patches only IMO. Or people will lose so much space in their iDevice. And hopefully not automatic as well.
 
Žalgiris;12517682 said:
So you think because it's wireless it will allow you do that? That's a big assumption. Charging was about the fact that wireless syncing at least for me only makes sense if you can charge at the same time (induction charging) otherwise it will be slow and battery draining. I sync my iPhone at least once a weak and i put 10-12 GB of music and videos on it everytime. For such amounts wireless sync is pointless. Of course people sync different amounts of data and at different frequencies, but they sync.
Click to expand...

i think you are confused my friend... where did i ever say that? In fact earlier in this thread i said...

i feel like this would be a real battery killer... maybe not if you are just adding a few apps and cd's but when i sync ~6gb of music, contacts, calanders, apps, etc. it's a pretty long process over USB... don't even want to know how long it would take over wi-fi, nor would I want to sit around the house for a few hours to finish updating my phone all while the battery is getting raped.
Click to expand...

__________________________________________________________________________________________

later in the thread another poster said

Tying it to a single computer's iTunes has been a nuisance from time to time.
Click to expand...

and you replied

So you never charge your iPhone or iPod?
Click to expand...

what does being tied to a single iTunes account have to do with charging your iDevice?

______________________________________________________________________________________

As for wireless sync and inductive charging... dumb idea imo

so i can sync over wifi, which is going to be slow as hell, and i still have to keep my device on a charging pad or in a dock? Why wouldn't i just plug it into the damn computer to speed up the process?
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
xxBURT0Nxx said:
i think you are confused my friend... where did i ever say that? In fact earlier in this thread i said...



then another poster said



and you replied



what does being tied to a single iTunes account have to do with charging your iDevice?

As for wireless sync and inductive charging... dumb idea imo
Click to expand...

I replied with "so you never charge" to say that even with wireless syncing one will have to charge iDevice at some point (matter of days if it's an iPhone, maybe a week if it's an iPod - both in use not just on a shelf). Why drain battery by syncing when you can charge batter while syncing and with wireless sync that can be done by induction charging which is slow and charger is costly ergo makes little sense. I'm all for wireless sync in addition to current wired method though. One more option is good.
 
Žalgiris said:
I replied with "so you never charge" to say that even with wireless syncing one will have to charge iDevice at some point (matter of days if it's an iPhone, maybe a week if it's an iPod - both in use not just on a shelf). Why drain battery by syncing when you can charge batter while syncing and with wireless sync that can be done by induction charging which is slow and charger is costly ergo makes little sense. I'm all for wireless sync in addition to current wired method though. One more option is good.
Click to expand...

OP was hoping to be freed from being tied to one iTunes, this has nothing to do with when you charge your device.. of course it still has to be charged.

I'll quote what I said again for you....

so i can sync over wifi, which is going to be slow as hell, and i still have to keep my device on a charging pad or in a dock? Why wouldn't i just plug it into the damn computer to speed up the process?
Click to expand...

wireless charging/sync is stupid, time consuming, battery wasting, gimmick.
 
Žalgiris said:
That won't happen we all know that.
Click to expand...
agreed... and even if this wireless sync comes to existance it will be a waste. I'd way rather have a thunderbolt connector on the next set of iDevices than wireless sync. No point in being wireless if i have to leave it on a charger so the battery isn't half dead 3 hours later when it's done syncing. Why people would prefer that is beyond me :D
 
Only on an Apple forum, when new features are raised as possibilities, does a sizeable minority of posts involve griping about "Why would you want to do that?!" or "What kind of stupid feature is that?"

I don't see what's so hard to accept that some times, in some instances, some people might find use of over-the-air updates. Given that Apple always releases new iOS updates at 1pm during weekdays, when the vast majority of us are at work, I can easily invision scenarios where there's a cool new feature in a point update that everyone wants to give a spin. Why not start the download at work so it's ready to test drive before you leave the office?

And, to all those citing bandwidth constraints as curtailing this behavior: Verizon users have no such constraints.
 
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