Select Developers Apparently Already Testing iOS 4.x for iPad

[kntgsp]

FYI, Refreshing tabs isn't just low RAM. It's also partially due to a bug in iOS3. So, iOS4 should help that a bit.

Don't know how much. How many tabs can the iPhone3GS running iOS4 keep open without needing to refresh? Poster above says 2-3.

That is my biggest gripe about the current iPad is that annoying refresh of tabs. I can keep 2 open without them needing to refresh as I tab back and forth, but 3 usually makes them refresh (depends on page size), and 4+ is no-go.

Would like to see the iPad be able to have 4 tabs open without needing to refresh, only time will tell if iOS 4.2 on the iPad makes that possible.

 

[Ed91]

According to Steve Jobs, iOS 4.2 for iPad is coming out in November, 2010. I wonder why it is taking Apple so long to update iOS on the iPad, especially considering the fact that iOS for iPad is very similar to iOS for iPhone and iOS for iPod Touch. Could the November release of iOS 4.2 for iPad signal the concurrent launch of the 2nd generation iPad with the front-facing camera?

Um, no. Apple Begins shipping the iPad in China on Sept 17th, then updates it in November? People get pissed off when they buy a product that gets updated a month after they bought it.. Now imagine your lovely new iPad becoming obsolete two months after launch. Not going to happen.

 

[ovrlrd]

According to Steve Jobs, iOS 4.2 for iPad is coming out in November, 2010. I wonder why it is taking Apple so long to update iOS on the iPad, especially considering the fact that iOS for iPad is very similar to iOS for iPhone and iOS for iPod Touch. Could the November release of iOS 4.2 for iPad signal the concurrent launch of the 2nd generation iPad with the front-facing camera?

Sigh, not this again. We already had a monster thread about this with the last rumor post. The firmware adds more features than 4.1 (AirPlay, Printing, etc), it takes time to test those features, work out the bugs, etc, especially on the iPad which hasn't had 4.x yet. The new version (4.2) will come out for ALL devices in November, not just the iPad, which means they have to test it on ALL devices. It takes time, that is all. They have to also give time for app developers to update and test their own software. I would imagine the SDK will be out by the end of the month.

If Apple was releasing new hardware in November, we would see an announcement about it within the next 15-20 days. They would not just go "surprise!!" and suddenly have them on shelves without putting some effort to market the new product and also give a window for early reviewers/developers. It would also be really odd considering the iPad is not even available in some countries yet. They are more than likely ramping up the releases for those countries (like China) and trying to sell as many 1st gen iPads as they can before next year when they announce the 2nd gen.

It would also be supply-demand suicide for the upcoming holiday sales season. Why screw up the curve when they are just now getting control on it?

 

[ctdonath]

Can anyone actually explain to me what Epic Citadel is? Is it just an app to show off

That's it. At this point, it's a "tech demo" as mentioned - a way of showing off new game "engine" technology without the subsequent "game" part (rules, characters, etc.).

Upshot: we're gonna see some really cool games on the iP* soon - stuff that challenges desktop & console games (those will always have the upper hand, but the iP* can be snapping at their heels now).

 

[jmull]

Could someone explain why the current 4.1 won't work on an iPad? What's so different about it and iPod?

 

[Warbrain]

Like others said, likely a typo, but you can bet your ass I'll be putting the betas on my iPad.

 

[Krevnik]

I believe you, but just curious, do you have a source/explanation?

If you watch Safari's RAM usage (not entirely straight-forward, mind you), you will notice that it is refreshing even when there is plenty of RAM to the system as a whole, and that the cache isn't being cleared (which would lower the RAM usage). And Safari being able to run in the background in 3.x means all the RAM it uses has to be shared with other apps.

In that environment, it makes sense to put a strict limit on the cache for Safari. One that is less than the total available RAM you can use.

That or you can have a bug that tells it to refresh because the content is new (when it really isn't), which is fine on a desktop, but killer on a mobile device.

In something like iOS4, you have APIs to tell you when you are being backgrounded/etc, which means you can actually do things like "Set cache to X MB when in the foreground, and X/2 MB when in the background". This would let you run a larger cache but still be friendly to other processes in the hope the OS doesn't boot yours out of RAM entirely (which iOS4 does do).

 

[mjtomlin]

Could someone explain why the current 4.1 won't work on an iPad? What's so different about it and iPod?

Probably because all the iPad specific UI elements and other OS components haven't been merged back into the main iOS branch.

 

[notabadname]

That game demo was beautiful in the Keynote. A reminder again of how many different things the iPad does really well, and why it really is a good value. Add up the price of a Kindle DX (that does nothing else really), a Nintendo DS or Sony PSP, a stand-alone media/DVD player and one bloatware-loaded Netbook with a 3 hour battery plus the space to carry all of the chargers/power supplies . . . .

I'll take my iPad, thanks.

 

[ranReloaded]

Not worth the wait. Buy the black one and you actually get to USE THE PHONE instead of waiting for a colored bezel.

Agreed. By the time it comes out, It will most likely be past half its lifecycle... You're better off waiting for the iPhone 5!

 

[DavidChu]

Don't know how much. How many tabs can the iPhone3GS running iOS4 keep open without needing to refresh? Poster above says 2-3.

That is my biggest gripe about the current iPad is that annoying refresh of tabs. I can keep 2 open without them needing to refresh as I tab back and forth, but 3 usually makes them refresh (depends on page size), and 4+ is no-go.

Would like to see the iPad be able to have 4 tabs open without needing to refresh, only time will tell if iOS 4.2 on the iPad makes that possible.

If you're referring to me, I didn't actually says 2-3. I said I keep it to around that many tabs just in case. I just tried opening the max amount of tabs (8) on my iPhone 3GS (4.1) and they all load without refreshing when switching from tab to tab. This is with only Safari running, nothing else in the multitasking drawer.

 

[Bregalad]

The new version (4.2) will come out for ALL devices in November, not just the iPad, which means they have to test it on ALL devices.

Has Apple actually confirmed that 4.2 will run on iPhone and iPod touch?

Many people expected 3.2 would be a unified release and it wasn't.

 

[Consultant]

Saw it on the app update over the weekend. Didn't realize it's front page worthy...

Has Apple actually confirmed that 4.2 will run on all devices?

He probably meant all RECENT devices. Not ALL devices.

 

[ovrlrd]

Saw it on the app update over the weekend. Didn't realize it's front page worthy...




He probably meant all RECENT devices. Not ALL devices.

Yes, I meant all compatible devices, sorry I thought that was implied. And yes Apple has confirmed it will work with all devices that currently run 4.x in addition to the iPad. This will allow the iPhone (3G or newer) and iPod Touch (2nd gen and newer) to gain the ability to do AirPlay. It hasn't been confirmed if Apple will make it so some devices won't support the feature though (like Game Center not being on the 3G).

 

[Piggie]

Serious question.

Will the iPad having half the Ram of the new iPhone mean that it is going to to multitasking (task switching) in not such a good way than the iPhone?

I assume an app takes up some ram, and to hold one in limbo must use ram?

I'm praying it won't be an issue, but I'm thinking there must be some downside when it comes to this new feature and my iPad only having half the Ram.

I'm guessing we won't know for sure, till someone here loads the same apps on both devices and uses the same options and see if the iPad suffers.

I mean the Double Ram on the iPhone MUST be being put to good use, it's not just sitting there unused is it?

 

[robogobo]

Can you imagine that beast with ... 512 of ram?
Holy sh**!

haha, sounds like a quote from the early 90's

 

[jmull]

haha, sounds like a quote from the early 90's

History does repeat itself...

 

[robogobo]

h.

If Apple was releasing new hardware in November, we would see an announcement about it within the next 15-20 days. They would not just go "surprise!!" and suddenly have them on shelves without putting some effort to market the new product and also give a window for early reviewers/developers.

You haven't been around here very long, have you.

 

[DavidChu]

Serious question.

Will the iPad having half the Ram of the new iPhone mean that it is going to to multitasking (task switching) in not such a good way than the iPhone?

I assume an app takes up some ram, and to hold one in limbo must use ram?

I'm praying it won't be an issue, but I'm thinking there must be some downside when it comes to this new feature and my iPad only having half the Ram.

I'm guessing we won't know for sure, till someone here loads the same apps on both devices and uses the same options and see if the iPad suffers.

I mean the Double Ram on the iPhone MUST be being put to good use, it's not just sitting there unused is it?

The 3GS has 256 mb of RAM and it runs perfectly fine. The iPhone 4 is just slightly better with it's 512 .

 

[mikethebigo]

The 3GS has 256 mb of RAM and it runs perfectly fine. The iPhone 4 is just slightly better with it's 512 .

The 3GS is pushing a lot fewer pixels though. Couldn't that make a difference?

 

[cvaldes]

The 3GS is pushing a lot fewer pixels though. Couldn't that make a difference?

Nah, the fourth generation iPod touch has the same screen resolution as the iPhone 4's Retina Display, yet has 256MB RAM.

 

[sirozha]

Sigh, not this again. We already had a monster thread about this with the last rumor post. The firmware adds more features than 4.1 (AirPlay, Printing, etc), it takes time to test those features, work out the bugs, etc, especially on the iPad which hasn't had 4.x yet. The new version (4.2) will come out for ALL devices in November, not just the iPad, which means they have to test it on ALL devices. It takes time, that is all. They have to also give time for app developers to update and test their own software. I would imagine the SDK will be out by the end of the month.

If Apple was releasing new hardware in November, we would see an announcement about it within the next 15-20 days. They would not just go "surprise!!" and suddenly have them on shelves without putting some effort to market the new product and also give a window for early reviewers/developers. It would also be really odd considering the iPad is not even available in some countries yet. They are more than likely ramping up the releases for those countries (like China) and trying to sell as many 1st gen iPads as they can before next year when they announce the 2nd gen.

It would also be supply-demand suicide for the upcoming holiday sales season. Why screw up the curve when they are just now getting control on it?

The fact that China is just now getting the iPad does not mean that Apple cannot launch 2nd generation iPad in November. China has very restrictive rules on a lot of things. For example, Apple was selling iPhones with disabled Wi-Fi in China because of the China's government restrictions. I would not be surprised if the Chinese government banned the iPad with Face Time, so Apple may be forced to continue offering camera-less iPad for the Chinese market.

There is also a chance that Apple would carry both generations at the same time for the holiday season while marking down the 1st generation iPad. There are a lot of people who would choose a camera-less iPad if it cost $100 less. Not everyone uses video chat, so the benefit of the front-facing camera is lost on many people.

Apple just may surprise everyone and come out with the 2nd generation iPad in November. As for the reviewers, this would be an incremental update to the hardware - nothing revolutionary. Back in the beginning of 2010, the iPad was something so conceptually new that Apple really needed to create positive PR about this product, which they successfully achieved before launching the product. This time around, the iPad is so hot that they don't even need to advertise it. There are certain markets in the US where there is still a long waiting list to get one.

 

[japanime]

It's problably just an honest typo.

That was my first thought, too.

 

[blackcrayon]

Serious question.

Will the iPad having half the Ram of the new iPhone mean that it is going to to multitasking (task switching) in not such a good way than the iPhone?

I assume an app takes up some ram, and to hold one in limbo must use ram?

I'm praying it won't be an issue, but I'm thinking there must be some downside when it comes to this new feature and my iPad only having half the Ram.

It will just mean that "suspended" apps will be dumped from memory faster than if you had 512 megs of RAM.

For example, if you launched Madden 2011, then switched to Prince of Persia, then switched to Grand Theft Auto... With 512 megs of RAM, Madden 2011 might still be held in memory and suspended so you could switch back to it. With 256, the system will have run out of memory and have had to quit Madden 2011 in the background, so switching back to it would require a relaunch. (Just a hypothetical situation, i have no idea how much ram these apps need exactly [except i checked with GTA and it uses about 70 megs] ).

Luckily, all properly written apps and games by now save their state when the OS asks/forces them to quit so you should still be able to resume where you left off (within reason) - but the app may have to relaunch which obviously takes longer (think Safari tabs except entire apps instead of web pages).

Also luckily, the iPad launches apps very quickly. Even on a fairly "ambitious" game like GTA, it only takes about 10 seconds for you to be back playing after quitting- even on iOS 3.2.

 

[mikethebigo]

It will just mean that "suspended" apps will be dumped from memory faster than if you had 512 megs of RAM.

For example, if you launched Madden 2011, then switched to Prince of Persia, then switched to Grand Theft Auto... With 512 megs of RAM, Madden 2011 might still be held in memory and suspended so you could switch back to it. With 256, the system will have run out of memory and have had to quit Madden 2011 in the background, so switching back to it would require a relaunch. (Just a hypothetical situation, i have no idea how much ram these apps need exactly [except i checked with GTA and it uses about 70 megs] ).

Luckily, all properly written apps and games by now save their state when the OS asks/forces them to quit so you should still be able to resume where you left off (within reason) - but the app may have to relaunch which obviously takes longer (think Safari tabs except entire apps instead of web pages).

Also luckily, the iPad launches apps very quickly. Even on a fairly "ambitious" game like GTA, it only takes about 10 seconds for you to be back playing after quitting- even on iOS 3.2.

Edit: nevermind, I was wrong.