So, 3.0 beta. How bad/good is it?

[upsguy27]

I've been reading a lot of mixed reviews of the 3.0 beta on here. Some say it's good and stable, others say it's awful. How is it, really? I'm thinking of buying the $100 Developer account for 2 reasons: 1, because I would like to get into coding with Objective-C and the iPhone seems like a good place to start and possible make some money, and 2, because it would be nice to try out 3.0. Obviously reason number 1 is the main reason; 2 is just a benefit. But I want to know, how's the beta?

 

[skiinginNJ]

the 3.0 beta has been pretty stable under normal use for me.

 

[Gathomblipoob]

the 3.0 beta has been pretty stable under normal use for me.

Same here. I occasionally have to reboot to get audio back, but it is a beta...

 

[upsguy27]

Just installed 3.0 on my iPhone. Seems to work great. It is just as stable as 2.2.1 was, and I haven't been experiencing any of the bugs as reported. For example, the new feature thread reports that Youtube makes the audio and video out of sync, and I haven't noticed this at all. I'll report back when I find more things.

 

[cybermansa]

Buggy as hell for me. Debating on waiting for new 3.0 beta or going back to 2.2 jb firmware. I sure do miss my phone being jailbroken.

 

[upsguy27]

Buggy as hell for me. Debating on waiting for new 3.0 beta or going back to 2.2 jb firmware. I sure do miss my phone being jailbroken.

3.0 can still be jailbroken. http://blog.iphone-dev.org/

And for those wondering, yes the 3.0 OS is jailbreakable on all devices. It’s just those using 3G yellowsn0w that have to show some restraint and wait for PwnageTool to create a custom IPSW that avoids the baseband update.

 

[SFC Archer]

3.0 works as a 1st level beta should be expected to work.

There are things missing that were there before, screens freeze, music data bases need to be reset, and 3rd party native apps will not all work. Apples native apps have some errors and issues but are to be expected with a completely rewritten software package...thus the need for beta.

Battery life is terrible...I am experimenting between running everything on and turning various things off to see what drains and what does not.

I do not have 3G in my areas so it is off. I have been running blue tooth stack on with two headsets paired, locator service on, fetch on, auto bright on and WiFi on...Batterly lasts less then 6 hours. Have started switching stuff off to see what the poser hog is.

This beta also has massive memory leaks. Using the App FreeMemory you can free up 20mb of memory and watch it shrink back down to less then 5mb in less then 10 sec, repeat and the same thing happens.

The phone works and for the most part it works as I expected a first release beta to work. The iPhone is usable and allows me to still continue as before with a few hiccups here and there and a lot of patience and understanding.

It is up to the user and understanding their use level and patience level...if its hi/lo....don't do it.

 

[acfusion29]

Things that were broken for me:

iPod app: Playlists didn't work. Said I had no music. (This is important for me as I have 100 most recent songs, so I can find new songs that I got that I may have forgot their names).

Maps app: Froze when I tried to enter a location. (I was extremely pissed because the ONE time I wanted to use maps while I was out (and lost), I couldn't. So I had to manually go to maps.google.ca and find my way.)

SMS app: Said "sending 1 of 3" messages in one conversation, and it got stuck there. (The messages still went through, but the fact that it said "sending 1 of 3" I could NOT see who I was typing to).

 

[fletch33]

Buggy as hell for me. Debating on waiting for new 3.0 beta or going back to 2.2 jb firmware. I sure do miss my phone being jailbroken.

if you restored from a backup then that is your problem.

i have a few friends running it and the only people that i have seen have serious problems are the ones that choose to restore from backup and did not set it up as a new phone.

the few that had those problems saw them go away when they restored it again as a new phone.

it has a few issues but nothing you wouldn't expect from a beta and nothing that has me wanting to go back to 2.2.1

hope that helps your bugs

 

[SFC Archer]

if you restored from a backup then that is your problem.

i have a few friends running it and the only people that i have seen have serious problems are the ones that choose to restore from backup and did not set it up as a new phone.

the few that had those problems saw them go away when they restored it again as a new phone.

it has a few issues but nothing you wouldn't expect from a beta and nothing that has me wanting to go back to 2.2.1

hope that helps your bugs

What you say is not entirely true. Myself and others have installed as new phone and with backup and the expected bugs are still there. Somethings like turning off key clicks/lock sounds help but data bases are still wiping, battery usage is higher and errors in 3rd party apps are still prevailant ...as expected.

The more you use your so called fresh install and build up data bases the more finicky it is. Again, this is expected and should be upfront knowledge and freely discussed instead of hiding under a cover of my iPhone is perfect because I set it up as new...

This method is NOT a true beta test. A beta test is using the phone the way a normal individual would use it and that means MOST users will install a brand new update as a restore so that the data bases they have backed up are restored. Very few average users are going to start over and over and over with all of there data. A Beta Tester tests under normal conditions and use and that is what is suppose to be happening with 3.0....NOT: ooooo look at me, Im running 3.0 nah nah nah nah. Cmon...do it right, give the right advise to discover and get the bugs reported.

Thank You

 

[zapbryann]

yeah, i installed 3.0 from a backup and im not experiencing the problems everyone is. my biggest problem is that over half of my photos dont show up in preview mode inside the photos app. it is just a giant black screen but once i tap somewhere it will load the photo full size just fine.
weird.

 

[fletch33]

The more you use your so called fresh install and build up data bases the more finicky it is. Again, this is expected and should be upfront knowledge and freely discussed instead of hiding under a cover of my iPhone is perfect because I set it up as new...

This method is NOT a true beta test. A beta test is using the phone the way a normal individual would use it and that means MOST users will install a brand new update as a restore so that the data bases they have backed up are restored. Very few average users are going to start over and over and over with all of there data. A Beta Tester tests under normal conditions and use and that is what is suppose to be happening with 3.0....NOT: ooooo look at me, Im running 3.0 nah nah nah nah. Cmon...do it right, give the right advise to discover and get the bugs reported.

Thank You

wow


1. if you had 2.2.1 running under a jailbreak with any kind of carrier icon changes or a vast many other hacks and mods it will greatly reduce the performance of 3.0 and therefore would run a lot better if you install it as a new device.

2. start over and over with their data? i havent started over with my data since my first palm pilot sync in the early 90's that is what syncing is all about. you can throw my phone in the river and give me a new one and all my data will be back in minutes. what are you doing with your data?

3. in the future i will be sure to have a thorough questionnaire in my post so that i can get all the posters data before i suggest such a thing as restoring as a new phone.

4. NAH NAH NAH NAH i have 3.0 😛

 

[Chad H]

I don't suggest doing this if your not a developer and using this for testing. I am and have already downgraded back. It will seem stable at first but for heavy users this beta just isnt ready. That's why its a beta. The basic features do hang up. I think its more related to a straight out memory leak but I'm sure apple will fix. Just my .02 cents do what you will with it.

Also, below are all the problems my 3.0 beta had.

SMS: would hang up and take forever to typer, messages out of order
Phone: no major problems, visual voicemail a little buggy
Youtube: worked great, again slow
Spotlight: works fine(great addition)
Mail: Terribly buggy would crash sometimes
Safari: mine was actually stable and fast
Batter: horrible, maybe 10 hours

 

[SFC Archer]

wow


1. if you had 2.2.1 running under a jailbreak with any kind of carrier icon changes or a vast many other hacks and mods it will greatly reduce the performance of 3.0 and therefore would run a lot better if you install it as a new device.

2. start over and over wirth their data? i havent started over with my data since my first palm pilot sync in the early 90's that is what syncing is all about. you can throw my phone in the river and give me a new one and all my data will be back in minutes. what are you doing with your data?

3. in the future i will be sure to have a thorough questionnaire in my post so that i can get all the posters data before i suggest such a thing as restoring as a new phone.

4. NAH NAH NAH NAH i have 3.0 😛


FYI also developing an app for my company

No my friend...you have it all wrong.

I installed 3.0 the first time as a restore from my 2.2.1 so that I would not loose all of my backups. The iPhone actually ran very well and I did not have any problems until my music data base wiped. I did a lot of beta testing the phone and apps for devs and had no issues and reported/posted my findings.

I then did your recommended approach and did a complete restore as a new iPhone. This again has worked just fine for a beta but gets more and more touchy and buggy as apps are installed and data bases are filled up. Again, as a beta tester, this has all been posted/reported.

For you to tell others just to restore as new iPhone is not the proper way for a "BETA" Tester to test the functions of new software. It MUST be tested under normal use and conditions of an every day user. IF someone has problems because of a bad backup then a fresh restore would be advised but if no one tests the software with backups and it is allowed to proceed to the market then when those that do use backups start having problems we can all point the finger at you and say "But he told us to do it that way"

I am saying that as a BETA tester that you should test and advise testing on all methods to find the bugs and get them reported.

I am sorry if I offended you or the truth hurts....all I ask is that you tell both sides and use this 3.0 as it was meant to be...a beta test and a preliminary for developers to start preping their apps. Help Apple make it better, not just one sided.

Oh and by the way...NONE of my iPhones has EVER been Jailbroke🙂

 

[fletch33]

i have always found that restoring as new worked best and have done it that way with every software update since day one. i have tested this theory on both my jailbreak and non-jailbreak phones and always found it worked better with a fresh install.

i have also found this to be true on my WM phones, OS X builds, windows computers, etc, etc , etc

in my opinion fresh is better and data is synced so whether beta, rc, or official on phone or a computer i have found that a fresh install always seem to be a great way to know you are getting right and it runs better.

i did not make any reference to 3.0 not being beta and having problems but only said that i have not found it to be bad at all and in no way feel i need to go back to 2.2.1

i also have a dev account from which my company is developing an app for our clients so it is not for bragging rights.

however if i wasnt involved i would pay someone $10 and upgrade anyway since i find the features to be worth it beta or not.

 

[SFC Archer]

i have always found that restoring as new worked best and have done it that way with every software update since day one. i have tested this theory on both my jailbreak and non-jailbreak phones and always found it worked better with a fresh install.

i have also found this to be true on my WM phones, OS X builds, windows computers, etc, etc , etc

in my opinion fresh is better and data is synced so whether beta, rc, or official on phone or a computer i have found that a fresh install always seem to be a great way to know you are getting right and it runs better.

i did not make any reference to 3.0 not being beta and having problems but only said that i have not found it to be bad at all and in no way feel i need to go back to 2.2.1

i also have a dev account from which my company is developing an app for our clients so it is not for bragging rights.

however if i wasnt involved i would pay someone $10 and upgrade anyway since i find the features to be worth it beta or not.

I totally understand your point of view and your methods obviously work perfect for you and many many other users. Starting fresh is always a good thing as a user without huge data bases. All of your apps must backup off/on line or are recoverable with a database file format. Most developers are not allowing data to back up outside of iTunes and thus is why I restore from backup and try it first. If more developers that create apps that have data storage would create a method to backup outside of iTunes then I would also start fresh every time.

If you are not beta testing the phone then that is cool. I was referring to giving information to 3.0 beta's and that they should try to beta with their backup first to find the bugs and then if necessary restore and test as new. This is the only way to help out ALL users when 3.0 is released.

Please make sure your new apps allow us to backup outside of iTunes 🙂

 

[fletch33]

cool 🙂

 

[upsguy27]

3.0 works as a 1st level beta should be expected to work.

There are things missing that were there before, screens freeze, music data bases need to be reset, and 3rd party native apps will not all work. Apples native apps have some errors and issues but are to be expected with a completely rewritten software package...thus the need for beta.

Battery life is terrible...I am experimenting between running everything on and turning various things off to see what drains and what does not.

I do not have 3G in my areas so it is off. I have been running blue tooth stack on with two headsets paired, locator service on, fetch on, auto bright on and WiFi on...Batterly lasts less then 6 hours. Have started switching stuff off to see what the poser hog is.

This beta also has massive memory leaks. Using the App FreeMemory you can free up 20mb of memory and watch it shrink back down to less then 5mb in less then 10 sec, repeat and the same thing happens.

The phone works and for the most part it works as I expected a first release beta to work. The iPhone is usable and allows me to still continue as before with a few hiccups here and there and a lot of patience and understanding.

It is up to the user and understanding their use level and patience level...if its hi/lo....don't do it.

Hmm.. been using it for a day now, not experiencing any of the problems you are. Battery life for me is great. In fact, the battery life is double what it was in 2.2.1 for me. I haven't charged it in 2 days and I've been using it a lot and it's still almost full. I just checked MemoryInfo and after freeing memory yesterday it's down to 10MB. So, not as much of a memory leak as you.

Things that were broken for me:

iPod app: Playlists didn't work. Said I had no music. (This is important for me as I have 100 most recent songs, so I can find new songs that I got that I may have forgot their names).

Maps app: Froze when I tried to enter a location. (I was extremely pissed because the ONE time I wanted to use maps while I was out (and lost), I couldn't. So I had to manually go to maps.google.ca and find my way.)

SMS app: Said "sending 1 of 3" messages in one conversation, and it got stuck there. (The messages still went through, but the fact that it said "sending 1 of 3" I could NOT see who I was typing to).

iPod app: Hmm, playlists work fine for me. Same as they were on 2.2.1.

Maps app: The maps app is fine for me as well. No stuttering, freezing, anything like that.

SMS app: I also haven't been having any problems with the Messages app, as it's now called. MMS obviously doesn't work, but other than that, it's fine.

I don't suggest doing this if your not a developer and using this for testing. I am and have already downgraded back. It will seem stable at first but for heavy users this beta just isnt ready. That's why its a beta. The basic features do hang up. I think its more related to a straight out memory leak but I'm sure apple will fix. Just my .02 cents do what you will with it.

Also, below are all the problems my 3.0 beta had.

SMS: would hang up and take forever to typer, messages out of order
Phone: no major problems, visual voicemail a little buggy
Youtube: worked great, again slow
Spotlight: works fine(great addition)
Mail: Terribly buggy would crash sometimes
Safari: mine was actually stable and fast
Batter: horrible, maybe 10 hours

The only real problems I've had with 3.0 in the 2 days I've used it have been Youtube loading videos horribly slow and stopping the loading halfway through, and Safari crashed once. That's it.

 

[upsguy27]

Just an update, using the MemoryInfo program helps out a lot with stability and speed. So, I suggest using that. Also, I experienced another bug where the iPod would only play clicking noises instead of music. Had to restart to fix it.

 

[nfl46]

I just downgraded back to 2.2.1. My 3.0 was actually stabled, but with minor bugs that were annoying me. I'm going back to 3.0 when Beta 2 is released.

 

[AHDuke99]

I just upgraded last night, and it's really not that bad. There are a few glitches, and the iPod is a bit slow, but otherwise there's nothing wrong with it. Copy/Paste works fine. The text app is not that slow, no more so than it is under a jailbroken 2.2.1... I am looking forward to Beta 2 though. This beta isn't nearly as unstable as 2.0 was.

 

[upsguy27]

I just noticed another thing. The blinking cursor that usually shows when you're typing doesn't show up anymore. That can get pretty annoying when you can't move around text you've typed. Also, when you're typing, you can't move around the text box by dragging.

 

[SFC Archer]

I just noticed another thing. The blinking cursor that usually shows when you're typing doesn't show up anymore. That can get pretty annoying when you can't move around text you've typed. Also, when you're typing, you can't move around the text box by dragging.

Totally agree and noticed as well. Another Bug that is annoying is that the Caps key does not brighten when the field has an auto cap for the first character. Now you think its off so you hit cap and it types lower case.

Two very annoying 3.0 bugs🙁

 

[upsguy27]

Totally agree and noticed as well. Another Bug that is annoying is that the Caps key does not brighten when the field has an auto cap for the first character. Now you think its off so you hit cap and it types lower case.

Two very annoying 3.0 bugs🙁

Hmm. I haven't noticed that. I'm on my iPhone right now and the caps light lit up when I started typing.

 

[SFC Archer]

Hmm. I haven't noticed that. I'm on my iPhone right now and the caps light lit up when I started typing.

The blinking cursor bug is mainly in Safari...for example if you try to log into your google account, there is no blinking cursor in the box.

The cap bug is mainly in my 3rd party apps that will have to be updated by the devs to work with 3.0. However, go into Contacts App and select the + to build a new contact. Then select name...the cap Arrow will not light up. In notes it does. So it is a bug that is in some apps but not all...just depends on what you use.