Rumor

MacRumors is reporting several new features have been discovered in the latest iPhone OS software beta, v2.2.

• Inclusion of Japanese emoji icons (See earlier report) - These are popular in Japanese phones and supposedly their absence from the iPhone has been one of the reasons it hasn’t apparently sold as well in that market.

• Google Street View. Orright!! (That’s Australian for “cool!") Street View is one of the most useful developments in maps since Moses chiseled his escape route on stone tablets. It’s rather cool being able to do a virtual drive-by (hmm, maybe I need a better term...) of some destination before you go. Having a map may be useful, but having the iPhone show you a piccy of the exact house you’re looking for is way cool

• Optional text auto-correction. You’ll be sorry!! Are people really that good on the keyboard? Am I that lame? I’d be screwed without the auto-correction, but it seems turning it off is a feature many folks have been hankering for. Though I gotta say, it does drive me up the wall when it corrects… more...

Quick, what is the worst thing about the iPhone? No physical keyboard? An accelerometer that only works 75% of the time? THE FACT THAT IT IS TIED TO AT&T? Yeah, we’ll go with the last one. Everyone knows that Apple signed some kind of exclusivity deal with AT&T but know one outside of Apple and AT&T really know how long that period actually lasts. 9to5mac has assembled various to think that sometime in 2009 Apple will punt the whole AT&T only deal and go with more than one carrier. That is something Apple would like to do. Check out the full article at 9to5Mac.

Wondering what is coming on September 9th? Who isn’t? Our sister site Apple Matters has their predictions up written by Aayush Arya. Check it out!

Rumor has it that Apple is getting ready to release a slick new iPhone app that will serve as an interactive album application, delivering lyrics, artwork, behind-the-music photos and other bonus content to supplement the lack of a physical CD.

Little about the alleged app is known, but it is suspected to offer a new interface for the digital booklets that some albums come with in iTunes.

However, this could be a publicity stunt seeing as how this is said to be launched the same time Snow Patrol’s new CD is released.

Time will tell…

Via: Music Week

Michael Dell recently said that some day, in the future, sometime later, definitely not anytime soon Dell may well make something that competes withe the iPhone:
“I think you will see us with small screen devices” Spoke Michael Dell
When asked specifically about smartphones like the iPhone the Right Honorable Mr. Dell said:
“You’ll see us with smaller and smaller devices that have capabilities of the devices you are referring to. Not in the near-term”

Dell’s success at copying small devices made by Apple hasn’t been the best, witness the much hyped then dropped Dell DJ. Recently Dell announced they were coming out with another .mp3 playerc player which will also fail miserably.

iPhone Matters did, in fact, break into Dell research headquarters and were able to snag this shot of the as yet unnamed Dell device:

via Reuters

You’ve heard about Apple’s September 9th event called Let’s Rock. The event has most people convinced we’ll see new nano or an extended version of the Bobby versus Satan Kids in the Hall skit. But it can’t just be a new nano, that would be far too boring. Plus Steve saves nano announcements for times he finds himself on stage with Motorola CEOs.

So there has to be something more to event than Steve whipping out an even smaller nano. Though if he does it like he did the first time it will be pretty cool:

what else could be going on? If you’re a podcast maker or listener you know that you can create enhanced podcasts. You also know that record companies are looking for ways to add value to your music buying experience. Well, that last part isn’t true. Mostly record companies seem to want to complain that they need more money but bands are being smarter and at least one is releasing an enhanced version of their album to increase your enjoyment.

If you want to get your hands on an iPhone and you live in China you can either get a job building the things or pay top dollar for an unlocked iPhone. AFP reports that that is about to change. Sources tell AFP that Apple is in the final stages of talks with China’s largest telecom provider China Mobile. According to AFP the holdup was over Apple’s revenue sharing demands. Apple wants a big slice of the iPhone pie? Is such a thing even possible?

China has a population of 1.3 billion and 608 million current cell phone users,so the opportunity is huge. If Apple can make the iPhone cool in China expect big sales and the goal of 10 million iPhones sold in 2008 to seem quaint.

Doubtful, but I still have hope that us iPhone users will get MMS one day, and soon!

iPhone Atlas claims to have word from multiple sources that a memo was sent out to AT&T employees with a list of features for the iPhone 3G that includes MMS support.

They note however that the information should be taken with a grain of salt, because, they note, “AT&T’s customer service representatives certainly aren’t known for delivering accurate information about soon-to-be-released products.”

It shocks me that Steve Jopbs has yet to include this, but it sure will free up the top 10 “want list” for me.

Flash has got to be one of the most requested features that Mr. Jobs has yet to give us, however, there is hope.

Word on the streets is it appears that the iPhone does, at least on a software level, have the capability to run Flash content.

Adobe’s CEO said during a conference call yesterday that the company already has Flash running on an iPhone emulator. Crunchgear posted a quote from the CEO saying:

“We have a version that’s working on the emulation. This is still on the computer and you know, we have to continue to move it from a test environment onto the device and continue to make it work. So we are pleased with the internal progress that we’ve made to date.”

Good news, right? I hope so. Perhaps we’ll get a surprise feature thrown into the iPhone 2.0 software…

That third sensor was not a false rumor after all. Although it was not a front-facing camera, Steve Jobs failed to mention this at the Keynote. Many people are questioning his health so maybe it is possible he forgot “under the weather.”

According to iLounge, a second proximity sensor has been added to help turn of the screen when on a call, and to sense when the device has accidently been turned on in ones pocket.

The iPhone will still include the ambient light sensor, as well as the “old” proximity sensor- totaling 4 sensors in the device (including the accelerometer).

Although I’ve personally never had a problem with the, the addition of a second proximity sensor will likely decrease the instances where the phone fails to sense a user’s face and turn off its touch screen.

Or perhaps it is a secret camera which Steve Jobs will reveal after it ships, surprising us all!

Doubt it.