iOS 4: Taking on the Mobile World

Apple being Apple

Well, ’tis high time I actually get a review going. I know it has been a while since I’ve done one. I’ve been doing all these posts about my life and how “I’m going in the right direction” and things like that. I know you probably don’t want to hear that all the time, so I’m oh no, I’ve gone cross-eyed.
Anyways, in lieu of the new cameras and phones that have come out, I have video reviewed a couple of them. I have been waiting and nitpicking which ones I want to review, then, the company I work for (if you don’t know by now, please learn how to read) released their answer to many of the gripes that people had about iPhones in iOS 4. You may be wondering why it’s iOS 4 and not iPhone OS 4. The reason is because Apple (and hopefully the rest of the world) has noticed that all of their mobile devices use the same operating system. Apple has outdone themselves yet again (like you expected anything less at this point?) with this release. At first, even I thought this would be a little ambitious, even from the company I work for. Then, I really thought about it and said “This is Apple being Apple, exceeding all expectations and doing things better than you think.” There are over 100 new features in iOS4, many of which are not going to be noticeable to users. The best part: iOS 4 is free, yes FREE to ALL Apple mobile device users. Yes, that’s right, even those of you who have iPod Touches can finally get an major OS update for free. If you were unaware of it before, iPod Touch users always had to pay $4.99-$9.99 for a new OS when a major release came out to match the iPhone one that was currently out. They were basically paying for the new features that weren’t available by default to iPod Touches at release. That is a thing of the past now. They will receive this update absolutely free of charge. Anyways, onward to the “review” portion of my review.

A Great Leap Forward

I’m actually pretty happy with this new iOS release from Apple. This is the first release where I didn’t have many glaring, wonky issues that broke things when I installed it. [Granted, I had to completely restore and wipe my phone, because I'm on my new MacBook Pro, baby!] Though, I DID have to install it twice, because the first time caused my phone to crash my PC I had originally synced to (and subsequently, my phone). The second time, I did it on my MacBook Pro, and it worked just fine. Once I got everything up and running, I have to say that I was very impressed with what I saw. There was already an application folder on my second home screen. It took me off guard at first, because I didn’t have any, but I came to like it. Because I’m on an iPhone 3G, I unfortunately can’t take advantage of all of the features. I don’t get multitasking, so I will leave it out of this review and post an addition to it later (when I get my new iPhone 4). I will say that this is honestly the biggest leap forward since the original iPhone. Both in hardware (with the iPhone 4) and software (with iOS 4). I’m actually really impressed with a lot of the things I can do with the new iOS. There are some drastic improvements to many things that Apple customers wanted.

Mail

I’ll start with the Mail client within the iPhone. With the older iOS releases, there could only be one Microsoft Exchange client name supported at a time. Oddly enough, you could have as many email names as you wanted to fetch to, but only so many to push to. Now, you can have multiple Exchange client names. Now, you don’t have to pick which Exchange name is the most important to you, because you can add them all. The main change here is the fact that you have unified inbox for all of your mail names. This can be really helpful as it saves time from having to go into each email name to check each specific nae for new mail. Your inbox and folder structure is kept intact with this release, too. Everything about mail is new and better. They have even updated the mail icons to reflect what type of account each mail name you add is. The biggest improvement to mail was the ability to view mail message conversations as a thread. You have no IDEA how HUGE of an improvement this is. This was something that I have been wanting to do on my iPhone for AGES. Everything you can think of for improving mail on your iPhone has been done. They finally made viewing mail, dare I say it, an enjoyable experience.

Maps

Maps is an application that needed an overhaul in the first place. With the new iOS4, the Maps application is actually a lot smarter. Along with the map smarts, it’s more accurate in its geolocation (though, admittedly, on my iPhone 3G, it’s actually dumber now). It’s actually a bit quicker on it, too. Sadly, there is still the issue I have with the actual turn-by-turn portion of the directions that Maps give. They still don’t always give the quickest path to your destination. They still do the most common path to your destination. An example: I work at a local Apple Store, and I usually take the nearest highway to my store, because it’s a direct shot (at over 70 miles an hour) to my location. Instead of suggesting this route (which is actually faster), Maps STILL suggests that I take some city streets to my location. Admittedly, this will net me a closer spot to my location, but it’s not the fastest way to get there. It’s the shortest, yes. Here’s the thing about route planning, Google: The shortest distance between 2 points is a straight line, yes. Also take into account that the fastest time between two locations is the speed limit you’re allowed to travel at. So, more highway may equal more distance, but it may still be faster than the shortest route, because there are fewer lights. Get it right Google. You’ve already done street view. I can see right up to my front door using Maps. You’d think with that kind of technology, they’d be able to plan a route correctly.
Okay, I relent, they DID update all the business and road information on Maps in the new iOS 4. They did a bang up job of it, too. Yet, it seems that for every step they take forward, they take one back. Though the maps load faster, and the geolocation follows you better as you move, the route planning is an exercise in fail outside of car directions. The information about businesses, restaurants, and other points of interest has had a massive update, which I applaud Google for. Even with this advance, when searching, you still get extraneous results, or even get a result that you don’t even search for once in a while. These are small gripes. Maps, on the whole, was probably the least updated part of iOS 4, in my opinion.

Messaging

MMS messaging on the iPhone has gone largely unchanged. One thing I HAVE noticed is that messaging is actually faster when it come to sending/receiving picture and movie messages. AT&T has boosted the amount of data that can be sent over their network in a text message. You can actually send some HD video from your new iPhone 4 with it. The original iOS revolutionized how we traditionally think of messaging operation in cell phones today, and iOS 4 has done it once again, Though the messaging portion is just a cosmetic enhancement, the legacy remains. Threaded messages in SMS/MMS will always be in the same style as the iOS releases on phones to come.

Media

Okay, this was the one area that I felt that the iOS releases were lacking, and Apple did an incredible job improving their media management. Though picture organization is no different than the original iOS releases, music and application management have been drastically improved. When browsing your iPod on your iPhone, you can go into Album view and search albums in much the same fashion as you could before using the Apple Remote application. When going into an album, it breaks down all the songs in the same layout as you see it in the iTunes Store. This is something most of you average users may not take advantage of, but it’s something someone like me appreciates (since I buy upwards of $120+ in music from iTunes a quarter). The ability to quickly make Genius playlists is still there, and is actually a little smarter than it used to be (though, admittedly, it’s still a little dumb). I’ve had a really great time with the new layout of iOS 4.

FaceTime

Okay, read this carefully, as I’m only going to say this once: FaceTime is…..the single greatest addition to mobile devices. EVER. Period. I had my first FaceTime call today (July 27th, almost 3 weeks after I actually started this review), and I have to say, it’s incredible. Seriously, it takes calling technology to a brand new level. It also takes sexting to a whole new level, too.
The upside to FaceTime is that it’s really easy to initiate a call with someone. There’s no set up really required, other than a wi-fi connection. It’s very quick, with almost no lag time, and uses both cameras on the iPhone 4. The detail and sensitivity of the mics and cameras is actually surprising, too. I didn’t have to yell into the mics or completely keep myself in the frame with the cameras to focus. Everything was smooth and automatic. No huge process required. Of course, both parties have to have iPhone 4s and be on a wi-fi connection in order to start using FaceTime. Still, the experience is incredible. I can see many, MANY practical applications for FaceTime, from business conference calls to some of the other situations that are shown in the commercials that Apple runs for the iPhone 4.

Final Thought

iOS 4 lives up to Apple’s creedo (which, for obvious reason, I cannot say, because I work at Apple). It also lives up to everything we think about when we thing of Apple when they make products. It revolutionizes, innovates, and augments the world we live in. It challenges what we think when we hear the word “technology”. It enriches and enhances our lives, surprising and delighting everyone who uses it. I definitely agree with Steve Jobs and the dev team in the fact that this OS update is the most agressive leap forward in mobile techonology since the original iPhone. I am beyond pleased and surprised to see that Apple has transcended and overthrown our preconcieved ideas of what we think a mobile device is capable of. I also can’t wait to see what other innovations come from iOS 4 in the future.

-LB

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~ by LB on July 27, 2010.