Posts tagged with "iOS"

Apple Releases iOS 4.3.3 [Direct Links]

Apple just released iOS 4.3.3. It’s available now in iTunes if you check for updates, and direct links to the downloads will be available shortly.

As previously reported, iOS 4.3.3 improves the way iPhones and iPads handle the location tracking database stored on-device by making it smaller in size. The location database will be no longer backed up to iTunes and it will be deleted entirely when Location Services are turned off.

Here are the direct links for iOS 4.3.3:

Apple also released iOS 4.2.8 for the Verizon iPhone. You can download it here. As for the build numbers: iOS 4.3.3 for the iPad 1 is labelled 8J3, with other iOS devices getting build 8J2. The Verizon iPhone’s iOS 4.3.3 is build 8E401.

“New and Innovative Features” Coming to iOS Maps App, According to Job Posting

It’s no secret Apple is working on new functionalities for its iPhone and iPad Maps application to introduce in iOS 5, but a new job posting on Apple’s website seems to confirm that the focus for the next major version of Maps will a completely new user interface, and a series of “innovative features” that, supposedly, will dramatically change the look and feel of the app. Apple already emphasized in the past through other job postings that they were looking for engineers to bring Maps “to the next level” with deeper integration with navigation software, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that the team is still looking for new designers and developers to enhance the Maps experience.

Come work for the team that revolutionized the mobile technology industry as it continues to define what computing looks like in a post-PC era. The Maps team is looking for a proactive and hardworking software engineer to join our team. Along with excellent skills in object-oriented software design and programming, the successful candidate will have real-world experience developing sophisticated user interfaces. Excellent communication skills are also a must, as you will be collaborating closely with Apple’s peerless human interface team to add new and innovative features.

Whether the new version of Maps will be bundled with iOS 5 is still unknown at this point; Apple confirmed last week that they are currently working on an improved traffic service to launch in the next years, but several reports in the past indicated iOS 5 – coming out later this year, with a preview at the WWDC in June – would be heavily based on location, Maps, and other cloud-oriented features. Many even speculated Apple could leverage its own version of mapping software, thus ditching Google Maps, to build a new social location service to include in the new MobileMe / iCloud. Speculation about the new iOS Maps application is running wild lately, and the job postings from Apple do nothing but increase the amount of guesses and rumors we’re hearing on the subject. Seeing an improved Maps app in June wouldn’t surprise anyone, but it’s unclear how many of the new functionalities Apple is working on will be rolled out this year with iOS 5. [via 9to5mac]

Firemint to be Acquired by EA

All of your favorite titles such as Real Racing and Flight Control are about to be snatched up by EA as independent mobile studio Firemint will be acquired by the game giant within the next four weeks. EA announced this morning that they’ll likely close the deal soon, but aren’t yet releasing any financial details on the acquisition.

“The Firemint team is remarkable for its critical and commercial success,” said Barry Cottle, Executive Vice President and General Manger of EA Interactive. “Having them as part of EAi will accelerate our position as worldwide leader in game development for mobile devices and online gaming platforms.”

The agreement follows EA’s recent acquisition of Mobile Post Production Inc. (MPP), the worldwide leader in high quality cross-platform development and porting of games for smartphones.

Firement recently released Real Racing 2 HD for iPad, delivering a 1080p racing experience straight to your television set via the Digital AV Adapter. Whether the trend of great mobile apps from the Firemint team at EA or elsewhere is unknown, but we sure hope the same great group of game developers can continue to deliver top notch experiences to the iPad outside of EA’s usual slew of cookie-cutter titles.

[via EA]

iOS 4.3.3 Coming Within Two Weeks

According to BGR, Apple is looking to roll out an iOS 4.3.3 update within two weeks and “possibly sooner” which, as previously announced, will improve the way iPhones and iPad 3G models handle the location database file required to quickly fetch nearby antenna and WiFi hotspot information.

We’ve been sent the OS and while we haven’t loaded it on our iPhone just yet, here is what we have been told it will address:

- The update will no longer back up the location database to iTunes.

- The size of the location database will be reduced.

- The location database will be deleted entirely when Location Services are turned off.

The website also reports iOS 4.3.3 will address battery life issues and introduce iPod bug fixes. On March 21st, BGR reported iOS 4.3.1 would be released within “one or two weeks” and they made a similar prediction for iOS 4.3.2, which came out on April 14th. Apple announced in its Location Tracking Q&A that an update coming out in the “next few weeks” would fix several bugs related to location tracking. With BGR posting a screenshot of the final firmware file, it’s very likely that Apple will release the update later this week.

Sometime in the next few weeks Apple will release a free iOS software update that:

- reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone,

- ceases backing up this cache, and

- deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.

In the next major iOS software release the cache will also be encrypted on the iPhone.

Update: as pointed out by one of our readers, the image above confirms build number of the new OS will be 8J2.

Kickstarter: Taposé - Bringing Microsoft Courier to the iPad

Remember Microsoft’s Courier booklet PC? It was an interactive tablet with dual-touchscreens and folded like a booklet that Microsoft abandoned about a year and a half ago. Well, Benjamin Monnig and Ricky Drake are taking the idea of the Courier to an iPad app simply called Taposé and have launched a Kickstarter project to help with funding.

Taposé brings Courier functionality to the iPad. The creativity, productivity, and attractive user interface merged into one outstanding product. The split interface design (similar to the Courier idea) allows users to interact with multiple apps simultaneously in one app - Taposé.

Kickstarter video and a “How It Evolved” video after the break.

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