Welcome back to my sometimes weekly post RE: 7 things I’m pondering, I’ve read, or that I just want to write about. It’s basically a place for me to write more sh** for you to read.
Yesterday was a huge day for the iDouche. At Apple’s WWDC 2011 keynote Steve Jobs & Co. announced, among other things, the new iOS 5. Chock full of features it will undoubtedly be a hit amongst fans.
On the flip side, it’s gonna be a major pain in the ace for app developers and jailbreakers because iOS 5 comes loaded with features that will render many bread-and-butter apps obsolete.
- iCloud. Apple is betting on iCloud to makeup for the failed MobileMe. It’s free, syncs mail, documents, photos*, account information, settings, and other app data, and will give all iOS users 5GB free storage (not counting free purchased music and the 30-day Photo Stream). This service will no doubt impact Dropbox, Box.net and SugarSync, and woo some people from photo sites like Flickr, Picasa, Shutterfly, and Snapfish.
- Reminders. Task management apps need worry about this little fella. It lets users set up todo lists complete with due dates and locations. It also syncs with iCal, Outlook, and iCloud, so any changes made will update automatically on all iDevices and calendars. Yep, apps like Todo and Things better be working on some pretty sweet updates if they’re going to keep folks from using Reminders.
- Notification Center. Get all iOS notifications in one place: e-mail, texts, friend requests, stocks, weather, and more. Notifications will display on the lock screen and briefly in the header. This will spell disaster for similar jailbroken apps, and may put a hurt on Boxcar.
- Photos. Crop, rotate, enhance, and remove red-eye without leaving the Photos app. Users can even organize their photos in albums—right on an iDevice <–about time. Sorry Photoshop Express. Throw in Photo Stream and Twitter integration, and photo sharing apps like PhotoSync and are going to be hurting just as bad as the photo editors.
- iTunes in the Cloud. iTunes in the Cloud lets users automatically download new music, app, and book purchases to their devices, or they can download only the stuff they want to just the devices they want (check it out now by opening iTunes or the App Store on your iDevice). iTunes Match lets users store their entire collection in the cloud for ~$25/year. With the two features combined you can bid adieu to Stream to Me and Audiogalaxy. BTW, if you’re curious you can give the former a go by downloading iTunes 10.3 and following this how-to guide. Or, you can just watch this demo to see it in action.
- iMessage. Apple’s created a new messaging service for all iOS users.With iMessage users can send unlimited text messages (text, photo, video, location, and contacts) from their iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch to anyone with an iOS device. Way to stick it to the carriers Jobs! iMessage also has message tracking, delivery receipts, optional read receipts, and real-time typing. Since the app is iOS-specific it won’t kill off apps like TextPlus and WhatsApp, but it’ll definitely draw blood. And if iMessage adds voice messaging someone better ask HeyTell and TalkBox what they want on their Tombstone.
- Safari. iOS 5 brings near-desktop browsing to the iDevice. From Safari Reader that displays clutterless web articles to a Reading List that lets users save interesting articles for a later read. Adios Instapaper and Read it Later. Throw in tabbed browsing and an even faster experience, and all those iOS browsers are about to go swimming with the fishes.
There’s some other enhancements such as a revamped mail app; camera app with grid lines and volume button shutter controls; new game center with Xbox Live-like features; newsstand subscription handling for magazines and newspapers; over-the-air syncing of iDevices; a global dictionary; TextExpander-esque keyboard shortcuts; and a bunch of new advanced gestures. To see it in action watch the Apple’s featurette below:
Needless to say iOS 5 is gonna kill off some of the small fish, and it may drive some of the bigger ones to extinction as well. What do you think? Chime in below with any questions you have, or if there are iOS features not mentioned during the WWDC2011 keynote leave ‘em below or send me an e-mail at TiTy@y2kemo.com.
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