Apple introduces iOS 4.1; iTunes 10 and Ping Are Here; New Apple TV

Apple introduces iOS 4.1

·         First major release after iPhone 4 release.

·         There are bug fixes for some of the user reported problems related to the proximity sensor, Bluetooth and iPhone 3G users upgrading to iOs 4. 

·         Premiers Gamecenter, announced at the WWDC 

·         New feature called HDR for the iPhone 4 camera. HDR essentially takes three pictures, an overexposed an underexposed and mid range and combines them so that highlights are captured properly. 

·         Upgrade will be available next week and the price is free for all supported devices. 

Apple also announced iOS 4.2 that will bring iOS to the iPad in November along with new features for printing as well as a new media sharing feature called AirPlay.

The 4.2 release will also be available for the iPhone and iPod touch along with iPad.

New iPods

·         Continuing its tradition, this fall event on sept 1 announced new iPod Shuffle, Nano and Touch.

·         iPod shuffle combines the features of last two generations. Buttons plus VoiceOver and playlist features. 

·         iPod nano - now in generation six is really new! A tiny Multi-Touch screen without click wheel, still no video, camera or games. It looks like as if using the iOS like iTouch but one of the blogger who has actually spoken to reps onsite said that its not on iOS. But i think in near future we shall start having some apps for it too.

·         iPod touch – It now has a retina display like the iPhone 4 along with the Gyroscope, the A4 and two cameras front and back. There’s FaceTime support. The rear camera will do 720p HD video but it’s not a multi-mega pixel for stills.

New iTunes 10 

·         Apple has built a social networking service called Ping as part of the iTunes app, centered around music. More like fusion of twitter and Facebook. Users can follow other users and as well as artists. 

·         The new Ping will be available in iOS. 

·         It’s an important direction for Apple and it sets the stage for a whole new set of services and functions down the road. 

·         This might be one of the most important pieces of news longterm from today’s announcements.

New Apple TV

·         4 times thinner and smaller than existing TV has no storage and completely internet based.

·         Can connect over WiFi or direct cable and has Netflix and Youtube support in built. 

·         It’s totally built around a rental model, not a purchase model although you can still connect to your computer and your iTunes library and stream any content that’s there. 

·         First TV networks to join for renting the shows are ABC and FOX

·         Ports include Ethernet, HDMI, USB, optical audio and no power brick. 

·         By not attempting to include DVR functionality Apple sidesteps the battle for input one on the TV set. It’s a very different approach that Google is taking. 

·         The bloggers expect there’s going to be some questions of a TV device with no apps. The app eco system for TVs can make sense, like the iPhone before it, Apple needs to educate the market on a paradigm shift. 

·         This Apple TV is a reset in many ways and the TV a device with very entrenched habits and behaviors. Before consumers can make a shift to that model, Apple needs to establish a position in the living room. 

·         There’s also a lot of issues in terms of user experience, command and control and content rights that need to be figured out.