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iPhone OS 4.0: Over 100 new features

Steve Sande
Features Editor
Updated ·2 min read

During today's Apple live event, it was noted that over 100 new features are being added to iPhone OS 4.0. We captured some of that information, and list just a few new features here for your reading pleasure:

  • QuickLook: The feature everyone loves in Mac OS X now comes to iPhone and iPad

  • Folder Storage: You can now have up to 2,160 apps on your iPhone through the use of folders

  • Full app access to still and video data

  • iBooks on iPhone: A smaller version of the iBooks app for the iPhone platform.

  • Unified inbox for Mail: At last, all of your emails go can be viewed in one inbox; no more switching between inboxes. You can also have multiple Exchange accounts. The emails can be organized by threads, much in the same way that they are in Mail.app on the Mac.

  • Wireless App Distribution: Companies that create custom in-house apps no longer need to distribute those through a "wired" connection; employees can now install the apps from anywhere, anytime.

  • Homescreen Wallpaper, Bluetooth Keyboards: The iPhone and iPod touch will get these features that are now on the iPad.

  • Fast app switching

  • Background location: Apps can stay updated with location information even when you switch to another app.

  • Selective use of location: Location can be enabled or disabled on an app-by-app basis.

  • Local notifications: like push notification, but not requiring server access. It's all done on the phone.

  • Task completion: Items that take some time can now complete in background while other work is going on in foreground. For example, uploading an image to Flickr can happen in background while you're doing something else.

  • iAds: Developers get 60% of the ad revenue by adding interactive iAds to their apps. You can add fully interactive advertisements without taking people out of your app.

  • Address and Date data detectors: Just like those in Mail.app in Mac OS X, these add information to Address Book and Calendar with a tap.

More detail on individual features will be forthcoming. Stay tuned to TUAW all day today for all of your iPhone OS 4.0 news.