Software Review

iPhone OS X 2.0

Prior to the release of the iPhone 3G, Apple announced that they would be releasing a new software update that would come as standard to all iPhone 3G users. After they new OS was announced at WWDC ‘08, a stream of software developers bought in to the Apple Development Programme and with the new, easy-to-use, iPhone SDK, started coding their own little to cover your iPhone’s SpringBoard.

The hype leading up to the release of the new software was minuscule compared to massive hype of the 3G iPhone model. Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, took great pride in the release of his new creation, the “App Store”. However many people thought that Jobs got there too late and the thousands of jailbroken iPhone users could just sit back and laugh, but has Steve Jobs shown the world that “slow and steady wins the race”?

Features

The significant changed from the transition to 2.0 are as follows:

• App Store (3rd Party App Compatibility)
• Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync Compatibility
• MobileMe
• Scientific Calculator
• E-Mail Attachment Support

The features make a huge difference to the iPhone experience, starting with the most anticipated and most significant one, the App Store.
Apple must have heard the cries of the consumer demanding 3rd party apps. Before people would have to “jailbreak” their iPhone, voiding their warranty. The App Store now hosts over 500 3rd party applications ranging from useful planners and iTunes remotes to pointless party tricks like virtual beer. Apple have done a fantastic job porting the needs of everyone into the iPhone App Store, and with new apps appearing everyday ranging from free to £50, there’s something for everyone.
Apple have also taken a major step into making the iPhone a business phone. Now the use of Microsoft Exchange Servers and push e-mail makes the iPhone much more convenient for the corporate world, alongside e-mail attachment support such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Excel. This really takes the iPhone from the crowd pleaser it was, to the useful day-to-day phone such as the BlackBerry.  8/10

Style

Well there’s not much to say when it comes to iPhone and style; it is a stylish piece of technology. The swift, fluid movement of the screen and the innovative accelerometer add to the experience making the iPhone so easy to handle and use. However despite all these wonderful attributes there are some major flaws in the 2.0 update. Firstly, those fluid movements that the iPhone has become so well known for, have now become buggy and lagged. The keyboard detection has gotten worse as it takes several seconds to register your first tap on the SMS screen. These would be considered problems of “usability”, but the phone itself is still simple to operate, but the lag just takes some of the charm away from the original concept of iPhone.  6/10

Usability

The usability of this new software update is much like the old 1.1.4 firmware. The menus glide past with the swipe of a finger despite there being several bugs that are to be fixed in firmware 2.0.1. The implementation of contact searching and mass e-mail deletion, is definitely an added bonus in this software update, making it easier to use on the go, when you’re searching in your packed contact book or sliding through your reams of spam e-mails. One of the other new features titled “MobileMe”, allows you to sync all your calendars, photos and contacts straight from your PC to the iPhone. This is simple to set up and very handy, so you don’t have to worry about backing up your files manually. The initial backup takes quite a while, but after that everything runs smoothly. To add to Apple’s extensive success of the iPhone, they now ship to over 60 different countries, so there are now several different language packs that adjusts the on screen keyboard. Apple definitely made a huge improvement in this update regarding usability.  8/10

Overall

I was skeptical, about another software release as I’d grown so used to running on the earlier firmwares, but I thought I would give this one a shot primarily because of the App Store. Apple have done a fantastic job with 2.0, catering to the customer’s needs, but there are still several bugs that need to be fixed.

7/10