Posted by ted on 30. June 2009 07:24
So, now that the dust has settled and anyone who’s going to upgrade to iPhone OS 3.0 probably has by now, I thought I’d share my thoughts and my experience with it.
First and foremost, I’ve got the first generation iPhone and I love it. It’s, by far, my favorite mobile device of the many I’ve used over the last six-and-a-half years here at Lanlogic and there are few things (non family-related I might add) that would make me sadder than if it were to croak on me. That said, the 3.0 software definitely added a bit more spring in the iPhone’s step and it’s running more smoothly now than it did even a few weeks ago pre-update. I am, of course, missing out on most of the new functions of the iPhone 3G S, like the 3 megapixel camera, video recording and the compass, but the one I really wish I had was the stereo Bluetooth function. See, I’ve got a Bluetooth hands-free set that can turn into stereo earbuds that would be great to use while I’m out and about. Ah, well, such is life…
The new Search page is great and now gives me the ability to search not just the device but any of my mailboxes that i sync on the device. For the record, I’ve got my corporate Lanlogic account connecting via ActiveSync (Exchange), another Exchange account syncing via IMAP, a POP3 account, and my Gmail account. Doing a search for a friend’s last name came up with not only his Contact that I’ve got in my corporate Exchange mailbox but also messages that he sent me to my IMAP connected account from over a year ago. I’m sure I would have found even more messages from him on the Exchange account but since I archive messages older than 60 days, those messages are in locally-stored PST files on my PC.
I already had a voice recording application on my device, but the built-in Voice Memos App is a very nice, clean looking addition. The sound isn’t recording studio quality, but what do you expect? It’s a phone.
The copy-and-paste addition was well overdue and I’m still dealing with getting used to it. I’m so used to tapping and dragging to where I want to make a change in text that the little pop-up throws me off a bit. Regardless, it’s a great addition, if not two years too late.
The new thumbnail view in the Camera App is a nice little addition too, tapping on it will open up your Camera Roll, you also now have the fabulous option of selecting multiple pictures from your Camera Roll and emailing them or deleting them. For someone like myself who takes tons of pictures of his kids with the iPhone, mass deletion of the not-so-great pictures is a wonderful addition.
By far, though, my favorite new feature is one that I’ve not heard too many people (if any) talk about: The ability to push more than just your Inbox if you’re using ActiveSync with Exchange on the iPhone:
See that, isn’t that just keen? Now, I can sync other folders other than my Inbox. This is a great feature for folks who use rules to move messages from specific senders or with specific phrases in messages to other folders to keep their Inbox from getting log jammed.
So, that’s my two-week-in impression of the new iPhone OS 3.0. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions about the new OS? If so, please feel free to comment below and let us know!