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Apple Releases IOS 4.3 Beta To Developers

Posted by samzenpus on from the taking-it-for-a-test-drive dept.

m2pc writes "Apple has just released iOS 4.3 beta to developers. New features include: Developer access to AirPlay API, Four and Five-finger gestures, and the return of the hardware orientation lock for iPad, a feature that upset many when Apple suddenly removed this feature with no software option to re-enable it. Also interesting to note is the lack of mention of the Mobile Hotspot feature rumored to be included in 4.3 for all iOS devices by the Verizon announcement yesterday."

6 of 101 comments (clear)

  1. Hotspot -- Verizon exclusive -- for a while? by swb · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I see this as some kind of Verizon exclusive for a while. Apple probably had to give Verizon something to keep the phone from being junked up with VZW Crapware, and hotspot functionality was an easy one.

    For one, it's an Android feature and Apple would like to sell iPhones to a lot of the people who bought Androids because it was either Verizon or nothing. For another, AT&T was a weak sister when it came to tethering and they probably won't whine about a short-term VZW exclusive iPhone feature they'd probably rather not support.

    Long-term, it's hard not to see AT&T & VZW iPhones having the same feature sets eventually (within the limits of their respective network technologies, eg simultaneous voice/data) since the carriers are pretty much now directly competing. I know I wouldn't re-up with AT&T next summer if the iPhone for AT&T was somehow inferior to Verizon's model.

    All in all, I think this will be a win for iPhone users. Apple is less beholden to one carrier, and the carriers are forced to keep up with each other's features & pricing.

    1. Re:Hotspot -- Verizon exclusive -- for a while? by catmistake · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Also interesting to note is the lack of mention of the Mobile Hotspot feature rumored to be included in 4.3 for all iOS devices by the Verizon announcement yesterday."

      Nope. Actually, it was mentioned by some leaky devs:
      they even provided screen shots

      Now that it settled... How do we stop AT&T from double charging for data? Pay for 2GB data, you should be able to use it how you wish... why would it matter to AT&T whether that data was going directly to iPhone, or by proxy to another device? It's still data you pay for.

      someone must have an idea... it doesn't seem legal for them to do this for anyone but the "true" unlimited users.

      --
      The Admin and the Engineer
    2. Re:Hotspot -- Verizon exclusive -- for a while? by mini+me · · Score: 3, Informative

      Hotspot apparently works on Rogers right now.

      I, unfortunately, am unable to verify the claims. But this screenshot looks pretty legit: http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/5767/photojan1251329pm.jpg

      From what I gather it is a carrier enable-able feature. If AT&T does not support it, it is due to their call, not Apple's.

  2. Re:anyone else here... by 99BottlesOfBeerInMyF · · Score: 5, Insightful

    anyone else here... miss the days when ios meant Cisco?

    As someone who worked with them and had to use their products and put up with their business practices... dear Zeus no!

  3. The summary is wrong. by teh31337one · · Score: 4, Informative

    ars and Engadget both say there is a wifi hotspot feature.

  4. Hardware Orientation Lock by exomondo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    return of the hardware orientation lock for iPad

    I still can't understand why they took that away and left the 'press & hold the volume key to go to 0%' in there...the orientation lock button was WAY more useful than the mute button, maybe not so much on an iphone but definitely on the ipad.