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iOS 7 Beta 3 Now Available For iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch
An anonymous reader writes "Apple on Monday released iOS 7 beta 3 for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch to developers. Apple unveiled iOS 7 during its WWDC 2013 keynote in early June, and the new software was met with mixed responses. While some believe iOS 7 is a big leap forward in terms of innovation, BGR said that iOS 7 focused mainly on renovation rather than the introduction of innovative new features. Of course, Apple still may have some surprises in store for the release version of iOS 7 this fall, especially considering the next-generation iPhone 5S is expected to launch around the same time with an integrated fingerprint scanner."
Ok, look, I'm a huge Apple fanboy and love Apple news but, come ON!! Apple posted a Beta of iOS 7 and that's making it onto the front page?
Guess what? They're going to release another beta of iOS 7 in about two weeks. And then another two weeks later. And so on and so on. Each one will be a bit tighter and tighter until they release the final gold master.
I don't mind seeing these sorts of updates on appleinsider.com but here? Come on!
Plus there is the small issue that once your iPad1 is updated to iOS5, apps crash all the time as the iPad1 does not have enough memory any more. And you can't roll back to iOS 4. And if you decide to write your own private apps for your own iPad, you have to buy a Mac, pay Apple $99 a year, and keep provisioning every 3 months. Needless to say, I've also switched to Android.
as someone who carries an iphone 5 and Galaxy S3 daily what is iOS missing that's so awesome on Android?
The ability to install apps from sources that aren't the official app store and the ability to develop apps for free without paying a $100/year subscription?
Plus an open source kernel, so you can verify that all your activity isn't being routed directly to Apple for the NSA. I mean, "advertising purposes."
You are in a maze of twisty little relative jumps, all alike.
Three years.
Be careful about installing this. The new icons and colour scheme still cause some older display panels to burst into flames or, in extreme cases, the entire device to shut down out of embarrassment.
1. Consistent data sharing between applications
2. A decent on-screen keyboard. Personally I like the sliding-style ones like Swype and Swiftkey and iOS doesn't do that eithre, but one of my biggest annoyances with iOS is that Apple's keyboard does not change the state of letters on-screen when the shift key has been pressed.
3. Ability to download arbitrary files and organize data in arbitrary ways.
4. Widgets. I'm not a huge fan of them, but it sure is nice to see a list of my e-mails with subject lines right on my home screen.
5. Set default apps to non-Apple options.
-- I wanna decide who lives and who dies - Crow T. Robot, MST3K
I'm sure you've reviewed every line of all the open source code on your Android device to ensure none of your activities are being sent anywhere you don't want them to.
You haven't. Hoping someone else has doesn't cut it either, unless you review it how do you know there are no backdoors?
And besides all of that.. congratulations, you're likely using one of the four major cellular providers who all provide a direct feed to the NSA anyway.
it sucks
as someone who carries an iphone 5 and Galaxy S3 daily what is iOS missing that's so awesome on Android?
The ability to download your own apps / apps off a website I would say is the only really interesting thing Android has over IOS. A lot of my friends have complained about the iPhone not having widgets and not liking the "tile" grid. Personally, I think the notification center on both platforms serves as a great mechanism for things I care to know about in a glance (emails/text messages I need to pay attention to, application updates like Skype/whatsapp, and news feeds from select sites). The iPhone has a convenient way to access the music app that currently has control by swiping the doc, and has controls on the lock screen. Having widgets accross multiple screens isn't as convenient, since you are constantly swiping for updates. Other than that, there pretty much on par now, if you go for the Android phone that has the power of a circa-2008 beo-wolf cluster of (insert whatever cool thing you've read on slashdot back then). I think the IOS home screens serve as a purpose, though I have become accustomed to "spotlighting" for the app I want since it usually is buried in a folder, and I don't feel like memorizing which page its on. I feel one day that these IOS devices are going to follow the mac: Search will be the primary "task launcher", not a grid of icons. I wish there was a way to unlock into a search bar. On my Mac, I have hidden desktop icons and reduced my dock to a few extremely highly used apps (chrome, mail, iMessage, etc..). I spotlight when I want to launch Photoshop, or Pages, or some other task-oriented thing, including directly into the document I intend to open. I have always said that Android will innovate faster because there are more iterations, and therefore the android manufactures will learn what works and what doesn't at a faster pace. Apple only having one device, need to test, retest, and retest again to make sure they dont miss out on a years worth of sales before they have a chance to fix it. It took Android a year to learn that "slide out" keyboards dont work (I'm sorry, they just don't). That was learning that android went through. I like that there is a search bar on the home screen in android (not surprising since google is behind it). What is surprising is that Apple's search is better in that respect. I think its because google's search is for the web (where they are strongest), and apple's search is for the device (where they are strongest). Just my $0.02
1st gen kindle fire was android derived, not technically android. never sold as an android tablet, didn't have any of googles stuff..
besides, it's pretty much 2.3. practically all stuff released on google play(or wherever else markets) still works with it if you just get it on it..
I think they just saved a wee bit too much money with buttons on that thing.
I mean, fuck, if you're going to pick an android device to talk shit about you would have had a lot to pick from! dozens of 2.0 and 2.2 devices. ziio's or whatever, heck even 1.6 devices! anyhow, on android derived devices it doesn't matter as much as it does on ios if support is "dropped", because, you know, you're not tied to the fucking market for the software.
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
... if you're going to pick an android device ...
It would seem appropriate to pick the Kindle Fire, the best selling Android tablet. Tablet v tablet, 1st gen v 1st gen, best seller v best seller, etc.
My family has had three Android phones. None of them were released with the latest Android OS, and none of them ever had an official upgrade to the latest Android OS of the time. With one of them, we bought the phone only on the promise by the manufacturer that it would be upgraded to Android 4.x (the hardware is capable), and that won't be happening.
These three Android phone companies said "fuck you" from the very beginning. Never. Again.
The original iPad could run the latest iOS for 2.5 years after its introduction, 1.5 years after its discontinuation. That's far better than the official Android support you'll see.
Whatever person marked this as flamebait is an overzealous fanboi -- this pretty much exactly describes what happened with my first gen iPad.
Everything crashes all the time, and the device has become rather useless and slow from what it started out as.
I'm going to try to reset it to factory and see what I end up with -- if it goes all the way back to the way I got it, I might not even take the OS upgrade, and just put a skeleton set of software on it and leave it that way.
Like the poster, I'm looking into Android alternatives to the iPad.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
No, but you could update them yourself with ROMS from the community. Good luck doing that with iproducts that are no longer supported.
ios you can set it up for email to be on the lock screen
But what about the home screen? I like my communications to at least be hidden behind the lockscreen, not right up front where any asshole that grabs my phone can peruse my account.
the rest are niche geeky things that i would have cared about a decade ago, but not anymore. i hate most of the widgets and have been deleting most of mine lately. the default app thing seems useless. same with outside the app store apps.
Translation: Well, those aren't features that I find awesome, so therefore they are not awesome at all; you fail for not being able to read my mind.
Realistically, most of the points GP made (specifically, 2-4) are quite valid, regardless of your personal feelings about them.
i hate the mail client on the S3 compared to my iphone
i hate the keyboard compared to iOS
Personal observations, having nothing to do with the actual features of Android - kinda seems like an arbitrary bitch to me (personally, I like to KNOW when I'm writing in all caps, especially on those occasions where the keyboard covers the part of the screen the typed text is entered into, like a web form).
Also, considering how much of a trivial matter it is to switch keyboards (and mail clients) in Android makes the complaint all the more trivial. Curiously, I wonder - can you even change the keyboard layout in iOS? If so, what's the process?
the screen seems flaky compared to my iphone 5
the S3 is laggy
the who HD quality screen is not true. lots of stuff looks better on the iphone
those are more issues with Samsung's hardware than the Android OS, are they not?
which apps have data sharing so i can try them out?
Gmail & Google Calendar spring immediately to mind - I can sync my schedule to every computer I use, and my phone, and my wife's tablet... all of which are manufactured by different companies, and running several different operating systems.
i tried google now for a few days and turned it off. about as useless as siri
Novelty technologies, regardless of source, always seem to end up feeling useless... probably because they are.
An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
Seriously guys, get over yourselves.
XML is a known as a key material required to create SMD: Software of Mass Destruction
Sounds like you're not the intended demographic for Apple. You need more hipster or fanboi to properly appreciate the lost value of the Apple product.
Probably not, but his point is that Apple used to have long support cycles, and good second hand value. Traditionally many Apple owners benefited from this, and justified some of its premium price for a mid-range product. The effects of reduced support cycles due to its expanded product lines...and move towards disposable electronics, removed a lot of value from its products. A move that will affect the Apple faithful more than these new hipster or fanboi you talk about who if anything have the latest Samsung.
It would seem appropriate to pick the Kindle Fire, the best selling Android tablet. Tablet v tablet, 1st gen v 1st gen, best seller v best seller, etc.
$200 vs $600, etc.
Presumably the NSA wanted it added so they could tie fingerprints to call data.
The ability to install apps from sources that aren't the official app store and the ability to develop apps for free without paying a $100/year subscription?
Both have the same answer - Jailbreak. Which is easy to do if you are technically inclined enough to want to program or to be able to protect yourself from malicious sideloaded programs.
Once jailbroken, you can deploy anything you like without paying the $100 fee to deploy to your device. It also opens up the ability to easily hack any third party application with simple code additions.
Meanwhile non-technical users get a fairly secure system that they cannot screw up too easily.
And on a side note, you don't even need to jailbreak just to install apps from sources not from the app store. Anyone can install ad-hoc builds, anyone with an enterprise license can provide installable apps to anyone (though technically they are supposed to be employees).
Plus an open source kernel, so you can verify that all your activity isn't being routed directly to Apple for the NSA
iOS is as open source in that regard, and there've also been quite a lot of people analyzing network traffic outbound from it.
It's absurd to clam that (for instance) the Android that ships with a Samsung or Motorola phone is something you can see all the source code for... that simply is not true.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
1: A "#" prompt. Yes, with great authority comes great responsibility ... Which is why anyone responsible enough to want a command line in the system can simply jailbreak and get one.
2: Better encryption
Despite what you seem to think, iOS has better default encryption for non-technical users, and many advanced built in encryption options for applications to make use of if they wish.
3: Easy backups
Ha! This is one thing iCloud got right, REALLY easy backups that actually work.
5: I can block incoming robocalls.
iOS7.
6: I can do some interesting workflow items.
You can also do many interesting workflow items on iOS, depending on applications. There's usually a chain.
7: I don't have to worry about getting patches pushed out that I can't opt out of.
You can turn off auto-update you know, and it only came along in iOS7...
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
1st gen kindle fire was android derived, not technically android. never sold as an android tablet, didn't have any of googles stuff..
Just like the latest Kindle - yet you have no problem counting it for Android marketshare.
Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
Actually Android suffers from the same hardware limits as iOS. For example the latest version from CyanogenMod you can get on the HTC G1 is "froyo" while the MyTouch 4G only supports up to "gingerbread".
You can only squeeze so much features on older hardware with slower CPUs and more importantly smaller memory.
These comments are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of my employer or colleagues...
It would seem appropriate to pick the Kindle Fire, the best selling Android tablet. Tablet v tablet, 1st gen v 1st gen, best seller v best seller, etc.
$200 vs $600, etc.
Actually it was $500. For the record this $500 device received six major OS upgrades (3.2 to 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.0 and 5.1), the $200 device received zero.
One thing that's VERY important to some people:
Bluetooth Stack implementation.
At work, I pulled my HTC Desire S, fired Bluetooth and could see 17 devices around me. Some laptops, some mobile devices, some headphones and one specialized device. My colleague's iPhone 4 could see none. You can't pair an iPhone with a laptop and seamlessly transfer data between them.
When the iPhone:
- can't see headphones;
- Can't pair with laptops;
- can't pair with OBD II devices
Then it's partly useless, and I don't need a castrated device.
...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
Wish it wasn't true, but you hit the nail on the head. My iPad 1 is much less useful now than it was out of the box.
My family has had three Android phones. None of them were released with the latest Android OS, and none of them ever had an official upgrade to the latest Android OS of the time. With one of them, we bought the phone only on the promise by the manufacturer that it would be upgraded to Android 4.x (the hardware is capable), and that won't be happening.
These three Android phone companies said "fuck you" from the very beginning. Never. Again.
The original iPad could run the latest iOS for 2.5 years after its introduction, 1.5 years after its discontinuation. That's far better than the official Android support you'll see.
*All* of the phone vendors have ridiculously short support periods. You can go out and buy a £300 laptop with Windows 8 on it and MS will support that for at least 10 years, after which you can probably upgrade the OS yourself and get a few years more support (I would hazard that current chipsets may well still be perfectly servicable in 10 years time. Certainly my 6 year old laptop isn't showing any signs of needing a hardware upgrade). Conversely you put down £600 on a phone and you're expected to throw it away and buy another one after 2 years.
You get a *bit* better support from Apple and Google than from Samsung, HTC, etc. but its still not great. I hold up as an example, my Samsung Captivate Glide, which was released in November 2011 with Gingerbread on it. 11 months after Android 4.0 was released by Google, Samsung eventually released it for the Captivate Glide... except it was unusably buggy. Despite having similar hardware to the Galaxy S II, as of November 2012 (only 1 year after its release) Samsung have basically dropped all support for it. No more bugfixes, security updates, etc.
What we actually need is standardised phone hardware and open drivers so we can just install a generic OS ourselves instead of having to wait for the vendor to get their finger out and publish a device specific one. Despite the likes of Cyanogenmod, there's still a whole load of device-specific code; you can't just take the latest Android and slap it on an arbitrary phone like you can take a random Linux ow Windows and stick it on any PC.
http://blog.nexusuk.org
If OS support is important to you, then go with Google's Nexus Android devices. They always get quick updates.
Still *very* hit and miss. For example, the Nexus S was released in December 2010 and Google announced there would be no more software updates for it in November 2012. So thats under 2 years of software updates.
The successor to the Nexus S - the Galaxy Nexus - went on sale in November 2011. So realistically, if you wanted a Nexus device in October 2011 you would've got a whole 1 year's worth of software updates for your money. I'd accept that for a £20 phone, but these things are a similar price to a laptop, and a Windows laptop would have around 10 years of security updates from Microsoft after you bought it...
http://blog.nexusuk.org
Since Apple has provided updates to the iPhone 3GS up till now, your claims are not credible.
If updating with community/unsupported firmware is on the table, then you can do the same. iOS has whited00r.
They're phones. They're not considered to have the lifespan of full computers.
Why not? They are just as expensive, and arguably less essential...
http://blog.nexusuk.org
You know what happened? People *DID* look it up. The version of CarrierIQ on iPhones did not send anything to Apple unless you enabled diagnostics. So the user selected to send info.
Additionally, tcpdumps showed that only the minimal information was sent, certainly not texts, emails or attachments.
And Android/Nexus did not have CarrierIQ.
However, carriers put them in (aka, crapware), and some of these carriers enabled the "send texts, emails and attachments as well" features.
So, in the future, please keep your stories straight. TYVM.
Everything crashes all the time, and the device has become rather useless and slow from what it started out as.
The sad story of every personal computer ever made.
Nobody supports your old platform because there are newer ones, leaving you to run the software last designed for it. /shock /surprise
Software makers can say "Version X of our application now requires platform version Z" but you'd moan about the arbitrariness of those numbers.
I notice you leave out this:
Not all users said they had experienced problems however, with some saying the tablet worked as well as the day they got it.
Also, I notice that the article is completely devoid of any numbers. Just links to two anecdotes. But apparently that's good enough for you iFanbois to feel secure in living in your walled garden.
For the record, I've got a Nexus 7, and have been using it pretty much daily for the year I've had it, and haven't run into these issues. I'm certainly not saying that there are no issues and that everybody reporting them is a liar; there are issues with *everything*, including iDevices.
--Jeremy
Jesus was a liberal
Crippled the 1st-gen iPad? You should perhaps talk to my wife, who has been running iOS 5 on her iPad almost since it was available. It doesn't crash on her. It's still responsive and the battery is still good a couple years later. I had the same iPad until it broke and I replaced it. I never had any of these strange issues that have been reported.
All Nexus devices have an unlocked bootloader and full Cyanogen support. If you really get a boner for running the latest and greatest OS (note that it isn't required for 99.9% of apps or features) you can still do it.
What you describe is completely beyond the vast majority of phone owners. It really isn't good enough for the vendor to drop support after such a short time on such an expensive device. None of this is about getting a boner running the latest OS, its about the fact that the phone you only bought a year ago is nolonger getting any kind of security updates (I do wonder how this fits into the EU legal framework that requires vendors to fix manufacturing/design defects for at least 2 years after the sale of a product).
What you gain in being able to update Apple devices you more than lose to the lock-down and lack of fairly basic features that have been in Android since the early days. So what if you can't install the latest Google keyboard? Just download it from Play or pick any of the dozens of quality alternatives. Keep in mind that half the feature updates are from apps like Google Maps anyway, and they work fine on older OS versions and get all the updates.
I'm not defending Apple here at all - the phone vendors are *all* terrible at this stuff. Apple is marginally better than most, but they're still not great.
http://blog.nexusuk.org