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I am going to officially start the rumors for the 3.0 release: Copy-Paste, Push Gmail, Background IM apps, and wireless iTunes sync. This is really just my per

I am going to officially start the rumors for the 3.0 release: Copy-Paste, Push Gmail, Background IM apps, and wireless iTunes sync. This is really just my personal wishlist, but if the rumors spread, enough people will be expecting these features that Apple will have to build them in (since they're already so receptive to external input). It's a self fulfilling prophecy!

rscott 18y ago
Add video in there and I'll help your cause.
- Hexstream 18y ago
  Wouldn't that drain the battery too fast?
  - aditya 18y ago
    Qik does it on jailbroken iPhones, and does it quite well from what I've seen. Trust me, 3G is a much bigger battery whore.
pieter 18y ago
Push GMail would be very welcome. I have separate Yahoo! account now for the push feature, but it's worthless. Just to name a few: * It often doesn't work. I put it on 'fetch', but that sometimes doesn't work either, so then I have to wait for hours to receive my email * Worst webmail interface ever * No support for forwarding / pop / imap / whatever * OMG, the ads I'd drop it in a second if gmail push was there
fortybillion 18y ago
Push Gmail would be doable on 2.2 if Google enables the feature in their ActiveSync implementation. They already have contacts and calendar sync working. 3.0 could add shortcuts like Yahoo's though, to make setup simpler.
agotterer 18y ago
Dont forget about Google latitude. That needs to get implemented directly with maps. So I wouldnt expect to see that as well.
- pieter 18y ago
  What would be even more interesting is having some kind of Maps widget available in the toolkit. Right now you can use a webview that points to a maps.google.com url (you do see this in some apps), but the experience isn't nearly as smooth as the native maps app. The other option you have is generating a URL that opens the maps app. This works, but you can only specify one or two points of interest, and your app quits after you do this. Having the maps thing as a widget would allow a lot of apps currently in the store to present a beter interface, and could also allow google to implement their Lattitude stuff without it being intrusive if you just want to do a quick maps search.
  - potatolicious 18y ago
    I agree. The location and map features on the iPhone is one of the most compelling developments in the mobile arena. Okay yeah, visual voicemail is cool, so are IM apps, but this is the one thing that other phones have simply been unable to do up until now without it being a giant PITA. The iPhone App Store would be a better place if devs had access to the same map widget that Apple themselves use. I can think of a million ways this can be used.
shimi 18y ago
except for iTunes, all the requested features are already part of the Android SDK
- unalone 18y ago
  Know what's not a part of the Android SDK? An incredibly clean interface with supersnappy response, auto-sync to my Mac and to MobileMe, and the ability to use the SDK on a personal music player (let's call it a "touch") rather than a phone. They're both good. Let's both be quiet and let people discuss the iPhone, not Android.
  - ruddzw 18y ago
    Android is a worthy competitor that's ahead of the iPhone OS in many ways (behind in others). A comparison between the two is not a bad thing.
    - unalone 18y ago
      It's not a competitor. Apple controls their hardware, their software, their packaging, the computer-related software (and hardware, in some cases) and, in short, the entire user experience. Android is a phone operating system. It's a competitor like Windows Mobile is a competitor, which is to say it competes with one of the myriad things the iPhone is doing. A comparison might make for a good separate article, but when somebody says "I like these features" the response isn't "Well this OS" has it, because the first guy obviously isn't saying "These are the features I absolutely need." They're just things that would make the iPhone even better. This is why, every time I see an argument over Linux GUIs, I don't insert how much better OSX + iLife is as far as Unix systems go. There's a time and place for comparison, but simply saying "Hay guys Android does this" isn't adding to the conversation.
      - shimi 18y ago
        How can you evaluate an SDK? Compare it to a different SDK that provides a similar solution. HackerNews is filled with such debates, like Java Vs. Python, Tables Vs. CSS... The features above were part of the Andoird SDK beta, Background processes have been around for few years in other mobile platforms, I can get excited if Apple will come out with a killer features that are unique to their platofrom (e.g. Bonjure is a unique feature)
Raphomet 18y ago
I'm holding out for any hints at what will go into iPhone 2009. If the 3G and 2.0 were any indication, there might be some new, hardware-bound features exclusive to the next iPhone refresh. They've done 3G and they've done GPS. What could be next? Processor/video/memory upgrade to support better backgrounding? Camera on the front for video chat? Personally, I'm wishing that Apple will make the phone slightly bigger, with a new, higher opt-in resolution format for developers, but there are enough problems with that to make it a risky move.
- jwilliams 18y ago
  Somehow I doubt a significant hardware revision is on the cards. They have a good penetration with the 1st and 2nd generations. Bringing out a new model now would schism the app community (you need X to work with the 3rd gen iPhone).... This would be a pain, and I'm not sure there is a compelling reason/feature right at this moment. If anything, they might bump up the storage (to 32Gb+?) - although this might eat into their iPod market... And/or They could also introduce a cut-down cheaper version to get into other markets.
  - jmtulloss 18y ago
    They earn monthly revenues off of their iPhones, I wonder if they would really mind if every iPod user switched to the iPhone.
    - jwilliams 18y ago
      Hmmm. Yeah - good point - also the appstore stream to tap into.
jwilliams 18y ago
+ Tethering + MMS + Landscape mode for SMS and Email.
aschobel 18y ago
My wishlist ... * Allow 3rd party have the same privileges as first party app * Provide source code so you aren't working against a black box * Intent based system for Activities^D^D^DApps * Add Providers * Allow you to self sign apps for betas * Move to Java =)

rscott 18y ago

Add video in there and I'll help your cause.

Hexstream 18y ago
Wouldn't that drain the battery too fast?
- aditya 18y ago
  Qik does it on jailbroken iPhones, and does it quite well from what I've seen. Trust me, 3G is a much bigger battery whore.

pieter 18y ago

Push GMail would be very welcome. I have separate Yahoo! account now for the push feature, but it's worthless. Just to name a few: * It often doesn't work. I put it on 'fetch', but that sometimes doesn't work either, so then I have to wait for hours to receive my email * Worst webmail interface ever * No support for forwarding / pop / imap / whatever * OMG, the ads I'd drop it in a second if gmail push was there

fortybillion 18y ago

Push Gmail would be doable on 2.2 if Google enables the feature in their ActiveSync implementation. They already have contacts and calendar sync working. 3.0 could add shortcuts like Yahoo's though, to make setup simpler.

agotterer 18y ago

Dont forget about Google latitude. That needs to get implemented directly with maps. So I wouldnt expect to see that as well.

pieter 18y ago
What would be even more interesting is having some kind of Maps widget available in the toolkit. Right now you can use a webview that points to a maps.google.com url (you do see this in some apps), but the experience isn't nearly as smooth as the native maps app. The other option you have is generating a URL that opens the maps app. This works, but you can only specify one or two points of interest, and your app quits after you do this. Having the maps thing as a widget would allow a lot of apps currently in the store to present a beter interface, and could also allow google to implement their Lattitude stuff without it being intrusive if you just want to do a quick maps search.
- potatolicious 18y ago
  I agree. The location and map features on the iPhone is one of the most compelling developments in the mobile arena. Okay yeah, visual voicemail is cool, so are IM apps, but this is the one thing that other phones have simply been unable to do up until now without it being a giant PITA. The iPhone App Store would be a better place if devs had access to the same map widget that Apple themselves use. I can think of a million ways this can be used.

shimi 18y ago

except for iTunes, all the requested features are already part of the Android SDK

unalone 18y ago
Know what's not a part of the Android SDK? An incredibly clean interface with supersnappy response, auto-sync to my Mac and to MobileMe, and the ability to use the SDK on a personal music player (let's call it a "touch") rather than a phone. They're both good. Let's both be quiet and let people discuss the iPhone, not Android.
- ruddzw 18y ago
  Android is a worthy competitor that's ahead of the iPhone OS in many ways (behind in others). A comparison between the two is not a bad thing.
  - unalone 18y ago
    It's not a competitor. Apple controls their hardware, their software, their packaging, the computer-related software (and hardware, in some cases) and, in short, the entire user experience. Android is a phone operating system. It's a competitor like Windows Mobile is a competitor, which is to say it competes with one of the myriad things the iPhone is doing. A comparison might make for a good separate article, but when somebody says "I like these features" the response isn't "Well this OS" has it, because the first guy obviously isn't saying "These are the features I absolutely need." They're just things that would make the iPhone even better. This is why, every time I see an argument over Linux GUIs, I don't insert how much better OSX + iLife is as far as Unix systems go. There's a time and place for comparison, but simply saying "Hay guys Android does this" isn't adding to the conversation.
    - shimi 18y ago
      How can you evaluate an SDK? Compare it to a different SDK that provides a similar solution. HackerNews is filled with such debates, like Java Vs. Python, Tables Vs. CSS... The features above were part of the Andoird SDK beta, Background processes have been around for few years in other mobile platforms, I can get excited if Apple will come out with a killer features that are unique to their platofrom (e.g. Bonjure is a unique feature)

Raphomet 18y ago

I'm holding out for any hints at what will go into iPhone 2009. If the 3G and 2.0 were any indication, there might be some new, hardware-bound features exclusive to the next iPhone refresh. They've done 3G and they've done GPS. What could be next? Processor/video/memory upgrade to support better backgrounding? Camera on the front for video chat? Personally, I'm wishing that Apple will make the phone slightly bigger, with a new, higher opt-in resolution format for developers, but there are enough problems with that to make it a risky move.

jwilliams 18y ago
Somehow I doubt a significant hardware revision is on the cards. They have a good penetration with the 1st and 2nd generations. Bringing out a new model now would schism the app community (you need X to work with the 3rd gen iPhone).... This would be a pain, and I'm not sure there is a compelling reason/feature right at this moment. If anything, they might bump up the storage (to 32Gb+?) - although this might eat into their iPod market... And/or They could also introduce a cut-down cheaper version to get into other markets.
- jmtulloss 18y ago
  They earn monthly revenues off of their iPhones, I wonder if they would really mind if every iPod user switched to the iPhone.
  - jwilliams 18y ago
    Hmmm. Yeah - good point - also the appstore stream to tap into.

jwilliams 18y ago

+ Tethering + MMS + Landscape mode for SMS and Email.

aschobel 18y ago

My wishlist ... * Allow 3rd party have the same privileges as first party app * Provide source code so you aren't working against a black box * Intent based system for Activities^D^D^DApps * Add Providers * Allow you to self sign apps for betas * Move to Java =)