World Wide Developers Conference 2008 - More 3G iPhone
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Most cell phones have A-GPS, meaning it uses both GPS signal as well as cell towers to get your position. This is typically quicker than traditional GPS. There are a few cosmetic changes. It seems to be a little thicker, probably due to the 3G chipset or a bigger battery to make up for a power-hungry chipset. Instead of the brushed metal finish you see on iPods, it now comes in white or black.
The rest of the phone is pretty much the same as the first version. Some people were hoping for more storage or a digital camera on the side with the screen for virtual meetings. I'm sure we will eventually see a storage bump, but the price would force the iPhone into the $1000 range.
When the original iPhone launched, it was exclusive to the US, and then slowly trickled into other countries. Then there were the jailbroken ones that could do everything, but were not officially supported in other countries. This time Apple is going all out, the 3G iPhone will launch in some 20 countries, with more probably on the way.
And the price for this phone will be.... $200. What? Yeah, $200 with a two-year contract. I don't see how this can make any of the people with the original iPhones happy. True, that two-year contract requirement is a significant catch. Like every other cell phone out there, it's being subsidized to get more people to buy it. When you go to an AT&T or Apple store to get your new 3G iPhone, you can't walk out without it being activated on an account for at least two years. This should take a lot of the jail broken ones off the market, as you simply can't buy them and then sell them on eBay without cancelling your contract.
Snow Leopard
It wasn't all iPhone news. While it wasn't part of Steve Job's big announcements, some lucky developers got their hands on a beta version of OS X 10.6. It will feature increased speed and stability changes, but not too many new things.
The one big change might be the need for an Intel processor, meaning the G5 and the whole Power PC architecture is finally dying out. Not that that is terrible news; Leopard seems to be pushing the older G5 CPUs and the Intel processors are leaps and bounds better. While Steve didn't talk about it in his keynote, he did talk afterwards, saying that it will be out in about a year or so. Guess what is the hottest rumor for WWDC 2009?
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