Now that the WWDC 2010 keynote's over and the dust settles, we know what we're going to get in the coming weeks. iPhone 4 with a brand new look and tons new features, iOS 4, iMovie for iPhone, new developer APIs, iAd, and then some. Apple definitely changed the game today. But what about the things we wanted but didn't get?
We're all extremely excited to get our hands on the new hardware and OS but for many users, iOS 4 still leaves certain things to be desired. Keep on reading to see what we would have liked to see.
A new notification system was one area we really wouldn't have minded a change. This is something we had hoped would be addressed in 4.0, but alas, it wasn't. The way notifications present themselves isn't necessarily the best implementation. This is an area that's been neglected almost since the 1st generation iPhone. Besides the addition of push notifications, nothing has been added or tweaked. If you receive a text then a Twitter push notification, the Twitter notification is all you'll see. In 2010, we'd think it's time for a change.
Several other mobile platforms such as WebOS and Android have a nice notification layout that leaves iPhone users with something to be desired. It would have been nice to see a complete overhaul. To me, this alone is reason for jailbreakers to keep on jailbreaking.
A lot of folks also would have liked lock screen or home screen widgets. Perhaps this could have provided a creative way to implement a new notification system as well as show users information they want to see, when they want to see it. Jailbreakers have had functionality like this in apps such as LockInfo and Intelliscreen for quite some time now. We aren't quite sure why Apple hasn't produced a native solution yet.
One thing I really would have personally liked to see is a few simple tweaks to texting functions. Anyone who texts frequently knows that everytime you get a text, you'll have the choice to either view the text or close it. That's it. What about an option to reply without closing out of whatever you're doing, whether that be playing a game or browsing Safari? Again, jailbreakers have had this option for a while with apps such as QuickReply for SMS and iRealSMS. Apple has given developers an API for in-app SMS and I think a lot of people are confusing that with having a quick reply method. As far as I can tell, it isn't the same. A quick send option from anywhere would have been nice as well, like iReal offers. You can configure your own gesture for it within Settings.
One thing on the top of my list was an announcement about MobileMe. I was almost positive something would have been mentioned about pricing or features, especially as MobileMe has been in Beta for a while now. With services like DropBox and Box.net, can Apple afford to still charge $99/year? With services such as DropBox, you get 2GB for free, 50GB for $9.99/month, and 100GB for $19.99/month. For a mere $20 more a year, you get over 3 times the storage MobileMe offers with the typical $99/year single license.
Did anyone else expect an announcement about AppleTV? What about those rumors of it running a new OS similar to that of the iPhone and iPad? Or what about that mythical Magic Trackpad we saw briefly this morning?
Are we stoked about iOS 4 and iPhone 4? We sure are! But as with all things, there's always room for improvement and these are some of the things we think still need improvement. Did any of you really want to see something that wasn't announced? We'd love to hear from you, let us know in the comments!
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