Apple's IOS 4 Folders: Usable, but Poorly Implemented - By pcworld

Apple's iOS 4 upgrade for the iPhone and iPod touch. The new multitasking and Mail features alone are great, but I was especially eager to get my fingers on the new folders feature.

Folders are essentially collections of apps. That concept appeals greatly to people (like me) with screenful-upon-screenful of apps; by grouping similar apps together, you can clean up your many home screens and spend less time swiping. But there are two elements to iOS 4 folders that are--to use the technical term--really, really annoying.

Annoyance #1

iOS folders can only hold 12 items. That's dopey.
Ignoring the four permanently docked apps at the bottom of each Home screen, you can store 16 apps per page on your iPhone. I imagine I'm not the only person on the planet who, prior to the launch of the new folders feature, organized his apps by screen. My first Home screen was devoted to the apps I use the most often, a few others to my favorite games, and one screen to apps for my kids.

The common factor on each of those organized screens? They all included 16 apps. Apple's design decision to limit folders to 12 apps requires that I reorganize my apps a lot--which isn't just unpleasant, it's unnecessary. Look at the "full" folder pictured to the right.

Are you seeing what I'm seeing? Namely, that nearly 80-pixel-tall region at the bottom of my screen where all you can see is my cobblestone wallpaper? You know what would fit just perfectly there?

Four more apps, that's what. I'm thinking that Apple feared putting any "non-dock" and non-fast-app-switching apps along that bottom row might confuse folks, but I disagree with that hypothetical decision I just invented. As is, even if you're not a former adherent of the "organizing by screenful" mentality, this folder layout involves a bizarre use of wasted space.

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Wi-Fi-free iPhone officially lands in China -------news.cnet

Wi-Fi-free iPhone officially lands in China -------news.cnet
It could be the Year of the iPhone in China, as Apple officially started selling its iconic smartphone in the world's largest mobile market Friday night.

While China saw nothing near the frenzy of the first iPhone launch day here in the U.S., crowds there did honor the tradition of lining up for the phone many hours in advance at several locations. A few hundred people queued up in the rain and cold outside The Place shopping center in Beijing, for example. There, Zhi Xianzhong became the first person to get the iPhone from Apple partner China Unicom after waiting 7 hours and 40 minutes, according to China Daily.

As expected, China Unicom, the country's second largest telecom operator after China Mobile, is selling two versions of the iPhone in China under a three-year deal with Apple. But cost could prove to be a deterrent. Prices range from 4,999 yuan (about $732) for the 8GB 3G model to 6,999 yuan (about $1,025) for the 32GB 3GS phone (sans contract).

Consumers can get cheaper, cracked, gray-market iPhone models at local electronics stores or bring them in from other markets. But price isn't the only potential obstacle here. In accordance with Chinese government regulations, the handsets also lack a key feature--Wi-Fi capability, though reports say China Unicom hopes to offer Wi-Fi-enabled iPhones within a few months.
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Nintendo, Would It Dominate the iPhone Market

Open up the latest portable game gadget from Nintendo, the DSi, which goes on sale today, and you'll be able to log onto a new online store carrying a small catalogue of software titles. If you see one that grabs your interest, you can buy and download it to your device on the spot, with prices starting at $2.

This type of purchase probably doesn't seem exotic any more, thanks largely to Apple. Apple's App Store, which offers software for its iPhone and iPod Touch, has had 800 million downloads since it opened last summer.


Now, other mobile gadgets like Nintendo's DSi are quickly creating their own retail outlets on the Web. Last week, for example, Research In Motion rolled out an online software store for its BlackBerry users, called BlackBerry App World. Smartphone makers Nokia and Palm have similar offerings on the way.

The new Nintendo DSi goes on sale for $169. But that older version of this device, priced at $129, will still be available on retail shelves for the forseeable future, the company said.

New iPhone features Introduced By Apple

Apple has introduced a new iPhone features. The new features included in the update replicate those already offered by other smartphones.The new functions of theApple's iphone include cut, copy and paste, long demanded by iPhone users, picture messaging and an in-phone search feature, but not Flash video.

"The upgrade is a big big deal and will help persuade consumers to stay with Apple," said Gartner analyst Van Baker.

Apple's Scott Forstall demonstrates the iPhone's cut and paste feature "While things like copy and paste and multi-media messaging (MMS) are things they have needed to do for a while, other features will in essence stop consumers buying other smartphones and raise the amount of money people spend on the iPhone, " he said.
Analyst Gene Munster from Piper Jaffray agreed that the upgrade was a major step forward."We believe Apple addressed key issues that were leading some consumers to competing devices for multimedia messaging and enterprise e-mail."

Apple also highlighted some of the other main features for consumers included a voice memo and stereo Bluetooth.A new search tool called Spotlight will allow users to search files and applications on the iPhone or iPod Touch.