Wowza, Calendar and Notes syncing with Google on iOS 4.0
iOS 4.0 is almost upon us, and with the plethora of features implemented, including multi-tasking (which works according to the Apple definition of multi-tasking), folders, and a shiny new UI, there is an easter egg that I knew nothing about, till I set out to include my GMail account. The biggest surprise was inclusion of native syncing with Google Calendar and Notes in iOS! Yeah you read it right. iOS now natively syncs with Google Calendar and creates a Label in your GMail account called Notes – wherein it places all notes created in the Notes app on the iPhone. Simply marvelous!
iPhone 4 ordered
The guests are met, the feast is set, mayst hear the merry din!
So spake the ancient Mariner. But here we are, about five hours into the iPhone 4 pre-order mania, and though the process has been painful at best, our orders are in. Though not with Apple.com, we did manage to get the order through with AT&T. They are confirmed and scheduled for delivery on June 24th.
It is a shame though, how woefully unprepared Apple was for the overwhelming demand for the iPhone 4. No sooner had the pre-orders begun at 4:00AM EST, the servers were deluged by the masses and were sent into a tizzy.
I tried for the better part of an hour – having woken up at 4:15AM – but to no avail. Disgusted, I ordered via ATT.com and it went through immediately.
Now begins the wait till June 24th!
iPhone 3GS – Week 4 and all is Great!
Week 4, and the iPhone 3GS is chugging away like a champ. Having upgraded from a 1G 4GB iPhone to this beast, I am continually impressed by its speed, features, capabilities and the vast array of possibilities.
Initially I resisted the temptation to Jailbreak my iPhone. I figured Jailbreak is just a step to get to the Unlock. Since I am on AT&T, I didn’t need that. However, seeing how Apple chose to cripple the phone (vis-a-vis no HD videos on Youtube on 3G, or Skype calls etc), I reluctantly took the leap. I have not regretted that. With step by step instructions from iClarified, it was a snap. No need to reload the firmware, just a couple of steps and there’s Cydia! I am a happy camper.
The phone cam and video quality is a huge step up from the previous generation iPhones. I increasingly find myself leaving home without my point and shoot of late. It is just so much easier to whip out my iPhone and take a video of my cute little nephew being ever so cute on a whim. I wish there were an option to upload the HQ video to Youtube directly from the iPhone instead of the scaled down version. Oh well. Maybe there’s an app for that ; ) .
This phone has well and truly rekindled my desire to develop apps for the iPhone. The SDK is rather straightforward and allows the developers to tap into the various features with ease. More on that as it develops.
And here’s an obligatory graphic – this time an image I like to call “Impressions of Suburbia”. Snapped with my 3GS, and manipulated with ColorSplash. All on the iPhone.
iPhone OS 3.0 – almost perfect
I know it is early, and the official release isn’t till the 17th of this month, but I couldn’t help looking around at the NZB world for the OS 3.0. To my delight, I found it on the first query for my phone. Downloaded and installed, I am just delighted with the new OS.
First and foremost – SEARCH! Universal Spotlight like search on the iPhone. It will search through email, calendar, contacts and what not!
Secondly, NOTES SYNC! Oh my dear goodness how I have waited for the two-way sync betwitxt my iPhone and Mail Notes. It seemed to be a no-brainer – it should’ve been there when the original iPhone was released, but it took Apple until now to get it working. What a time saver. No need for Evernote or any other semi-functional apps now.
Next up – VOICE NOTES, record short snippets – though I don’t see any use for those personally. Oh and yes, I do love the new and improved Google Maps App! The triangulation based on Cell phone signal has improved considerably. It can now pinpoint one’s location very accurately, even on a weak signal.
There are a number of other changes under the hood, most important of those – push services. However I have not seen apps make use of this yet. More to come as I test.
