The iPhone 2.2 update made its debut this weekend – pulling in some of the most requested features for the insanely popular mobile device. Tech Loop has had a chance to run the update through the rigors, and we are happy to say that we are very pleased with it. Unfortunately, though, some of the features that we’ve been hoping for have still not been implemented in this release.

Overall:
For the most part, the new software update has some very obvious speed increases that are easily noticeable as you navigate the UI, launch apps, and shoot emails. We’ve also noticed that the 3G data signal tends to hold on better, and maybe even had a little bump in speed from the new software. The UI has remained the same, with still no room for “themes” or even the ability to add wallpaper to the OEM black background. Damnit.  Email has gotten some very obvious bug fixes, including repairs to push email and wide-format HTML emails. Safari has also had its bottom end bolstered for stability with a minor UI tweak, and you can now turn off the very-annoying-yet-sometimes-helpful auto correction on the keyboard. Some of the more trivial additions include the ability to click the home button to slide immediately back to your first page of apps, and improved audio quality in visual voicemail.

Still missing from the 2.2 software was the copy and paste feature that millions of users are longing to have, although an Apple executive was recently grilled on the omission of such an obvious feature and spilled the beans on it currently being in development…so, we at least know that there is a good chance it will appear in the 2.3 update. The lack of copy/paste for this long of a period makes us here at Tech Loop mad for two reasons:

1. We iPhone users cannot receive MMS messages, and if we do, we have to open a link in Safari and remember an obscure username and password that is unique to each picture message that is received. If you don’t want us to have copy and paste, at least give us a single default username and password to use, or make the damn things easy to remember (right now you’ll get usernames like K75fRTE09 and passwords like banana4aches…ridiculous!).
2. This, along with MMS, is such an obvious feature that it NEVER should have been missed in the first place. Shame on you, Apple.

We have a feeling that the lack of a copy and paste option has something to do with another feature that appeared at WWDC ’08 but did not make it into this update: background processes and push notifications. Because the copy and paste feature would require some sort of background process or “clipboard” to hold the copied item(s), it simply isn’t possible to implement it without the high-level software architecture being there. Please Apple, give us a freaking break and bring in the copy and paste.

There was also hope that Apple would allow MMS messaging (something that has been in cell phones since the ice age) on our phones – we were once again let down. Why is it that the most advanced cell phone in the world can’t do the most basic of functions? We think it is because AT&T is being a little bit greedy with the bandwidth load it would put on their network - they do, afterall, only give you 200 text messages a month on the basic plan.

New Features:
Google Streetview: We’ve been waiting for a long time to be able to use streetview, because amazingly detailed overhead maps just aren’t good enough to get us where we are going. We need privacy-invading, eye-level, 360 degree panoramas of the area we are in. It’s REALLY necessary on a mobile phone to be able to read someone’s license plate or see another person tanning in the nude. Google Maps also now features the ability to email your current location to others with the touch of a button.

The Streetview UI is super simple and works exactly like you think it would. When you pull up a location flag in Google Maps, you will see the Sreetview icon on the location flag. Then, simply touch the icon, and you are whisked away to the Streetview of the exact point that location flag (or dropped pin) is on. The animations are of the typically smooth and buttery Apple fare.

Once in Streetview, you can pinch to zoom and swipe left, right, up, and down to look around. Clicking the arrows in the road advances your view further down the road. A helpful map preview sits in the bottom showing you exactly where you are at and what your field of view is looking at for further clarification. I’m very pleased with how this addition turned out. Here is a view of the Bean as seen from Streetview on the iPhone:

Public transportation and walking routes are two other great features that were added to the Google Maps application. Just as with driving directions, you input a starting and ending location, and the App will trace out the suggested route. If you wish to get to your location by walking, you click the “walker” icon at the top, and if you wish to get there by *ick* the CTA you tap the “bus” icon. When choosing public transit guidance, Google Maps points out the location of each station and gives you train arrival and departure times (as if it is going to be on time :-\). The screenshot below shows the functionality of the new public transit feature. These new additions are helpful, but we’re still waiting on turn-by-turn GPS navigation.

iTunes and the App Store also saw some improvements in this update. Most notably, you can now download podcasts through the mobile iTunes Store. Just touch “Podcasts”, search it, and download it. It’s that easy. You can’t subscribe to new podcasts through the mobile iTunes store, but you can quickly grab episodes you may have missed while on the run. Also, the categories section in App Store can now be sorted by top paid, top free, and release date. This is very helpful because Apps were previously listed as they came in before the update, meaning you would have to scroll through hundreds of Apps to find the right one if you weren’t sure of the name and could not search for it. The App Store also now features an "Update All" button that allows you to update all of your applications simultaneously. This is welcome relief to the tedious process of updating each app individually - one of the main reasons we never made too much of an effort to get the latest versions of our currently installed apps.

This is a great update to the iPhone, but it really left us wanting more. We again are holding out hope that the 2.3 update will include the features we have been longing for since the iPhone’s launch.

In case you haven't heard, this update has already been jailbroken by the iPhone Dev Team. Man, those guys are good ;-)

So, have you updated? How do you like it? Have you routed your way through the CTA or viewed your building using the new Google Maps features? Let us know in the comments below!

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Blake Schnitkey
As a graduate in Visual Communications Technology from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, Blake was drawn into a love for technology via the biggest passion in his lif More