AppleInsider Staff
Set for release in November, the biggest changes in iOS 4.2 come for iPad owners, who will finally see their touchscreen tablet upgraded to iOS 4 with new features like multitasking and folders. All iOS device owners will also gain printing capabilities via AirPrint.
Further time spent with the first beta of iOS 4.2 has revealed a number of other features coming to device owners this fall.
YouTube voting
The built-in YouTube application now features the ability to rank videos. Like on the website itself, iOS users can now give a virtual "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" to content on the site.
While the YouTube application on the iPhone has stayed mostly the same since the device launched in 2007, Google this summer revamped its mobile site, allowing users to access more features in its HTML5-based website at m.youtube.com.
Apple's latest addition to the YouTube application brings a feature that has existed on the full and mobile versions of the site to the standalone iOS application.
FaceTime link in Messages app
Accessibility to FaceTime will become even greater in iOS 4.2, as a direct video chat link is now included in the iPhone's built-in text messaging application. When in a conversation in the Messages app, a "FaceTime" button now rests in between the "Call" and "Contact Info" selections.
Support for CoreMIDI
The first beta of iOS 4.2 adds support for the CoreMIDI framework to the operating system's application program interfaces. This could suggest that future applications would allow new avenues for musical creation, and could also allow physical MIDI instruments connectors.
MIDI, or Musical Instrument Digital Interface, is an industry standard that allows electronic music machines to synchronize and communicate. With an adapter, a device like an iPhone could theoretically create and record sounds from a MIDI instrument.
New restrictions
Apple has also added a handful of new restrictions in the Settings application. Users can now prevent the deleting of App Store software, and may prevent changes to accounts in the Mail application.
iTunes link in iPad Videos app
Users can quickly find more content on iTunes with a new direct link within the iPad's Videos application. When viewing a list of TV episodes on the device, users are now presented with the option to find more episodes of that program through the iTunes store.
Issues
Of course, being an early beta, iOS 4.2 is not yet ready for public use, as the software still has many bugs and issues that must be addressed before the November launch. Because of bugs and issues, Apple has reportedly recommended to its developers that they only install the iOS 4.2 beta on devices that will be used exclusively to test the software.
The biggest problems are said to lie with the baseband on the iPhone when running the first beta. Calls sometimes do not connect, and text messages can take a great deal of time to send.
People familiar with the first beta said it carries a number of known issues related to device activation and the Springboard home screen, which could cause restarts and crashes with the software. It has also been documented that MobileMe e-mail is not currently pushed to devices.
Malcolm Owen
Christine McKee
William Gallagher
Amber Neely
32 Comments
"The first beta of iOS 4.2 adds support for the CoreMIDI framework to the operating system's application program interfaces. This could suggest that future applications would allow new avenues for musical creation, and could also allow physical MIDI instruments connectors.
MIDI, or Musical Instrument Digital Interface, is an industry standard that allows electronic music machines to synchronize and communicate. With an adapter, a device like an iPhone could theoretically create and record sounds from a MIDI instrument."
Looking forward with this part of the update.
Plus you need the beta 10.6.5 update as well. I don't mind putting some betas on my system, but not the entire OS and an entire mobile OS.
Thanks for keeping us updated on the little changes!
In most Apple OS releases, all the little improvements, taken together, add up to as much as any of the big headline features. It?s that ongoing attention to detail that makes OS X and iOS great.
I'd like to see a lighter weight text message app. I have a 3GS now, but on my 3G that would lag like crazy from 2.0 on up. There's still a slight delay on my 3GS with ios4 when it's not in the multitasking tray. It's not a video game I'm loading, it's text messages! I like that it's pretty, but come on!
As reported by TUAW, iOS 4.2b1 also now lists iProd2,1 with product ID 4765 as AppleTV2,1. I wonder what avenue some will now take to state that the AppleTV is not based iOS (sans CocoaTouch UI) as most were predicting.