After months of waiting, Apple finally released its iOS 4 operating system for the iPhone 3G, the iPhone 3GS, the third-generation iPod touch and the iPhone 4. The new version of the operating system, which weighs in at a hefty 579 megabyte download, is available through iTunes boasts the following changes and fixes:
Multitasking: Now you can run your favorite third-party apps —- and switch between them instantly —- without slowing down the performance of the foreground app or draining the battery unnecessarily.
Folders: Organize apps into folders with drag-and-drop simplicity. Get faster access to your favorites and browse and manage up to 2160 apps.
Even better Mail: See messages from all your accounts in a unified inbox, organize messages by threads, open attachments in third-party apps, and more.
iBooks: More than a great ebook reader, iBooks is also an amazing place to browse and shop for books, day or night.
Create playlists: Create custom playlists right on your iPhone.
5x digital zoom: Get closer to your subjects by zooming in up to 5x.
Tap to focus video: While shooting video, tap the display to choose where to focus.
Faces and Places in Photos: View photos based on who’s in them and where they were taken.
Home screen wallpaper: Change the background wallpaper on your Home screen.
Gift apps: Send apps as gifts to your friends or family.
Spell checking: A built-in spell checker works in Mail, Notes, and other apps.
Wireless keyboard support: Pair a keyboard based on Bluetooth wireless technology with your iPhone.
Like similar iPhone OS (now iOS) updates, simply connect your iPhone or iPod touch to your Mac or PC, select the device and tell it to check for an update. This will find the new version of the iOS and should begin the several-minute update process.
If you’ve tried the new iOS and have any feedback, positive or negative, to offer, please let us know what you think.
10 replies on “Apple releases iOS 4 update for iPhone 3G, 3GS and third-generation iPod touch units”
Just got an iPod Touch 3G as a gift…the 8gig modle. Only had it a week and iTunes popped up and said the iOS 4 update was available. Oh if I had known then what I know now. a 579 MB download; 10 hours to install on an 8 gig device. I thought my device had locked up after waiting 4 hrs. I am starting to refer to my iPod as “myPOS”…and I ain't talking “point of sale” either.
Thank God the Gate's regime doesn't have anything so freakishly frustrating as an iOS 4 update.
everytime i try to update my 3g, it freezes the update… but i can still sync it with itunes… so why cant it update like normal?
Cannot connect the wireless keyboard to iPhone 3gs, with the ios4 update. Very, very frustrating…
Make sure the Bluetooth keyboard isn’t already paired with another computer. (Any newer iMac within 30 feet or so.) I had to shut mine off completely to free up the keyboard for pairing with the 3GS
Any answer to Creativelady's question? Can't figure out how (if at all) the 3GS can be tethered.
Like iOS4 regardless, though!
I guess I didn't get my answer. In reading the comments, it looks like it doesn't with the 3G but does that apply to the 3 GS? Still looking…
Just got my answer. Thanks.
The the bluetooth pairing only available with the iPhone 4? I can't get my iPhone 3 GS to pair with my apple wireless keyboard.
I was going to say….
But some features are not available on the 2G iPod Touch or 3G iPhone:
Multitasking
BT Keyboards
Wallpaper
FWIW, it installed on a 2ng gen (8GB) iPod Touch as well