If you saw Noah's post about the iPhone 3.0 update being unveiled next week, you know there's some goodness in the works for iPhone users.
Nothing's been confirmed yet about what that goodness will look like, and the rumor mill's been pretty quiet lately. But there have been at least a few ideas floating around, so here's a short roundup of the rumors, theories and guesses (educated and not) thus far.
Let me know in the comments if I left anything out:
- Gizmodo wonders if the actual launch of 3.0 will coincide with a rumored touchscreen tablet that's based on the iPhone.
- CNET thinks that Apple might have a "universal search capability" up its sleeve. (Right now, you can't search your whole phone from the main screen.)
- MacNN today pointed to a month-old post from Electronista, which posited that the new release could include true background processes, rather than push notification. The latter was promised in the iPhone 2.1, but it never materialized. (Actually, I covered this back in February, too, so I?m particularly interested to see if this pans out.) Notably, vector-based GPS also showed up in early betas of iPhone 2.1, which would've come close to real turn-by-turn navigation. Was it waylaid for this release?
- According to Boy Genius Report, the 3.0 update and a new SDK will be released (which would likely change the terms of the existing agreement). It also claims to have word that there will finally be MMS support, as well as tethering between the iPhone and a laptop via Bluetooth and USB.
- Brighthand isn't guessing this time about what's in store. Rather, it's just summing up long-awaited features, like Flash. (It still notably and mistakenly thinks Flash for iPhone is being developed through an Adobe/Apple collaboration. I suppose it's anyone's guess now, but Adobe has certainly done its best to deny the rumor.) The site also reminds readers about the possible hardware update that may happen this June/July. If the next version of the iPhone handset actually does launch this summer, then based on past experience, Brighthand predicts it will debut with the 3.0 software on it, and that the current phone will get another software update shortly afterward.
- And pretty much everyone thinks it would be foolishness for Apple not to address users? top wish-list item: cut and paste.
Remember, March 17 marks only the advance preview of the 3.0 update, not the actual release date. And chances are slim that Apple will offer a sneak peek at the next-gen iPhone handset (if indeed there is one) at this event ? though I?d be ridiculously thrilled to be proved wrong.
