Ars Technica is reporting that the way Push Notification works has been, according to developers they’ve spoken with, improved in the latest Beta 3 release of iPhone 3.0. To wit:
The major change in the UIKit API is that Apple has added separate types for the three notification methods: badge, text alert, and sound. Developers can register their apps for these different notification types individually for the needs of their users. Previously, apps registered to received remote notifications but controlled the type via settings. Developers we spoke to universally agreed that this was a welcome improvement.
TiPb is just one cog — elegant and perfectly balanced though it may be — of the mighty Smartphone Experts network, which also includes Android Central, CrackBerry.com, PreCentral.net, NokiaExperts, TreoCentral, and WMExperts. Editor-in-Chief Dieter Bohn is now on the ground, live an in-person at CTIA 2009 and will be bringing back all the news, for TiPb and almost all the other sites. Almost, because CrackBerry Kevin seems to have stowed away on the trip as well. We don’t really expect any iPhone news other than the launch of apps like Skype, but if there is any, our daring duo will bring it home for us.
If you want to keep up with their adventures, keep your browsers tuned to the above sites, and follow them on the Twitter via @backlon and @crackberrykevin.
And if there’s anything at the show you want them to check out, let them — and us — know!
While Google’s Gmail is still in “beta”, they done a lot of good stuff for the iPhone including a quirky but usable IMAP implementation so we can keep mail synced on our mobile, desktop, and cloud. But Gmai’s quirkiness isn’t restricted to IMAP, the whole concept of GMail just “thinks different”, from it’s April 1st, everyone-thought-it-was-a-joke launch, to its labels rather than folders, stars rather than flags, and flat search rather than hierarchical sort.
All this leads some to consider a separate GMail client for the iPhone, rather than leaving it bundled into Apple’s own MobileMail app. The Google Android G1 goes this route. You have one app for Gmail and another app for all your other mail. Would we ever see this on the iPhone?
Ars Technica spoke with Gmail Product Manager Todd Jackson, who had this to say (or rather, not say):
he did leave the possibility of a dedicated iPhone client on the table
But what would this mean?
If we look at Gmail strictly as a mail service, my vote is to keep it in mail, do a better job mapping labels to folders, map stars to flags (and enable flags, Apple!), and let iPhone 3.0’s built in search access the Gmail cloud store as well.
If, however, we look at Gmail as some new-fangled cloud-communications service, with email, IM, and Video Chat built in, then maybe some equally new-fangled, and dedicated app is and will be increasingly necessary. That or keep it on the Web with offline access?
Meanwhile, more than better Gmail integration or a separate Gmail app, I’d still like Push Gmail, please. We know Google has licensed ActiveSync for calendars. Go on and throw the switch for email. And while you’re at it, give some IMAP IDLE love for those of us who already use Exchange for work and — due to the 1 account per device limit, thanks Microsoft! — couldn’t take advantage of it for Google.
What do you want, one of the above? All of them? How do you want your Gmail handled on your iPhone?
You’ll want to stay tuned to the Smartphone Experts family of sites next week - we’ll be live at the CTIA Wireless convention, bringing you all the latest from every manufacturer on all of our sites. Will Android finally have its coming out party? Will Palm finally tell us when the Pre is being released? Will the AT&T Nokia E71 ever get official? Whatever happens, we’ll give you the scoop.
Another week, another “unofficial operating system” surfaces for the BlackBerry Storm. 4.7.0.113 is a numeral down from .114, but has been fairly well received by hardcore Storm users. On the application front, the popular Nobex Radio Companion saw a major update and Slingplayer Mobile for BlackBerry has finally moved out of beta and is now official. Next week’s update should be exciting following CTIA, where it’s fully expected that RIM will announce the BlackBerry App World and hopefully make official announce, not release, another device or two (CDMA Pearl Flip or BlackBerry 9630?!).
Our launch contest ended a few weeks ago and our Nokia N85 winner chimed in with his initial thoughts on the device and thanks for the contest. Nokia’s free Exchange sync client, Mail for Exchange, was updated this week with some updates that include improved battery life, pictures in contacts, and more. I was all excited about the launch of the Nokia E71x on AT&T that was rumored for 24 March, but unfortunately the rumor mill was wrong and it may be another 8 to 10 weeks, if at all, before we see this device on AT&T. A couple more lucky folks were able to get hands-on with devices I can’t wait to see including the Nokia E75 and Samsung OMNIA HD.
I was also getting a bit discouraged with Nokia here in the US with the lame Nokia 5800 launch and the non-appearance of the E71x. A Nokia 5800 NAM arrived on Friday and after several hours of setting it up and using it, my passion for Nokia devices was rekindled with a passion and I could almost care less whether or not carriers come out with full support for these awesome devices and this highly customizable platform.
Over at TreoCentral, we heard about an odd story from DigiTimes reporting that “shipments of Palm’s two smartphones will be delayed as Compal is waiting for Qualcomm’s new chipset..”. Not quite sure which two phones they’re refering to, but the Pre sure isn’t one of them since we heard that it is being manufactured by CMCS, not Compal. Dieter and Mike talked about the Pre and iPhone 3.0 in the latest PalmCast, Episode 62. We also heard that Palm brought down the ax on TealPoint Software’s TealOS, the app that makes your Palm OS Treo/Centro look like it’s running Palm’s WebOS.
Finally, we compared the upcoming iPhone 3.0 software to the upcoming Windows Mobile 6.5 release, and we talked to some developers to find out what they think about the upcoming Windows Marketplace and its pricing structure. (More on that soon, we’re told.)
Zara from M0bileChic sent in this video, comparing the AppleiPhone against the BlackBerry Storm and Google Android G1. It’s fun, it’s fair, and we can’t let the CrackBerry.com commenters get the last word in so let her — and us — know what you think.
