iPhone Firmware 2.2 Beta Coming Soon: What Features Do You Want?

A report by MacRumors yesterday reported that Apple has seeded iPhone firmware 2.2 Beta 1 to developers. The purpose of this build was for “compatibility testing” with no other mentions of new features. Some argue that this new build will encompass the long awaited push notification service which will allow apps to send out alerts like how SMS messages appear.

Also, MobileSafari has been changed a bit with the refresh and magnifying glass buttons at the top of the screen. To refresh a page, you’ll now use a tiny icon next to the URL bar. I think this makes MobileSafari a lot more intuitive and I welcome this change! Check out this screenshot:

With 2.1 firmware released less than a month ago (don’t forget the undocumented features), and the jailbreak for 2.1 was announced a few days later! Most of us can agree that 2.1 solved a lot of the issues we had with 2.0.2. Personally, the keyboard lag was gone for me and overall the iPhone performed a lot better. After I used QuickPwn 2.1 to jailbreak my iPhone I was able to regain access to QIK, BossPrefs, WinterBoard, and a few other 3rd party apps.

The news of 2.2 beta being seeded to developers made me think of some features many people would like to see included in the next firmware update. Think of it as a much anticipated wish list! Here are a few that come to mind immediately:

– copy/cut/paste
– video recording
– wireless sync via WiFi
– MMS
– Horizontal texting/mail/everything
– Bluetooth file transfer; Stereo Bluetooth
– Ability to delete individual SMS messages; forward SMS
– Mark all read for Mail app
– Push for applications
– Increased battery life
– Bug fixes still for Safari
– Flash support
– Turn by turn GPS
– Universal search
– Notifications on lock screen (like Intelliscreen)

I know some of these may seem far-fetched and can be solved with jailbreaking, but given the fact that the iPhone OS X is so powerful some of these might not be that far off. Personally I’d like to see horizontal options for typing in text messages and emails. It makes the keyboard much larger and reduces typos. Sometimes having a case of “fat thumbs” can really screw you over when you’re typing fast. Having little snippets of email previews or SMS previews on the lock screen would be beneficial as well.

What are some features you’d like to see on upcoming firmware release? The ability to do your taxes or predict the future? 😉

[Read] Thanks to iPhone Atlas for the image.

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