One of the ‘feature’ that plagued iPhone 3G owners when they upgraded to iOS 4.0 was unresponsive UI. This issue appears to be going away with the upcoming iOS 4.1 release expected on Sept 8 next week, Lifehacker posted a video test comparing an iPhone 3G running iOS 4.0 with one running the iOS 4.1 (likely the Gold Master release for developers).

Although not a scientific examination, it is clear from the video that there is marked improvement running iOS 4.1 on iPhone 3G. For all the added new features, iOS 4.1 is finally a worthwhile upgrade for iPhone 3G owners.

Via Lifehacker

There are more than 50,000 apps in Apple’s App Store, many doubt if it is still possible to make money developing apps for the iPhone and iPod touch. If you are exploring programming for the iPhone as an option, the following frequently asked questions by beginners might be useful to you.

1. What kind of app can be run on iPhone?

You can develop native app to run on iPhone, or you can develop web app that runs on mobile Safari browser on the iPhone. In general, iPhone app refer to the native app. iPhone native app is the only app you can sell on iTunes App Store.

Native iPhone apps are by far the dominant apps on the iPhone with native iPhone touch interface and experience. Many vendor develops native iPhone app for their website, such as Facebook, MySpace and NY Times. On the other hand, popular web apps customize for iPhone include GMail and Flickr.

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iPhone keyboard’s Auto-Correction feature is time-saver and great help for people who are not used to touch typing. iPhone suggests word as you type when the word is not in the keyboard dictionary. You tap the “X” next to a suggested word to reject the correction, and iPhone will add your word into the keyboard dictionary. Your word will then not show up for correction again.

In due course, you have high probability of messing up the keyboard dictionary. For example if you spell “dont” without an apostrophe and reject the suggested correction for a few times, iPhone keyboard will add “dont” into the keyboard dictionary and will not suggest correction for you subsequently.

To erase all the words you added to the keyboard dictionary:

Settings > General > Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary

Select “Reset Dictionary” to clear your words and reset the keyboard dictionary to factory default.

Reports has been appearing last week that the new iPhone 3GS could be prone to overheating. It remains to be seen if it is due to incorrect usage by users, a design defect on Apple’s part or a common problem to all smartphone devices.

Apple actually posted a support article last modified June 25 that offers tips on how to keep iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS within acceptable operating temperatures.

Operate iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS in a place where the temperature is between 0º and 35º C (32º to 95º F). Low- or high-temperature conditions might temporarily shorten battery life or cause the device to temporarily stop working properly. Store iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS in a place where the temperature is between -20º and 45º C (-4º to 113º F). Don’t leave the device in your car, because temperatures in parked cars can exceed this range.

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Skype has released the first update to Skype for iPhone since its debut on the App Store on March 31.

New in this release:

• send low cost SMS messages using Skype credit

• ability to access Skype voicemail from your iPhone

• improved dialing help when making call

• additional localization languages: Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish and Traditional Chinese.

Adobe, in its Q2 FY2009 Financial Results presentation (under Section 13 titled ‘Platform’), highlighted that Flash Player 10 for smartphone will be available in beta for developer at Adobe MAX conference in October.

Google Android, Nokia Symbian OS, Windows Mobile and the new Palm webOS will be among the first devices to support web browsing with the newest Flash Player.

Apple iPhone and RIM Blackberry are the two notable names missing. But do we really need Flash Player on iPhone? It has been over two years of iPhone without Flash and we certainly do not miss it. Flash Player is good to have provided it does not jeopardize the overall performance and responsiveness of iPhone. What do you think?

One of the first major iPhone app that supports Apple’s new Push Notification service hits the App Store: AOL Instant Messenger (AIM).

• When the new AIM first starts up, it asks if you would like to receive push notifications.

• Since this is the first push notification app on our iPhone, a new “Notifications” item appeared in the Settings app after we run AIM. Find out the basics on push notifications.

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iPhone OS 3.0 is recommended upgrade for all existing iPhone and iPod touch. All the new features and enhanements are well worth the effort of upgrading the firmware via iTunes.

Apple has given you one good reason to upgrade, iPhone OS 3.0 addressed 38 security vulnerabilities in earlier firmwares. Read Apple’s support document on the security updates in iPhone OS 3.0.

Apple’s App Store pioneered the managed mobile application marketplace, even though Apple is one of the last major players to enter the smartphone race. App Store has so far surpassed expectation with its billion downloads recently and is one of the major differentiating feature of iPhone compared with other smartphone platform.

The overwhelming success of App Store spurs other vendors to develop their own store in order to compete. In case you are confused by the different naming for app stores, here is the list of Apple App Store’s competitors:

App World

BlackBerry launched App World in Apr. Visit the store.

Android Market

Android Market for Google Android based phones was launched in Oct 2008, with the availability of paid apps from Feb this year for US market.

App Catalog

This could be the name for Palm’s app store for its webOS devices, nothing is confirmed until Palm Pre’s official debut, which should be anytime now. But there is no indication if Palm’s app store will be available together with the launch of the first webOS phone.

Ovi Store

Nokia’s Ovi branding is more than just a store, the Ovi website encompasses other phone services such as contacts and calendar sync to the internet cloud, similar to what is being offered in MobileMe and Microsoft’s MyPhone.

Nokia on Monday began rolling out its Ovi Store to production servers, and is live today worldwide for Nokia phone owners. TechCrunch took a spin and called the launch a complete disaster.

Windows Marketplace for Mobile

Microsoft has yet to launch its Windows Marketplace for Mobile app store for Windows Mobile platform, but you can’t help but notice the store has the longest name among all the app stores, just like most of other Microsoft products. We suspect the branding is from the same marketing team behind Windows Vista.

Too many app stores for our money indeed. Will there be app store from Sony Ericsson or even Motorola?

Updated June 03, 2009 – Sony Ericsson announced their PlayNow Arena app store

iPhone is the first phone with a full-blown browser. Some has labelled the Safari browser on the iPhone as the ‘killer app’, attributed it as the key factor that enabled the mobile web. With its touch interface and ease of navigation, it is no longer a tedious chore surfing the net on smartphone. Here are 14 tips for getting the most out of Safari browser on your iPhone.

1. Auto Web Address Resolution

When you enter a URL in the address bar, you don’t have to type “http”, “www” or “.com”. Safari will automatically resolve the web address. Example for “www.apple.com”, just type “apple” in the address bar will get you to Apple’s homepage. This will work for most websites that end with “.com” domain.

2. Scroll to Top of Page for Address and Search Bar

Safari will scroll the Address and Search Bar together with web page. When a page is more than a screenful, you can quickly scroll to the top of the page to access the Address and Search Bar by tapping on the status bar.

3. Tap and Hold “.com” for Other Domains

When entering web address, tap and hold the “.com” key to display options for other domain extensions such as “.net”, “.edu”, “.org” etc. Slide your finger from “.com” to select the other domain extension.

4. Use A Bigger Keyboard

Safari’s onscreen keyboard is bigger when iPhone is in horizontally position. If you are holding iPhone vertically, rotate iPhone horizontally first before you tap the address bar to summon the keyboard. The larger keys make data entry easier.

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