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In what’s possibly one of the biggest changes to iPhones and other iOS devices since the advent of apps, Apple has given us a sneak preview of iOS5.

The new OS is set for a fall launch, and rumors still abound with regards to what changes will occur in hardware (an iPhone 5?) at that time.  For now, we know that iOS5 will run on most recent devices that can run iOS4.

Some interesting numbers from Apple during their rollout underscore the impact this OS has had in the mobile marketplace:

• Over 200 million iOS devices have been sold to date (25+ million are iPads)
• 14 billion downloads from the App Store
• Over $2.5 billion dollars paid out to developers with their 70% cut
• iTunes has over 15 billion songs sold

No matter which corner of the RIM-Android-Apple triangle you hang your hat on, these are impressive figures that should play to your mobile strategy and decision making process about apps and other development.

iOS5 Features

Here’s a quick rundown of the major goodies Apple is including in the new operating system:

• A totally revamped notification system (think Android, in fact, thank Android for many of these updates!)
• Newsstand is Apple’s attempt at making magazines & news papers relevant – will it work?  Too early to say, but being able to buy mags & papers on your iOS device (mostly geared toward iPad) certainly won’t hurt this struggling industry.
• Twitter is fully integrated to all aspects of the OS.  If you don’t tweet… you will.  This is a major statement, with no small impact on Facebook.
• Safari Browser updates – There’s quite a few Safari-focused enhancements.  Not only does iOS5 introduce tabbed browsing (finally!), but the Reading List will make it easier to archive content offline, and Safari Reader is a de facto “mobile friendly maker” of pages – stripping out content (ads?) to make pages easier to consume on a mobile device.
• Reminders is a another big features, and will be geographic/contact driven – it can remind you to call or do something as you get closer to (or further from) a destination.  Minority Report here we come!
• The Camera software is upgraded/updated.  A shutter button will be available from the “lock screen” so you can get to it faster (you can also use the volume button as the shutter release).  Some good editing features for photos (and sharing) will be built in as well, although early reports indicate these features may not work on 3Gs phones.
• There’s a split keyboard for thumb-typers like me.
• PC Free – you don’t have to sync or be PC-based any longer.  You can download apps, documents, music, etc. and store it on the device or the Cloud (plays into Apple’s new iCloud which I’ll touch on below)
• iMessage – think BBM or AIM; a proprietary messaging platform across all iOS devices.  It will allow you to end messages, photos, videos, etc. from iPads and Touches.  Available via WiFi and 3g.  One of the most proprietary features, but certainly heavy on the buzz, and along with the new notification system in iOS5 creates a strong collaborative and social suite for Apple.

iCloud

It’s not an iOS5 feature per se – it’s a en entirely new service from Apple.  iCloud is like services you may have used before whether from Amazon, Google Docs or DropBox – in terms of storage, music, apps, documents, etc. – with a typically Apple-driven focus: “it just works.”  We’ve not spent a lot of time with it, but early trials show this could be a real game changer for collaboration, sharing and file-system organization/development.

As Steve Jobs said during the WWDC:  “We’re going to demote the PC and the Mac to just be a device.”

That’s brave talk, and if it bears fruit (pardon the pun) ultimately the desktop, laptop, smartphone brand – even the device OS – won’t even matter.  With iCloud you can get your “stuff” anywhere, anytime and on any device.  It’s not about how many gigs you have on the phone, it’s about what you want when you want it.

iCloud will bring photo sharing, document sharing, email, collaboration and other elements to daily life – notably iTunes Matching at $25/month will allow all music you own to be shared with up to 10 devices.

It certainly reduces the storage capacity factor of smartphones in the equation, and with full-online backups and the existing remote management, puts Apple in an even stronger competitive position with RIM.

All-in-all, it’s an impressive set of features to look forward to in the fall.  Here at jacAPPS we’ll continue to beta test the OS and SDK for iOS5 through the summer, and look at ways we can build better apps – and improve existing ones – using the new 200+ new APIs at our disposal.

For additional details, check out Engadget’s hands-on preview of iOS5 and related stories on the WWDC.

Any questions or concerns? Feel free to email me directly at timdavis@jacapps.com.

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Apple, Apps, Future, Mobile, Twitter

As many readers of this blog know, I was fortunate to be one of the speakers at the “140 Characters Conference” held in downtown Detroit last fall.  Since that time, it has been a thrill to connect with Jeff Pulver and the entire 140 Characters community via Twitter.

The more time I spend on Twitter, the greater value I derive.  Many people are surprised when I tell them this, but that’s because many think about Twitter as a way to follow celebrities.

Yes, for millions, that’s what Twitter is all about.  But for me, Twitter is a way to connect with some true thought leaders and very interesting people.  That’s where I’ve met Stephen Clark and the #backchannel community, as well as nationally known social media folks like Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan) as well as local professor and media maven Jason Schmitt (@jason_schmitt).  Resources gleaned from Twitter are probably the genesis of at least a quarter of these blog posts.

But the other benefit of Twitter is learning how to communicate in a tight space.  At the “140 Characters Conference,” most talks are limited to 10 minutes, and Jeff discourages PowerPoint.  So there you are, on stage, in real time, telling your story.  It is a challenge to effectively make your points and engage an audience in that setting and in that tight time frame. 

That’s actually emblematic of how Twitter works.  You have just 140 characters to say something compelling, clever, meaty, and/or viral.  In radio, we frequently focus on “water cooler talk” and how to create content that people will be talking about later in the day.  Well on Twitter, you can see the fruits of your labor in “retweets" and mentions.  Either your thoughts are clear, concise, provocative, thoughtful, and helpful – or they aren’t.

And in speaking with our new digital/social strategist, Lori Lewis, we've talked about the obvious parallels between effectively communicating on Twitter and thriving on the air in a PPM market.  The audience’s window of tolerance is shrinking.  Their patience level is diminishing.  They just don’t have the time to listen to a DJ struggle or ramble during a break or a bit, especially if it's unprepared.

Refining content and communication for newly tuned digital eyes and ears is an ongoing challenge for creators in every medium.  In radio, PPM – while often criticized for subduing personality – may turn out to be a sort of blessing because of its pressures to refine and condense while staying compelling.

Arbitron says that success in PPM has more to do with your brand than it does in applying formatic tactics.  It’s not about making breaks :30 or less.  It is about saying something smart, insightful, and interesting in a short amount of time and space.

Some people find Twitter confining.  I find it invigorating and challenging.  Unlike this blog where there are no space limitations (just your potential boredom), in Twitter I am forced to write it, edit it, read it, edit it again, and work hard to make every tweet count.  In many ways, great tweets are great teases, especially if they're designed to get you to click on a link or join in on the conversation. 

That’s a good exercise for any DJ or corporate communicator.  On a short field, can you score in the Red Zone?

Twitter is great practice for all your communication, on the air and off. If you can connect on Twitter, you have the ability to connect anywhere. 

 See you there.  (I'm @fnjacobs)

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Social Media, Twitter