iOS 4.2 Released with New Features and Updates
November 23, 2010 The much awaited iOS 4.2 has been released by Apple. Here are some new features in iOS 4.2 : I’m pretty sure I saw a similar App already on the App Store. Or was it on the Cydia store. Anyways, if there wasn’t one, I think this is pretty awesome … but only if you have a compatible printer. AirPlay : Wirelessly stream your videos and music to AirPlay-enabled speakers, recievers and even AppleTV. This is a pretty cool feature since usually you will carry most of your favourite media content on your phone. The only hitch, as with AirPrint is, that you have compatible devices. Find my iPhone : This is a MobileMe feature that let’s you find your missing device. Once you set it up, you can locate your lost device on the map, send a distress message on the screen, remotely set a password lock and even remotely delete all your data. And the best part is, once you retrive the data, you can restore everything back from your backup. Find Text on WebPages : Search for terms on the current web page on your Safari Mobile browser using the search field next to the address bar. I really wanted this feature. It’s surprising Apple didn’t have this form the start. Typical Apple , eh ? New Dock Controls : Among other things, double-tapping the Home button will bring up a list of all open applications. This was something Nokia devices already had and was much needed in iPhones/Touches since a long time. However, I think this feature is available only on the modern devices that support multi-tasking , like, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPod Touch 4th Generation. The above-mentioned are just some of the major features. iOS 4.2 also has the following features : Keyboard and Dictionary enhancements : Support for over 50 languages and 30 new international keyboards and dictionaries. Custom Message tones : 17 new alerts you can assign to people on your contact list. For a complete list of features, check out the official iOS 4.2 page on Apple’s website. Just be wary of two things : 2) Don’t hold your breath for the update. History tells us that it’s difficult to update to the latest firmware in the first couple of days since everyone is busy downloading at the same time. And anyways, considering the iOS 4.0 fisaco, I would definitely wait a few days and read the reviews for my iPhone 3G device before going for the update.
If you just plug-in your “iDevice” to your PC and run iTunes, you should get the pop-up for the new update. If not, just click on “Check for updates”.
AirPrint : To wirelessly print photos, docs, etc. from your device to an AirPrint-compatible printer
Notes with Fonts : Marker Felt, Helvetica and Chalkboard.
Thank God for small mercies !! I hated the native Notes’ fonts.
1) Not all features are supported on all devices. So be sure to check if your device is supported before you get excited about a feature.