Apple Schedules iPhone 3.0 Preview for Journalists (NewsFactor)

They're busy dusting off the chairs and sweeping the stage in the big auditorium on Apple's corporate campus. Around the country, iPhone-geek journalists are getting ready to descend on Cupertino, Calif., lured by Thursday's e-mail announcement of an "Apple event" on Tuesday, March 17. Details are scant, but the company is promising "an advance preview of what we're building" for an upcoming iPhone 3.0 software release.

The event is scheduled to get under way at 10 a.m. Pacific time in Building 4, Town Hall, and a number of tech Web sites have promised live blogging and Twittering.

Feature Speculation

Despite the lack of substance in the Apple invitation -- or perhaps because of it -- tech journalists spent much of Thursday speculating about what Apple might talk about.

At the top of nearly every list are some basic iPhone usability improvements, including such items as copy/paste from one application to another, the ability to send multimedia text messages, expanded Bluetooth capabilities, or even the ability to tether the iPhone to laptops and provide a cellular data connection when there's no Wi-Fi available. There is also widespread expectation that Apple will announce the introduction of a true global search capability, perhaps off an icon on the iPhone home page.

Another popular theme is more extensive and better use of push services, not only for e-mail messages and other online services, but also for application updates. Currently, all updates have to go through the Apple's App Store, which introduces an often-frustrating delay for new versions. Apple may be willing to loosen the reins slightly to allow developers to push updates directly onto the phones of their subscribers.

SDK and Store Changes?

There was at least one specific hint in Apple's invitation: Journalists will have a chance to "learn about the new SDK." There have been growing complaints in recent weeks that Apple has been unusually slow in renewing developer contracts, and the reference to a new software development kit suggests it is the cause of the delay.

One particularly interesting question that will hover over Apple's event is whether the company's tight control of the App Store will loosen when the iPhone 3.0 software upgrade is released.

"I would say the best thing they can do is relax some of the restrictions," said Al Hilwa, program director for application development software at IDC, "and extend the delivery model to applications that are browser-based as opposed to just the native iPhone apps. Given that iTunes itself is more universal than the iPhone, I am surprised they have not tried to think of a broader application distribution strategy with the App Store than just native iPhone apps."

Hilwa suggested that much of the success of the company's App Store is the fact that it is so well-integrated into iTunes, but that Apple's control is a double-edged sword.

"Apple has to always fight its instinct to be protective and controlling," Hilwa said, "which sometimes serves it well, but may also be sometimes what holds it just a few inches shy of true greatness."

source : http://tech.yahoo.com/news/nf/20090312/tc_nf/65280;_ylt=ArsK2npFWyLy0PZpGNhS8UYYQJA5