On June 8th 2009 the WWDC started with a keynote delivered by Phil Schiller. On June 12th WWDC ended. The keynote wasn’t that spectacular, since it didn’t really deliver new products. And the launch of OS 3.0 was expected long before the event even started. Nothing really new on the horizon. The 13″ MacBook was added to the pro line, Snow Leopard was also introduced (also to no-ones surprise), and ofcourse the introduction of the new iPhone. But even that product dind’t look refreshing. Still the WWDC delivered some footage that amazed us.
Personal Favorite
To us personally, the introduction of the iPhone 3GS interested us most. While a little disappointed about the appearance of the iPhone, we knew it would bring some beautiful new features with it. Rumors knew long before the start of this event, a new iPhone would be introduced and in January this year we got the first glimps of OS 3.0. It seemed the look of the new iPhone interested most people. We have an overview of the different looks of the newest iPhone here. It seems the iPhone 3GS is just an iPhone 3G. The outside looks the same. The difference is inside the device.
New Features
The iPhone 3GS comes with a 600 MHz processor (188 MHz more than the iPhone 3G), 256 MB of memory (twice as much as the previous iPhone), a Power-VR SGX graphics processor, a 3 MP camera, a compass, much better battery, and an oleofobic screen. This new hardware gives a lot of new possiblities to developers. We’ll see much better graphics in games and besides the use of the accelerometer, developers can now use the compass as well to add the possibility to games to navigate horizontally, vertically AND up and down.
The new iPhone OS 3.0 will also add several new features such as Voice Control, Video Editing, Voice Memos, Cut Copy & Paste, Tethering and the option to install 3rd party navigation software. Navigon and TomTom are competing in a race of who will be the first to come out with navigation software for the iPhone.
So although the iPhone 3GS doesn’t look different from the outside the real beauty is within.
WWDC stuff
There was a lot to do at the WWDC. Phil Schiller introduced the audience to Apples new MacBook line. As said before the 13″ MacBook had been added to the pro line. Prices were dropped significantly and even the MacBook Air was not left untouched. The Air got some hardware upgrades as more memory and better processor, but the biggest change was the price. The more expensive MacBook Air dropped almost $700 in price.
After the hardware talk, it was time for the new OS X Snow Leopard which will introduce some new features. It is as if Apple wanted as much people to buy their stuff, because not only their laptops dropped in price, the new Snow Leopard costs only $29. That’s very affordable. The keynote than changed subject to the iPhone. First the OS 3.0 and then the new iPhone itself.
After the keynote, people could talk to each other about new games or applications, there were all kinds of lectures, everybody could take a look at the new MacBook Pro line and there was even a huge pulsating wall made out of twenty 30″ screens. Each screen powered by a Mac Pro. Displayed on the screens were the 20.000 most popular apps in the App Store. Every time when a new app was downloaded there was a small amount of waves around the icon of the app. It was very impressive to look at.
Happy Developers
During the WWDC a video was shown about several developers who talked about how happy they are with Apple and the iPhone. Developers as Igloo Games, Airstrip and MLB.com discuss their experiences about the SDK and the App Store. Still it seems not everyone is happy. PC World created a list of “top 10 things we wanted from Apple and didn’t get.” Some of the promised things are the return of Steve Jobs, a removable battery, the iProd and IFPGA and the always returning Apple-tablet.
TouchPodium wrote an reaction in return. You can ask yourself if the iPhone nano and FM-transmitter will ever be announced. New iPods are always announced somewhere in August / September and there’s probably no-one who would have expected the announcement of Flash on the iPhone.
The list from PC World can be found here: WWDC No Shows: 10 Things We Wanted From Apple and Didn’t Get
The reaction of TouchPodium can be found here: PC World Shares Their Opinions of WWDC ‘09; Not Impressed.
And if you still haven’t seen the Apple keynote: Watch it in Quicktime format.
Below is the video of the very happy iPhone developers:
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