iPad Christmas bonus
The big deal about iOS 4.2, the latest version of Apple's mobile operating system launched today - only a couple of months after the last one, is that all its mobile devices now run on the same OS. The iPad had previously had its own special version of iOS.
Now iPad users get, not only the new features provided by iOS 4.2, but those within 4.0 and 4.1 that were previously denied it. These include: multitasking, folders, unified inbox, game center, AirPlay and AirPrint.
"iOS 4.2 makes the iPad a completely new product, just in time for the holiday season," said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. "Once again, the iPad with iOS 4.2 will define the target that other tablets will aspire to, but very few, if any, will ever be able to hit."
Interesting, Jobs used to drop the definite article when referring to the iPad - this is iPad - as if it was a person. He seems to have realised that was misguided, bordering on sinister, but forgot to send the memo to his marketing people.
Anyway, he's got a point. Right now the rest of the world is struggling to produce a tablet that competes effectively with the iPad, with the Samsung Galaxy Tab probably the best effort so far. All these extra goodies now available to the iPad must surely pull it even further ahead, for now.
The two most prominent features that are completely new to iOS 4.2 are AirPlay and AirPrint. The former allows the streaming of content from an Apple mobile device to Apple TV, the latter is a Wi-Fi technology that allows you to print directly from a mobile device through enabled printers.
