Apple To Deliver iOS4 Today

Users with existing iPhone 3G and 3GS phones, and iPod Touch devices, will be able to get the new version of the iPhone operating system, iOS4 today, but iPad users will have to wait till later this year.

Insiders have leaked a credible story that the new software will be on Apple servers from 5pm UK time – and observers are already predicting that demand will overload Apple’s systems, just as the demand for the new iPhone 4 crashed Apple’s sales servers.

The new version of the operating system, announced in April, adds multitasking to devices. Business users also get support for Microosft Exchange 2010. More controversially, it also includes the iAd platform, which allows app makers to include adverts within their application.

iOS4 will be included in the iPhone 4, which is currently selling very fast. It will run on the iPad, but not until later this year, according to Apple.

A new generation of iPhones

The new iOS4 responded to criticism of perceived weakness in the iPhone OS, and is intended to make Apple’s mobile devices compete better against rivals such as Google’s Android OS.

Other new features include improved e-mail management, folder creation and management, and an e-book reader application as well as better ways to handle photos.

Last year, Apple’s devices were seen to be standing still, and analysts predicted iPhone prices would be drastically reduced in 2010. Renewed excitement around the iPhone 4 and the iPad has made this seem a less likely prospect however.

The upgrade to the operating system, as well as improvements to the physical hardware have made iPhone 4 a fast seller. In the US, the web sites of Apple and AT&T were overloaded by high demand, and in the UK, Apple’s pre-order stock sold out within 24 hours.

The iPhone itself has been made thinner and lighter, and given a longer-lasting seven hour battery. The phone also has a front-facing camera for video conferencing and a built-in three-axis gyroscope.

The  new iPhone has turned out to be very close to the prototype which leaked to gadget sites early in 2010.

The new OS can be downloaded by people who have the latest version of iTune’s 9.2, the latest version of Apple’s media software.