Apple today released iOS 6.1. This latest update to its mobile operating system brings LTE compatibility to 36 new iPhone carriers and 23 new iPad carriers globally, and tweaks to two Apple services: iTunes Match and Siri. More at Macworld. One of the new features in iOS6 I find most interesting is the Advertising Identifier, "a non-permanent, non-personal, device identifier, that apps will use to give you more control over advertisers’ ability to use tracking methods."

  • xzzy

    Actually the most interesting feature is bringing up the song controls on the lock screen and tilting the device around. Look closely at the volume control!

    • http://www.hellomariana.com/ Mariana

      FWIW that feature’s been there since iOS6 was initially launched.

      • geech

        what is the tilting supposed to effect?  I see nothing when I do this.

        • duncancreamer

          Makes the metal slider’s shine rotate a little. Ooooh, aaaaah – nifty. 

          Now can I have my cover albums back? I was hoping this update would have fixed the problems the last update introduced. For example; this is the cover of the Butthole Surfers, not Dolly Parton. But no luck. I think this update had more to do with BlackBerry than users.

    • http://theladyfingers.blogspot.com/ Ladyfingers

      I’m sometimes amazed at the things Apple users don’t get until 3 years after Android.

      • http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby

        Is this an example of such a rarity?

        • http://theladyfingers.blogspot.com/ Ladyfingers

          Android had the notification slider, copy/paste and lock-screen controls a while before iOS.

          For what it’s worth, I borrowed an iPhone the other day and couldn’t find “find on page” in the browser, either. I asked the owner and she had no idea either. I suppose there are other browsers available, but then you can’t change the default associations in iOS.

      • http://profile.yahoo.com/QZ23PDWJP7CRWJ4I5ONUAORLOE Four Strings

        it was nice of apple to invent the iPhone so that android had something to copy in the first place.

  • peterblue11

    one of the new main features is disabling all sound permanently!!! check forums, google. apple is ignoring/coverig up this issue. massive software bug since last update.

    • http://nelc.livejournal.com/ NelC

      What, again? What is it with iOS upgrades and the sound? It seems like every time they have this damn problem.

      • peterblue11

         they changed sensitivity of the sensors (we think) on apple forums. so now a bit of dust at the bottom of your phone will get it stuck in docking mode. also some apps seem to crash internal iOS software and disable all sound.

  • http://www.ikaink.net Itsumishi

    The next time I consider an Apple phone will be sometime after either Apple Maps doesn’t suck or a decent Google Maps App is released and when Apple allows widgets. Oh and the ability to choose something other than Apple’s sucky keyboard… 

    I guess what I’m saying is that I’ll consider Apple again once they catch up with Android’s software.

    • retepslluerb

      Why, oh why, do so many Android users feel the need to comment on their abstinence under articles about Apple?

      I simply don’t get it.  I don’t even grasp the idea when I try imaging myself going to a Marvel forum to proclaim that no one is as cool as Batman.

      • Scurra

        Perhaps because everytime the Apple OS gets a revision, it seems to produce posts like this on non-Apple sites, whereas updates to Windows or Android don’t get quite the same treatment?  (In fairness, Cory does seem to mention Ubuntu upgrades.)  I guess one significant difference is that users of other OSes don’t find themselves forced to update in quite the same way, so knowing about them isn’t as important.

        • retepslluerb

          At a cursory glance, about 50% of the articles at BB are not interesting to me.  Lots of stuff that’s relevant to me doesn’t get covered at all.

          Yet I don’t open them and write about that in the comments.

          Doing so suggests missionary zeal, a boring and annoying  trait.

          • http://www.ikaink.net Itsumishi

            But I was interested. I was interested to see if they’ve decided to try and introduce new features that competed with their competition.

            I’m not a rabid anti-apple consumer. I’ve owned 2 iPhones, I’m typing this on my macbook pro and I’ve got plenty of dead iPods floating about my house. But after losing my iPhone 4s and switching to a much cheaper, less powerful Samsung Nexus S, I just can’t be bothered with Apple’s phones anymore. 

        • http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby

          http://boingboing.net/tag/android

          Also, forced to update? By whom? At least we all have the choice when it’s available and don’t need to wait for our individual device maker to claw some support together for it.

          One day ill work out why android users spend more time complaining about Apple products than they do praising the ones they actually use.

      • chrimux

        Yes, really strange. Must be people who think about switching ;-)

    • http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby

      Ugh widgets – visual noise. Each to their own and all that but I hope it never happens.

      Also there’s a great Google Maps app, I use it all the time, what don’t you like about it?

      And the keyboard? Seriously? First time I’ve heard that one.

      It seems to me like you prefer using Android, so why don’t you keep using Android? Why do you need to list reasons to not use a product that’s clearly not designed for you?

      • http://www.ikaink.net Itsumishi

        Visual noise? No, I just don’t want to have to take numerous unnecessary steps to see something as simple as what room my next class or meeting is in. Having a calendar on my home screen with my next few appointments is clean simple and easier. Likewise turning on and off tethering, wifi, etc is a matter of a single tap, compered to opening about 3 different sub menus of the settings menu on iPhone. Give me “visual noise” over buried functions any day.

        As for the keyboard, well I’ve become accustomed to a “swipe keyboard” system but that comment was more about the fact that Android users can choose the keyboard they use, just like they can choose their mail software, browser, etc.

        As for the Google Maps, I didn’t actually realise that had been released now, I was travelling most of December guess I missed that. 

        Also, I will keep using Android! That’s precisely what I said I’d do. I tend to use the best piece of equipment for each job and leave the product line fanboy stuff for the fanboys.

        - Written on my macbook pro.

        • http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby

          “I tend to use the best piece of equipment for each job and leave the product line fanboy stuff for the fanboys.”

          And with one fell swoop all credibility in the argument went down the toilet.

          • http://www.ikaink.net Itsumishi

            I’ve said I’m not a fanboy so I must be one?

          • http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby

            I didn’t claim that you’re a fanboy; that would be terribly immature and petty of me.

            Hint, hint.

  • http://www.twitter.com/wideawakewesley Wesley Williams

    But have they fixed the god awful App Store performance and inability to browse past purchases when you’ve bought tonnes of apps?

    • http://www.nathanhornby.com/ Nathan Hornby

      App Store performance is pretty shit – a shame because the overall flow of the app is a lot better.

      • http://www.twitter.com/wideawakewesley Wesley Williams

        Agreed. The redesign visually is great, if only it worked and didn’t run like a complete dog.

  • http://arib.livejournal.com Ari B.

    iOS 6.0 and 6.0.1 don’t work with my wifi router at home, I wonder if 6.1 will be any better. (Upgraded my phone, wifi in my apartment stopped working. The phone had an unrelated hardware issue [the power button jammed], and the replacement phone had 5.1.1 on it.) I’ll have to wait for someone running 6.1 to come over and hang out so we can test it.

  • RayCornwall

    I still wish we’d get the return of embedded mp3 lyrics on a non-jailbroken iPad. This still steams me, because it was there when I bought my first iPad (iPad 2), but then Apple took the feature out (only on iPads- iPods and iPhones still have it). If someone can give me a reason why this happened and why it still hasn’t been fixed, I’d love to know. I know there’s a fix if I jailbreak the iPad, but honestly, I *bought* the damn thing to play in Apple’s sandbox, never thinking they’d do something like this.

    I can get embedded mp3 lyrics on my Galaxy S3, BTW. If Samsung ever comes out with a tablet as good as the S3, I’d switch from my iPad. I didn’t fall in love with the current round of models, though.