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Intro 

What Does iOS4 Do for the iPhone 3G?

When Apple first provided a preview of iOS4 earlier this year, it noted that a number of features wouldn't be supported on the iPhone 3G. It also said that iOS4 won't work on the original iPhone. We know all the features of iOS4 are supported on the iPhone 4, but even the iPhone 3GS won't get access to a number of apps, such as FaceTime.

So, what does work on the iPhone 3G, 3GS, and what doesn't? Is the software worth installing? Phone Scoop finds out.

What Works 

The biggest iOS4 feature that works properly on the iPhone 3G is support for folders. With iOS4, the iPhone 3G can create folders for organizing applications, games, utilities, and so on. Folders can be created directly on the handset or through iTunes. Up to 12 applications can be stored in each folder. Tap the folder, and a window drops down to show the apps stored inside. Drag-and-drop one app on top of another to start building a folder.

Folders  

Next up are the changes iOS4 brings to the iPhone's email program. The iPhone 3G can take advantage of threaded email, and the unified inbox. Similar to Gmail, threaded email on the iPhone lets users group received emails into a conversational format (though it omits emails sent by the iPhone user). Let's say you receive 10 emails with the same subject. When scrolling through your inbox, you'll see the most recent message with the number 10 next to it. Tap the message and it will open up a mini inbox window with the 10 messages inside. You can then scroll through each individually, in order. The biggest problem is that it can require more clicks, and it also doesn't include the emails you have sent in the conversation. The result is a one-sided conversation that doesn't compete with the threaded email Google offers to Android devices.

Threaded Email  

The iPhone 3G can also use the unified inbox feature. The unified inbox will lump all the email from each email account on the iPhone into one master inbox. This makes it easier to scan through multiple accounts at once. I generally have three email accounts attached to any phone that I use. This new feature lets me avoid the annoying process of backing out of each email account to get to the others. Another bonus is the ability to sync notes between the iPhone and your email. The option to do so is found in iPhones.

The iPhone 3G also has the improved spell check software. With iOS3, Apple's predictive software would guess what you were trying to type and insert it as you went. Often, Apple's software gets the predictions wrong. Now, the software will offer several options when it can't figure out what a user is attempting to type. Giving ou this extra choice leads to fewer corrections later.

The camera and photo gallery apps have both been improved, too. The camera on my iPhone 3G works a bit faster than it used to. The shutter snaps images much quicker. The iPhone 3G also gains the 5x digital zoom capability, though results are mixed at best. In the camera, tap the display down near the shutter release button. You'll see a little software slider. Move it back and forth to zoom in and out.

Camera  

The gallery now lets users sort between places (geo-tagged photos), faces and even events. The improved sorting capabilities can help you find that one particular shot quicker. The one concern is that photos have to be sorted between faces, places and events in iPhoto first.

The new version of Spotlight search is included in iOS4 for the iPhone 3G. Spotlight lets users search the web and Wikipedia from the home screen bar. It also lets users search through SMS messages. This can be extremely handy if you like to archive all your text messages. Apple has added Microsoft's Bing search option as a choice in the iPhone's Safari browser. Google and Yahoo search are also still options, and Google remains the default search engine.

According to the Settings menu, tethering will be offered to users of the iPhone 3G. This software has been around for a year, but AT&T has just committed to offering it for iPhone users in the U.S. This is the first time it has officially appeared. It costs an extra $20 per month, but AT&T hasn't said exactly when it will become available.

A few other features added to the iPhone 3G include iTunes playlist editing and creating. Rather than rely on iTunes to create and edit playlists, they can be created on the flot directly from the iPhone.

Playlists  

The iPhone 3G adds support for multiple Exchange accounts. This means people can have a work account and a personal Exchange account both work on the device.

One of my favorite features is the new character counter. WIth the flick of a button in the settings menu, users can choose to display the number of characters used in SMS/MMS messages.

Last, the iPhone 3G gains the ability to show and hide individual calendars. This means you can sort out your work, personal, and other calendars one at a time if that makes viewing them easier.

In all, these new features are definitely a worthwhile upgrade for iPhone 3G users.

What Doesn't Work 

The biggest let down is that multitasking isn't available on the iPhone 3G. Apple says its older processor just can't handle the feature. With iOS4 on the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4, double-tapping the home button brings up a list of open apps that users can jump to quickly. This simply isn't present on the iPhone 3G. The multitasking is probably more accurately described as faster switching between application. Only certain applications can truly run in the background, and the app switching doesn't necessarily show you other open apps so much as it lets you jump to recently used apps faster. Probably the most important aspect of this is that the iPhone preserves the "state" in which you leave apps. In other words, if you've started typing an email, and jump to the browser, you won't lose your spot in the email.

Multitasking  

For some reason, the new home screen wallpaper tool isn't available to the iPhone 3G. Not the biggest let-down in the world, but it's a seemingly odd omission for what appears to be a simple feature.

Wallpaper  

The iPhone 3G does not support Bluetooth keyboards, which the iPhone 3GS, iPad, and (presumably) iPhone 4 do. Again, not the biggest disappointment. Apple hasn't explained why this feature isn't supported, but it is possible it has to do with the components inside the iPhone 3G. With the iPhone 3GS, users can pair any Bluetooth keyboard and use that for text entry. What's great is a lot of keyboard commands, such as Control+C for Copy and Control+V for paste are supported.

With iOS on the iPhone 3GS, the screen can be locked in either portrait or landscape orientation. This feature is built into the multitasking tool in iOS4. It is not available to the iPhone 3G. This means that the screen will continue to automatically rotate when the phone is rotated.

Thankfully, the list of features the iPhone 3G gains with iOS4 is longer than the list of features it doesn't gain.

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Eric has been covering the mobile telecommunications industry for 17 years at various print and online publications. He studied at Rutgers Newark and University of Kentucky, and has a degree in writing. He likes playing guitar, attending concerts, listening to music, and driving sports cars.

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