iOS 5 Beta 2: User Interface Tweaks, 3G Over-the-Air Updates, Native Scrolling in Safari

Apple's iOS 5 Beta 2 that was released to developers Friday contains a number of new findings. The biggest one we covered yesterday with the additional of Wi-Fi syncing.

AppleInsider posts a couple of screenshots from the new lock-screen notifications which show a slightly more prominent display:

notif
They also point out that the keyboard in iMessage now recedes when scrolling upwards into message history.

9to53g
3G download support for Over the Air updates appears to be confirmed with these strings found by 9to5mac. Apple had announced that the new version of iOS will support "Over the Air" updates which allows the operating system to be upgraded without syncing to your computer. These strings seem to indicate that this can occur over Wi-Fi or 3G.

Another more subtle tweak was posted by Johan Brook which reveals that Apple is now supporting a new CSS property that will allow web developers to get "native" iOS scrolling behavior in their web apps. This refers to the "momentum" inherent in native apps. DaringFireball previously described this behavior:

One area in particular where iPhone web apps fall short of native iPhone apps is scrolling. Take for example a long list, such as your full address book in Contacts, or all your songs in the iPod app. When you scroll these lists, you can fling the list, and the list will scroll at high speed after you let go. The effect is sort of like spinning a wheel with very little friction. With iPhone web apps, you can make a list that looks almost, maybe even exactly, like a native iPhone list view. But all web views on the iPhone scroll with almost no momentum. You can’t fling them. iPhone web views feel like they have a lot of scrolling friction.

While there have been javascript work-arounds floating around, with iOS 5 this functionality will be easily implemented for web apps.

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
New MacBook Pros Launching Tomorrow With These 4 New Features 2

M5 MacBook Models to Use New Compact Camera Module in 2025

Wednesday July 17, 2024 2:58 am PDT by
Apple in 2025 will take on a new compact camera module (CCM) supplier for future MacBook models powered by its next-generation M5 chip, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Writing in his latest investor note on unny-opticals-2025-business-momentum-to-benefit-509819818c2a">Medium, Kuo said Apple will turn to Sunny Optical for the CCM in its M5 MacBooks. The Chinese optical lens company...
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...

Top Rated Comments

PantherCreek Avatar
171 months ago
Keyboard in iMessage

So glad it will go away when scrolling through past messages, I always hated leaving the conversation and going back in just to remove the keyboard! :D

-so glad, I created an account just to post this!
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lfc Avatar
171 months ago
How about pointing out the Mail notifications do not work in this second beta?

Things like this are more important CURRENT info. iOS 5 is public in the FALL.

iOS 5 beta 2 is out now, and on thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of devices. Its pretty damn important right now.

You do know that it's called a beta for a reason, right?
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
celticpride678 Avatar
171 months ago
I'm not very fond of the new lock screen notification bubbles in this build. It's going back to the iOS 4 days; the bubble itself is not consistent with the rest of iOS' UI, not to mention the gradient looks like crap.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ann713 Avatar
171 months ago
Thought this day would never come. Lock screen notifications is the only reason I jailbreak.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WannaGoMac Avatar
171 months ago
Image (https://forums.macrumors.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=291210&thumb=1&d=1309071930)

The one thing that's annoying me is the pull-down icon, it's one of the tackiest things I've seen and really doesn't 'fit' in, it just seems like it was made in 5 seconds.. it also doesn't seem to look like an icon for pull-down, I don't really know what it's meant to look like :s

LOL. Talk about anal retentive. :P

It clearly imitates a physical button with horizontal notches to provide the "grip" to your finger to pull down against.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
OrangeSVTguy Avatar
171 months ago
Finally the keyboard hides. Wish the iPhone had the keyboard on/off button like the iPad.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)