iPhone（2）

Multimedia

The layout of the music library is similar to that of an iPod or current Symbian S60 phones. The iPhone can sort its media library by songs, artists, albums, videos, playlists, genres, composers, podcasts, audiobooks, and compilations(Sony VAIO PCG-5K1L battery). Options are always presented alphabetically, except in playlists, which retain their order from iTunes. The iPhone uses a large font that allows users plenty of room to touch their selection(SONY VGP-BPS8 battery). Users can rotate their device horizontally to landscape mode to access Cover Flow. Like on iTunes, this feature shows the different album covers in a scroll-through photo library(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ Battery). Scrolling is achieved by swiping a finger across the screen. Alternatively, headset controls can be used to pause, play, skip, and repeat tracks. On the iPhone 3GS(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ11S Battery), the volume can be changed with the included Apple Earphones, and the Voice Control feature can be used to identify a track, play songs in a playlist or by a specific artist, or create a Genius playlist(SONY vgp-bps9 battery).

The photo display application supports both portrait and landscape orientations.

The iPhone supports gapless playback. Like the fifth generation iPods introduced in 2005, the iPhone can play digital video(sony vgp-bpl9 battery), allowing users to watch TV shows and movies in widescreen. Double-tapping switches between widescreen and fullscreen video playback(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ32 Battery).

The iPhone allows users to purchase and download songs from the iTunes Store directly to their iPhone. The feature originally required a Wi-Fi network, but now can use the cellular data network if one is not available(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ440N Battery).

The iPhone includes software that allows the user to upload, view, and e-mail photos taken with the camera. The user zooms in and out of photos by sliding two fingers further apart or closer together, much like Safari(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ280E Battery). The Camera application also lets users view the camera roll, the pictures that have been taken with the iPhone's camera. Those pictures are also available in the Photos application, along with any transferred from iPhoto or Aperture on a Mac, or Photoshop in Windows(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ460E Battery).

Internet connectivity

Wikipedia Main Page on the iPhone's Safari web browser in landscape mode

Internet access is available when the iPhone is connected to a local area Wi-Fi or a wide area GSM or EDGE network, both second-generation (2G) wireless data standards(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ190 Battery). The iPhone 3G introduced support for third-generation UMTS and HSDPA 3.6, but not HSUPA networks, and only the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 support HSDPA 7.2. AT&T introduced 3G in July 2004(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ150E Battery), but as late as 2007 Steve Jobs stated that it was still not widespread enough in the US, and the chipsets not energy efficient enough, to be included in the iPhone. Support for 802.1X, an authentication system commonly used by university and corporate Wi-Fi networks, was added in the 2.0 version update(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ260E Battery).

By default, the iPhone will ask to join newly discovered Wi-Fi networks and prompt for the password when required. Alternatively, it can join closed Wi-Fi networks manually. The iPhone will automatically choose the strongest network(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ140E Battery), connecting to Wi-Fi instead of EDGE when it is available. Similarly, the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4 prefer 3G to 2G, and Wi-Fi to either. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and 3G (on the iPhone 3G, 3GS, and 4) can all be deactivated individually(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ11l Battery). Airplane mode disables all wireless connections at once, overriding other preferences. However, once in Airplane mode, one can explicitly enable Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth modes to join and continue to operate over one or both of those networks while the cellular network transceivers remain off(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ11z Battery).

The iPhone 3GS has a maximum download rate of 7.2 Mbit/s. Furthermore, files downloaded over cellular networks must be smaller than 20 MB. Larger files, often email attachments or podcasts, must be downloaded over Wi-Fi (SONY VAIO VGN-FZ11m Battery) (which has no file size limits). If Wi-Fi is unavailable, one workaround is to open the files directly in Safari.

Safari is the iPhone's native web browser, and it displays pages similar to its Mac and Windows counterparts(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ18m Battery). Web pages may be viewed in portrait or landscape mode and supports automatic zooming by pinching together or spreading apart fingertips on the screen, or by double-tapping text or images. The iPhone supports neither Flash nor Java. Consequently(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ21m Battery), the UK's Advertising Standards Authority adjudicated that an advertisement claiming the iPhone could access "all parts of the internet" should be withdrawn in its current form, on grounds of false advertising(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ410 Battery). In a rare public letter in April 2010, Apple CEO Steve Jobs outlined the reasoning behind the absence of Flash on the iPhone (and iPad). The iPhone supports SVG, CSS, HTML Canvas, and Bonjour(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ21 Battery).

The maps application can access Google Maps in map, satellite, or hybrid form. It can also generate directions between two locations, while providing optional real-time traffic information(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ160 Battery). During the iPhone's announcement, Jobs demonstrated this feature by searching for nearby Starbucks locations and then placing a prank call to one with a single tap. Support for walking directions, public transit, and street view was added in the version 2.2 software update(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ210CE Battery), but no voice-guided navigation. The iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 can orient the map with its digital compass. Apple also developed a separate application to view YouTube videos on the iPhone, which streams videos after encoding them using the H.264 codec. Simple weather and stock quotes applications also tap in to the Internet(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ38M Battery).

iPhone users can and do access the Internet frequently, and in a variety of places. According to Google, in 2008 the iPhone generated 50 times more search requests than any other mobile handset(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31z Battery). According to Deutsche Telekom CEO René Obermann, "The average Internet usage for an iPhone customer is more than 100 megabytes. This is 30 times the use for our average contract-based consumer customers(Sony Vaio VGN-FZ31S battery)." Nielsen found that 98% of iPhone users use data services, and 88% use the internet. In China, the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS were built and distributed without Wi-fi(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31E Battery).

With the introduction of the Verizon iPhone in January 2011, the issue of using internet while on the phone has been brought to the public's attention. Under the two US carriers, internet and phone could be used simultaneously on ATT networks, whereas the Verizon networks only support for the use of each separately(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31J Battery).

Text input

The virtual keyboard on the original iPhone's touchscreen.

For text input, the iPhone implements a virtual keyboard on the touchscreen. It has automatic spell checking and correction, predictive word capabilities, and a dynamic dictionary that learns new words(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31M Battery). The keyboard can predict what word the user is typing and complete it, and correct for the accidental pressing of keys near the presumed desired key. The keys are somewhat larger and spaced farther apart when in landscape mode(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31B Battery), which is supported by only a limited number of applications. Touching a section of text for a brief time brings up a magnifying glass, allowing users to place the cursor in the middle of existing text(HP PAVILION DV6000 battery). The virtual keyboard can accommodate 21 languages, including character recognition for Chinese. The 3.0 update brought support for cut, copy, or pasting text, as well as landscape keyboards in more applications(SONY VGP-BPS13 Battery).

E-mail and text messages

The iPhone also features an e-mail program that supports HTML e-mail, which enables the user to embed photos in an e-mail message. PDF, Word, Excel, and Powerpoint attachments to mail messages can be viewed on the phone(SONY VGP-BPS13B/B Battery). Apple's MobileMe platform offers push email, which emulates the functionality of the popular BlackBerry email solution, for an annual subscription. Yahoo! offers a free push-email service for the iPhone(SONY VGP-BPS13/B Battery). IMAP (although not Push-IMAP) and POP3 mail standards are also supported, including Microsoft Exchange and Kerio Connect. In the first versions of the iPhone firmware, this was accomplished by opening up IMAP on the Exchange server(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15T Battery). Apple has also licensed Microsoft ActiveSync and now supports the platform (including push email) with the release of iPhone 2.0 firmware. The iPhone will sync e-mail account settings over from Apple's own Mail application, Microsoft Outlook, and Microsoft Entourage(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15G Battery), or it can be manually configured on the device itself. With the correct settings, the e-mail program can access almost any IMAP or POP3 account.

Text messages are presented chronologically in a mailbox format similar to Mail, which places all text from recipients together with replies(SONY VGP-BPS13A/S Battery). Text messages are displayed in speech bubbles (similar to iChat) under each recipient's name. The iPhone has built-in support for e-mail message forwarding, drafts, and direct internal camera-to-e-mail picture sending(SONY VGP-BPS13AS Battery). Support for multi-recipient SMS was added in the 1.1.3 software update. Support for MMS was added in the 3.0 update, but not for the original iPhone and not in the U.S. until September 25, 2009(SONY VGP-BPS13S Battery).

Third-party applications

See also: iPhone SDK and App Store

At WWDC 2007 on June 11, 2007 Apple announced that the iPhone would support third-party "web applications" written in Ajax that share the look and feel of the iPhone interface(SONY VGP-BPS13B/S Battery). On October 17, 2007, Steve Jobs, in an open letter posted to Apple's "Hot News" weblog, announced that a software development kit (SDK) would be made available to third-party developers in February 2008(SONY VAIO PCG-5G2L battery). The iPhone SDK was officially announced and released on March 6, 2008, at the Apple Town Hall facility. It is a free download, with an Apple registration, that allows developers to develop native applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, then test them in an "iPhone simulator"(SONY VAIO PCG-5G3L battery). However, loading an application onto a real device is only possible after paying a Apple Developer Connection membership fee. Developers are free to set any price for their applications to be distributed through the App Store, of which they will receive a 70% share(SONY VAIO PCG-5J1L battery). Developers can also opt to release the application for free and will not pay any costs to release or distribute the application beyond the membership fee. The App Store was launched with the release of iOS 2.0, on July 11, 2008(SONY VAIO PCG-5K2L battery). The update was free for iPhone users; owners of older iPod Touches were required to pay US$10 for it.

Once a developer has submitted an application to the App Store, Apple holds firm control over its distribution(SONY VAIO PCG-5L1L battery). Apple can halt the distribution of applications it deems inappropriate, for example, I Am Rich, a US$1000 program that simply demonstrated the wealth of its user. Apple has been criticized for banning third party applications that enable a functionality that Apple does not want the iPhone to have(SONY VAIO PCG-5J2L battery): In 2008, Apple rejected Podcaster, which allowed iPhone users to download podcasts directly to the iPhone claiming it duplicated the functionality of iTunes. Apple has since released a software update that grants this capability(SONY VAIO PCG-6S2L battery).

NetShare, another rejected app, would have enabled users to tether their iPhone to a laptop or desktop, using its cellular network to load data for the computer. Many carriers of the iPhone later globally allowed tethering before Apple officially supported it with the upgrade to the iOS 3.0(SONY VAIO PCG-6S3L battery), with AT&T Mobility being a relative latecomer in the United States. In most cases, the carrier charges extra for tethering an iPhone(SONY VAIO PCG-6V1L battery).

Before the SDK was released, third-parties were permitted to design "Web Apps" that would run through Safari. Unsigned native applications are also available for "jailbroken" phones(SONY VAIO PCG-6W1L battery). The ability to install native applications onto the iPhone outside of the App Store is not supported by Apple, the stated reason being that such native applications could be broken by any software update, but Apple has stated it will not design software updates specifically to break native applications other than those that perform SIM unlocking(SONY VAIO PCG-7111L battery).

Legal action

In December 2010, Reuters reported that some iPhone and iPad users were suing Apple Inc because some applications were passing user information to third party advertisers without permission(SONY VAIO PCG-6W3L battery). Some makers of the applications such as Textplus4, Paper Toss, Weather Channel, Dictionary.com, Talking Tom Cat and Pumpkin Maker have also been named as co-defendants in the lawsuit(SONY VAIO PCG-7113L battery).

Accessibility

The iPhone can enlarge text to make it more accessible for vision-impaired users, and can accommodate hearing-impaired users with closed captioning and external TTY devices. The iPhone 3GS also features white on black mode(SONY VAIO PCG-7133L battery), VoiceOver (a screen reader), and zooming for impaired vision, and mono audio for limited hearing in one ear. Apple regularly publishes Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates which explicitly state compliance with the US regulation "Section 508"(SONY VAIO PCG-7Z1L battery).

Intellectual property

Apple has filed more than 200 patent applications related to the technology behind the iPhone(SONY Vaio VGN-FW31J Battery).

LG Electronics claimed the iPhone's design was copied from the LG Prada. Woo-Young Kwak, head of LG Mobile Handset R&D Center, said at a press conference, "We consider that Apple copied Prada phone after the design was unveiled when it was presented in the iF Design Award and won the prize in September 2006(SONY VAIO PCG-7Z2L battery)."

On September 3, 1993, Infogear filed for the U.S. trademark "I PHONE" and on March 20, 1996 applied for the trademark "IPhone". "I Phone" was registered in March 1998, and "IPhone" was registered in 1999(SONY VAIO PCG-8Y1L battery). Since then, the I PHONE mark had been abandoned. Infogear's trademarks cover "communications terminals comprising computer hardware and software providing integrated telephone, data communications and personal computer functions" (1993 filing) (SONY VAIO PCG-8Y2L battery), and "computer hardware and software for providing integrated telephone communication with computerized global information networks" (1996 filing). Infogear released a telephone with an integrated web browser under the name iPhone in 1998(SONY VAIO PCG-8Z2L battery). In 2000, Infogear won an infringement claim against the owners of the iphones.com domain name. In June 2000, Cisco Systems acquired Infogear, including the iPhone trademark. On December 18, 2006 they released a range of re-branded Voice over IP (VoIP) sets under the name iPhone(SONY VAIO PCG-8Z1L battery).

In October 2002, Apple applied for the "iPhone" trademark in the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, and the European Union. A Canadian application followed in October 2004 and a New Zealand application in September 2006. As of October 2006 only the Singapore and Australian applications had been granted(SONY VAIO PCG-7112L battery). In September 2006, a company called Ocean Telecom Services applied for an "iPhone" trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and Hong Kong, following a filing in Trinidad and Tobago(SONY VAIO PCG-6W2L battery). As the Ocean Telecom trademark applications use exactly the same wording as Apple's New Zealand application, it is assumed that Ocean Telecom is applying on behalf of Apple. The Canadian application was opposed in August 2005 by a Canadian company called Comwave who themselves applied for the trademark three months later. Comwave has been selling VoIP devices called iPhone since 2004(SONY VAIO PCG-5K1L battery).

Shortly after Steve Jobs' January 9, 2007 announcement that Apple would be selling a product called iPhone in June 2007, Cisco issued a statement that it had been negotiating trademark licensing with Apple and expected Apple to agree to the final documents that had been submitted the night before(SONY VGP-BPS21A/B Battery). On January 10, 2007 Cisco announced it had filed a lawsuit against Apple over the infringement of the trademark iPhone, seeking an injunction in federal court to prohibit Apple from using the name(SONY VGP-BPS21B Battery). More recently, Cisco claimed that the trademark lawsuit was a "minor skirmish" that was not about money, but about interoperability. On February 2, 2007, Apple and Cisco announced that they had agreed to temporarily suspend litigation while they held settlement talks(SONY VGP-BPS21 Battery), and subsequently announced on February 20, 2007 that they had reached an agreement. Both companies will be allowed to use the "iPhone" name in exchange for "exploring interoperability" between their security, consumer, and business communications products(SONY VGP-BPS21/S Battery).

The iPhone has also inspired several leading high-tech clones, driving both Apple's popularity and consumer willingness to upgrade iPhones quickly(SONY VGP-BPS13A/Q Battery).

On October 22, 2009 Nokia filed a lawsuit against Apple for infringement of its GSM, UMTS and WLAN patents. Nokia alleges that Apple has been violating ten of Nokia's patents since the iPhone's initial release(SONY VGN NR11Z/T battery).

Restrictions

Unlocked iPhone firmware version 3.0. The serial number and Wi-Fi address have been removed from the image(SONY VGN NR11Z/S battery).

Apple tightly controls certain aspects of the iPhone. The hacker community has found many workarounds, most of which are disallowed by Apple and threaten to void the device's warranty. "Jailbreaking" allows users to install apps not available on the App Store or modify basic functionality. SIM unlocking allows the iPhone to be used on a different carrier's network(SONY VGN NR11M/S battery).

Activation

The iPhone normally prevents access to its media player and web features unless it has also been activated as a phone with an authorized carrier. On July 3, 2007, Jon Lech Johansen reported on his blog that he had successfully bypassed this requirement and unlocked the iPhone's other features with a combination of custom software and modification of the iTunes binary(SONY VGN NR11S/S battery). He published the software and offsets for others to use.

Unlike the original, the iPhone 3G must be activated in the store in most countries. This makes the iPhone 3G more difficult, but not impossible, to hack. The need for in-store activation(SONY VGP-BPS13B/Q Battery), as well as the huge number of first-generation iPhone and iPod Touch users upgrading to iPhone OS 2.0, caused a worldwide overload of Apple's servers on July 11, 2008, the day on which both the iPhone 3G and iPhone OS 2.0 updates as well as MobileMe were released(SONY VGP-BPS13Q Battery). After the update, devices were required to connect to Apple's servers to authenticate the update, causing many devices to be temporarily unusable. Apple avoided this by releasing the 3.0 software two days before the iPhone 3GS(SONY Vaio VGN-FW21M Battery).

Users on the O2 network in the United Kingdom, however, can buy the phone online and activate it via iTunes as with the previous model. Even where not required, vendors usually offer activation for the buyer's convenience(SONY Vaio VGN-FW21L Battery). In the U.S., Apple has begun to offer free shipping on both the iPhone 3G and the iPhone 3GS (when available), reversing the in-store activation requirement. Best Buy and Wal-Mart will also sell the iPhone(SONY Vaio VGN-FW21J Battery).

Unlicensed third-party software and jailbreaking

See also: Jailbreaking for iOS and iPhone Dev Team

The iPhone's operating system is designed to only run software that has an Apple-approved cryptographic signature. This restriction can be overcome by "jailbreaking" the phone(SONY Vaio VGN-FW21E Battery), which involves replacing the iPhone's firmware with a slightly modified version that does not enforce the signature check. Doing so may be a circumvention of Apple's technical protection measures(SONY Vaio VGN-FW11S Battery). Apple, in a statement to the United States Copyright Office in response to EFF lobbying for a DMCA exception for this kind of hacking, claimed that jailbreaking the iPhone would be copyright infringement due to the necessary modification of system software. Jailbroken iPhones may be susceptible to computer viruses, but few such incidents have been reported(SONY Vaio VGN-FW11M Battery).

SIM unlocking

United States

iPhone 3G shown with the SIM tray partially ejected.

Most iPhones were and still are sold with a SIM lock, which restricts the use of the phone to one particular carrier, a common practice with subsidized GSM phones. Unlike most GSM phones however(SONY Vaio VGN-FW11 Battery), the phone cannot be officially unlocked by entering a code. The locked/unlocked state is maintained on Apple's servers per IMEI and is set when the iPhone is activated(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ21J Battery).

While the iPhone was initially sold in the US only on the AT&T network with a SIM lock in place, various hackers have found methods to "unlock" the phone from a specific network(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ21Z Battery). Although AT&T and Verizon are the only authorized iPhone carriers in the United States, unlocked iPhones can be used with other carriers after unlocking. More than a quarter of the original iPhones sold in the United States were not registered with AT&T(SONY VAIO VGN-FZ21E Battery). Apple speculates that they were likely shipped overseas and unlocked, a lucrative market before the iPhone 3G's worldwide release. iPhones are unlocked by users who wish to use networks other than AT&T's(SONY Vaio VGN-FW31M Battery).

AT&T has stated that the "iPhone cannot be unlocked, even if you are out of contract".On March 26, 2009 AT&T in the United States began selling the iPhone without a contract, though still SIM-locked to their network. The up-front purchase price of such iPhone units is often twice as expensive as those bundled with contracts(SONY Vaio VGN-FW465J Battery). Outside of the United States, policies differ, especially in US territories and insular areas like Guam, where GTA TeleGuam is the exclusive carrier for the iPhone, since neither AT&T nor Verizon have a presence in the area(SONY Vaio VGN-FW139E/H Battery).

United Kingdom

Operators O2, Orange, 3, Vodafone, T-Mobile, as well as MVNO Tesco Mobile sell the device in the UK under subsidised contracts, or for use on pay as you go. They are locked to network initially, though are usually able to be unlocked either after a certain period of contract length has passed, or for a small fee(SONY Vaio VGN-FW139E Battery). The iPhone 4 in the UK is also currently sold unlocked without a contract for full retail price for use on any network the user chooses, but only when bought directly from Apple (either online or in their physical shops) (SONY Vaio VGN-FW31E Battery).

Australia

Five major carriers in Australia, (Three, Optus, Telstra, Virgin Mobile, and Vodafone), offer legitimate unlocking, now at no cost for all iPhone devices, both current and prior models. The iPhone 3GS and the iPhone 4 can also be bought unlocked from a Apple Retail Store, or the Apple Online Store(SONY Vaio VGN-FW17W Battery).

Denmark

In Denmark it is unlocked after 6 months of contract have passed, or earlier if you pay DKK 500 (approx. €70) for unlocking(SONY Vaio VGN-FW32J Battery).

France

In France, the iPhone is locked on the Wireless purchased from (Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom or Virgin Mobile), but can also be bought unlocked in Apple stores. Phones that were initially locked to a carrier are unlocked for free after a certain portion of the bundled contract's fixed term is up, or for a fee at any time before that(Dell N3010 Battery).

Germany

In Germany, the iPhone 3GS or iPhone 4 may be purchased without a SIM-lock directly from Apple.The iPhone may also be purchased through three of the four major German mobile network carriers(Dell INSPIRON 1464 battery).

Other countries

The iPhone is also available without any SIM lock for full retail price in some countries. Vendors in Thailand, Austria, Belgium, Canada, South Africa, Ecuador, Singapore, Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Italy, Israel, New Zealand, Vietnam, Finland and Russia sell iPhones not locked to any carrier(Dell INSPIRON E1505 battery).