As it was scheduled, the new version of the mobile OS from Apple, iOS 4.1 was released yesterday. iOS 4.1 has better performances compared to the previous version and it’s recommended to all users that have devices currently working with iOS 4.

The update can be done simply by connecting the iPhone to iTunes and proceeding with the update. The iOS 4.1 brings a long list of bug fixes, the possibility of taking HDR pictures, and introduces the Game Center, that allows users to play games in multiplayer mode. Also, with iOS 4.1 there’s the possibility of uploading HD videos with WiFi and download TV programs.

The iPod Touch is not only the most popular verson of the iPod, but also one of the most used mobile gaming platforms. In order to enhance the iPod Touch, Apple has made it slimmer and placed two photocameras: one on the front, and the other on the back.

The new iPod Touch also has the Retina Display, like the iPhone 4, the Apple A4 chipset, a 3-axis Gyro and iOS 4.1 with Game Center. The front photocamera supports FaceTime, making the iPod Touch the second device to support it, while the one in the back is capable of recording HD videos.

The prices for the new iPod Touches will be: $229 for the 8Gb version, $299 for the 32GB version and $399 for the 64Gb version, and they will be available from next week on.

During yesterday’s event, Steve Job has presented the new features on the iOS 4.2, to be launched in November. The first new feature is the possibility of printing documents through network-configured printers with the Print Center feature.

AirPlay was also introduced, which allows users to share pictures, video and songs through Wi-Fi. It will be possible, for example, to listen to songs that aren’t physically present on the device, but on network systems.

The iPad will also now have the possibility of storing the applications in folders and the multitasking will be finally introduced. The update will be free for the iPod touch, iPhone and iPad platforms.

Steve Jobs and Apple have presented a series of new features and products during yesterday’s event. One of them i the new iOS 4.1, the new version of Apple’s mobile OS. This new version includes a long list of bug fixes, promising a more stable OS with some new features.

The first new feature would be the High Dynamic Range photos feature, that allows the device to overlap three different pictures, taken with different lighting. The software then adds those images, selecting the best lighting level for each one of the picture’s zones, so no area is too dark or too light.

The other new feature is Game Center, that allows users to play multiplayer games. Game Center automatically chooses the players in order to associate them with the same level.

Other new features include HD video upload through Wi-Fi, and the download of TV shows directly on the mobile device.

Apple has released the iOS 4.0.2 for the iPhone and iPod touch, and the iOS 3.2.2 for the iPad, trying to solve the PDF bugs, used by JailbreakMe in order to unlock all iOS devices. So if you have done it, better not to update.

In order to update the device, all it takes is connecting it to the PC with the USB cable and open iTunes. The update message should appear to allow users to proceed with the downloading and installation.

Apple has just released the beta 3 version of their iOS 4.1 to developers. The build is the 8B5097d, and has 599 Mb in its iPhone 4 version (only 383 Mb for the iPhone 3GS).

The new version comes together with a new SDK version as well. So far the changes seem very few compared to the Beta 2, and it’s still not sure whether the proximity sensor bug has been fixed or not.

A few days ago, Steve Jobs has explained the reasons for the bad reception for the iPhone 4 during a press-conference made exactly for that reason. After having explained that Apple isn’t perfect, and that its products may have some problems every now and then, he tried to demonstrate and justify that the antenna problems weren’t only with the iPhone 4 but also happened with some of the competitors, such as HTC, Nokia and RIM. Those manufacturers were quick to reply.

Nokia declared they “prioritize antenna performance over physical design if they’re ever in conflict”. RIM declared that “Apple’s attempt to draw RIM into Apple’s self-made debacle is unacceptable. Apple’s claims about RIM products appear to be deliberate attempts to distort the public’s understanding of an antenna design issue and to deflect attention from Apple’s difficult situation”, while HTC said: “we have had very few complaints about signal or antenna problems on the Eris. Approximately 0.016% of the customers”.

Also journalists made interesting questions, like one in possession of a BlackBerry Bold, saying “I can’t get my Bold to drop right now, maybe you can show me how to do it?”. To which, Jobs replied: “You may not see it in certain areas.” Safe to say, the keynote wasn’t well received by everyone, and some claim it’s just a way to alleviate Apple’s mistakes with the iPhone 4.

In any case, at the end of the conference, Steve Jobs has declared that Apple will supply iPhone 4 users with a free bumper or give the money back to those who bought one. All to be done until September 30th, 2010. We have to hope that Apple will work on fixing the problem as well, which is the most important issue.

The advertisement for the iPhone 4 continues in the USA and it’s now concentrated on the FaceTime application, the easy-to-use and intuitive videoconference feature. Apple has released four new ads for FaceTime that show it in action.

The first video is above, and the other four below. Enjoy!

According to many, Apple’s choice of renaming the iPhone OS in iOS would have been based on the idea of extending the OS to new devices, including the Apple TV.

According some sources from Nick Bilton, that writes on the Bits blog for the New York Times online, Apple would have started working on the Apple TV’s software. It seems that the company is interested not only in redesigning the software, using iOS as the base, but also in developing a completely new and cheaper hardware.

It seems that Apple has recently hired interface experts that had previous experience on the field. Also, according to an ex-employee, a big part of Apple’s future research on Apple TV was given to a completely new team.

If Apple TV would indeed be based on iOS, it would be easy to enhance it with ad-hoc applications such as Netflix or ABC. If Apple really means to do this, they need to be quick, or the competition with Google TV would prove harder than expected.

During the keynote where the iPhone OS 4 was presented, renamed iOS 4, Steve JObs affirmed that the new firmware would be available for the iPhone and iPod Touch during Summer, while for the iPad it would be needed to wait until Fall.

Apple has communicated, however, that the first iAD interactive ads will not be reaching the iPad before the first release of iOS 4 for that device, scheduled for November. The new APIs introduced on the iOS 4 are indeed necessary in order to manage the iAd platform. So more likely, no iOS 4 on the iPad until November.