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Powerpage.org cites a Wall Street Journal article reporting that Apple has worked with AT&T to "rejigger" how the iPhone works with AT&T's towers, resulting in a reduced load for some tasks. It was not clear what changes were made, but apparently a "crash course in wireless technology" allowed them to figure out how the iPhone can get along better with AT&T.

Such news indicates the lengths that Apple is willing to go to in order to be a good partner with AT&T. While few people are singing AT&T's praises, apparently there is an effort within the company to improve the network in large cities to reduce the number of dropped calls. According to Powerpage, "A random performance test released in February found that AT&T's 3G network speeds had improved by 84%."

The problem is that AT&T's 3G speed has never been the main issue. AT&T is, and has been, very happy to compare themselves to Verizon when it comes to 3G speed. When it comes to reliability (i.e. how well you can actually use that speed) and availability, however, AT&T's 3G has consistently come up short.

Not to mention that whole tethering issue that AT&T hasn't mentioned in several months, despite having originally promised it would be available by the end of 2009.
If Apple is working on a CDMA/Verizon-compatible iPhone, AT&T's efforts are probably going to be too little, too late. After almost three years of consistently disappointing iPhone users with poor 3G availability, dropped calls, late availability of MMS, and even later availability of tethering (assuming it is ever available), iPhone owners have little reason to stay with the company.

Apple tweaking iPhone to work better on AT&T's network originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 31 Mar 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apple tweaking iPhone to work better on AT&T's network originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 31 Mar 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The company has been able to do a few new tricks with the bigger screen that could make it worth the download, and we get a sneak peek.

Originally posted at Web Crawler

We're not quite at the height of Apple frenzy, but looking at the bell curve, we're only a standard deviation or two from its zenith (we imagine the fever pitch will be in tandem with Saturday's iPad launch, if history and human nature tells us anything). Of course, that doesn't stop the rumor mill from amping up production, and so on with the show! First on the docket, remember last month's discovery of multitasking comments in the iPhone SDK 3.2 beta? Well, Apple Insider's apparently got it on word from its network of sources that OS 4.0 will in fact include multitasking, with app switching purportedly done by double-tapping the home button and selecting the appropriate active app icon. If you ask us, that sounds similar in function to command / tab switching, but the people claiming to be in the know liken it more to Expose for OS X.

Taking a step back to focus on the actual hardware for a moment, iPad in Canada is hearing that local Apple store employees have been told April 24th is a "black out period," meaning no one is allowed to take that day off. That usually coincides with major product launch, and we did hear the international iPad debut would be late April, but Apple's yet to make its non-US plans concrete. It is the last Saturday of the month, however, and perhaps it'll coincide with the other countries as well. As always, none of this is confirmed and shouldn't be taken as gospel in any way, shape, or form. We can't stop you from getting your hopes up, but don't blame us if those dreams get shattered by a sucker punch of reality.

Apple rumor twofer: Expose-like multitasking in iPhone OS 4.0, international iPad launch on April 24th originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Mar 2010 18:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yes, the iPad can run most iPhone games, but with more screen real estate and a faster processor, the iPad could also make many of them better. Here's a look at 30 titles we think would play well on Apple's tablet.

A quick double-press of the Home button will bring up an icon view of running apps. Tap one to switch between them. Sound good?

Venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caulfield and Byers on Wednesday announced that the company would be double its investment pool for software on Apple's App Store to $200 million.

Per AppleInsider, the announcement centers around the iPad, as more than 20 iFund-supported applications are being written for the device, which is slated for a Saturday release in the United States. The firm stated that it believes the iPad "will lead the next wave of innovation in mobile computing."

According to iPad in Canada, Apple has told its Canada Apple Store employees that April 24 is a black out date, meaning no employees are allowed to request this day off, fueling the rumor that April 24 will be the launch day for the iPad in Canada. Apple typically only enforces a black out date when something big is happening. If history repeats itself, Apple could allow Canadians to pre-order the iPad as early as Friday, three weeks before the rumored 24th launch day — the same as the U.S. pre-order and launch schedule.

Based on a report by the Wall Street Journal [subscription required] today, AT&T is working hard to beef up their network to handle the continued load from the iPhone, including enlisting help from Apple. Aside from the mission to assure Steve Jobs they were working on the problem, AT&T met with Apple designers to discuss wireless networking. As a result, Apple was able to change how the iPhone communicates with AT&T's network, lessening the load for basic tasks such as locating the closest tower or checking for new messages.

According to AppleInsider, iPhone OS 4.0 will finally include support for running multiple third party applications at the same time. The rumor suggests that by hitting the home button twice, users will see an Exposé-like interface displaying the icons of running apps, allowing the user to quickly switch to any of those apps.

The newly updated MapQuest 4 Mobile can now speak to you while you travel, effectively providing free GPS-powered navigation.