Apple iPhone Will Multitask: Rumor
CUPERTINO, Calif. (TheStreet) --Apple (AAPL) - Get Report fans have discovered a reason for cheer, and apologists may soon get to lighten up a bit. The new iPhone will finally allow multitasking, according to a report by blog AppleInsider.
If true -- unlike rumors that preceded the last two versions of the iPhone -- the move would answer one of the biggest criticisms of Apple's mobile software system.
Multitasking, or operating multiple applications like messaging, music and Web browser simultaneously, has been a basic function on
Research In Motion
(RIMM)
BlackBerries and
(GOOG) - Get Report
phones.
|
Not so at Apple, where simplicity is the rule. But maybe to Apple's credit, the simplicity has fostered smooth operation, one of the winning virtues of the iPhone. Having only one application running at a time not only conserves battery life, it maximizes memory and processor speeds. Programs run better when they aren't competing for resources.
However, the one-app-at-a-time approach has frustrated even core Apple fans who bemoan its rigidity and how the dumbed-down tactic runs counter to the purpose of a smartphone.
Though there is no mention of the iPad in the
AppleInsider
report, one could presume that multitasking could find its way eventually to the upcoming tablet, which runs on iPhone software.
The news also helps confirm that a new iPhone is in the works. Apple has introduced a new version of the iPhone every summer for the past three years, and analysts and investors are expecting this summer to be no exception.
have been running near an all-time high, and have prompted at least one tech market watcher to pronounce Apple a big fat sell. Apple shares were up 9 cents to $224.93 in late trading Thursday.
-- Written by Scott Moritz in New York
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