Following the fall launch of its wildly popular iPhone 4S last year, Apple reportedly plans to return to its summer launch schedule and unveil the next-generation iPhone 5 during its annual Worldwide Developer Conference in June. DigiTimes relayed the claim, which cited a Daiwa Securities analyst when it first appeared in Chinese-language newspaper Commercial Times on Thursday. The continued use of glass-to-glass touch panel technology in the iPhone 5 is the only other detail noted in the report. Apple’s next-generation iPhone is expected to feature a completely redesigned case that utilizes a unibody aluminum architecture much like Apple’s iPad. The handset will also supposedly feature a larger display that measures approximately 4 inches diagonally. BGR reported in December that the new iPhone would feature a new aluminum case and a redesigned antenna system, but our source indicated that a launch would not take place until the fall.

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As 2012 approaches, we thought it would be fun to look back on 2011 one last time and share our biggest stories of the year with you. Here they are in order, from our post popular post of the year to our tenth most popular post:

1. Open letter to BlackBerry bosses: Senior RIM exec tells all as company crumbles around him
2. BlackBerry Messenger will launch on Android and iOS
3. Samsung Galaxy Nexus full specs revealed; Verizon Wireless exclusive
4. BlackBerry Dakota gets pictured; the touch and type BlackBerry you’ve been waiting for
5. Google’s first Ice Cream Sandwich phone to be manufactured by Samsung, possibly dubbed ‘Nexus Prime’
6. Live from Apple’s WWDC 2011 keynote with Steve Jobs
7. Apple testing iPhone for T-Mobile USA
8. Google Nexus 4G detailed – 720p display, 4G LTE, Android 4.0
9. BlackBerry Bold 9900 review
10. Inside RIM: An exclusive look at the rise and fall of the company that made smartphones smart

Have a great and safe New Year.

According to Apple’s new MobileMe transition FAQ page, users will be able to access their iCloud services from the web. Specifically, the site says:

Will I be able to access iCloud services on the web?

Yes. Web access to iCloud Mail, Contacts, Calendar, and Find My iPhone will be available at icloud.com this fall.

The FAQ also details some other issues that MobileMe users may be concerned about as their accounts are moved to iCloud. Apple says that photos, apps, music, and books do not count against the 5GB of free storage that comes with iCloud, and users will be able to buy more at a later time. It’s unclear how much additional space will cost, but Apple says it will explain more in the fall. As you’re likely aware, iCloud was announced during WWDC as a replacement for MobileMe. It will automatically store content across all of your devices and keep your mail, contacts, and calendar in sync across all devices. Users will simply need to sign into a new device to pull in all of their settings, photos, and more.

[Via TechCrunch]

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A firm named iCloud Communications has filed a lawsuit against Apple over its “iCloud” trademark. Apple announced the new cloud storage and sync service dubbed iCloud during its WWDC keynote last week, and iCloud Communications now wants the Cupertino-based tech giant to get rid of “all labels, signs, prints, insignia, letterhead, brochures, business cards, invoices and any other written or recorded material or advertisements” referring to the service. The company argues that Apple’s iCloud service is closely related to iCloud Communications’ business:

The goods and services with which Apple intends to use the “iCloud” mark are identical to or closely related to the goods and services that have been offered by iCloud Communications under the iCloud Marks since its formation in 2005.  However, due to the worldwide media coverage given to and generated by Apple’s announcement of its “iCloud” services and the ensuing saturation advertising campaign pursued by Apple, the media and the general public have quickly come to associate the mark “iCloud” with Apple, rather than iCloud Communications.

iCloud Communications said that Apple consistently uses trademarks owned by others, and references other legal battles over trademarks for the iPhone, iAd, Mighty Mouse, iPad, and even the name Apple itself. The company is asking for “all monetary damages sustained and to be sustained … including lost profits and reasonable royalties,” as well as “all profits, gains and advantages obtained from Apple’s unlawful conduct,” in damages.

[Via Engadget]

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Apple’s new iCloud service — announced during Steve Jobs’ WWDC keynote on Monday — will not launch in the United Kingdom until at least the first quarter of 2012. A representative from the Performing Right Society (PRS), an association of songwriters, music publishers, and composers in the United Kingdom told The Telegraph that negotiations with Apple are still at a “very early stage.”

The licensing team at the PRS have started talks with Apple, but are a long way off from any deals being signed … It is very much the early stages of the negotiations and is similar to the launch of iTunes – which began in the US and took a while to roll out to other countries

iCloud will launch in tandem with iOS 5 in the United States this fall.

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Steve Jobs took the stage at WWDC 2011 to talk about Apple’s iCloud service: “Keeping these devices in sync is driving us crazy,” Jobs said as he prepared to introduce the major new service. “We’ve got a great solution to this problem. We’re going to demote the PC and the Mac to just be a device. We’re going to move the digital hub, the center of your digital life, into the cloud.” iCloud will store all of your content and automatically push it to all of your devices. It’s integrated with all of your apps, and everything is seamless. MobileMe is out, and iCloud is going to be free — amazing! Hit the jump for more.

Steve Jobs is now demoing the next three apps in iCloud besides Mail, Contacts, and Calendar, and the first one is the App Store, which will re-download all purchases and keep them in sync across all devices. Backup is next, and once daily, your devices will backup important information to the cloud. When you get a new Apple device, just sign in and all of your information will be there, like photos, settings, and so on. Documents in the cloud is next up, and Jobs talked about editing a Pages document and how it will automatically be uploaded to the cloud and available from any of your devices. All iWork apps have this feature, including the new ones Apple released last week for iOS.

Photo stream is Steve’s favorite, he says. “How many times have we taken photos on our iPhone, maybe of our kids, and when we got home to share them on an iPad, we had to go through the process of moving them over.” All photos are uploaded to the cloud automatically, and then synced with all devices including your computer.

The last piece of the iCloud puzzle? You guessed it… music! “It’s the same old story,” Jobs explained. “I buy something on my iPhone and it’s not on my other devices. I grab my iPod and I go to listen to that song and it ain’t there!” You can now download any purchased song to any of your devices for free, just like you can with apps, and you can flip a switch to allow all your devices to automatically download newly purchased music.

Apple is giving all users 5GB of free storage, for documents, back ups, mail, etc — and support for up to 20,000 songs! There’s a developer beta available today and iTunes in the cloud will run on iOS 4.3. Here’s Apple’s full release:

Apple Introduces iCloud

Free Cloud Services Beyond Anything Offered to Date

SAN FRANCISCO—June 6, 2011—Apple® today introduced iCloud®, a breakthrough set of free new cloud services that work seamlessly with applications on your iPhone®, iPad®, iPod touch®, Mac® or PC to automatically and wirelessly store your content in iCloud and automatically and wirelessly push it to all your devices. When anything changes on one of your devices, all of your devices are wirelessly updated almost instantly.

“Today it is a real hassle and very frustrating to keep all your information and content up-to-date across all your devices,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “iCloud keeps your important information and content up to date across all your devices. All of this happens automatically and wirelessly, and because it’s integrated into our apps you don’t even need to think about it—it all just works.”

The free iCloud services include:

• The former MobileMe® services—Contacts, Calendar and Mail—all completely re-architected and rewritten to work seamlessly with iCloud. Users can share calendars with friends and family, and the ad-free push Mail account is hosted at me.com. Your inbox and mailboxes are kept up-to-date across all your iOS devices and computers.
• The App Store™ and iBookstore℠ now download purchased iOS apps and books to all your devices, not just the device they were purchased on. In addition, the App Store and iBookstore now let you see your purchase history, and simply tapping the iCloud icon will download any apps and books to any iOS device (up to 10 devices) at no additional cost.
• iCloud Backup automatically and securely backs up your iOS devices to iCloud daily over Wi-Fi when you charge your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Backed up content includes purchased music, apps and books, Camera Roll (photos and videos), device settings and app data. If you replace your iOS device, just enter your Apple ID and password during setup and iCloud restores your new device.
• iCloud Storage seamlessly stores all documents created using iCloud Storage APIs, and automatically pushes them to all your devices. When you change a document on any device, iCloud automatically pushes the changes to all your devices. Apple’s Pages®, Numbers® and Keynote® apps already take advantage of iCloud Storage. Users get up to 5GB of free storage for their mail, documents and backup—which is more amazing since the storage for music, apps and books purchased from Apple, and the storage required by Photo Stream doesn’t count towards this 5GB total. Users will be able to buy even more storage, with details announced when iCloud ships this fall.
• iCloud’s innovative Photo Stream service automatically uploads the photos you take or import on any of your devices and wirelessly pushes them to all your devices and computers. So you can use your iPhone to take a dozen photos of your friends during the afternoon baseball game, and they will be ready to share with the entire group on your iPad (or even Apple TV®) when you return home. Photo Stream is built into the photo apps on all iOS devices, iPhoto® on Macs, and saved to the Pictures folder on a PC. To save space, the last 1,000 photos are stored on each device so they can be viewed or moved to an album to save forever. Macs and PCs will store all photos from the Photo Stream, since they have more storage. iCloud will store each photo in the cloud for 30 days, which is plenty of time to connect your devices to iCloud and automatically download the latest photos from Photo Stream via Wi-Fi.
• iTunes® in the Cloud lets you download your previously purchased iTunes music to all your iOS devices at no additional cost, and new music purchases can be downloaded automatically to all your devices. In addition, music not purchased from iTunes can gain the same benefits by using iTunes Match, a service that replaces your music with a 256 kbps AAC DRM-free version if we can match it to the over 18 million songs in the iTunes Store®, it makes the matched music available in minutes (instead of weeks to upload your entire music library), and uploads only the small percentage of unmatched music. iTunes Match will be available this fall for a $24.99 annual fee. Apple today is releasing a free beta version of iTunes in the Cloud, without iTunes Match, for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users running iOS 4.3. iTunes in the Cloud will support all iPhones that iOS 5 supports this fall.

Apple is ready to ramp iCloud in its three data centers, including the third recently completed in Maiden, NC. Apple has invested over $500 million in its Maiden data center to support the expected customer demand for the free iCloud services.

Pricing & Availability
The iCloud beta and Cloud Storage APIs are available immediately to iOS and Mac Developer Program members atdeveloper.apple.com. iCloud will be available this fall concurrent with iOS 5. Users can sign up for iCloud for free on an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch running iOS 5 or a Mac running Mac OS® X Lion with a valid Apple ID. iCloud includes 5GB of free cloud storage for Mail, Document Storage and Backup. Purchased music, apps, books and Photo Stream do not count against the storage limit. iTunes Match will be available for $24.99 per year (US only).

iTunes in the Cloud is available today in the US and requires iTunes 10.3 and iOS 4.3.3. Automatic download of apps and books is available today. Using iCloud with a PC requires Windows Vista or Windows 7; Outlook 2010 or 2007 is recommended for accessing contacts and calendars.

Apple SVP of iOS Scott Forstall just made Apple’s iOS 5 official, and it’s a serious update. Over 200 new features and 1,500 new APIs, but that’s not the most exciting part. We’re talking about redone notifications with Notification Center, a place to combine all notifications; Newsstand, which will automatically download the latest issues of your favorite subscription newspaper and magazines; deep Twitter integration including a system-level sign-on, Tweeting from Photos app and Safari, Twitter contact syncing; and even tabbed-browsing in Safari (finally!). Hit the break for more.

Just demoed was a new app called Reminders which, from what it sounds like, will issue reminders based on time and date. You can also set up a geo-fence to have the app remind you when you get back to a certain location, like walking the dog when you get home. We need that. There’s also a lock screen camera shortcut added — boom! Also, thankfully, you can finally use the volume up button as the shutter button, and Apple added an auto-focus and exposure lock, grid lines in the camera app, and editing features like crop and rotate, red eye reduction, etc.

Oh wow… there is now flagging support in email (hyperventilating), rich text support, and even S/MIME support for enterprise customers. There’s a split iPad keyboard for people who like to thumb-type… it lets you place half the keyboard on the left side of the screen and the other half on the right, with an open space in the middle to see the app you’re in.

There is no longer a requirement for a PC to use an iOS device — iCloud, it is. Software updates are over the air, and even the initial device setup is done without the need for a PC. And uh oh, it’s a pretty miserable day in Waterloo. We’ve been told one of RIM’s biggest fears is Apple launching a BlackBerry Messanger competitor, and the company are doing just that with iMessage. The service includes messages, photos, group chat, 3G and Wi-Fi support — and even compatibility with all iOS 5 devices — you can even pick up your conversation where you left off when moving from one device to another.

Seriously, we couldn’t make this up… almost every gripe with iOS is being addressed in a major way. Developers get iOS 5 today, customers in the Fall (obviously to time up with a new iPhone). Here’s Apple’s press release:

New Version of iOS Includes Notification Center, iMessage, Newsstand, Twitter Integration Among 200 New Features

Available to iPhone, iPad & iPod touch Users This Fall

SAN FRANCISCO―June 6, 2011―Apple® today previewed iOS 5, the latest version of the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, and released a beta version to iOS Developer Program members. The iOS 5 beta release includes over 200 new features that will be available to iPhone®, iPad® and iPod touch® users this fall. New iOS 5 features include: Notification Center, an innovative way to easily view and manage notifications in one place without interruption; iMessage, a new messaging service that lets you easily send text messages, photos and videos between all iOS devices; and Newsstand, a new way to purchase and organize your newspaper and magazine subscriptions. With the new PC Free feature, iOS 5 users can activate and set up their iOS device right out of the box and get software updates over the air with no computer required.

“iOS 5 has some great new features, such as Notification Center, iMessage and Newsstand and we can’t wait to see what our developers do with its 1,500 new APIs,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Perhaps iOS 5’s paramount feature is that it’s built to seamlessly work with iCloud in the Post PC revolution that Apple is leading.”

With iOS 5 and iCloud®, you just enter your Apple ID and password and iCloud will seamlessly integrate with your apps to automatically and wirelessly keep all of your mail, contacts, calendars, photos, apps, books, music and more, up-to-date across all your devices without ever having to connect to a computer.

Notification Center provides iOS 5 users with an innovative way to easily access all notifications―text messages, missed calls, calendar alerts, app alerts and more, all in one place, from anywhere in iOS 5. When they arrive, notifications appear briefly at the top of the screen without interrupting what you’re doing. With one swipe you can see all your notifications, and a simple tap will take you right to its app for more detail. Notifications also appear on the lock screen, with the ability to be taken to the notifying app with just one swipe.

Newsstand is a beautiful, easy-to-organize bookshelf displaying the covers of all your newspaper and magazine subscriptions in one place. A new section of the App Store™ features just subscription titles, and allows users to quickly find the most popular newspapers and magazines in the world. If subscribed to, new issues appear in the Newsstand and are updated automatically in the background so you always have the latest issue and the most recent cover art.

Safari is the world’s most popular mobile browser, and with iOS 5 it’s now even better. New features include Safari® Reader, which gets all the clutter out of the way and sets the right font size on a web page, so you can easily scroll and read through a story; Reading List, so you can save articles to read later and they automatically show up on all your iOS devices; and Tabbed Browsing, which makes it easy to flip between multiple web pages on iPad.

iOS 5 includes built-in Twitter integration, so you can sign in once and then tweet directly from all your Twitter-enabled apps, including Photos, Camera, Safari, YouTube and Maps with a single tap. New APIs give third party developers the ability to take advantage of the single sign-on capability for their own iOS 5 apps.

iMessage in iOS 5 brings the functionality of iPhone messaging to all of your iOS devices―iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. Built right into the Messages app, iMessage allows you to easily send text messages, photos, videos or contact information to a person or a group on other iOS 5 devices over Wi-Fi or 3G. iMessages are automatically pushed to all your iOS 5 devices, making it easy to maintain one conversation across your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. iMessage also features delivery and read receipts, typing indication and secure end-to-end encryption.

The new Reminders app helps you manage your tasks; create and group related tasks together; and set time or location-based reminder alerts, priorities and due dates, so you can be reminded of a task as its deadline approaches, or when you arrive or depart a given location. Reminders can also be viewed in iCal® and Outlook and are updated automatically.

New features in the Camera and Photos apps give you instant access to the camera right from the lock screen, and you can use the volume-up button to quickly snap a photo. Optional grid lines help line up your shot and a simple tap locks focus and exposure on one subject. The new Photos app lets you crop, rotate, enhance and remove red-eye, and organize your photos into albums right on your device to share them on the go.

With the new PC Free feature, iOS 5 users can activate and set up their iOS device right out of the box with no computer required, and iOS software updates are delivered over the air and installed with just a tap. Wi-Fi Sync in iOS 5 transfers and backs up your content securely over SSL and wirelessly syncs purchased content from your device to your iTunes® library.

Additional new features in iOS 5 include:

• Game Center, now with the ability to add photos to your profile, purchase new games from within the Game Center app and easier ways to find friends and new games;
• Mail enhancements which include the ability to compose messages using draggable addresses, and a new formatting bar with bold, italics, underline and indention controls;
• AirPlay® Mirroring to wirelessly display everything you do on your iPad 2 right on your HDTV through Apple TV®; and
• a system-wide split keyboard to make it even easier to type on your iPad.

Availability
The iOS 5 beta software and SDK are available immediately for iOS Developer Program members atdeveloper.apple.com. iOS 5 will be available as a free software update for iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, iPad, iPod touch (fourth generation) and iPod touch (third generation) this fall. Some features may not be available on all products.

Welcome one and all to BGR’s live coverage of Apple’s WWDC 2011 keynote! Apple CEO Steve Jobs is on hand to unveil the latest Apple has to offer, and we’re expecting a huge event despite the fact that Apple is not expected to reveal a new iPhone model at the show this year. Instead, Apple will focus on software, with the big addition being the company’s new iCloud service. Apple will also show off more OS X Lion details during the keynote, but we have to admit: we’re much more anxious to see Apple show off iOS 5 for the first time. We think iOS 5 is going to be the most significant update to the platform since Apple introduced the App Store alongside iOS 2.0. A completely rebuilt notification system, basic widget functionality, a new automatic app update delivery mechanism and deep social integration are among the changes we’ll be looking for, but we’re certain that Apple has a few surprises up its sleeve as well. Hit the break for our live coverage of Apple’s WWDC 2011 keynote for the latest updates!

12:28PM:We're heading in and should be seated soon!

12:40PM:Doors are finally opening.

12:45PM:Alright we're almost seating, there are still tons of people pouring in.

12:49PM:We have a feeling the event might be starting a little bit late as we are getting reports that WWDC attendees aren't even in the building yet, but still in line outside.

12:59PM:"Please turn all your devices on silent."

1:01PM:Pair of MacBook Pros on stage, for demo time, obviously!

1:02PM:Steve Jobs is out! Everyone is applauding!

1:03PM:There are over 5,200 people here today — the biggest place we have, sorry to everyone who couldn't make it.

1:03PM:over 100 hands on labs, 1,000 Apple engineers, and 120 sessions.

1:04PM:We're here to talk about 3 things today. And we're going to talk about software. Hardware is the brain, software is the soul.

1:04PM:We're starting with Lion. Phil Schiller is up on stage/

1:05PM:Ha — he's trying to get people riled up in Ballmer-esque fashion.

1:05PM:"We have over 54 million active Mac users."

1:05PM:Sorry guys, we're having major camera issues! Working on it!

1:06PM:PC market has shrank 1% this year, Mac has outgrown the industry. Products are incredible like the MacBook Air

1:06PM:Leading in notebooks, over 70% of Mac sales are notebooks

1:07PM:Entire PC industry wants to copy our hardware. We make the best, not just hardware, but software, too.

1:07PM:Showing off OS X 10 years ago.

1:08PM:Next up is Lion. There are over 250 new features, only have time to show 10.

1:08PM:Multitouch gestures. We have built multitouch trackpads into all our laptops

1:08PM:Kinetic scrolling, multitouch zoom and taps and swipes

1:10PM:Phil is talking about fullscreen apps and how in Lion there is a simple swipe to get in and out.

1:11PM:Mission control is up

1:13PM:We're now seeing full screen apps — three-finger swipe will take you from the full screen back to the desktop/dashboard.

1:14PM:The three-finger swipes will also switch from one app to the next. To exit full screen it just takes one click.

1:15PM:PhotoBooth looks awesome full screen — especially with effects being added in real time as you add/remove them.

1:15PM:Three-finger swipe up on the trackpad will bring mission control back into focus.

1:16PM:Spaces can bee added simply by clicking at the top corner of mission control, and windows can then be added to a new space by simply dragging and dropping.

1:17PM:When you close a space in mission control view, the windows within will slide back into the main windows — very smooth.

1:17PM:Spaces can bee added simply by clicking at the top corner of mission control, and windows can then be added to a new space by simply dragging and dropping.

1:18PM:Schiller is talking about the Mac App Store now, which is now the number one PC sales channel for software, passing Best Buy.

1:19PM:The Mac App Store is now built right into Lion. There are also push notifications to alert users of updates. Auto updates are also supported.

1:20PM:Launchpad — a simple pinch gesture brings up an iOS-like inteface where you can access all of your apps and launch them.

1:21PM:The next key feature is Resume — when you launch an application in Lion, it will bring you right back to where you were when you left the software. The feature even works after a reboot!

1:21PM:Applications, Spaces and settings are all covered by Resume.

1:22PM:Auto-save — Lion will automatically save documents in the background with no need for the user to do anything.

1:23PM:The feature can be enabled and/or disabled for each document individually. There's also a lock feature that will stop auto-saving at a certain point.

1:23PM:Versions — like Dropbox, Lion will make past versions of documents accessible in a document history.

1:24PM:The Versions interface is similar to Time Machine — you can scroll through every version of a document with a smooth animated interface.

1:24PM:Sorry again for the lack of photos guys... we're working on it!

1:26PM:Now we're watching a demo of these new features. Launchpad really is awesome — think of it as a giant iOS home screen that is automatically populated with all of the apps on your computer.

1:27PM:Auto-save also means there is no prompt to save a document if you're made changes just before closing a program. When you open it again, it will be exactly as you left it — including cursor position!

1:28PM:With Versions — and this is awesome — you can view multiple versions of a document in live windows. This means you can actually copy/paste things from one version of a doc to another!

1:29PM:Feature number 9: Airdrop — this basically a peer-to-peer Wifi-based network that lets you move files from one computer to another by simply dragging and dropping.

1:30PM:When you drag the doc to another person's PC — which will appear automatically in Finder — they get a pop up where they can accept the transfer.

1:30PM:The last feature is a completely redesigned Mail app. Needless to say, it looks A LOT like the iPad version.

1:32PM:The coolest feature of the new Mail app is easily conversation view. Think Gmail threads but a little sexier.

1:32PM:Craig is coming back up to demo the new Mail app now.

1:33PM:The message list runs down the left side in a column just like the iPad version. Folders are further to the left, and they're hidden when you don't need them.

1:33PM:The search is enhanced, and it suggests searches as you type based on your mail and your search history.

1:34PM:Users can also search for keywords and date-ranges with one string. Awesome!

1:35PM:Finally, conversation view will auto-hide everything but the new content within each message. Craig just poked Gmail for now doing that very well. Wink, wink.

1:36PM:Lion also features a new migration feature for users switching from Windows, not just another Mac. There are over 3,000 new APIs total in Lion. Get cracking, developers!

1:36PM:Lion will be available ONLY in the Mac App Store. No more discs!

1:37PM:Lion will be about a 4GB download and a single purchase can be installed on ALL of your authorized Macs.

1:37PM:Lion will cost... just 29.99 when it's released. WOW!

1:38PM:Lion developer preview will be available today, and the release version will be available in July.

1:38PM:Next up... iOS 5! Scott Forstall is coming up on stage

1:39PM:To date, Apple has sold over 200 million iOS devices total.

1:39PM:That makes iOS the No.1 mobile operating system with over 44% of the market.

1:40PM:In the first 14 months, Apple has sold more than 25 million iPads. That's iPad and iPad 2 combined.

1:40PM:Apple has sold more than 15 billion songs through the iTunes music store across all platforms.

1:41PM:More than 130 million books have been downloaded through iBooks.

1:41PM:There are now more than 425,000 apps in the App Store, with more than 90,000 of them built for the iPad.

1:42PM:The iOS App Store has served more than 14 billion downloads, and more than $2.5 billion has been paid out to devs.

1:43PM:Apple now holds more than 225 million accounts on file, all with credit cards and one-click purchasing enabled.

1:44PM:iOS 5 is a MAJOR release, Forestall stressed. There are more than 1,500 APIs and more than 200 new features!

1:44PM:The first new feature being covered... NOTIFICATIONS!

1:45PM:Apple has served more than 100 billion push notifications so far.

1:46PM:Apple has completely redesigned the push notification system for iOS. Notification Center is the big addition. It combines all over your notifications into one panel that is accessed by swiping down from the top. Oh hi, Android.

1:46PM:Stocks and weather sit at the top of the notification center.

1:46PM:Notifications are no longer disruptive — they appear at the top of the display and they do not interrupt usage.

1:47PM:The lock screen displays recent notifications as well, and a swipe on a notification will open the applicable app.

1:48PM:A swipe brings you right to the relevant message, by the way, as longer as the developer makes full use of the notifications APIs.

1:48PM:Second feature: Newsstand

1:50PM:Newsstand lets users access magazines through a new, separate interface. It is accessible in the App Store and there is a new newsstand on the home screen where all of the magazines are accessible (it works like a folder).

1:50PM:Background downloading is supported!

1:50PM:Newspapers and magazines can take advantage of newsstand.

1:51PM:Third feature... Twitter integration.

1:51PM:Twitter is now built into the Settings app in iOS. Every twitter app will work with the new single sign on feature!

1:52PM:Twitter is now integrated with the Camera and Photos apps in iOS. Photos can be tweeted from either app now.

1:53PM:Other apps that have twitter integration are Safari, Maps, and YouTube. Also, contacts features contact integration — contact photos will automatically be pulled from Twitter.

1:53PM:Next feature: Safari. Nearly 2/3 of all mobile web browsing is done with Safari.

1:54PM:Safari now has a Reader feature that takes the story you're reading and eliminates all of the noise around the story and just displays the images and text from the body.

1:54PM:Safari will also let users email a link AND story content right from within the browser.

1:55PM:There's also a new Reading List feature that lets users save stories to read later. Uh oh, Instapaper.

1:56PM:Safari will also now include full tabbed browsing. Tabs are displayed across the top and switching between them is lightning fast. We're watching a demo now.

1:57PM:The Read Later feature is accessible on the same button as bookmarks, and it will save items across all of your iOS devices and Mac computers.

1:58PM:Next feature: Reminders. 50,000 apps were just made obsolete.

1:59PM:Reminders is a reminder and task feature that lets you set time or location-based reminders.

1:59PM:In other words, a date and time can trigger a reminder, or a GPS location can trigger a reminder. Reminder also sync with Exchange which is nice.

1:59PM:Next new feature: camera.

2:00PM:The iPhone 4 is now the most popular camera phone used to take photos on flickr and second most popular over all.

2:01PM:The new camera app opens much, much, much faster. Camera is also accessible with a double-tap on the home button.

2:01PM:The volume up button can also be used to take shots. FINALLY!

2:02PM:The native camera app now also has grid lines available and pinch to zoom works in the UI. There's even a zoom-lock feature!

2:02PM:There are now integrated editing features as well. Cropping, red eye removal, and one-tap enhance are all supported.

2:03PM:The seventh new feature being covered is a redesigned Mail app.

2:03PM:Rich text formatting is now supported, indentations are supported, dragging addresses between cc and bcc is supported, and so is flagging!

2:04PM:Search now supports content searching on the server as well.

2:04PM:There's also added support for SMIME for enterprise users.

2:05PM:Now we're getting a demo. Flags can be added and removed with a single tap, and there's also an integrated dictionary that lets you look up words in emails with just a tap.

2:06PM:There's also a new system-wide thumb keyboard available. Users can now split the keyboard into two halves and thumb-type very easily. Not sure how the split keyboard will be received, but it's nifty.

2:07PM:Eight new feature: PC Free. Uh oh... Tons of applause.

2:08PM:With iOS 5, users will no longer need a PC to activate iOS devices. FINALLY! The "post-PC" marketing is slightly more realistic now...

2:08PM:Setup is now done right on the device, as is activation.

2:08PM:Software updates are now OTA (over the air)!!

2:09PM:Delta update are supported as well, so only changes to the OS will be updates and the entire OS doesn't need to be downloaded.

2:10PM:Ninth new feature: Game Center. That's still around?

2:11PM:iOS is by far the most popular gaming platform in the mobile world, and Apple currently has over 50 million registered Game Center users. That's 20 million more than Xbox Live.

2:11PM:Game Center now supports user photos, game recommendations, and game purchase support right within Game Center.

2:12PM:Turn-based game support is now supported as well (think Scrabble).

2:12PM:iMessage is the next iOS 5 feature being covered.

2:12PM:WOW. Apple is launching a new iOS-only messaging service called iMessage.

2:13PM:It supports text, photos, videos, contacts, group messaging, delivery receipts, read receipts, typing indications, and multi-device support so you can move from an iPhone to an iPad and not miss anything.

2:14PM:It is fully encrypted as well, and it works over Wi-Fi or cellular connections.

2:15PM:Poor, poor third-party messaging app devs. We're now seeing a demo and it really is BBM for iPhone. Multi-platform is all app like WhatsApp and Kik have going for them now...

2:16PM:We're now seeing how easy it is to send photos and videos — the interface, by the way, is the same as the Messaging app so it's beautiful and familiar.

2:17PM:Those are just 10 of the 200 new user features. Others include TV mirroring, which let's you mirror your iPad 2 to your TV to Apple TV.

2:18PM:Wi-Fi sync to iTunes is now supported as well! Your iOS device will back up and sync to iTunes automatically over Wi-Fi. FINALLY

2:19PM:iOS 5 is available to developers TODAY. Fire up those accounts, fellas!

2:19PM:iOS 5 will ship to end users this fall.

2:19PM:The iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, both iPads and the two latest iPod touch models are all supported.

2:20PM:Next up... Steve Jobs is coming back up on stage to unveil iCoud!

2:21PM:iCloud has been in the making for 10 years, when APple realized the PC was going to become your digital hub — one device to hold all of your media.

2:22PM:A new problem has risen lately though — multiple devices all need the same data and it's become necessary to sync them all separately. Wonder where this is going...

2:22PM:With iCloud, the digital hub is being moved to the cloud.

2:23PM:So now, photos (even new ones as you take them), music, etc are synced to the cloud automatically and they become available across all devices.

2:24PM:iCloud also is completely integrated with your apps — everything happens automatically. "It just works."

2:24PM:"Why should I believe them? They're the ones who brought me MobileMe?" Steve joked. Zing!

2:25PM:Contacts, calendar and Mail are no longer MobileMe apps — they're now iCloud apps. For example, a new contact will automatically be uploaded to the cloud and synched across all devices. Changes to existing contacts are handled the same way.

2:26PM:iCloud also supports calendar sharing, so changes you make on your calandar will automatically be visible by anyone you share your calendar with.

2:27PM:Jobs also highlighted the fact that there are no ads involved with this service... at all.

2:27PM:MobileMe was $99... Mail, Calendar and Contacts with iCloud are completely free!

2:28PM:There are also three new apps coming with iCloud that weren't in MobilMe. The first is the App Store.

2:28PM:Apps purchased on one devices can now be added to any other device through iCloud.

2:29PM:For future devices, all apps are automatically added to all devices.

2:30PM:The next app they added is iBooks — books purchased on one device can be downloaded to all devices. Also, your read history is synched between devices as well, as is reading position.

2:30PM:Finally, Apple added automatic cloud backup.

2:31PM:The service will back up your important data once daily, and when you get a new device, all of your data will sync wirelessly from the cloud.

2:31PM:Uh oh... there are three more apps being added to iCloud!

2:31PM:First... Documents in the Cloud.

2:32PM:Documents now sync automatically via the cloud from one device to all your other devices.

2:32PM:Pages, Numbers and Keynote are all supported as of the latest versions of the apps, which have already been released. Sneaky!

2:34PM:There is a new interface within the apps that lets you view all of the documents that are synced to the cloud, and they all sync automatically.

2:36PM:Apps can store documents to iCloud as well!

2:37PM:Developers have access to iCloud Documents in the Cloud APIs with the iOS 5 SDK.

2:37PM:Macs and PCs are supported as well! This is a huge ding for Dropbox and the like.

2:38PM:Next up, Photo Stream.

2:38PM:Photo Stream will sync photos taken on any device to the cloud, and then to all other devices.

2:39PM:The functionality is all built right into the apps, so there is nothing new to install or configure. It all just works.

2:40PM:Photo Stream is also built into Lion on Macs, and on PCs it will work with the Pictures folder. What's more, Photo Stream will work on Apple TV as well.

2:42PM:Another feature of Photo Stream is memory management. It will store the last 1,000 photos on each iOS devices, and all photos on Macs and PCs. In the cloud, photos will be stored for 30 days so they can be synced to all other devices before they are automatically removed.

2:42PM:Eddie Cue is on stage now to demo Photo Stream.

2:43PM:He just took two photos on stage with an iPhone and as soon as he launched the photos app on his iPad, the photos wer already there.

2:43PM:Since only the last 1,000 photos are saved with Photo Stream, users can drag any photos they want to keep permanently into an album.

2:44PM:Last up... iTunes in the Cloud!!

2:45PM:This is what we've all been waiting for — music purchased in iTunes will automatically be synced to all devices.

2:46PM:Songs you've already purchased pre-iTunes in the Cloud can be downloaded on other devices for free.

2:46PM:For future purchases, once this feature is enabled, a song purchased on one device will be pushed to all devices.

2:47PM:Eddie Cue is back up to demo the service. Unless they throw us a curveball, it looks like music purchased outside of iTunes will not be supported by the service. We'll know for sure in a few minutes.

2:48PM:In the demo, it looks like they just snuck in a redesigned iPad music app.

2:49PM:The service is amazingly seamless. Buy a song on one device and it's available everywhere else immediately.

2:49PM:iTunes in the Cloud supports up to 10 devices.

2:50PM:WOW. Everything relating to iCloud, including iTunes in the cloud, is completely free!

2:52PM:Awesome — to set up iCloud, all you need to do is log in with your Apple ID. What's more, users get 5GB of free storage... and that doesn't include music/etc purchased through iTunes.

2:52PM:iTunes in the Cloud becomes available today for iOS 4.3 as a beta — the full release will launch with iOS 5 in the fall.

2:52PM:ONE MORE THING

2:53PM:iTunes in the Cloud is just for songs purchased from iTunes... but you might have music you got elsewhere.

2:54PM:These other songs can be synced to the cloud one time, and they will become available everywhere.

2:55PM:Rather than syncing, there is also an "iTiunes Match" application that will scan your library and match songs with versions available through iTunes. These songs will then become accessible just like iTunes purchases!

2:55PM:In addition, iTunes Match will upgrade all of those songs to 256 AAC.

2:56PM:iTunes Match service will be $24.99 per year.

2:56PM:That yearly fee will support up to 20,000 songs!

2:57PM:"If you don't think we're serious about this, you're wrong," Steve said. He's talking about the new data center in NC now.

2:58PM:"It's a pretty large place and it's full of expensive stuff."

2:58PM:This facility will manage all iCloud services.

2:58PM:It looks like that's it folks — thanks for tuning in!

Today is the day that Apple CEO Steve Jobs and other executives will unveil the next advancements out of the industry’s leading innovator at WWDC 2011. While Apple has already announced that the company will be talking about three different main products — iOS 5, iCloud, and Mac OS X Lion — the fact is, Apple once again could possibly change (and influence) the entire way we use computers and mobile devices. Let’s look at iCloud, for example: if Apple is able to transition the device-centric approach to how we work with information and apps to a task-centric approach where the PowerPoint presentation you’re working on is what matters, and not what computer or tablet or smartphone you’re editing it from, that in itself a huge move forward in computing. Other companies have been trying to accomplish this for years, but we having a feeling that Apple is about to show us the beginnings of something so seamless, it really could find mass adoption, unlike most current solutions. Add in music, photos, videos, and your documents, and you should be able to pick up any computer or device and have access to all of your information and data from wherever you are. Coupled with a rumored Airport Extreme and TimeCapsule refresh in which the devices will run iOS and a feature an A4 or A5 processor, and all of your data could sit on one of your own devices and it would use your own internet connection to serve up your files directly to you. Lastly, what if iCloud allowed you to just walk up to any iOS or Mac computer and let you sign in, sit down, and practically act as if though it was your device or computer? What if Apple then implements this using NFC in the next iPhone — just place your iDevice next to a Mac computer, and it will instantly be transformed into your computer. Hit the break for more!

In iOS 5, Apple is rumored to have drastically redone a major pain-point for users: notifications. Though I’m sure Apple will show off redone notifications in iOS 5, I think it will be much, much more that that — iOS 5 will be the biggest change since the introduction of iOS in 2007. While Mac OS X Lion is all about simplifying and taking advantage of all the innovative things Apple has done to get rid of the frustrating experience of using a computer, I think iOS 5 will be about making iOS even more powerful, and a platform that will be capable of one day being a standalone computer operating system. Also, what if Apple decides that they’ve had enough with 3rd parties making messaging systems? They never introduced a real version of iChat, what if they created their own messaging network, not unlike BlackBerry Messenger? They have to see how valuable and useful all of these messaging services are. Additionally, iOS 5 should eliminate the need to sync your device — it’s all tied to your iCloud account. Your device is backed up and synced wirelessly, applications update in the background, OS updates are delivered wirelessly, and if you ever lose or replace a device, just sign in, and all your data is populated and everything is back.

With Mac OS X Lion, Apple will introduce features that make the Mac even more enjoyable to use. It will make people look back on the fact we had to save files — really, if you think about it, it’s insane that we’re forced to manage the data on a computer and make sure it’s saved and backed up — and make them feel like we were all living in the stone age. The entire philosophy of Apple is to offer the user a window and let everything else melt away and get out of the way. OS X Lion does that more so than any other OS X release, and it makes computing easier and more enjoyable for everybody.

I know Apple set expectations that we won’t be seeing any major hardware announcements, but a part of me does think it’s possible we’ll see an iPhone announcement of some sort. A guy can dream, right?

We’re only a couple hours away from finding out, but a photo has been making the rounds depicting what some are claiming to be part of the enhanced notifications UI in iOS 5. As you can see the in the photo, Twitter mentions are displayed on a second bar below the status bar, much like how Apple displays tethering or background voice calling. The question is, if the photo is indeed real, does tapping on the status bar then bring you to a page with all of your unread notifications? Is there an Android style drop-down panel? TechCrunch, which originally published the photo, says at the very least it has been told the photo is the “right idea,” even if it is not authentic. We’ll know in under two hours and we’ll be covering WWDC 2011 live.

BGR has landed on the left coast to bring you live coverage of one of the most anticipated tech events of the year: Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference 2011 keynote. Apple CEO Steve Jobs will be on hand with the usual suspects at his side to give the world its first look at the future of Apple software. In uncharacteristic fashion, Apple let the cat out of the bag ahead of the show this year — well, part of the cat, at least — so we know we’re in store for some goodies surrounding iOS 5, Mac OS X Lion and of course, iCloud. We’re sure the crew from Cupertino has a few surprises up its sleeve, of course, so be sure to tune in for all the latest news as it breaks.

Bookmark this link and make sure to head there for our live coverage of Steve Jobs’ keynote! Coverage starts at or around 12:30 p.m. EDT / 9:30 a.m. PDT.

That’s right, we’ll be at Moscone in downtown San Francisco on Monday covering Apple’s annual WWDC conference live! Apple already tipped its hat as to what Steve Jobs and co. will be speaking on, but let’s not kid ourselves… it’s sure to be the biggest WWDC keynote in recent years. Mac OS X Lion 10.7 will be shown, iOS 5 will be revealed for the first time — most likely with major, major changes — and Apple’s iCloud service will make its debut among other announcements. Make sure to follow along with our liveblog starting around 9:30 a.m. PDT / 12:30 p.m. EDT on Monday at the address below (it won’t be live until then!).

Live from Apple’s WWDC 2011 keynote with Steve Jobs!

Both Daring Fireball and TechCrunch are reporting that Apple’s iOS 5, the next major software release for Apple’s mobile devices, will integrate Twitter (and most likely Facebook, with possibly other social services) at the system-level, offering up unique social experiences beyond just simple photo-sharing. TechCrunch has heard:

We’ve heard from multiple sources that Twitter is likely to have a big-time partner for such a service: Apple. Specifically, we’re hearing that Apple’s new iOS 5 will come with an option to share images to Twitter baked into the OS. This would be similar to the way you can currently share videos on YouTube with one click in iOS. Obviously, a user would have to enable this feature by logging in with their Twitter credentials in iOS. There would then be a “Send to Twitter” option for pictures stored on your device.

Though Daring Fireball‘s John Gruber adds the cayenne pepper on top of the original report:

So close to the bigger story, but yet so far. Imagine what else the system could provide if your Twitter account was a system-level service.

We’ll all see how this shakes out in under a week from now.

Read [TechCrunch] Read [Daring Fireball]

According to new data from Chop, 148apps, and Chillingo, Apple’s iTunes App Store has approved more than 500,00 applications. In an infographic posted on Facebook, the group notes that Apple has worked with 85,569 different developers and that the average price of a paid application is $3.64. Similarly, 37% of all applications are free. The most popular iTunes categories (ranked by downloads), are games (15%), books (14%), entertainment (11%), education (8%), lifestyle (7%), and utilities (6%). If it seems like Angry Birds has been a hit for nearly a year, that’s because it spent 275 days in the No. 1 spot. Apple has yet to confirm these figures and App Shopper, another third-party that monitors the App Store, currently says there are about 499,200 live applications in the store. We expect to hear more on the matter during Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference when it kicks off on June 6th.

[Via Mobile Burn]

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Steve Jobs will give the Worldwide Developers Conference keynote in San Francisco on June 7th, despite currently being on medical leave from the company. We expect that he’ll discuss Lion, the new iOS 5 operating system, and more. We’ll be reporting live from the event, which will be held at Moscone Center in San Francisco. It’s a little bit curious that news of Steve Jobs broke during the Microsoft Windows Phone Mango event.

UPDATE: GigaOm, the source of this report, has updated its post explaining that it accidentally reported information from last year’s WWDC press release thinking it was new. Apple has not announced that Steve Jobs will be at this year’s WWDC keynote.

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