iOS 5.0.1 is now available
The so-called battery drain fix, aka iOS 5.0.1, is now available (or will be soon, depending on where you live). It’s mostly a bug fix release, but does have one little feature that iPad 1 owners will like; multitouch gestures. That’s right, the “iPad 2 only for no apparent reason”-multitouch gestures from iOS 5 are now available on the iPad 1. They let you return to the homescreen, switch apps and open the multitasking menu using 4 finger gestures rather than the home button, and it’s a nice feature for improving productivity on the tablet.
This is also the first ever iOS update to be delivered over the air, in form of a downloadable delta update (only has the changes – not the entire 4-500MB OS). I’ve already updated both my iPad 2 and my iPhone 3GS and they both worked fine; once you agree to the terms it downloads the update, “turns off” the device, shows a simple progress bar and then boots back up again as if nothing happened. Much simpler and faster than the old system of using a PC. To find the update, you just go to Settings -> General -> Software Update and see if it’s available in your region yet. You do need to have upgraded to iOS 5 the old way for this to be available though.
[TUAW]
