Apple asked developers last week to update their App Store offerings for iOS 4. Now, just five days later, these updates are hitting shelves in the ramp up to iOS 4’s release next Monday.
Various app updates started popping up on the App Store Wednesday, specifically citing “iOS 4 compatibility” among their bullet lists of new features added. Fandango Movies – Times & Tickets 3.2.2, for example, features nothing but a statement that it is “now optimized for OS 4.0,” while Dropbox says the 1.2.2 update to its iPhone and iPad app features “iOS 4 compatibility” along with a couple of bug fixes. Finally, the 3.5 versions of both FlightTrack and FlightTrack Pro from Ben Kazez promise iOS 4 compatibility—specifically, in-app SMS for sharing flight details and the ability to sync flights with the iPhone’s calendar app.
Steve Jobs reiterated at his WWDC 2010 keynote last week that 95 percent of app submissions are approved within seven days. Considering that it has only been five days since Apple began allowing submissions for iOS 4-compatible apps, Apple may be giving priority to these updates so that the App Store is teeming with compatible apps when the OS update arrives next week. After all, what better way to showcase iOS 4’s new features than to have apps that are capable of taking advantage of what the mobile operating system has to offer?