While iOS 6.1 brought several widely publicized new features such as support for several dozen new LTE carriers and new support for ordering Fandango movie tickets through Siri in the United States, a number of other minor changes were also included in the update. Given the frequency with which our readers have been pointing some of them out, we thought it would be appropriate to make note of them in a brief roundup.
- Lock screen music controls: The music controls on the iPhone's lock screen have been enhanced as noted by TUAW, bringing them in line with those in the Music app.
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The shortcut controls, accessed by pressing the home button twice while on the lock screen, have adopted both the look and layout of the Music app. One notable change is that the previous and next buttons are now much further apart from the play/pause button, making them much less likely to be pressed accidentally.
The volume knob also copies the Music app's visual trick of using the phone's accelerometer to vary the angle of virtual reflections on it.
- Maps "Report a Problem" button: Apple has tweaked the "Report a Problem" button in its Maps app, accessible in the preferences section by tapping at the lower right corner of the map page. The option had previously been a small text link, but Apple has now made it a much more prominent and accessible button which is actually now the largest button on the page.
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- Rapid diagonal swiping issue improved: Several readers have noted that an issue with rapid diagonal swiping on the iPhone 5 and fifth-generation iPod touch resulting in loss of touch recognition appears to have been fixed or at least improved in iOS 6.1. Not all readers have experienced improvements, however, with some indicating that performance remains the same under iOS 6.1.
Top Rated Comments
I listen to a lot of audiobooks. I can't tell you how many times I've accidentally hit the forward or backward button instead of the play/pause button and then spent several minutes trying to find where I was in the book.
The reflection has been in since iOS 6 came out, just only within the Music app (and possibly Podcast...?).
Complaining about how much time they spent on this "feature" is a moot point, as they most certainly just copied the code over from these other apps and replaced the existing button. Come down from your soapbox and put the razorblade down, chicken little. The sky is not falling.
I like this, abeit small touch. It says to me that Apple cares about small niceties. And, why wouldn't it make it to iOS 7? :apple:
Moving the button and making it more prominent really wont fix maps. It just makes it more obvious that Apple are having a hard time doing it themselves.
Stuff I reported on launch day is still not fixed.