IOS 5 for iPhones, iPads Said to Offer Widgets

Apple appears ready for widgets and better notifications for applications on its cell phone and tablet devices. A new mapping system may have to wait.

Sources quoted by TechCrunch provided the details of the forthcoming release of Apple's latest mobile operating system, iOS 5, for Apple iPhones and iPads.

There's been much speculation from the Apple rumor mill that the company will announce something big at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco June 6-10

How widgets

It's unclear how widgets would be implemented on Apple mobile devices. Other moves Apple has been making may offer some clues.

Apple is merging the look and feel of its desktop and mobile operating systems. Last year, it said it was taking many iOS developments "back to the Mac", for instance. The straightway release of OS X -- codenamed Lion -- mirrors many iOS features. That isn't surprising since iOS already borrows many features from Apple's desktop operating system Mac OS X, just as the ever-present Dock at the bottom of the screen, and Spotlight search.

The widget system is called Dashboard within Mac OS X

The widget system is called Dashboard within Mac OS X, and that is like as not the name we will see when widgets are rolled out for iPhones and iPads. The widget interface for the mobile devices as well may have a separate 'space' that users can swipe to, like what is being rolled out with the upcoming release of Mac OS X.

As for what the new notification system might look like, that's harder to guess. On Apple desktops, many Mac users rely on third-party add-ons like Growl.

Earlier this year, Apple was rumored to have purchased a small company that produces a notification application for the iPhone.

Apple as well has been snapping up mapping innovation companies recently. However 9to5Google reports sources that claim iOS 5 will stick with a Google Maps backend. Google Maps data underpins Apple applications and those of third-parties that use mapping services.

The good news is that 9to5Google as well reports that

The good news is that 9to5Google as well reports that, though Apple hasn't but got in place its own mapping innovation, there might be a new front-end application providing turn-by-turn navigation, so the iPhone can be used within vehicles for navigation without the need to buy a third-party application.