Will the new iPhone support radio tagging?
By Michael W. Jones
On the eve (almost) of the release of the next-gen iPhone come rumors that the new OS 3.0 may allow for the tagging of tunes on the radio and may even have support for the Nike Sport Kit.
Putting together clues from the newest release of iTunes, the possibility that a new Broadcom chip could allow FM-over-Wi-Fi, and reports from a Chinese iPhone manufacturing insider, the lack of native iPhone support for radio could be coming to an end. Even though these rumors, outlined in an Apple Insider article, may be a little farfetched, anything seems possible in the days just before the release of a new iPhone.
The iTunes leg of this rumor come from an Apple Insider reader, who noticed during close inspection of the new iTunes release that there were certain new strings in the package that seemed to indicate new radio capabilities in the iPhone, including the ability to tag songs from the radio for later purchase from the iTunes store.
The second leg of the rumor was found in early releases of iPhone OS 3.0. That release had references to an interface with a new Broadcom chip in the iPhone that would enable lower-power 802.11n Wi-Fi connectivity and the ability to send and receive FM radio transmissions. Such a chip would allow a wide range of radio possibilities in the iPhone.
The final leg comes from a Chinese insider claiming close ties with the iPhone manufacturing plant in Taiwan. He (or she) posted a list of rumored additions to the iPhone, one of which was the inclusion of an FM tuner. Once rumors start to come from a wider variety of sources, they are much more difficult to ignore. It would seem, pun intended, that this radio rumor may have legs.
These capabilities would also make possible the inclusion of the Nike Sport Kit, available on some iPod Touch models, which uses a transmitter in a runner’s shoe to track speed and distance. The Nike software team is apparently closely supported by Apple, with some Nike development actually being done by Apple coders. With OS 3.0 able to support limited multi-tasking, this rumor apparent also has legs, though those of a runner.
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