At a 'rock and roll' event taking place at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco this evening, Apple launched version 3.1 of its iPhone operating system.
The release, now available as a free download for iPhone and iPod touch users via iTunes, introduces two key new features. First up is the application of Genius functionality to the App store. Genius, first introduced in iTunes 8, originally used complex algorithms to recommend music that users may want to buy from the iTunes store. Using a similar technique, the Genius element of the App store will recommend new apps based on what users already own. Useful, perhaps, for those who find it difficult to navigate through over 75,000 available applications.
Secondly, Apple announced that it will now make ringtones available directly from its App store. Over 30,000 ringtones will be made available at launch, with each priced at $1.29.
Users wanting to get their hands on the update should find it available now from iTunes.
