From The SDK: iOS 5 Mobile Safari To Feature Extensions And Download Manager [Updated: False Alarm]
July 11, 2011
Mobile Safari has been one of the best features/apps on iOS ever since its introduction. It was the first browser (though Flash-less) to bring a full web experience to mobile users and it just keeps getting better. In iOS 4 and 5, the rendering of websites has been improved dramatically, and new features like private browsing, tabs and reader mode/lists are making the experience better than ever. According to some rumors today, Apple isn't done and might soon be pushing the envelope even further.
[Update: This rumor has since been debunked, and the feature depicted is most likely just a jailbreak tweak]
One much needed feature many folks have been missing in mobile Safari is the ability to extend the browser's capabilities through extensions and let you manage your downloads. Of course, you can already download most files given that you have the appropriate app to open them, and third party browsers have a lot of freedom to create their own features, Yet, that might not cut it for many people and if you believe Razorianfly's Arron Hirst today, this might soon be a thing of the past.
According to his sources who found evidence of this in the iOS 5 SDK, Apple is working on the ability to add extensions to mobile Safari, just like they recently did with Safari for the desktop. Further, they seem to be considering a sort of download panel where you could easily access all the files you downloaded, just like on Android. Razorianfly even produced some actual screenshots of the feature:
Safari Download Manager From The iOS 5 SDK
Without a doubt, a download manager would be a great feature to add. Extensions seem more challenging, as it's hard to imagine how Apple would approve and distribute these. Depending on how much Apple would allow them to interact with our browsing, however, these could be a very powerful addition.
Is this really happening? If these clues are indeed already present in the SDK, there is a very good chance Apple will implement this, probably by the iOS 5 launch in the fall. The only argument against it is Apple's sustained effort to walk away from a file system in iOS, and a download manager, while convenient, doesn't really go in that direction.
Would you have any use for this? Tell us what you think in the comments!
Update: As pointed out by some commenters as well as Razorianfly, this is most likely just a jailbreak tweak modification in reality, and not something from Apple's SDK. This leads us to believe Apple will not actually bring such functionality to iOS for the time being. Sorry for the false alarm.
