One thing I really love about the iPhone is discovering a new app while I’m out on the town, ignoring friends and family for my phone. I’ll check out reviews, look at some screen shots and take the plunge. Then the unexpected happens: the app won’t download because the file size is too big.
For carriers who were looking to throttle data, like AT&T, this news comes as an unexpected surprise. Over-the-air (OTA) downloads via 3G networks were capped at 10MB; if you wanted to download a larger app, you had to wait until a Wi-Fi connection became available. Now Apple has raised the bar to allow 20MB apps to be downloaded over 3G networks. This should cover some of the bigger apps, like intricate games, without much fuss. It’s not just apps, though, as Apple has raised the 12MB iTunes Store limit to 20MB. Nice move, but you won’t be downloading any movies on your iPhone over the air any time soon.
[via 9-to-5 Mac]