The iPhone OS 4 announcement was monumental. It’s bringing the long-awaited ability to multitask along with some customization options, organization options, and new search and content management features all over the operating system. It’s a fantastic update, but not everyone will be reaping the full benefits. In fact, the majority of the iPhone user base won’t get to all those new goodies.

Apple has only approved the 3GS for a full OS 4 feature rollout. The original iPhone won’t get OS 4, period. The 3G will only get parts. Though it’s probably still worth it to make the upgrade, you’ll be missing the multi-tasking, the custom home screen backgrounds, and potentially some of the other processor intensive features. It’s not that big a surprise (though the wallpaper thing did catch me off guard) – the 3G has some trouble with the current OS – but it still sucks.

It points to a problem that has longed plagued Apple customers – the update cycle. For Apple as a company it’s worked quite well. What better way to stick it to your fanboy friends than getting the newest version of that thing they’ve been hyping to you for six months. Hell hath no fury like a fanboy bested.

The world got a look at the upcoming changes to the iPhone OS today and it seems there was just one response: FINALLY. Finally, the iPhone will have the ability to multitask. Finally, you can organize your apps into folders and customize the background. Finally, mail will support attachments for third-party apps, threaded conversations, and easier inbox switching. Finally, finally, finally.

I know, it seems surreal. A lot of these features have been on other platforms for months, years in some cases. The multitasking support is really the best of the update, bringing the iPhone in line with WebOS and Android. It does make me wonder when we’ll see new hardware. The ad copy for the new iPhone’s bigger battery for that great multitasking feature practically writes itself.

For now, you can keep an eye on Apple’s official site for iPhone OS 4. The OS is available in closed beta for developers. Expect more feature leaks soon.

The Wall Street Journal claimed to have picked up on some info on the new iPhone, namely that there is one and that it will release to Verizon this year. Great work, guys. I bet no one else saw that coming. John Gruber shares my lack of enthusiasm about the report, mainly because it has no new information. It is, in his words, “WSJ’s Lame Entry in the iPhone Rumors Game.”

He doesn’t stop there, though. He goes on to list a few prospective features for iPhone 4, some very nice prospective features.

And they have no actual details of the next-generation iPhone. Nothing. Not the A4-family CPU system-on-a-chip. Not the 960 × 640 double-resolution display. Not the second front-facing camera. Not even the third-party multitasking in iPhone OS 4. All they have is that there’s going to be a new iPhone this summer, period. Thanks for the scoop, Yukari Iwatani Kane.

That’s not a bad list of specs for a potential iPhone candidate. In fact, it sounds just like a spec list Apple might embrace. I don’t know if Gruber knows something we don’t, but it certainly seems that way.

Source: Daring Fireball