Coming just a few weeks after beta 1 was released, iPhone developers now have access to iPhone OS 3.1 beta 2 along with the SDK for 3.1 beta 2.

“iPhone SDK 3.1 beta 2 and iPhone OS 3.1 beta 2 are now available on the iPhone Dev Center. These versions are for development and testing only and should be installed on devices dedicated to iPhone OS 3.1 beta software development.”
Of course, this does not mean that anyone other than developers should be getting excited just yet, the rest of us still have some waiting to do.

As to what OS 3.1 beta 2 is bringing, at least according to some early reports;
AT&T users are reporting that Apple has locked down the hacks that enabled Internet tethering.

The introduction of a new API available that allows manipulation of live video.
Developers can now deliver apps to beta testers over Wi-Fi.
Finally, it also looks like iPhone 3GS users will be able to edit (trim) their video and have the file saved as a new clip, which means the original video file remains intact unlike before when it was simply overwritten.

One of the more overlooked features of the new iPhone 3.0 is support for a new open standard for live video streaming over HTTP, which promises to open up standards-based video broadcasting to a wide audience while giving mobile users an optimized picture as they roam between WiFi and mobile networks.

At the March unveiling of iPhone 3.0, Apple only dropped a subtle hint about new streaming video features in the new operating system (literally limited to writing “streaming video” on the slide of other features, below), leaving out any details about how it would work and not even mentioning the feature in any detail in the presentation.

The technology behind HTTP Live Streaming leaked into public knowledge in May when Apple submitted it to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as a draft standard on track to become an RFC (or Request For Comments, the memorandum used by the Internet Society

to define how technologies work in order to foster cooperation and compatibility between the vendors implementing them).

Apple’s HTTP Live Streaming proposed draft looks a lot like a method Microsoft began selling last year, called Smooth Streaming. The difference is that Apple’s proposed IETF standard can use anybody’s encoder and broadcast server, and will work with any client software designed to receive the stream. In contrast, Microsoft’s Smooth Streaming is of course designed to exclusively use Microsoft Expression Encoder, Microsoft Internet Information Server with a Smooth Streaming extension, and requires Microsoft’s Silverlight 2 on the client.

Essentially, Apple wants a standard for streaming video that anyone can use so that it can continue selling hardware without being either shut out of the market by proprietary software, or held captive by it; Microsoft, as a software vendor, wants to create another captive market where it has the power to shut out competitors at its whim.

1. Copy & Paste. I can’t believe how many people have slagged the iPhone OS simply because it didn’t support simple clipboard features. Not only does 3.0 support copy and paste functionality, but “Select All” as well. Top THAT!

2. Search. Press the Home button (that circular button at the bottom of your iPhone) on the first Springboard page (the screen with all the app icons) and you’ll be whisked away to the Spotlight search function, where you can look for apps, e-mails, contacts, calendar appointments, notes, etc.

3. App installation limitation has been removed. Previously, you could only have up to 144 apps accessible on your iPhone. This wasn’t a problem for most people, but as someone who is addicted to free apps…this was a long overdue update.

4. Improved photo management. Now, you can email up to 5 images easily from the photo management app. Moreover, you can delete images en masse instead of individually. The live camera app also shows a thumbnail (small image) of the previously-snapped photo, too. The entire experience has been optimized.

5. Find my iPhone. Wow. WOW. If you have a MobileMe account, you can link it to your iPhone – and from the Web, click a button to geolocate your device. You’ll see where it’s at in an embedded Google Map in your Web browser. You can then send a short message directly to your iPhone’s screen, have it emit a sound for two minutes, and even remotely wipe all stored data. This means: FEWER LOST OR STOLEN PHONES. Sorry for using caps here, folks, but I can’t stress enough just how amazing this feature is. It’s a game changer. Remember it the next time you lose your phone (or someone steals it from you).

6. Voice Memos. Using the microphone, you can now record, save, and email audio at a moment’s notice. There’s even this cute little VU meter at the bottom of the screen so you can make sure you’re not going into the red (and yes, I just referred to a screen element as “cute”). The only shortcoming to this new tool is that the audio is saved out in a format that some users may not be able to hear (M4A, as opposed to MP3).

7. Stereo Bluetooth. Time to dust off that wireless headset! The iPhone can now be paired with compatible devices supportive of stereo audio. Fewer cords, FTW! Oh, and that’s an acronym of “For The Win” (which is something all the cool kids are apparently saying these days).

8. MMS, kinda. Everybody in the world can now send and receive rich data via SMS — unless you live in the United States and go through AT&T as a service provider. Yeah, despite having plenty of time to prepare for this update, AT&T is suggesting that multimedia messaging will be available for iPhones “later this summer.” FTL! Oh, and that’s an acronym of “For The Loss” (which is another thing all the cool kids are apparently saying these days).

9. Safari is faster. You know — the iPhone’s Web browser? You now have “autofill” functionality, which will automatically populate fields with data from your own contact information. Plus, Safari will now remember usernames and passwords once they’re filled in, which is more than a major convenience.

10. Emoji is still an option. If you haven’t already done so, go ahead and search for “emoji” in the iTunes App Store. One of those apps will likely enable the feature that’s really only supposed to be available for Japanese users. It’s a series of little graphics that can be seen and used throughout all iPhone apps – including text messages to other iPhones! My favorite emoji-enabling app is “Typing Genius” at 99 cents (if only because you get emoji enabled in addition to having a typing speed challenge app).

With every revision of the operating system, Apple continues to remove objections to the iPhone. Don’t be dissuaded by the price — consider the cost of your current mobile communications device, and how much you can’t do with it.

Granted, there are not many apps in the App Storethat are supporting Push Notifications at this point, and for some that may be leading to a little question as to how to enable the notifications.

Well, to begin with, the “Notifications” listing in your iPhone’s settings will not appear as an option until you launch an app that has that support. In my case, you can see (in the below image) that app is Tap Tap Revenge 2.6.

Anyway, simply launch an app that has support for Notifications then go back to your iPhone’s settings and then you will notice a new listing called “Notifications” that will be listed as “On.”

Once there, you can then go in and customize the settings on an app by app basis.

At this point, it almost goes without saying that if you are planning to jailbreak and/or unlock you should always wait for the green light from the Dev Team. Anyway, due to the recent release of iPhone OS 3.1 we have yet another warning coming courtesy of the Dev Team
“ultrasn0w users *must* stay away from official 3.1 (incl. betas) until we release the tools for it, or you’ll *lose* unlock!”
Basically, if you are looking to unlock your iPhone at anytime in the future using ultrasn0w then you need to hold off on updating to OS 3.1 beta, and once the final version is released, OS 3.1 (the non-beta).