iPad to lose Orientation Lock in iOS4! :(

Don't know if this more properly goes here than in iOS group, but since the negative impact is limited to iPad am posting it here.

Just read on TUAW that iOS 4 remaps Orientation Lock switch to be a Mute switch.

I don't know about anyone else but this is bad news as far as I am concerned. I use the orientation lock all the time, far less frequently do I need to silence my iPad. For those occasions bumping the volume switch down to zero works pretty well.

Anyone else unhappy with the switch? And, any possibility of getting Apple to reverse the change (or at least make it a config option under General Settings so I can at least choose which I prefer)?

No, I want a mute button. I hate not having a mute button.

With iOS 4.2, you'll be able to turn on orientation locking using the same approach you do today on the iPhone via the multitasking bar.

You can still lock the orientation. It will work the same way it does on iphones using iOS 4. Double tap the home button and then swipe to the right to reveal a software orientation lock button.

schweb said:

No, I want a mute button. I hate not having a mute button.

With iOS 4.2, you'll be able to turn on orientation locking using the same approach you do today on the iPhone via the multitasking bar.

Click to expand...

Okay . . . showing my ignorance here. I have iOS 4 on my iPhone, and have used it to group programs into folders, but where/what is the multitasking bar and how do I use it lock screen orientation.
If it is sufficiently quick and easy than I don't have an issue, though still since the use of the switch is software driven I think they ought to leave me the option to choose.

EDIT: Okay, I saw eliehass's post (posted while I was replying), and that works fairly well (though not as easy as the switch).

Is the lack of a Mute button really that big of a deal to most people? I guess it must be for Apple to make the change.

The truth is, I always felt that the ipads hardware switch worked better as a orientation lock. The iphone needs a mute switch, due to ringtones. The iPad does not receive phone calls, so the only time it would make a noise is when you run an app, in which case you can just turn the volume down. I feel like the only reason they are switching it is to keep iOS consistent. I will miss the hardware orientation lock, but I can live without it.

eliehass said:

The truth is, I always felt that the ipads hardware switch worked better as a orientation lock. The iphone needs a mute switch, due to ringtones. The iPad does not receive phone calls, so the only time it would make a noise is when you run an app, in which case you can just turn the volume down. I feel like the only reason they are switching it is to keep iOS consistent. I will miss the hardware orientation lock, but I can live without it.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the help BTW.

It seems though that the ability for the user to remap should be an option. I can do this with my Nikon D5000, why not with my iPad?

eliehass said:

The truth is, I always felt that the ipads hardware switch worked better as a orientation lock. The iphone needs a mute switch, due to ringtones. The iPad does not receive phone calls, so the only time it would make a noise is when you run an app, in which case you can just turn the volume down. I feel like the only reason they are switching it is to keep iOS consistent. I will miss the hardware orientation lock, but I can live without it.

Click to expand...

While true today, wait until multitasking, then I could be running Skype or another VoIP client in the background and receive calls, or until a camera is added with FaceTime.

I think a mute button is much more important at that point and it brings consistency across iOS platforms.

But is the old orientation button sturdy and handy enough for frequent muting? Seems a bit hard to switch, especiialy with case and seems mechanically more likley to break with frequent use. Plus the volume switch already has an effective "mute." Holding it down switches instantly from high volume to no volume.

Muting the iPad is easy--just hold down the volume button for an extra second (or fraction thereof). I, too, use the orientation lock button all the time and hate to see it go. I won't lose sleep, but muting is already so easy on the iPad that moving that functionality to the orientation lock button doesn't make it any easier, but merely makes orientation lock just a little more difficult.

There's consistency and then there's user friendly ...

Bruce

I can argue that locking in iOS 4.2 is just as easy. Click, swipe, push the lock. Easy.

Don't look for Apple to change their mind.

User friendly excuse is not valid. For you it might be friendly, for me having it be a mute button is friendly.

Yeah, I can learn to click, swipe, push. 3 motions instead of one. Somewhere along the line the big A must not have thought things through with the original iPad design if they feel they have to change this functionality. Don't get me wrong, the advantages of iOS 4 will far outweigh this little annoyance. I love my iPad now, I will continue to love it if I have to click, swipe, and push rather than just click.

It's all about consistency between the iPhone and the iPad (or more specifically iOS). So I'm afraid you'll just have to get used to it in this case.

bwwhite said:

Muting the iPad is easy--just hold down the volume button for an extra second (or fraction thereof). I, too, use the orientation lock button all the time and hate to see it go. I won't lose sleep, but muting is already so easy on the iPad that moving that functionality to the orientation lock button doesn't make it any easier, but merely makes orientation lock just a little more difficult.

There's consistency and then there's user friendly ...

Bruce

Click to expand...

+ 1, my thoughts exactly

jacksonian said:

+ 1, my thoughts exactly

Click to expand...

So it's only user friendly when it's the way you want it even if all the other users want it a different way?

My primary concern with the software lock is whether it'll be just as useful as the physical switch. With the iPhone, you can only lock into portrait mode, not landscape. I certainly hope this limitation doesn't transfer over to the iPad, as I prefer to lock into landscape mode nine times out of ten.

schweb said:

So it's only user friendly when it's the way you want it even if all the other users want it a different way?

Click to expand...

First of all, I'm not trying to pick a fight. If there are two of us, then you can't say, "all the other users want it a different way." I actually didn't hear any complaints about a mute button before. I just simply hold down the volume button for a second. It actually takes no more/less time than flipping that slider. And I use the orientation lock a lot more than I use mute on my iPad.

To each his own, and it doesn't matter since it will be your way and it should work out perfect for you. The rest of us will adapt, no big deal. Just stating my preference.

Cheers,
Brent

Instantly needing to mute the iPad with the flip of the switch is more convenient than holding down the volume level and waiting for that delayed reaction. I have spend countless times forgetting that the volume levels are a bit backwards to me in landscape mode. So that means turning up the volume on the iPad mistakenly before being able to mute it.

I jailbroke mine. I'm not looking forward to upgrading any time soon.

eliehass said:

The iphone needs a mute switch, due to ringtones. The iPad does not receive phone calls, so the only time it would make a noise is when you run an app, in which case you can just turn the volume down.

Click to expand...

Wrong. It also makes noises when emails come in or notifications pop up. I haven't tried iOS 4.x yet, but if it works anything like the mute switch on the iPhone you'll be able to silence these alerts without muting the music or video you're enjoying. That's actually a feature I'm looking forward to.

It doesn't have to make noise when an email comes in. You can change that in the settings.