Apple has given a glimpse into the future by revealing some of the 100 features that will be a part of the new iPhone operating system (OS 4.0), which will be launched later this year.

Speaking at a developer preview, Apple CEO Steve Jobs highlighted seven of the features, including the long awaited and highly anticipated multi-tasking function, which will let users run more than one program at a time – a feature that is included in many other smartphones and was known to be one of the iPhones biggest pitfalls.

Jobs also boasted over 1,500 new application programming interfaces for developers, letting them access features like the iPhone’s calendar, photo library, video-camera data, and more.

The mobile advertising platform iAd was also announced – allowing the iPhone to run ads on applications made by third parties, which marks Apple’s first journey into a potentially lucrative new market, putting it directly head-to-head with Google’s search engine advertising model.

The iPhone OS 4.0 update will be released first for the iPhone and iPod touch, and then the iPad, later this year.

Head to www.macworld.com.au for the latest info.