It didn’t take long for this. I was just talking about the possibility of the new features in a murky, rumored iOS 4.3 and here we are with a real live update! The iOS 4.3 update has been seeded to developers of iPhone and iPad apps and it’s starting to yield it’s secrets. Among some backed updates to do with Airplay and iAds comes new Multitasking gestures that use 4 or even 5 fingers!

The iOS 4.3 update is now live for developers and I’ll be firing it up here in a bit to check out the new features so keep an eye out for those posts. But until then here are some of the new features to be found so far:

AirPlay
Stream video from your app to a widescreen TV using new Media Player APIs that support AirPlay video. You can also update your web content to support AirPlay. Read more in the AirPlay Video Support section of What’s New in iOS 4.3.

iAd Full Screen Banners
iAd full screen banners grab the attention of users by taking advantage of the large screen of iPad to launch an immersive, interactive iAd experience. This new banner format is easy to implement. And Apple sells and serves the ads to your app while you collect 60% of the advertising revenue generated.

HTTP Live Streaming Statistics
Track the popularity of your streams and measure their performance. New AVFoundation APIs allow you to track information including how many people are watching your videos, how long they’re watching them, and performance metrics like observed bitrate and number of dropped frames. Use these statistics to fine tune your authoring process and deliver optimized content to your users.

Test Multi-Touch Gestures for iPad
This beta release contains a preview of new Multi-Touch gestures for iPad. You can use four or five fingers to pinch to the Home Screen; swipe up to reveal the multitasking bar; and swipe left or right between apps. We are providing this preview before releasing them to the public to understand how these gestures work with your apps.

Personal Hotspot
The personal Hotspot feature that was announced via the Verizon iPhone yesterday is present in iOS 4.3, which leaves it open for other carriers (AT&T?) to use if they wish. The Hotspot feature turns your iPhone into a mobile WiFi Hotspot that up to 5 devices can link to to share it’s internet connection.

iPad Mute Switch Function Select
The community went crazy for some reason when Apple switched the function of the switch on the iPad from the Orientation Lock to a Mute switch, which I thought was actually a more logical function. Now in iOS 4.3 you have the ability to choose the function of it for yourself.