A month has passed since Apple seeded last beta of iOS 5.1. A new report hints at a possible iOS 5.1 release date of March 9 2012. iOS 5.1 is going to be the first major upgrade to Apple's biggest software update yet.
iOS 5.1 beta 3 was seeded to registered developers on January 10, 2012. It is not yet known what changes the final version of this firmware will come with. Rumours have us believe that Apple will publicly release iOS 5.1 alongside iPad 3 in March. If speculation is anything to go by, the discovery by YourDailyMac about March 9 release date of iOS 5.1 may hold it's weight after all.
Regardless of the fact that an iPad 3 release in March 2012 is heavily rumoured, I continue to hold reservations against this alleged iOS 5.1 release date. The proof provided is a screenshot of carrier profiles in which release date of March is listed. Apple is known for it's secrecy, and the iPad 3 event date is surely a closely guarded secret. It is very much possible for iOS 5.1 to be rolled out after iPad 3 announcement. This will probably happen in March 2012, but most likely not on March 9.
iOS 5.1 release won't bring any new major features to our iOS 5 compatible devices. Improved Siri functionality is something we can be sure of in the next big iOS update. References to iPad 3 and Facebook integration have also been discovered in the last beta of iOS 5.1. We can also be sure that Apple will patch the Corona exploit used to jailbreak iOS 5.0.1 untethered on iPhone 4S and iPad. This exploit is also used to apply an untethered iOS 5.0.1 jailbreak on iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPod touch 3G, iPod touch 4G and the original iPad.
An important note to all jailbreakers: Don't forget to save iOS 5.0.1 SHSH blobs if you are currently jailbroken on said firmware. A jailbreak for iOS 5.1 will not be possible soon after it's release, so it's better to be safe than sorry.