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If you’re not one of the many Twitterholics that have been stalking Atebits since they announced the launch of Tweetie 2 for iPhone, you might like to know Apple has accepted the application into the App Store. If you’re not a user of Twitter (and who isn’t these days?), then Tweetie 2 won’t mean much to you. If, however, you’ve been using the original Tweetie or another Twitter iPhone client, you might like to read on, because Tweetie 2 is quite an impressive update that I believe puts itself ahead of the competition, for now.

So, what’s new?

Good question. Tweetie 2 has been completely rebuilt from the bottom upwards; something Loren Brichter, Tweetie’s developer, likes to call Project Bigbird. This is the new Twitter core of which Tweetie 2 now takes advantage. It’s also the core for the desktop Tweetie application. By rebuilding Tweetie using Project Bigbird, it has allowed the application to be a lot slimmer and quicker, while still being a full-featured client. Speaking of features, here is what you’ll find in Tweetie 2.

• Offline mode - Read, tweet, favorite, follow, all while you’re offline. The changes will sync back to Twitter when you next connect.
• Timeline search - Similar to mail, you can now search and filter through your timeline in realtime.
• Drafts - This is something that has been lacking from the original Tweetie for too long. Write multiple tweets and store them in drafts until you want to post.
• Edit your profile within the application - Fairly obvious; you can make changes while on the go.
• Nearby map view - With Tweetie 2, you can view nearby tweets on a map and pinpoint your closest Twitter-friend.
• Landscape - This is something I’ve already turned off, but if you’re a fan of the landscape view, it’s now possible.
• Sync searches back with Twitter.com and Tweetie 2 for Mac (coming soon).

There are still quite a few more features lined up in Tweetie 2; a lot you may not even notice, but that simply make using the application more intuitive. You’ll spot a more concise list of features on the iTunes App [iTunes Store Link] page.

This is a free update from Tweetie, right?

This is the single disappointment I have with Tweetie 2. Unfortunatley, it is not a free upgrade from Tweetie. It is a separate application, and you will have to pay another $2.99 to get it. I know, it seems crazy that a 2.0 update is actually not an update for the original application, but Tweetie 2 has been completely rebuilt and has so many new features that the price seems justifiable to me. Maybe $.99 would have been a little nicer for Tweetie’s loyal customers, but there was no doubt running through my mind as I tapped “Buy App.”

I’ve only been using Tweetie 2 for a couple of hours, but already it has replaced the original Tweetie on my home-screen, and I have to say, I’m loving it. Grabbing new tweets from the server is incredibly quick, and the new interface looks very slick and clean. Atebits have aimed to keep the interface looking as an Apple iPhone app should look, while ensuring that as many features as possible are included without over-facing the app itself. I think they’ve done a great job in that respect. With so many new features and a great user interface, I would certainly recommend Tweetie 2 to any iPhone Twitter user.

Product [Tweetie 2 for iPhone (and iPod touch, through WiFi only)]

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