As many expected, Steve Jobs unveiled Apple's new iPhone 4 during his keynote address at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco.
Jobs was full of praise for the iPhone 4--Apple's "new baby"--calling the new iPhone an "extraordinary" product that is "going to change everything, all over again."
Apple hype aside, what does the new iPhone really offer? We've put together a guide to the iPhone 4's features and everything you need to know about Apple's new device.
Thinner Frame
Steve Jobs called the iPhone 4 the "thinnest smartphone on the planet." At 9.3mm thick, the iPhone 4 is 24% thinner than the iPhone 3GS.
Higher Resolution Screen
At WWDC, Steve Jobs unveiled Apple's all-new "Retina Display," which the new iPhone 4 will run on its 3.5-inch, 960x640 pixels screen. The iPhone's Retina Display features 326 pixels per inch (four times as many as the iPhone 3GS) and an 800:1 contrast ratio (also four times greater than the iPhone 3GS). Jobs explained the iPhone 4 would offer "78% of the pixels on an iPad right in the palm of your hand."
Improved Camera
The iPhone 4 will feature two cameras--one front-facing camera and another on the back of the device. Apple has increased the camera size from 3 to 5 megapixels. "When most people increase the megapixels, they make the pixel sensors smaller. We’ve kept them the same size so they capture more photons," Jobs said during his unveiling of the iPhone 4. The new camera also features 5x digital zoom, tap to focus, and LED flash.
HD Video Recording And Editing
The iPhone 4 will also record HD video in 720p at 30fps and will feature tap to focus video, built-in video editing and one-click sharing. While recording video, the LED flash will stay on to illuminate scenes. Jobs stunned the WWDC audience when he announced support for the iMovie application, allowing users to record, edit and render mobile HD video and upload the finished product to the Web via e-mail, MMS, MobileMe or YouTube. The New York Times predicts that these new features "will be a huge help for citizen journalists, DIY documentarians and reporters in the field." Although, another Times reporter notes, uploading movies to the web "will quickly eat up one’s data quota under AT&T’s new plans."
Video Calling With FaceTime
iPhone 4 will feature video calling through an app called "FaceTime." FaceTime will run exclusively on WiFi for now, and only between iPhone 4 devices. Apple's Joswiak claimed, "FaceTime is going to change the way we communicate forever."
Longer Battery Life
Thanks to the iPhone 4's bigger battery and its A4 chip, the phone will last longer. Apple promises 7 hours of 3G talk time, 6 hours of browsing on 3G (or 10 hours of browsing on WiFi), 10 hours of video, 40 hours of music, and 300 hours of standby.
New Hardware
The frame of the iPhone 4 is made of stainless steel, instead of the plastic that rimmed previous iPhone models. Jobs excitedly revealed that the systems' antennas are integrated right into the structure of the phone. The phone is built with glass on the front and back, which is reportedly "30 times harder than plastic" and designed to provide better optical quality, as well as improved scratch resistance. (The Gizmodo live blog team remarked that it looked just like the model they leaked earlier this year.)
Price
The iPhone 4 will go on sale in the US for $199 (16GB version) or $299 (32GB model). The iPhone 3GS will see its pricetag lowered to $99.
AT&T is going to make a "an incredibly generous upgrade offer," Jobs explained. If your contract ends any time during 2010, you can get new iPhone 4 if you re-sign a new contract. The iPhone 4 will still be tethered to AT&T.
New Processor
The iPhone 4 will be powered by the A4 chip found in the iPad. "This was designed by our own team. This is wonderful to have in the iPhone," Jobs said (via Engadget).
3-Axis Gyroscope
The iPhone 4 will include a built-in gyroscope--a big perk for gamers. Gizmodo explains, "This means that it can track movement with a very high precision, much higher than the built-in accelerometers in the previous iPhones. It's 3-axis, so it's capable of detecting pitch, roll, and yaw. Couple with the accelerometer, you have 6-axis motion sensing."
“I can’t wait to see what you guys are going to do," Jobs told the developers after he had debuted the gyroscope.
Availability
The iPhone 4 will go on sale in five countries June 24 (US, Japan, UK, France, Germany). The phone can be pre-ordered beginning June 15th, and will available in an additional 18 countries in July 2010, 24 more in August, and 44 more in September.
Bing
iOS 4 will allow users to search using Bing. Google will remain the iPhone's default search engine, and Yahoo will continue to be a secondary option.
iBooks
The iBooks app is coming to iPhone 4. The new and improved app will sync your iBooks between all your Apple devices. "You only have to buy it once," said Jobs. "And, iBooks will automatically and wirelessly — and for no charge — sync your place, notes, and bookmarks across all your devices." On both the iPad and iPhone, users can take notes in the margins of the e-books, as well as highlight text. The New York Times speculates that these improvements "should help Apple continue to edge out rival e-readers."
Tethered To AT&T
The rumors about the next generation iPhone coming to Verizon (or another carrier) were proved false at Apple's unveiling of the iPhone 4: Only AT&T will be carrying this new device.
More Eco-Friendly Specs
Steve Jobs highlighted the iPhone 4's "green" credentials during his demo. The new iPhone is arsenic, BFR, mercury, and PVC free, and also claims to be "highly recyclable."
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