The newly-announced fourth-generation iPhone 4, available at the end of July in Ireland, represents the biggest change for Apple’s smartphone since the original was released in 2007.
Announced earlier today at the WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) 2010, Apple says the iPhone 4 is the slimmest smartphone on the market now and boasts the highest definition screen to date also.
The high-definition display is called Retina and will facilitate Apple’s FaceTime video calling feature, the screen is 960 x 640 pixels in resolution, which is four times as many pixels as the iPhone 3GS and 78pc of the pixel quality on the iPad.
FaceTime is designed to work over Wi-Fi and has a one-tap feature to switch from the front-facing camera to the new 5-megapixel rear camera that now has LED flash and 5x digital zoom.
Apple has also worked on redesigning the form factor: the front and back are made from the same aluminosilicate glass material that is 30 times harder than plastic, and more scratch resistant and durable than the iPhone 3GS screen. At 9.3mm, it is the thinnest smartphone on the market.
“iPhone 4 is the biggest leap since the original iPhone,” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
“FaceTime video calling sets a new standard for mobile communication, and our new Retina display is the highest-resolution display ever in a phone, with text looking like it does on a fine printed page. We have been dreaming about both of these breakthroughs for decades.”
On the apps side, the new iPhone 4 has a 3-axis gyro, which means that it will give 6-axis motion when combined with the accelerometer and this gyro can be used by iPhone developers as part of the new CoreMotion API for creating games and apps that can take advantage of ultra-sensitive motion controls.
The iPhone 4 also has the latest OS4 on board, something that will be available as a free download via iTunes from 21 June. This brings more than 100 new features to the iPhone, including multitasking, folders, better mail functionality and deeper Enterprise support as well as the new iAd mobile advertising platform.
The iPhone 4 will also be able to use iBooks and this app will be available as a free download from the App Store as well as giving access to the iBookstore.
By Marie Boran
Photo: The iPhone 4
