Following a long period of high expectation and high secrecy, including a widely reported loss of a prototype device, Apple has launched the next generation of its flagship iPhone line.
Replete with a lot of new technology designed to boost the mobile experience, including innovations to not only hardware but also software, the new iPhone 4 has the potential to boost considerably a mobile video and TV experience.
The device comprises a 3.5-inch screen based on new Apple Retina display that has 960 x 640 pixels. As a degree to which this will boost video, this is four times as many pixels as the iPhone 3GS and 78% of the pixels on an iPad which itself has a 9.7-inch screen.
Apple says that the resulting 326 pixels per inch is so dense that the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels when the phone is held at a normal distance, making text, images and video look sharper, smoother and more realistic than ever before on an electronic display.
Retina is based on IPS (in-plane switching) technology to achieve what Apple claims will be a wider viewing angle than on typical LCDs. The result says Apple is that you can hold iPhone 4 almost any way you want and still get a brilliant picture. In addition, it asserts that the Retina display offers four times the contrast ratio of previous models, so whites are brighter, blacks are darker, and the overall video experience is improved.
The Retina display also includes LED backlighting and an ambient light sensor designed to adjust intelligently the brightness of the screen for optimal viewing and battery life. When users lift the iPhone to the ear for a phone call, a proximity sensor immediately turns off the display to save power and prevent accidental dialing.
The new handset also comes with iOS 4, the newest version of the iPhone's operating system, which includes over 100 new features and 1500 new APIs for developers. iOS 4 features Multitasking, Folders, enhanced Mail, deeper Enterprise support and Apple's new iAd mobile advertising platform.
"iPhone 4 is the biggest leap since the original iPhone," enthused Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO in launching the device. "Our new Retina display is the highest resolution display ever in a phone... We have been dreaming about [such] breakthroughs for decades."
The new iPhone 4 will be available in the US, UK, France, Germany and Japan on 24 June starting in the US at $199 for qualified buyers with a two year contract.