62
Apple iPhone 4
$599.00
Released June, 2010
The Pros:Larger battery. Flash on rear camera. Faster processor (Apple/Samsung/Intrinsity A4).
The Cons:Video calls are iPhone4-to-iPhone4 and WiFi-only. Still tied to Apple's restrictive app store and its wacky policies. Doesn't do Adobe Flash (Google shows it can be done nicely on Android).
The Apple iPhone 4 is the next-generation iPhone which releases June 24th 2010. The major upgrades from the iPhone 3GS are the changed form factor (thinner design), 4x higher resolution, front facing camera for video chat, and upgraded camera system with 5MP photos, and HD recording.
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Apple touts the largest upgrade with the new video chat features, however there are currently severe limitations to the service that they are calling "FaceTime". Most notably, video chat only works between iPhone 4 devices, and it requires a WiFi connection. Its new processor is an ARM Cortex A8 (ARMv7 ISA) that was developed by Intrinsity and Samsung in 2009, and is either known as the Samsung S5PC110 "Hummingbird" or the Apple A4 (the only difference being the integrated PowerVR hardware graphics accelerator by Imagination Technologies). This line of processors is used in the Apple iPad, Samsung Galaxy S series phones, and Samsung Galaxy Tab.
Other upgrades place the iPhone 4 among the best in class in the smartphone category. The display is the highest resolution available on any smartphone (as of June 2010), it is one of the only phones that can do HD video recording of 720p at 30FPS, and the added gyrosensor gives the software total awareness of the phone's spatial orientation. Among all of these improvements Apple has also been able to reduce the size of the phone compared to the 3GS and increase the battery life by 40%.foloo.
Features
- 9.33mm thick - 24% thinner than iPhone 3GS
- the band that forms the structure of the phone is also the antenna
- Cortex A8 based ARM processor (Apple A4 / Samsung Hummingbird)
- Dual mic noise suppression
- 802.11n WiFi
- Improved 6-axis motion sensing with the addition of a gyrosensor
- Hardware features
- front facing camera
- micro SIM
- camera and LED flash on the back
- mute, volume up, volume down on the side
- headset, 2nd mic for noise cancelling, and sleep wake button
- Improved display
- 3.5 inch display
- Retina display - 4x the density of pixels - 326 pixels per inch
- 960x640 display
- 800:1 contrast ratio
- IPS technology (same as iPad)
- Improved battery over 3GS
- 7 hours of 3G talk
- 6 hours of 3G browsing
- 10 hours of WiFi browsing
- 10 hours of video
- 40 hours of music
- Quad-band HSDPA/HSUPA
- Improved camera system
- 5MP (up from 3MP)
- 5x digital zoom
- tap to focus
- LED flash
- backside illuminated sensor
- records video at 720p at 30fps
- FaceTime (video chat)
- iPhone 4 to iPhone 4
- WiFi only
- Models
- 16GB for $199 (subsidized with AT&T 2-year contract)
- 32GB for $299 (subsidized with AT&T 2-year contract)
- both available in white and black
User Reviews (103)
Pros & Cons
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34
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32
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faster processor (Apple/Samsung/Intrinsity A4)
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27
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25
Improved rear camera with larger lens
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25
Improved screen with much higher resolution (960 x 640px, IPS panel - highest pixel density of any phone)
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20
24% thinner than the previous generation iPhone (9.33mm)
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14
now includes gyroscope for full 6-axis motion sensing
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13
Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic.
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12
includes iOS (iPhone OS 4) - OS can run up to 7 core OS services in the background (Apple's approximation of multi-tasking)
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11
Front-facing camera (0.3MP)
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9
a worthy update - much nicer than the 3G to 3GS upgrade
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9
200000 Third party apps available and counting!
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8
slick industrial design looks a lot nicer than the previous generation phones - aesthetically similar to the iPad, iMac and Macbook Pro lines
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7
capable of full video chat via Apple's new FaceTime service (WiFi only for 2010)
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7
Available on a wide range of Canadian carriers
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5
Facetime is now available on the new iPod touch and compatible with iPhone 4!
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4
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4
In most countries and in the EU, Apple allows you to purchase the phone unlocked. If you do you research, your phone can be unlocked. My iPhone 4 is unlocked from the Apple Store!
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4
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4
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3
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2
free cases and bumpers to those who purchase the phone before September 30th - eliminate reception problems related to the external antenna issue
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2
Unique design and user freandly UI.
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1
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1
Amazing 5.0 megapixel camera
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1
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1
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1
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0
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Available in 16gb and 32gb
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5MP rear facing auto focus camera for stunning photos
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FaceTime for video calls is planned to become an open standard sometime in the future (restricted to iPhone4 at present)
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Does not have a cheap looking and ugly desing
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-5
quality feel over the 3GS
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17
video calls are iPhone4-to-iPhone4 and WiFi-only
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16
still tied to Apple's restrictive app store and its wacky policies
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9
doesn't do Adobe Flash (Google shows it can be done nicely on Android)
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9
left-handed users may experience signal issues (flawed antenna design)
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8
not a true multitasking environment
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2
does not support latest 4G network capabilities
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0
still only available on AT&T
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0
bluetooth v2.1 when most new phone now uses v3.0
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0
Incompatible with older Apple compatible products such as previous generation iPod speakers
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now uses a micro-SIM instead of the standard SIM card for the previous generation devices
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no removable media / expandable memory (comparable phones have micro SD)
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3.5" screen (small compared to other smartphones)
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no legal way to unlock the phone / buy the phone unlocked (cannot use on other GSM carriers by swapping in local SIM card to avoid expensive roaming charges)
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Requires extremely bloated and restrictive iTunes software to sync with PC
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Not memory expandables with microSD/microSDHC like allo others cellphone
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lacks HDMI output - inconsistent, considering its other HD capabilities
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-4
Meeting the bar, not exceeding it.
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Consumer Reports can't recommend the iPhone because of the confirmation of the antenna signal strength defect
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Apple blocks many useful apps from the App Store
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Non-standard Apple dock connector instead of USB
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3 time slower than equivalent Android phone when browsing
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Requires an ugly rubber bumper to work properly (signal issues)
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Most apps don't multitask, e.g. cannot flick between browsing web and note taking app
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Apps can only be installed from the App Store, not from other sources (e.g. web, flash memory card)
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not a full aluminum body a la HTC Legend, Apple's PC lineup
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All users will experience signal loss when holding the phone normally and in the way Apple depicts it in advertising
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-7
90% of available apps are fart noises, cracked screens and other useless rubbish
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-7
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Major OS updates are not free
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-10
rear-camera should've been upgraded to more than 5 megapixel
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-12
why go half way? why not full 1080 HD? it's easily possible.
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Comments (7)
dom:
#apple_iphone_4 I agree, it seemed like the first "serious" iPhone. Then came the antenna design flaw... sure, you can buy a case for it, but it's having a pretty junky reputation now. Apple's rumored "software fix" can of course not change anything with the 20dB signal drop when you touch it, it will only change the way Rx signal strength is mapped to the "bars", so users will think everything is ok. You can't fix the changed capacitance of an antenna by software. If Apple were honest they'd admit that they produced some junk there, but in fact, they touted it as a new and ingenious design.
With the dual-core Snapdragon at 1.2GHz and Google's "Gingerbread" Android release, both due out for the holiday season this year, the iPhone 4 will be hopelessly outdated already just 4 months after its release. Watch out for T-Mobile's "Project Emerald", which will likely bring us these goodies in a handset by HTC.
But we all knew Apple was only going to catch up anyway, so this shouldn't come as the big surprise.
Jun 30, 10
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dialupinternetuser:
#apple_iphone_4 At least in the U.S., if you're Apple wary or if you know you're going to jailbreak, the HTC Evo is a much better choice. And it has flash. That said, the iPhone 4 is the first iPhone I would seriously consider buying. Their marketing is genius, I have to keep convincing myself I don't need Apple products. However, with screen, form factor, and video chat I'd say this phone is a serious contender for the uber-nerd uber-power-user types.
Jun 30, 10
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dom:
#apple_iphone_4 Well, Omar.... doing
something illegal to my phone just to make it competitive isn't really my thing. Of course it's ludicrous that Apple deems it illegal (and DMCA changes still pending, too, I guess), but it does void your warranty. And, you'll only get updates at the speed of the hacking community, as they have to re-break every new update from Apple. All that sounds like a hassle to me, and I do like my frequent OS updates.
Instead of jailbreaking your iPhone, you could also install Android on it, as I'm sure you're aware. But that also sounds like trouble to me as it's also unofficial, and you're again making yourself dependent on the hacking community. Would that also be illegal? I don't know, but how we've come to know Apple and their "core values", our guess should be yes.
But why buy the iPhone just for the hardware? The hardware itself is really nothing that great, and it was never intended to be. The initial iPhone back in 2007 came out to change the focus to software. It didn't have 3G, it couldn't do Bluetooth music streaming, it had a lackluster camera, etc etc.
Though we do have nicely updated hardware now, the iPhone is certainly not a stellar device in terms of hardware (though it looks great). Among the many Android phones, it is possible for you to find the "perfect" combination of hardware features according to your needs. Some people like the physical keyboards, others would love to have HDMI output, or need WiMax uplink speed, still others prefer a trendy square flip phone, a backflip keyboard, or 8MP+ cameras. The list goes on.
The iPhone 4 hardware is good, but it's over-priced ($1000 for an unlocked phone?), offers no choice, and would "force" you to do something illegal.
Jun 11, 10
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willprich:
#apple_iphone_4 I agree with the statement, "Meeting the bar, not exceeding it.", but this is not an actual con. It's more of a conclusion one could reach having read all the cons and it should not be listed.
Jun 10, 10
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Omar:
#apple_iphone_4 Good writeup dom, and in general I do agree with you. Here's the thing - you can have the best of both worlds. You can have Apple's polished UI and overall great user experience along with Android's openness and freedom.
Jailbroken iPhone.
It's the best device by far. I can run any app over 3G (including Skype before the update). I can turn my iPhone into a wireless router. I can use Google Voice (if I was in the US). I can run apps in the background, multitasking, etc etc. Other than Flash, there's nothing an Android phone can do that a jailbroken iPhone can't.
And it's so damn easy! Jailbreaking an iPhone is probably the easiest hack I've ever done. Ever. Literally takes 10 seconds to do.
And I have no fear that iOS 4 will get hacked in due time. People actually sell apps in the "alternative" app store, which means there is serious money at stake, which means there is major financial incentive to hack open all of the iOS versions, which means it will get done sooner rather than later.
Interestingly enough, I was running multitasking on my iPhone and turned it off. The hit to performance and battery life just wasn't worth it - at all.
Jun 9, 10
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dom:
#apple_iphone_4 Nice catching up, Apple - looks like the first serious iPhone to me. Android is still better, of course, especially with the 2x-5x performance improvement in v2.2 Froyo and the excellent cloud integration with Google services. But it's also the freedom and democracy of Android as a community-powered platform.
In the past, it's been Microsoft that pissed off everyone else by abusing their market power to push their own agenda. Now, Apple is in that position in the smartphone market, far exceeding Microsoft's evil. They think they can
close out their rivals from iAd or make life unnecessarily painful for developers
that also target rival platforms, or shut out Adobe's Flash from the iPhone just because that code isn't under their control. At the same time, the iPhone wouldn't be nearly as good without all of the free apps and stuff that Google and others are providing for it (just think you only had MobileMe...). They benefit from many others' openness, but treat them like dirt in response.
Apple is growing like a cancer. They're already the biggest tech company, bigger than Intel, Microsoft, IBM, HP, Nokia, RIM, TI, Qualcomm, you name it. As far as the device is concerned, I give it the pros and cons it deserves, of course. But unless their rotten leadership takes a hike they're not getting a cent from me. Petty control freaks!
Jun 8, 10
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