Apple iPhone 4

Editor's Review of the iPhone 4

With the recent slew of Android phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S and HTC Desire, Apple have had to turn things up a notch with their latest release, the iPhone 4. It's fair to say, they've done a pretty good job.

At 137g its not the lightest of mobiles, but with measurements of just 114.2 x 58.6 x 9.3mm, its certainly small enough to slip into your pocket. Gone are the curves of the iPhone 3GS, as Apple's latest smartphone features an industrial boxy design, yet manages to ooze both style and elegance with its glossy black casing and Gorilla Glass display. The iPhone 4 is finished off with a stainless steel band, which Apple promise is "10 times more durable than normal steel". However, they failed to mention that if gripped the wrong way, you could lose your signal. However, the design of the iPhone 4 feels incredibly high-end, and dare I say, the iPhone 3GS feels slightly cheap in comparisson.

As with most of the iPhone handsets, the touchscreen dominates the handset at 3.5 inches. Unlike its siblings, the iPhone 4 offers a 640 x 960 pixel resolution dubbed 'retina display', the sharpest and most vibrant screen to ever features on a smartphone. It's just as impressive as it sounds, with even the smallest of text proving easy to read and not a pixel in sight.

With iOS4 onboard, you're provided with Apple's classic interface, allowing you to customize the homescreen with applications, all which open quickly thanks to the handset's 1GHz processor. Pre-installed apps include: Push email, GPS powered by Google Maps, alarm clock, calendar, voice memos and iBooks, Apple's new integrated eReader. We were a bit miffed that integrated apps can't be deleted, as we weren't to keen on checking out the Stocks. With Apple boasting the largest selection of apps, Plenty more can be downloaded from the iTunes Store, which we're pretty sure will provide you with endless entertainment, just as it did with us. One word: Angry Birds.

The iPhone 4 is the first of Apple's smarties to incorporate multitasking, and although it's still a bit limited, the ability to switch between apps at the touch of a button is a much welcome change. Another new feature is its customizable backgrounds, allowing you to make your handset that little bit more personal. Folders have also been added, allowing you to file your apps away into categories to save your from scrolling through pages and pages of widgets. With each folder limited to just 12 apps in each, we hope Apple have plans to further expand this, as we still managed to clutter up mulitple homescreens.

The camera of the iPhone 3GS has been given a much needed boost, with the iPhone 4 offering a 5 megapixel snapper complete with autofocus, LED flash and geotagging. It can also record video in 720p HD quality at 30 frames per second, whilst also taking advantage of the LED light and geotagging functions. Both image and video quality is a vast improvement on Apple's previous efforts, so you can now feel comfortable leaving you digital camera at home.

Another new feature on the iPhone 4 is its front facing camera, which offers FaceTime video calling between other iPhone 4 handsets on a WiFi connection. Although video calling is nothing new, Apple have made it easier to do and much more enjoyable, and if you ignore all the PR talk about how amazing it is, you might actually find it a little bit special. You can even flip between the front facing and rear facing cameras, while taking full advantage of the LED flash.

Internet connectivity is an area where Apple cannot be criticised, as their latest smartphone offers 7.2Mbps HSDPA speeds alongside 802.11 b/g/n WiFi connectivity. The integrated Safari web browser copes well with the fast speeds, alongside boasting responsive multitouch and brilliantly clear page rendering. Apple can be faulted however, on their lack of Adobe Flash support, which means some web pages are out of bounds. The handset also offers both USB and Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity.

You'll be happy to hear, the iPhone 4 has also received a much needed battery boost. You can now enjoy up to 14 hours of talktime, and 300 hours on stanby. Hooray!

If you've got a few pounds to spare, the iPhone 4 won't disappoint, unless you're strictly Android, of course. Although it could do with some tweaking here and there, Apple have created a fantastic smartphone with the iPhone 4, and have equipped with everything you could ever want, well... apart from Adobe Flash. It may be a bit pricey, but we think the cost is well and truly justified.