Johannesburg - Apple CEO Steve Jobs revealed the latest version of the company's iPhone mobile phone device at the World Wide Developer's Conference in San Francisco on Monday.
The new iPhone has an updated camera, higher resolution screen and overhauled operating system.
The new phone has arrived on the scene in under two months since the launch of the iPad. Apple has sold 2 million of the tablet computers to date.
Jobs used the occasion to tout the iPhone's 28% market share for smartphones in the USA, second only to RIM (makers of the BlackBerry) which occupies 35% of the market. Windows is in third place with 19% and Google's Android operating system at 9%, according to Apple.
The new iPhone was leaked in the month before the WWDC by journalists in both the US and Vietnam who managed to get their hands on prototypes of the device, but the leaked gadgets were locked and did not reveal features.
Apple unveiled a new screen technology called Retina Display that allows for four times the screen resolution of the current iPhone 3GS.
According to Jobs the new technology allows for the clearest images in computing history and makes it easier to read text on the screen. Jobs also revealed iBooks for iPhone bringing the Apple electronic books application to the company's phone device.
iPhone 4 also includes a 5 megapixel camera that shoots video in 720p high definition and a front-facing camera for making video calls using a technology Apple calls FaceTime. Jobs said that Apple is registering FaceTime as an open industry standard which will allow other manufacturers to incorporate it into their devices.
Video can be edited on the device using a mobile version of Apple's iMovie application.
The iPhone 4 sports increased battery life with up to 300 hours of standby time and a gyroscope that, with the device's accelerometer and compass, allows for six-axis motion detection that will mostly be used for gaming where motion is used to control gameplay. It also uses Apple's new A4 processor like the iPad that makes the new iPhone faster than its predecessors and further improves its battery life.
The iPhone 4 will be available in white and black with storage capacities of 16GB and 32GB. The new device will go on sale in the US on June 24. The device will start at $199, with a two-year contract from AT&T in the US.
Vodacom is expected to confirm soon when the device will be available in South Africa.
- Fin24.com