Apple announces and dates iPhone 4

By Tom Bramwell Published 8 June, 2010

Thinner, longer lasting, out this month.

Apple has unveiled the long-awaited fourth-generation iPhone at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, and said it will be out this month.

iPhone 4 is glass on the front and back with steel around the sides. "It's like a beautiful old Leica camera," was Steve Jobs' take. Check out our iPhone 4 photo gallery.

It's also the "thinnest smartphone on the planet" at just 9.3mm and has tons of new features including a much greater pixel density of 326 pixels per inch, superior battery life, a front-facing camera, a gyroscope and the iPad's A4 processor.

iPhone 4 will launch on 24th June in the UK, France, Germany, Japan and the US, with pre-orders kicking off on 15th June.

1

Pricing is only available for the US at the moment, where the 16GB version will cost $199 as part of a contract and the 32GB will go for $299. The iPhone 3GS will drop in price to $99 on contract.

The inclusion of the A4 processor means battery life is significantly improved. Apple reckons you should get seven hours of 3G talk, six hours 3G browsing, 10 hours Wi-Fi browsing, 10 hours video, 40 hours music and 300 hours of standby.

The gyroscope, meanwhile, promises "full pitch/roll/yaw sensing in 3D space". Jobs showed off a Jenga-inspired demo that used the gyro and remarked that it was "perfect for gaming".

Although not really gaming-related, Jobs also revealed that iPhone 4 will record HD video in up to 720p at 30 frames per second, and Mac program iMovie will make the jump to iPhone for $4.99 "if we approve it". (Funny guy!)

On that note, iPhone 4 has a new FaceTime video-calling feature that allows users to chat face to face via video over Wi-Fi. Both callers will need an iPhone 4, and it's Wi-Fi only for now. "We need to work a little bit with the carriers," said Jobs.

Apple also said that iPhone OS 4 - now renamed iOS 4 - will be available on 21st June for all existing iPhone and iPod Touch models, except first-gen iPhones, for free.

2

The operating system update will introduce multitasking, folders and other features.

There were only occasional allusions to the leaked iPhone 4 that wound up with Gizmodo during Jobs' address (and none about the police raid on the bloke who wrote about it), but the unusual advance press for the design did mean Jobs was able to address one widespread question - what are the lines for?

The stainless steel sides of the iPhone 4 are split in two places by a horizontal line. "This doesn't look like Apple... what are these lines?" Jobs joked.

"They are part of the primary structural elements of the phone... this is part of brilliant engineering. It uses the band as part of the antenna system!" There you go.

Earlier on in his speech, Jobs also said that iPad sales were still mental, with one born every minute. Sorry, one sold every three seconds.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000. Follow him on Twitter.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (65) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Happyhammer7 #1 2 years ago

    Sounds good, put cydia on there and you're ready to go

  • Psi #2 2 years ago

    hope this resuces the price of the previous model by a bit, always been a little too expensive for me.

  • glottis0 #3 2 years ago

    For those who may be interested: On the o2 forum/twitter they've said there will be "a special limited time upgrade offer for those still in contract". Haven't detailed it yet.

  • Lee_Morris #4 2 years ago

    I would sell my soul for one of these. That or my Wii.

    I love the new look and from the little bits I've seen online the screen does look like a massive upgrade from the 3DS. I can't wait to put it side by side with my girlfriend's 3GS muuhahaha

    PS I'm not a nice person : P
    Edited by Lee_Morris at 08/06/10 @ 09:15

  • ISmoke #5 2 years ago

    Oh how my friend made fun of my ageing 3G when he got his 3GS. Now the tables have turned.

    Damn girlfriends birthday is the first week of July though so i may have to get the 16Gb model.

  • systems #6 2 years ago

    Nice that they're giving the iOS4 upgrade for free (unless you're on a 2G). I was expecting them to charge £20 or so for that.

  • Caimbeul #7 2 years ago

    I might actually bite the bullet and go for one of these having held back from gettng an iPhone and send back my HTC Desire if Vodafone ever get round to sending it out to me. I have only just noticed (i know duh) that the Desire's battery life is rubbish!

  • DeeTee_uk #8 2 years ago

    @Caimbeul - Take a look at the review of the Desire on Techradar. It's got some decent tips on how to extend the battery life and turn off the stuff you won't need.

    As for the iPhone, this explains why Orange just did me a great deal on the 32gb iPhone 3GS for my girlfriend, which I'm waiting to have delivered right now.

  • dr_zoidthrob #9 2 years ago

    @Caimbeul - the Desire battery life thing is a bug in the calendar and/or the Flickr app - HTC are (meant) to be fixing it. Mine lasts for two days, with a decent amount of browsing/ music playback/ Last FM etc...

  • Craig0702 #10 2 years ago

    Perfect, 3G contract runs out soon and I'm eligible to upgrade normally from 27th July. O2 have already said they're offering "limited time upgrade" deals for existing customers.

    Reduced charge for handset possibly?
    Edited by Craig0702 at 08/06/10 @ 09:27

  • kincaide #11 2 years ago

    "For those who may be interested: On the o2 forum/twitter they've said there will be "a special limited time upgrade offer for those still in contract". Haven't detailed it yet. "


    !Y!E!S!

  • ignatiusjreilly #12 2 years ago

    In terms of features there's nothing really that exciting, although maybe that's because we knew most it months ago anyway. No iTunes.com was a bit of a disappointment.

    But I love the hardware redesign - I think the more angular look is a big improvement, and the biggest change is the resolution boost to 960x540. That's insanely high, almost as high as the iPad, and should make a real difference to how crisp and defined text and images are.

  • jampar #13 2 years ago

    But will it actually work as a phone? my 3gs (o2) regularly does not pick up calls, and puts them straight through to voicemail - it is the worst phone i have ever owned for its actual functionality as a phone. the apps etc, I LOVE, and use all the time though...
    Edited by jampar at 08/06/10 @ 09:45

  • brseg #14 2 years ago

    If its got to push 4x as many pixels, is the gfx chip 4x as fast? This is great for text/ui, maybe not for games. What happens to 480x320 games, presumably it knows to upscale these, but if devs use the OS call to ask for the screen dimensions they might be in for a surprise...

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #15 2 years ago

    In terms of features there's nothing really that exciting

    In terms of gaming, the principal news is the gyroscope, meaning this iPhone 4 is now all MotionPlus. I'm not sure the resolution bump will have that much effect since the screen's still only 3.5 inches big.

    Mind you, in a whole year, there's only been one game worth a damn that takes proper advantage of 3GS tech over the original-spec iDevices, so I think I can safely ignore this one for now.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #16 2 years ago

    @jampar

    Maybe it's faulty, nobody I know with an iPhone has that sort of problem. Perhaps you should go see the Genius Bar folks, if you can bring yourself to.

  • ignatiusjreilly #17 2 years ago

    I'm not sure the resolution bump will have that much effect since the screen's still only 3.5 inches big.

    If you compare the iPhone screen (320x480) to a modern WVGA screen like the Nexus One or the HD2 or something there is a massive difference in clarity, in my eyes anyway. Honestly I think that's the best thing about the new iPhone (although I haven't seen one, obv).

  • Nephirion #18 2 years ago

    No offense Mr Jobs but I prefer my n900 fatboy, runs emulators, free apps, multi-tasking, flash and multiple browser support, multiple codec support and open source straight out of the box no flashing required :)

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #19 2 years ago

    @ignatiusjreilly

    I have, and all I can really say is that it makes text clearer, which I guess will be good for the next Football Manager.

    I think the extra size and wide aspect of the newer Android phones have more effect than the pixel resolution for fast-moving graphics. Certainly the iPad benefits from being larger more than it does by having more pixels, principally from an input point of view.

  • ignatiusjreilly #20 2 years ago

    I have, and all I can really say is that it makes text clearer, which I guess will be good for the next Football Manager.

    Isn't there text on the screen the vast majority of the time while using a phone?

    But yes, for games, the difference will be less obvious. I wonder how many games will take advantage of the new resolution? Will require lots more power to push in 3D. I also wonder how old games will deal with the new res.

  • lucky_jim #21 2 years ago

    @jamper- the problem there is O2's awful network, not the iPhone. I have the same problem when I've got my phone on me at work, and I live and work right in the centre of Westminster (so I'm not exactly out in the sticks). I had hoped that once O2's competitors started selling the iPhone, someone there might have thought "hmm, perhaps we should invest in our network now", but it seems that was wishful thinking!

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #22 2 years ago

    @ignatiusjreilly

    I did preface my original comment with "In terms of gaming" :)

    As far as old games on the new screen are concerned, I would have thought that they picked a screen resolution where exactly 4 new pixels represent one old pixel so that they can have some sort of hardware mode-switch to render original resolution content on the new screen with no rescaling or extra fill-rate or GPU memory penalty. But I don't know that for certain.

    As far as I read it, the A4 chip has the same PowerVR SGX 535 GPU as the 3GS's Samsung S5PC100.

  • UncleLou #23 2 years ago

    I think the extra size and wide aspect of the newer Android phones have more effect than the pixel resolution for fast-moving graphics. Certainly the iPad benefits from being larger more than it does by having more pixels, principally from an input point of view.

    Completely agree, and while it was clear ever since the beer hall incident, I am disappointed that they haven't made the screen a tad bigger, rather than just upping the resolution.

  • soviet_ #24 2 years ago

    Contract runs out on 24th June, how's that for timing?

  • Wonderboyf60 #25 2 years ago

    Black or white, that is the question?

  • Svalbaard #26 2 years ago

    All I need is a phone with a decent MP3 player and browsing ability and after doing some research I feel I may finally have to give up resisting and get one of these as many of the competition products just don't do the business.

    Unless the HTC Evo is to be released in Europe anytime soon????

  • UncleLou #27 2 years ago

    How are you supposed to make games for a platform that brings out a new specced machine every 5 weeks?

    Just imagine what PC and Android developers are going through. :)

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #28 2 years ago

    The HTC Evo is very little different to the Desire or even the Nexus One, except that it supports "4G" high speed data networks that are only available in certain parts of America.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #29 2 years ago

    Black or white, that is the question?

    Did Michael Jackson and McCauley Culkin teach us nothing?

  • Les #30 2 years ago

    Not in the market for a new iPhone, but it seems like a proper update. Especially better power consumption is a big plus IMHO.

    Can't imagine myself ever using FaceTime. Probably more of a bullet point to shut up the haters than a feature anyone will ever really use much.

    And looking forward to iOS4: Folders could be awesome.

  • kiroquai #31 2 years ago

    Sounds alright, but nothing about it makes me regret getting my Desire last month...

  • thefold #32 2 years ago

    Do I have to have iTunes installed to be able to use it? Probably, so no thanks. I prefer my media management to be less resource hungry.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #33 2 years ago

    Do I have to have iTunes installed to be able to use it?

    Technically, I think you don't.

    I believe they'll authenticate it for you in an O2 or Apple store. But if you don't have iTunes on a PC, you won't be able to transfer music or videos to the phone for the built-in 'iPod' app other than by downloading them from the on-device iTunes store. Although, there are of course apps for Last.fm and Spotify and suchlike. With OS4 they should even be able to play music in the background whilst you're doing other stuff.

  • Doctor_What #34 2 years ago

    I might just wait for the $80 Chinese clone ;D

  • Beano #35 2 years ago

    Very sexy design and a nice upgrade overall. But as a 3GS owner I'll wait for the 4S in 2011 :D

  • alcides #36 2 years ago

    Apple people are unsufferable douchebags and I don't like to be talked to like I'm a complete moron but you have to admit, their products are simply SUPERIOR.

    It's fun to note that an internet commenter once said that Steve Jobs would allow multitasking once he came to the realization he invented it himself... here we go.

    Edit : I honestly don't see what deserves so much neg karma in my post. People with skull smiles telling you how innovative video conference and multitasking is with hand gestures and slow paced articulation has some disturbing vibe to it. I may feel it, you may not.
    What they should be telling us is how innovative this is compared to what similar experiences we already had. Claiming all these features are new only serve to hide what innovation Apple has put behind them that make them valuable, useful, enjoyable additions to their product... "You never saw it before" sounds like denial rather than progress. I know they expand on the particular features, but their initial denial of anything similar ever existing waters down what is genuinely new about those features.
    My second remark was IRONIC, people!
    Edited by alcides at 08/06/10 @ 13:03

  • alcides #37 2 years ago

    Do I have to have iTunes installed to be able to use it?

    Isn't that the entire point? To actually have iTunes? iTues is the greatest thing about the iPod lineup, didn't you know?

    Probably, so no thanks. I prefer my media management to be less resource hungry

    And I prefer my media management to be, like, manageable. And smart. And to just work. Twice the memory Windows Media takes up is fine by me. For argument's sake, I just used WMP. Believe it or not (I'm having a hard time believing it myself) it took 30 FUCKING SECONDS to load the first song, although WMP was running on its own fine already. After that it only takes 5 seconds though, what a can-can do! iTunes. Just. Works.

  • ignatiusjreilly #38 2 years ago

    It's funny, iTunes is at the same time the biggest draw and the biggest turn-off from iDevices. It's a big part of why I never got one either. Drag and drop via USB all the way baby :)

  • UncleLou #39 2 years ago

    iTunes. Just. Works.

    Unless you want to do something a little more "complicated", like moving your library from one hdd to another.

    And it is a terrible resource hog on Windows PCs. When I am syncing my iPhone (or accessing the store), my (fast) PC is all but useless for anything else. It does work a lot better on Macs, admittedly, which is why I don't understand why they don't manage to optimize it for Windows.

  • Climhazzard #40 2 years ago

    I knew they'd be announcing a new iphone sometime soon but instead of waiting i opted to get a HTC desire. Battery life is left wanting a little but only if you leave everything running. The OLED screen is fantastic and doubt that the new iphones is really that much better or even noticeable. I couldnt be happier with my desire and was happy i went for something different to everyone buying iphones.

  • Ryboy #41 2 years ago

    I wish I owned Apple.

    Sigh.

  • vegard #42 2 years ago

    "thinner, longer lasting"

    seems like the iphone manages to do what i cannot!

  • alcides #43 2 years ago

    @UncleLou

    Unless you want to do something a little more "complicated", like moving your library from one hdd to another.

    Water is wet? iTunes' point is not to be a skin for an automated drag/drop mechanic based on Windows' folder system. That's just dumb. My dad's SONY phone works more intuitively with Window's drag/drop interface than it does with MediaGo. When you find your way around a 'dedicated' program for things to just work, you know you've met with a stupid, useless design.

    Which one is a complete clog to your PC's performances and nothing else besides, then? MediaGo/WMP or iTunes? iTunes has some pertinence and isn't just a skin, it's a working program with a purpose of its own : working with iPods seemlessly.

    Libraries snowballing has nothing to do with the way an iPod is supposed to be used (plus, Ew!). And guess what, there are workarounds with iPods that are as dumb as PC experience gets (iPod as a freaking USB key).

  • Markitron #44 2 years ago

    I was an Iphone holdout for a while, but after using the 3GS for the last few months id rather burn down a convent than switch to another phone

  • UncleLou #45 2 years ago

    @UncleLou

    Unless you want to do something a little more "complicated", like moving your library from one hdd to another.

    Water is wet? iTunes' point is not to be a skin for an automated drag/drop mechanic based on Windows' folder system. That's just dumb

    That doesn't explain while it is losing covers, tracks and even whole albums left, right and centre when you try to move your library. iTunes was by far the biggest pain in the arse to get sorted when going from Vista to Windows 7.

    Which one is a complete clog to your PC's performances and nothing else besides, then? MediaGo/WMP or iTunes?

    Er, iTunes, actually, now that you ask. Not that I care about MediaGo or WMP. It's iTunes that I use everyday.

  • ignatiusjreilly #46 2 years ago

    iTunes should be in the cloud anyway. Accessible from anywhere with a browser, and able to be synched without plugging your phone in.

    I really thought they were going to announce that yesterday, that would have been a software upgrade worth shouting about.

  • alcides #47 2 years ago

    @UncleLou

    Wow, just... wow. iTunes doesn't lose your music . Technically you move it around, that's why it cannot find it when the location you first pointed is no longer valid. And a change in OS (Microsoft OS, mind you!) might be a big enough trauma that settings stop working for software, that data be lost. I... fail to see how iTunes is to blame.

    There's a feature that recognizes artist, song, album, all automatically, downloading the right cover with the press of a button, copy/pasting files into adequate directory, even for shady MP3s 'found' on the internet! It just works. But if you don't let it do it's job upon installation (i.e your brains and copy/paste skills work better than a database utility) it just won't work.

    When I have a problem with the library (NEVER, but I sometimes reboot it anyway each time I cleanup my iPod) I just delete the iTunes library file under MUSIC/iTunes, then go in iTunes and add folder : MUSIC. Such a pain really...

  • UncleLou #48 2 years ago

    "Wow, just... wow. iTunes doesn't lose your music . Technically you move it around, that's why it cannot find it when the location"

    Er, no. It did lose (bought!) albums by deleting them at the original location, but failing to transfer them to the new directory. Mind, it worked for 99,9% of my albums (I didn't do anything wrong), but not for all, quite randomly.

    "There's a feature that recognizes artist, song, album, all automatically, downloading the right cover with the press of a button, copy/pasting files into adequate directory, even for shady MP3s 'found' on the internet! It just works."

    No, it doesn't. I've got at least 100 albums where iTunes doesn't find a cover (which isn't a problem, mind, that's not what I am complaining about). From the custom covers I manually added, it randomly remembered a third, and forgot others.
    Edited by UncleLou at 08/06/10 @ 16:20

  • Pinky_Floyd #49 2 years ago

    iTunes auto cover find is rubbish. Hate it hate it hate it. And yes it also forgets my manually added covers. Fix bugs instead of lighting cigars with money pls Apple.

  • fknetwork #50 2 years ago

    The iphone was already on top of the phone market, the iphone 4 just takes it to a whole new level, and a huge LOL to all the android owners, android is still trying to play catchup to the iphone 2g let alone the 3gs and now the stunning iphone 4/iOS4.

    I would hate to be a new android owner right now knowing I could have waited a few weeks to get the new iphone 4 which is superior in every way to any android phone out now (including the evo).

    Iphone 4,
    Best screen in the whole mobile market, thinnest phone on the planet, biggest app store on the planet, best OS out there, biggest marketshare and mobile browser share, best camera and video recorder out there, most popular mobile gaming device out there, list really does go on lol
    Edited by fknetwork at 08/06/10 @ 16:32

  • devilmyarse #51 2 years ago

    Contract runs out this month. Bonza. I'm glad I skipped the pointless 3GS and went for the 3G, saved money and I'm just in time for the real upgrade to the 3G. Unlike those numpties stuck in 24 month contracts. FYI CEX are buying the iPhone 3G unlocked for about £180-230 depending on condition.

    Next time you look for a phone, do your maths first. 24 month contracts ALWAYS cost more in the long term. Even if the the monthly payments are lower, you're still paying more per month on average over the term of the contract. Plus you're stuck with an outdated phone for 6 months to a year depending on how fast the market is moving. Don't get suckered into 24 month contracts, you're ruining it for everybody else who don't want the service providers to move to 24 month contracts exclusively.

  • alcides #52 2 years ago

    ok then, mine works perfectly, it's really wierd. Usually if I have a problem with a bought file I just re-download it and voila (a movie once didn't appear in the "Bought items" category)

  • dingo75 #53 2 years ago


    Black or white, that is the question?

    Did Michael Jackson and McCauley Culkin teach us nothing?


    Some ehm "private" movies should have told you:
    "Once you went Black you never go back!"

    On topic:
    I love my Ipod Touch with Cydia (damn volume restriction on European Ipods) but I won't get an Iphone any time soon.
    Too expensive for what I need (a phone to call + send SMS).

    On Itunes:
    There are some free programs that directly deal with the Ipod / Iphone database though most need Itunes installed.
    Personally I use "Sharepod" which works fine for adding / removing mp3s and videos.

  • madgerald Verified Studio Head of PR & Marketing, Colossal Games LTD #54 2 years ago

    For sale - 1x Google Nexus One in tip-top condition running Froyo 2.2 (all boxed and everything)

    Serious offers considered. UK only

  • Syrette #55 2 years ago

    No offence EG, but I thought this was a gaming site, not a phone site.

  • Bluetooth #56 2 years ago

    You'd think with the suicides along with the inhumane conditions that Chinese workers have to suffer to stick bits of tech together for the West, there'd be some sort of boycott...after all, that's what we complained about during the Olympics right? Tibet? Oh wait, actually we don't give a shit, as long as we and Stephen Fry get our shiny new iWhatevers.

  • madgerald Verified Studio Head of PR & Marketing, Colossal Games LTD #57 2 years ago

    @bluetooth - do you boycott all the clothing manufacturers that have appaling working conditions and pay? I believe that's most of them.

  • Jackface #58 2 years ago

    How are you supposed to make games for a platform that brings out a new specced machine every 5 weeks?
    Yeah, that would be annoying.

    Sorry, who are you talking about?

  • Jackface #59 2 years ago

    It's fun to note that an internet commenter once said that Steve Jobs would allow multitasking once he came to the realization he invented it himself... here we go.

    Even more fun to note that Jobs said, "Peole say 'you aren't the first with multitasking' and they're right. We also weren't the first with copy and paste. But we took our time and we did it just right."

    Oh dear that shits all over your gag. :)

  • Jackface #60 2 years ago

    Unless you want to do something a little more "complicated", like moving your library from one hdd to another.
    Did that a few months ago. I didn't read the instructions and ballsed it up because I assumed I knew what I was doing, being a geek and all that. Turns out I should have read the instructions - effortless once I did.

  • Pinky_Floyd #61 2 years ago

    Someone please shoot devilmyarse in the face. Repeatedly. Until dead.

    Thanks.

  • TheTrueSpin #62 2 years ago

    Apple lost me to Android a long time back.

  • TheTrueSpin #63 2 years ago

    The problem with more pixels is that, for gaming, will the new iPhone have the processing power to use all the pixels? I mean, at the moment the 3gs has 1/4 the number of pixels and, on some graphically heavy 3d games, does suffer from slowdown. So how the hell is this new phone going to be able to do full 3d gaming with such a high resolution? Unless it will actually render in a lower resolution|?

  • Jackface #64 2 years ago

    Someone please shoot devilmyarse in the face. Repeatedly. Until dead.

    Thanks.

    Why? His post on this page is absolutely right.

  • devilmyarse #65 2 years ago

    @pinky_floyd: BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
    Edited by devilmyarse at 12/06/10 @ 16:12