Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that Apple finally introduced its next smartphone this week and the iPhone 4 looks pretty impressive. Believe it or not, the next iPhone wasn’t the only thing that happened in the mobile world over the last few days, as Sprint told us how well the EVO 4G sold (kind of), we put this summer’s “superphones” up against each other, and multiple shots of the new Droid leaked out. Read on after the jump for a full breakdown of this week’s hottest mobile news.
Apple unveils iPhone 4
While much of the surprise was taken away by the leaked prototypes a few months earlier, Apple was still able to mostly please with its next iPhone. The iPhone 4 features the redesign we expected, a boosted processor, a front-facing camera for video calling, an improved screen and the latest version of the mobile software, which is now called iOS 4.
The thing that should pop out is the screen, which Apple is calling the Retina Display. It doubles the existing resolution of the iPhone which will ensure backwards compatibility with the thousands of programs in the App Store and it promises to pack 326 pixels per inch. That type of pixel density approaches the visual clarity of paper, Apple said.
Like the blazing fast iPad, the iPhone 4 rocks the custom A4 processor. This should come in handy because the latest version of the OS will finally include multitasking and background processing. The camera has also been bumped up to 5 megapixels and you can now record 720p HD video with the handset. The handset will launch June 24 exclusively on AT&T and it will cost $199 for the 16 GB version and $299 for the 32 GB version. If you just bought an iPhone 3GS, don’t fret, as you’ll be able to get an upgrade via AT&T.
The IntoMobile team is packed with characters – some of us love the iPhone while some of us are big fans of other platforms and devices. Check out our reaction to Apple’s latest smartphone for a balanced take on the iPhone 4.
Naturally, we had some hands-on time with the device and you should check out the HD video below for some more details on Apple’s next smartphone.
Superphone Shootout
The iPhone 4 made us think about all the best devices that are already out or will be available over the summer. In our Smartphone Shootout, we broke down the pros and cons of the iPhone 4, EVO 4G, Droid Incredible and Samsung Galaxy S. Even though these may use different operating systems, each device features a good-looking screen, fast processor, a wealth of apps and attractive designs.
I hesitated in crowning a winner, primarily because two of the devices aren’t fully available yet. What we really wanted to do was lay out all the information for these killer handsets and let you decide and comment. And boy, did you comment. My favorite was from Robert, who said, “I got a fever and the only prescription is HTC EVO.”
The EVO seemed to be the most popular with readers but a few mentioned that I didn’t put the Nokia N8 on the list. It is packed to the gills with features but Symbian^3 is not really my cup of tea. Hop on over to the Shootout and tell me if I’m wrong about that, if you want. Oh, we’re going to get some close-up time of the N8 really, really soon, so look for that next week.
EVO 4G sells a lot, I think
The wonderful EVO 4G was released last Friday and Sprint was ecstatic to report that it crushed previous launch-day sales records, which was also contributing to nationwide shortages. The handset did sell well, but not as well as Sprint first said.
In an embarrassing mea culpa, the third-largest U.S. carrier said it exaggerated the numbers a bit. Sprint did not release exact sales figures but estimates range from 150,000 to 300,000. While that’s not the type of numbers an iPhone will do on its launch weekend, this is nothing to sneeze about. Maybe Sprint’s CFO was right when he said the EVO can hold its own against the iPhone.
Sales numbers aside, we really liked the EVO except for the poor battery life. From our full review:
Evo’s huge screen just oozes sex appeal to any gadget geek – at the very least, it will draw the attention of just about anyone you happen to be near when you start playing with Evo. It’s packed with every high-end smartphone feature (super-fast data capabilities, GPS, sensors, awesome camera) you could want right now, and Evo will even let you pimp out its fast internet connection to other devices over WiFi.
We seem to have a lot of EVO users reading. How has the device treated you now that you’ve had a week to play with it?
Moto madness
There was an absolute flood of Motorola Android news this week, as the picture above should be the Droid 2. It doesn’t appear to be a massive upgrade over the current version but it has rounded keys, ditches the d-pad, a slightly-boosted 750Mhz OMAP processor, Android 2.1 and a new version of MotoBlur.
If that weren’t enough, we also saw some high-quality photos of the Motorola Shadow/Xtreme, which will now called the Droid X. This Android device is expected to rock a 4.3-inch screen in a thin 9.9mm frame. It is expected to rock a 750Mhz TI OMAP3630 processor, but we’ll keep our eyes open for more solid details.
Motorola co-CEO Sanjay Jha also let a few interesting tidbits slip this week when he talked about the strong sales of the original Droid. Motorola’s mobile leader said the company will be releasing two handsets with front-facing cameras this year for video calling and it is planning to release a smartphone with a 2 GHz processor by the end of the year. That could potentially be a really strong device, as the high-end handsets today rock a 1 GHz processor.
Aloha
There were a few other stories this week – the iPad 3G security breach, the Garminfone launching on T-Mobile and the Galaxy S getting closer to a U.S. launch date – but I’m going to try and enjoy some of this beautiful weather. While I’ll be playing in the sun this weekend, you can be sure the IntoMobile team will crank out the hottest mobile scoops around the clock. Feel free to follow me on Twitter (@marinperez) but definitely follow IntoMobile on Twitter (@IntoMobile) and on Facebook. Lakers in 6, friends.