Sunday marked the 10th anniversary of Steve Jobs introducing the iPhone 4 and FaceTime at WWDC 2010 in San Francisco.
A few months prior to the keynote, photos of a prototype iPhone 4 were leaked by Gizmodo after an Apple engineer accidentally left the device behind at a bar in Redwood City, California, leading Jobs to quip "stop me if you've already seen this."
iPhone 4 featured an all-new design with a glass and stainless steel unibody and squared edges, with Jobs describing it as the thinnest smartphone ever at the time. It was also the first Apple product to feature a higher-resolution Retina display, with an average person unable to see individual pixels on the screen from an average viewing distance.
While its design was acclaimed, it was soon discovered that the iPhone 4 could experience signal drop when gripped in a way that blocked the antennas built into the frame. Jobs downplayed the issue in a press conference, noting that all smartphones have antenna weak spots, but Apple did offer a free bumper case to customers that helped to mitigate the problem. The following year, the iPhone 4S featured significant antenna upgrades.
Later in the keynote, Jobs introduced FaceTime, which he demonstrated by having a video call with Apple's recently departed design chief Jony Ive. Apple initially planned to make FaceTime an open standard, but that never happened, with some reports having claimed that patent lawsuits are at least partly to blame.
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
Following nearly two years of rumors about a fourth-generation iPhone SE, The Information today reported that Apple suppliers are finally planning to begin ramping up mass production of the device in October of this year. If accurate, that timeframe would mean that the next iPhone SE would not be announced alongside the iPhone 16 series in September, as expected. Instead, the report...
Wednesday July 24, 2024 9:06 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today shared alleged specifications for a new ultra-thin iPhone 17 model rumored to launch next year. Kuo expects the device to be equipped with a 6.6-inch display with a current-size Dynamic Island, a standard A19 chip rather than an A19 Pro chip, a single rear camera, and an Apple-designed 5G chip. He also expects the device to have a...
The upcoming iPhone 16 models that we're expecting to see in September are going to be quite similar to the iPhone 15 models, but rumors suggest that Apple is making big changes in 2025. We've been hearing hints of an all-new device in the iPhone lineup, and it may be the most expensive iPhone Apple has offered to date. New 'Slim' Design Rumors have taken to referring to the new iPhone 17...
Apple released the fourth beta of iOS 18 today, introducing small changes to a number of features throughout the operating system. There are no big additions in this beta, but Apple is continuing to refine existing settings and design choices. Apple plans to continue updating iOS 18 over the next few months, with the update set to be released this fall. We've rounded up all of the changes...
The fourth-generation iPhone SE will offer a series of major upgrades over the current model, the leaker known as "Ice Universe" claims. The information was listed in a post on Weibo, which also detailed the specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup. As previously rumored, the fourth-generation iPhone SE is expected to feature Face ID and USB-C, marking a major upgrade from current and previous ...
Apple is planning to release at least one iPhone 17 model next year with mechanical aperture, according to a report published today by The Information. The mechanical system would allow users to adjust the size of the iPhone 17's aperture, which refers to the opening of the camera lens through which light enters. All existing iPhone camera lenses have fixed apertures, but some Android...
Thursday July 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
Still my favorite iPhone design to this day. The silver and black combo was so slick and I loved the little details like the +/- etching on the volume buttons or the black ring around the headphone jack. It just felt like such a massive step up from previous iPhones in pretty much every way.
Good times, when we've had a 2-year cadence of actually innovative iPhone releases under a visionary leader. It's a shame this powerhouse of a device got embedded in collective memory as the "you're holding it wrong" phone.
