Impressions of iPhone 4

I’ve owned the iPhone 4 for about a week now, and just in case you’re not sick of hearing all the hype (both positive and negative), here’s my take on things:

1) Screen Resolution

The high-res screen really is amazing.  The images below are screen captures from the iPhone, so you’ll have to imagine these images being squashed down to 1/4th of the size they are on the screen here.

It’s a little bit difficult to explain why this is such a big deal except to show you the clarity of text both when you’re zoomed in close or looking at the full site (I had to crop the image down just to get it to fit on the blog here).

2) Facetime

I realize that video chat is already readily available via webcam and Skype, but by making this available on the phone and matching it up with phone calls, brings a whole new level of usability.  It’s something that even my four year old can easily understand, and it works amazingly well.  Even the audio quality over the speaker phone is crisp and clear.

3) New Design

Even though the flat back of the phone makes it feel thicker, it’s actually significantly thinner than the previous iPhones, and it fits in my pocket much more comfortably.

I do kind of wonder if the hard angles of the phone are going to wear into people’s jeans and leave marks kind of like dip or snuff cans do in people’s back pockets.

4) Battery Life

For me, the verdict is still out on the battery life.  Sometimes I think I’m getting just the same amount of life as my previous iPhone, but sometimes I think it’s much better.  Time will tell.

5) Speed

My old 3G was a turtle compared to this thing.

Overview

Apple has once again rolled new features into their new phone without compromising in usability.  From this one device I can call, email, text, check the web, run a ton of great apps, shoot video, take photos, and read books.  Batman never had it this good.

UPDATE 6/30/10:

Today, I took a look at the Places feature of the Photo App.  Amazing to see all of my photos taken on the phone located on a world map with links back to the photos.  Here’s a close up of what I’m talking about: