iPhone 4 Rated 4.25 out of 5 by Wireless and Mobile News' Review of Reviews
The reviews of the iPhone 4 are all positive with terms such as "the best iPhone, yet or ever," and slightly ahead of the superphone pack.
All the reviewers found the iPhone 4 high resolution 940x640-pixel (326 pixels per square inch) retina display gorgeous, design beautiful, camera great, and music/media playing fantastic.
The iPhone 4, however, is not a perfect phone, call quality is not good although better than previous iPhones, 3G data drops and when held in the left corner, looses signal strength which is fixed by adding an iPhone 4 rubber bumper case. Apple issued a statement admitting that seeing the bars decrease with the left-handed grip was compounded by a problem with the bar generating software that will be fixed with a software update.
The iPhone 4, lacks Wi-Fi hotspots/tethering, an HDMI out port, and new customers are required to buy two cheaper data plans that have caps of 200 megabytes for $15 a month or 2 gigabytes for $25 a month.
The included video conference app FaceTime worked well but is limited only to Wi-Fi and other iPhone 4 users. New features of the iOS 4 such as the unified email inbox, spell-check, home-screen folders and universal search were well-liked.
The iPhone 4 is referred to a pocket computer, due to its poor call quality. Computer is a good term because the iPhone 4 is more computer than phone and computer is where Apple computer excels. For antennas and signal bars they are still working out a few glitches.
iPhone 4 is exclusively available form Apple and AT&T.
| Model | New
Activation, |
Early
Upgrade |
No
Commitment |
| iPhone 4 16GB | $199 | $399 | $599 |
| iPhone 4 32GB | $299 | $499 | $699 |
Kent German at CNET rated the iPhone 4, 4 out 5, for enhanced performance, new display and new features, making it the best iPhone and biggest upgrade yet. He didn't like AT&T spotty service and multi-tasking problems. The hardware is fast and the antenna is problematic. It's not the best smartphone out there because there are lots more fish in the open sea. The back is now glass and flat and doesn't wobble on a table. The glass does smudge. It's 25% thinner than the iPhone 3GS. New to the design are a new front-facing VGA camera, a LED flash with the main camera
lens, and a noise-cancellation microphone. The 940x640-pixel (326 pixels per square inch) "Retina Display" is fantastic. Multi-taksing only includes VoIP, GPS, notifications and music, making it incomplete but pleasant. Home screen folders make it easier to get to apps an functions. The unified inbox works well for mutiple email accounts. He liked the Spell Check and Universal Search. Photo quality is improved and video quality is impressive. FaceTime was pleasant, not without problems and only works with another iPhone 4 and Wi-Fi. Call quality was mixed. 3G data was spotty
Sascha Segan at PCMag rated the iPhone 4 4.5 out 5, for media, game-playing, and the best iPhone ever. The iPhone 4 is not perfect and not for everyone. The iPhone 4 design feels like jewelry and the Retina Display is great but doesn't live up to its hype and hard to tell from the Droid Incredible. It's not a great phone and voice quality is not good, but better once connected.. The Apple rubber bumper case fixed the death grip issue completely. Voice controls were accurate. FaceTime is limited and only works with Wi-Fi. He calls more of pocket computer. Internet speeds were faster. It's the best music and video player phone in the world. The camera is also the best." The iPhone 4 deserves its
place in the pantheon of cell-phone gods, but as part of a distinguished
group, not as a single overlord. "
Mark Spoonauer at LaptopMag rated the iPhone 4 4 out of 5, with its best features the sharp display, great camera/video, design, FaceTime and battery life. He didnt' like that the iPhone 4 does not make Wi-Fi hotspots, the new data plans at AT&T are limited and death great signal degradation. He also liked it's thinness and better battery life, making slightly ahead of the superphone pack. Text reads like it does on a magazine. iOS 4 is more robust although not true multi-tasking. FaceTime offers better video chat than EVO 4G. Webpages look better and load faster. Video looked gorgeous. In noisy situations the Droid X does a better job of callquality.
David Pogue at the NY Times wrote that the iPhone is no longer the only worthy contender. The new processor is really really fast. The picture and audio are rock solid, video is great looking 720 p. He also approved of the app switcher and that email can be read in a larger font. "If what you care about, however, is size and shape, beauty and battery
life, polish and pleasure, then the iPhone 4 is calling your name."