With its continuous stream of neat products, Apple has no trouble keeping itself in the news and at the forefront of consumer interest—and technology. The iPad was a huge hit, and so is the new iPhone 4, which became available June 24.

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Apple reported that sales through Saturday, June 26 totaled 1.7 million units. That’s impressive. But how good is the iPhone 4? I haven’t tried one yet, but I have seen it. I suspect it’s as good as its hype. It doesn’t offer much beyond the 3GS, unless minor features and aesthetics are important to you.

The Retina display is great, though. It’s the same basic size as the 3GS, but the resolution is a big step forward—960 by 640 pixels. Apple says that’s sharper than the human eye’s ability to discern individual pixels. Wow. That’s an expensive new feature, and I wonder how much it’s needed.

I’ve never felt that my 3GS screen didn’t have enough resolution. I can see amazing details with it, and I’m perfectly happy. The Retina is an impressive and very noticeable feature that will please every owner. Maybe Apple is looking more toward the mobile TV future or at better games.

The rear-facing camera is a nice addition for users who want video phoning. I don’t. It isn’t unique, as Nokia has had one for years in one of its phones. But it will attract the crowd that wants to be in touch constantly. The LED flash is a welcome addition to the 5-Mpixel camera, and the video recording is now available in 720p format.

A Touchy Antenna

Looks are a big part of the new phone. The iPhone 4 is thinner, at 9.3 mm, and has a neat design. The front and back are tough glass with a metal band holding it all together (Fig. 1). I’m not impressed by thinness. I suppose users who are want to claim “mine is thinner than yours.”

Figure 1. Everything is good on Apple’s iPhone 4. Just don’t bridge that black insulator in the metal band surrounding the phone. That could degrade your calls. Use an insulated case instead.

The metal band contains the antenna for the cell phone. Engineers probably agreed that the metal band would make a great antenna, since it can be so much larger than the internal units that are more common. Larger is always better, right? But any time you put your hand on an antenna, it affects transmission or reception.

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