With a heavy load of new goodies, the iPhone
4 runs circles around its 3GS predecessor in bringing new features.
Some are unique to the device, and others come with the iOS 4 update.
We'll cover the latter group first.
Multitasking
Though you've always been able to multitask with native iPhone features
like the music player, the option is now available for third-party
apps. Your primary access point is a multitasking menu that's
accessible by double-tapping the Home button. Once there, you'll see a
list of currently running applications along the bottom of the
display that you can scroll through using a sideways finger swipe. The
pop-up menu shows only four apps at a time, but you can keep many
more in the tray.
The new multitasking feature is accessible by double-tapping the Home button.
Managing the multitasking menu couldn't be easier. To open a running
app, scroll though the menu and tap its icon once. When you're ready
to end an app, first use a long press on the related icon and then
click the tiny delete icon in the top left corner. Switching among
apps is a simple process as well: As you move back and forth, you'll
return to the exact point you left. There's also a clear sense of
organizations with the most recently used app on the left side. All
things considered, it's a very Apple experience.
But is it
real? As you'd expect, Apple's multitasking works a little differently
than on other smartphones. Instead of having all device resources
available to every running app, iOS 4 lets only seven app services run
in the background. According to Apple, this arrangement will have
less of a drain on resources like battery life and memory than if it
gave developers free rein. Also, since background apps essentially
pause, it will free the system from having to juggle resources and
kill stalled applications.
So what can you do in the
background? Apple's seven approved processes include audio (you'll be
able to play Pandora radio, for example), VoIP services like Skype,
GPS/location for apps like TomTom, push notifications, and local
notifications (those that don't to have to go through a server), task
completion, and fast app switching (apps essentially hibernate not to
use the CPU). The latter two are most notable. With task completion,
an app will finish something it's already started even if you send it
to the background; it will send you an alert when it's through. Fast
app switching, on the other hand, is the app hibernation process that
allows you to toggle back and forth quickly and return to the same
place you left.
Though some have complained that the built-in
limitations mean that iOS 4 doesn't have "real" multitasking, we think
"incomplete" is a better description. Granted, you can't run
everything in the background--your Twitter feed, for example, won't
update while paused--but iOS 4 does allow you to run certain features
from multiple apps simultaneously. If that isn't multitasking, then we
don't know what is. What's more, it wouldn't be the first time Apple
limited features or took longer with development in order to produce a
desired customer experience. You may not agree with such a
philosophy, but Apple has always been honest about pursuing it. Like
so many things in technology, it just comes down to what works best
for you.
Nice, but not miles ahead Even after the
long wait we're quite pleased with the multitasking experience. As it
has a talent for doing, Apple has presented the feature in a slick,
easy-to-use manner. It performed beautifully without ever crashing or
freezing the phone; it didn't appear to negatively affect battery
life; and it accomplishes what it sets out do. But even with strong
points, we wouldn't agree that it's the "the best" way to multitask (a
common Apple claim). It may be slick and save you a few clicks, but
other approaches--such as the "deck of cards" interface on
webOS--continue to impress. Similarly, though limited multitasking may
result in more-efficient power management, we'll have to run comparison
testing with other smartphones before we can agree.
We also
don't share Jobs' view that Apple's solution isn't a task manager.
When he unveiled iOS 4 last April, Jobs took a dig at Android and
other operating systems that require you to close background
applications that might be slowing down the phone. "In multitasking, if
you see a task manager... they blew it," he said. "Users shouldn't
ever have to think about it." Fair enough, but we think it's a matter
of semantics. As with most task managers, the iOS 4 multitasking menu
allows you to scan through running applications and close any that
you're no longer using.
Granted, you may not have to kill
frozen applications as often as you would on, say, a Windows Mobile
phone, but you still have that option. We also found usability quirks
that are common with task manager apps. Pressing the Home button once,
for example, simply sends an app to the background; it does not end
it completely. To do so, you'll need to open the multitasking menu,
find the related icon, and end it there. And we couldn't overlook
another point. Now that a double-tap of the Home button opens the
multitasking menu, you can no longer use the control as a shortcut for
a designated feature. As such, the option is gone from the Setting
menu. A small price to pay for a new feature, we suppose.
Apps will come
We know that some CNET users are concerned that many existing apps are
not functioning in the background. Keep in mind that it will take
time for developers to update their apps for multitasking capability.
Apple plays no rule in making those updates, so contact the individual
developers for a time frame.
Home screen folders
Though we love apps as much as the next person, we've become tired of
scrolling through several pages of iPhone home screens. Thankfully,
that has changed with the addition of home screen folders. This is
another common feature that competing devices have long offered, so
it's nice to see Apple stepping up.
Folders clear up space on your home screen.
To get started, use a long press on the home screen so the icons
"jiggle." When your icons are dancing (they'll also have a tiny delete
icon in the corner), you can take an app and drop it on top of another
to create a folder. The folder will then appear as a square with tiny
icons of the included app inside. Tap the folder to access the
included apps and get an expanded view of the folder's contents.
Alternatively, if you want to remove an app, just drag it back to the
home screen.
Thankfully, you're awarded a fair amount of
flexibility for folder organization. You can add as many folders as
you like, change the default folder name, and add both related and
unrelated apps. Surprisingly, we could even group legacy features like
the Weather and Stock applications into a single folder. The process
is easy, but we wouldn't say it offers a huge change from the
equivalent experience on Android. And really, Apple, we're limited to
just 12 apps in one folder?
Email and enterprise
The iPhone always has been a functional email machine, but we've never
enjoyed switching back and forth among multiple accounts to read new
messages. Fortunately, iOS 4 has a new unified inbox that is accessible
under the "Mail" option on your home screen. Listed above your
individual inboxes is a new option for "All inboxes," which contains
messages from multiple accounts. You can't access individual folders
from the universal inbox, but you can delete and move messages. Here
again, it works well, but it's not vastly superior to how competing OSes
handle the same process.
Other email changes include the
capability to add multiple Exchange accounts, organize emails by
thread, jump directly to individual inboxes, resize photos before you
send, and open attachments with a preferred app. All are nice, but
we'll delve into a couple of our favorites for more detail. Emails in a
thread will now be designated by a small number on the left side of
the message header. Clicking the number will take you to a separate
screen that lists all relevant messages. It's a nice touch, and we like
that you can move or delete messages in the thread. We also like the
new option to delete emails directly from search results.
The iPhone 4's virtual keyboard is unchanged.
Worker bees will get options like enhanced data protection, mobile
device management, wireless app distribution, support for Exchange 2010,
and SSL VPN from Juniper and Cisco.
Home screen customization
Unlike the previous three features, this addition was low on our wish
list, but Apple's done a decent job rolling it out. Sure, you always
could change the standard black background using a third-party app, but
iOS 4 adds the native capability to the iPhone and iPod touch. First,
find the "wallpaper" option in the Settings menu and choose either a
provided wallpaper or a photo in your camera roll. After making your
selection, you'll have the option to set it as the wallpaper for your
home screen, the lock screen, or both.
It's all
straightforward, but there are a couple troublesome trade-offs. First
off, keep in mind that once you ditch the standard black background,
there's no way to get it back. You can take a photo of a black wall,
the night sky, or a dark room, but that's hardly the same thing. And
don't be surprised to find that some of your native wallpapers have
been replaced by new options. Apple giveth, and Apple hath taken away.
Spell check The iPhone has long had an autocorrect
feature that changes words as you type, but we've never considered it
to be completely useful. That's why we're bigger fans of the new spell
check feature that notifies you of unrecognized or misspelled words
with a red underline. It works when you're composing both emails and
text messages, and you get a list of suggested corrections. We'd like
more suggestions, but that's a small point.
Search
iOS 4 offers a few new searching options across various features. First
off, when typing a URL in the Safari browser, you'll see not only the
URL title of sites you've visited recently, but also the full Web
address. That's a nice touch since you can find the exact Web page that
you want. Over in Universal Search, you'll see Web and Wikipedia
results with the content stored on the phone. It takes a couple of
clicks to get them going, but it's convenient. And finally, you'll now
find a search bar for your text messages. It works just like the
search option for emails.
Game Center Coming
"later this year," Game Center will include features like a social
gaming network, the ability to invite friends to games, leaderboards
and achievements, and the opportunity for "matchmaking" (setting up
two people to play).
Connectivity iOS 4 adds
persistent W-Fi, which means the iPhone 4 will stay connected to a hot
spot even when it's in standby mode. This could have a negative
effect on battery life so we'll be watching. With wake-on wireless,
the handset promises to wake from standby when it comes in range of a
cellular network. It's not something we were asking for, but we'll
take it. Lastly, there's now support for using a Bluetooth keyboard.
We haven't had the opportunity to test this feature yet.
Additional changes
As with previous updates, iOS 4 also brings a selection of smaller
features and interface tweaks. Among them are a redesigned calculator
icon (the feature is the same), the ability to send apps as gifts,
alphanumeric pass codes, bigger font sizes for accessibility, enhanced
iPod-out capability, and a redesigned location icon in the Google Maps
application (it's an arrow instead of a bull's eye). You also get a
new Birthday Calendar that's accessible under the main calendar app.
We're still looking for a specific birthday event filed, however.
iPod player
With the iPhone 4, Apple continues to show that it positively shines
with mobile music and video. This is one area where the company beat
its competitors hands down. For the most part, the iPhone 4 iPod
player is unchanged, but we were glad to see a few new offerings.
There's now a convenient option for creating playlists on the go. We
did so in just a couple of steps and added a selection of tunes.
What's more, we're always happy when we can do something without going
through iTunes. Back in the multitasking menu, you'll find new music
player controls and a shortcut for locking the display rotation. To
get there, just swipe to the far left.
Camera The
iPhone's camera has always been decent, but it's lacked features found
on many basic phones. That's why we applaud the 5-megapixel
resolution, the new LED flash, and the 5x digital zoom. The handset
also has a new backside illuminated sensor, The biggest gain,
however, is its ability to record 720p high-definition video at a
constant 30 frames per second. The iPhone isn't the first handset to
offer this capability, but it delivers on quality. Of course, we'd
love more options like a brightness control and color tones, but we
doubt that we'll ever get them.
The camera now has a digital zoom.
The primary camera interface is about the same as the 3GS', with the
usual shutter control, camera/camcorder switch, and photo gallery
shortcut off to one side. A new flash control activates the LED on the
rear face. Thankfully, you can choose form auto or "always-on" modes.
Over in the opposite corner is a control for switching between the
front and rear cameras. When you're not making FaceTime calls, you can
use the front-facing VGA camera for self-portraits. Image quality
won't amaze, but that's not surprising considering VGA shooters are
hardly the pinnacle of technological development. It is great to be
able to take vanity shots, though.
We welcome the new camera flash.
The shooter also includes changes that came from iOS 4. Our favorite
is a 5x zoom for the still camera. When taking a photo, just tap the
screen to see the zoom bar. Use your finger to pan in and out, but
remember that since this is digital zoom, picture quality will degrade
as you zoom in. Also, you now can use the tap-to-focus feature in the
still and video cameras. We've never found that this feature makes
that much of a difference, but it certainly doesn't hurt to have it.
In
initial testing the camera quality is noticeably improved. We'll
start with still photos first. It's not an exaggeration to say that
iPhone 4 takes beautiful photos. Colors are bright and natural, there
was no visible image noise, and our shots were in focus. The bright
flash also makes a positive change. As with most LEDs it can make dark
images look a tad overblown, but we're just glad that we now can take
images in a dark room. We also love that there's no shutter lag like
there was with previous iPhones. The camera takes the shot the instant
you press the shutter.
The iPhone delivers great photo quality.
Video quality also impressed. You'll need to keep the phone steady,
but our clips were smooth and free of any pixels or hiccups. It also
handles motion quite well, and audio was in sync with the video. And of
course, you can cut your videos using the nifty video-editing feature
that originated on the iPhone 3GS.
Photo gallery
You can organize all images from an event or those that feature a
specific friend. For both, however, you'll need to have already used the
face-recognition options in iPhoto or Aperture and sync with iTunes.
One expected change appears to have vanished, however: when we played
with the initial beta version of iOS 4, we saw an option in the
gallery for rotating photos, but we can't find it again in the final
version.
FaceTime Apple is pushing FaceTime as one
of the iPhone 4's most-exciting features. It certainly looked good at
the WWDC demo, so we were eager to try it. After even a short test we
were pleased with the feature's quality and we like that it's an
integrated option that doesn't require an app. The incoming video can
be a bit pixelated and jerky, particularly when your friend is using
the front camera, but it wasn't bothersome. And really, that's to be
expected when using a VGA shooter. You'll see a slightly better feed
if your friend uses the rear camera, but not by much. The video from
your phone will show in the lop left corner; it looked great from
either camera. Also, you can use it in both portrait and landscape
modes.
Obviously, FaceTime only works with another iPhone 4. You activate
the feature after placing a call on a Wi-Fi network (more on that in a
minute). Once the call connects, you'll see an option for FaceTime
instead of the normal "Hold" control (we've no clue where that option
went). Both you and your friend must press the control to establish a
video chat; you then can mute the call or end it directly from the
FaceTime screen. And after you placed a FaceTime call for the first
time, you'll see the phone number listed twice in your recent calls
list. One entry will activate FaceTime directly, and the other will
place a normal cellular call.
That's not to say FaceTime wasn't
without its problems. On more than one occasion, we couldn't
establish a connection, even though we were using two iPhone 4s on
Wi-Fi. We even found on one handset that the FaceTime option wasn't
there when it should have been. The switch between normal and FaceTime
calls can take a few seconds, during which reception is faulty. We
never dropped a call during the switch, but it was annoying.
For
2010, FaceTime will work only on Wi-Fi. We've heard a lot of
grumbling about this restriction, but we don't think that's a bad
thing. Video chat uses a ton of data so we're sure the experience would
be better on Wi-Fi than on AT&T's strained network, anyway.
What's also great is that because you're on Wi-Fi, FaceTime calls will
not deduct from your cellular minutes. Jobs said Apple is working
with iPhone carriers to carry the feature (cue speculation on possible
new carriers), but he didn't offer other details. As long as Apple
kills the Wi-Fi limit in the next year, we'll be happy.
As
fun as it is, though, it's not a feature that we were burning for, and
we wonder if it will last past the novelty stage. This is not a
reflection on the quality of Apple technology--so back off,
fanboys--but rather on if users will really use it over the long term.
After all, video chat technology has been around since 2004 when
AT&T Wireless (remember that?) first debuted a very limited service
on the brick-size Motorola A845. The phone didn't last long, but
video chat is common around the world and in the US. AT&T runs its
Video Share on a limited number of phones, for example, and Sprint's
HTC Evo 4G offers the Qik video chat application. Each has a few
drawbacks, but they do exist.
.
Gyroscope The
iPhone 3Gs gave us a compass, but the iPhone 4 raises the bar by
offering a three-axis gyroscope. Like on an airplane, you'll get pitch,
roll, and yaw, and it's tied with the accelerometer to provide
six-axis motion sensing. Though by all means it will be useful to app
and game developers, it also just looks like a lot of fun. We'll
investigate this more over the next few days.
Tethering
The iPhone has always been capable of tethering, but AT&T has
lagged behind other carriers in offering an option for it. In its new
pricing plans, however, AT&T now offers the ability to use your
iPhone as a modem for your PC. You'll need to pay an extra US$20 to
get it, but at east it's there. We'll test this feature and report
back.
iMovie and iBooks iMovie brings movie-editing
capabilities to the iPhone. You'll pay US$4.99 for the app, but it's a
nice touch. We'll explore its capabilities after we can test it
thoroughly. Apple's e-book reader joins Amazon's Kindle app as an
option for bookworms. You will be able to access Apple's iBookstore to
purchase new content, and if you have an iPhone and an iPad, you can
read your book on both devices (with just one purchase) and sync your
current page. It looked nifty when Jobs offered a demo of iBooks
during his WWDC keynote.
Processor Under the hood
is the same 1GHz ARM Cortex A8 chip that's found in the iPad. Also,
though Apple hasn't specified the RAM, we know that it's 512MB. In
early tests the phone is quite a bit faster than the 3GS and certainly
the iPhone 3G. Menus, applications, and other features opened in a
flash. And as we mentioned earlier, the app switching in the
multitasking menu and the camera shutter didn't leave us waiting.
Performance
Call and data quality
Much has been said about problems with AT&T and the iPhone, and
even on the iPhone 4 call quality remains the biggest sticking point.
Indeed, when we tested the quad-band (GSM 850, 900/1,800/1,900) world
phone in San Francisco and Boston, we encountered mixed results, with
improvements in some areas, trouble in some areas, and no change in
others. On the upside, audio clarity was sharper, our friends' voices
sounded natural, and the volume was a tad louder than on previous
iPhones. Also, the noise-cancellation mic does a good job of screening
out background audio. Even when in a loud place we could continue with
our conversations without any problem. What's more, we heard no "side
noise" (the sound of our own voice coming back through the phone),
static, or interference.
We also noticed a decrease in dead
zones that we've typically encountered in San Francisco. In a couple of
notoriously troublesome spots, we were able to receive calls when we
had no luck with the 3G or the 3GS. Dropped calls were fewer, as well,
though we had more failed connections than we'd like. We had decent
results when we tested the phone on Cape Cod and rural areas of
Massachusetts. In fact, AT&T was more reliable in those places than
T-Mobile. Perhaps the antenna made a difference.
But then
again, perhaps it didn't. Soon after we posted this review we heard
from many CNET users who complained that when they held the phone in
the hand--a common occurrence, no doubt--the signal decreased within a
few seconds . The reports came mostly from people who covered the
notch on the phone's left side with their palm while holding it in
their left hand. Initially we had mixed results in replicating the bars
problem, and our experience varied widely by location, the initial
signal strength, the phone we were using, and the person using it. At
times we saw no difference, but other times we noticed the signal drop
from a full five bars down to two or three. When we moved our hand
away, the meter jumped back to normal. Though the number of bars isn't
the most accurate test of reception, it is the one that most users
rely on. Unfortunately, Apple removed the more reliable iPhone Field
Test feature from iOS 4.
In other areas, our experience was
more troubling. During call tests we found that when we touched the
antenna gap, the audio quality degraded significantly. We tested three
different iPhone 4s in various locations in San Francisco and
experienced problems using various hand positions, including one finger
on the gap, cradling the handset gently, and holding it tighter with
our left hand on either side. In all instances, we made sure not to
cover the microphone with our hands. At times our voice cut out
completely, whereas on other occasions the audio became garbled. We did
not, however, suffer any dropped calls. We also conducted data speed
tests using the Speedtest app from Xtreme Labs that showed slower
download and upload speeds. Other reviewers and media outlets have
reported similar results.
Regrettably, Apple's initial response
to the issue wasn't satisfying. On June 24, 2010, the first day of
iPhone 4 sales, Apple sent the following statement to PC Magazine:
"Gripping any phone will result in some attenuation of its antenna
performance with certain places being worse than others depending on
the placement of the antennas. This is a fact of life for every
wireless phone. If you ever experience this on your Phone 4, avoid
gripping it in the lower left corner in a way that covers both sides of
the black strip in the metal band, or simply use one of many
available cases."
Granted, keeping your fingers away from a
cell phone antenna is advisable for the best reception, and Apple is
hardly the first manufacturer to offer such advice. We see such
warnings commonly on handsets that have a bottom-facing antenna, but
users typically don't hold such a device with their palm or fingers
resting in that area. The iPhone 4, however, is the first phone to the
place the antenna in a natural gripping point. The iPhone 4 also
differs from other handsets in that its antenna is electrically
exposed. Instead of touching a rubber coating, you touch the antenna
directly. And when you bridge the gap, your finger appears to
interfere with the antenna's efficiency.
Finally, on July
16, 2010, Apple held an unprecedented press conference where CEO Steve
Jobs characterized the issues as being "blown way out of proportion,"
and denied that the iPhone 4's attenuation issues are worse than any
other smartphone's (we've already told you that we disagree with that
point). Though Jobs maintained that only a small number of users are
experiencing a problem, Apple is offering all iPhone 4 customers a
free case through September 30, 2010. In our testing, an
Apple-supplied "bumper" case solves any call quality issues,
preventing users from touching the gap in the iPhone's antenna on the
left side. You can get a refund if you've already purchased a bumper,
but if you're still not satisfied, you can return your phone for a full
refund within 30 days.
Certainly, we appreciate the free
case. We never advocated for an iPhone 4 recall, but we maintain that
the exposed antenna causes unique problems. In other words, don't be
surprised if next year's iPhone 5 is slightly redesigned. Indeed, most
customers should welcome the move given that the bumper solves the
attenuation problem, and they no longer have to shell out a galling
US$29 just to get it. But that doesn't mean Apple is off the hook
completely. We shouldn't have to use rubber and plastic bumpers just
to get good reception. And we shouldn't have to change the aesthetics
of the phone to make a reliable call.
On their end, callers
said we sounded reasonably good. During calls where we used a bumper,
they could hear us without any problems and they mentioned there was
less background noise than when we used the 3GS. The first iPhone had a
sensitive sweet spot, but we didn't notice that here. A few people
heard some interference, but they said it was manageable. Automated
calling systems could understand us most of the time, even if we were
on a busy street. On the downside, the iPhone 4 appears to still have a
problem with hand-offs between EDGE and the 3G network. The handset
still tries to hang on to weak 3G signal when it should switch to
EDGE. As we said with the iPhone 3GS, the reception jumped if we
switched off the handset's 3G radio in the Settings menu.
Speakerphone
calls were mostly satisfactory. We could hear our friends clearly,
though the volume was a tad distorted at the highest levels. You don't
need to be close to the phone to hear, but we had to be close to the
phone for our friends to hear us. That's not unusual, though. Bluetooth
headset performance was mixed. Bluetooth headset calls were fine,
Data connectivity
The quality of the data connection varied. Given AT&T's throttled
network in San Francisco, grahpics-heavy sites like Airliners.net and
Wow.com loaded in about 50 seconds, which is longer than on on the
other three major carriers. T-Mobile took about 40 seconds to load the
same sites, whereas Sprint and Verizon Wireless performed slightly
better. What's more, AT&T's 3G doesn't reach as far into buildings
or underground in transit stations.
As you'd expect, simpler
sites or pages built for mobile phones loaded much quicker, often in
15 seconds or less. EDGE browsing is a bit painful, so we suggest
using it rarely. In any case, use Wi-Fi whenever you can.
Signal strength meter
On July 15, 2010, Apple issued a promised software update that fixed a
problem of incorrect signal bars on the display. According to the
company, the iPhone 4 was incorrectly showing more bars in areas with
weaker signal. We're still evaluating this update and we'll report back
here with our findings. Keep in mind that the 4.0.1 update is
unrelated to the antenna's reception.
Music playback
With 3G turned on, we managed an impressive 59.02 hours in our longest
test. That more than beats Apple's promised time of 40 hours for
audio playback. When we conduct our music playback battery life test,
we start with a fully charged phone. The display is set to a
brightness level of 50 percent, and the backlight is set to turn off
after 10 seconds. All phones are set to the same volume level, which
we measure electronically to ensure fairness and consistency in
testing. If the phone includes an EQ setting, we set it to "flat." We
play a group of repeating audio files and record the amount of time
that passes until the phone's battery drains and it shuts off.
Battery life
The iPhone 4's bigger battery should mean more juice to get you
through the day. Apple officially promises 14 hours of EDGE talktime, 7
hours of 3G talktime, 40 hours of audio playback, 10 hours of video
playback, 6 hours of 3G browsing, 10 hours of Wi-Fi browsing, and 300
hours of standby. In early testing, the battery lasted a respectable
period. We used it heavily for about 5 hours and we were still going
relatively strong after a full charge. In the following days we were
continually pleased. Whereas previous iPhones died after a full day,
the iPhone 4 lasted into the next.
In tests with CNET Labs,
we recorded 14.55 hours of EDGE talktime and 7.76 hours of 3G
talktime, thus beating Apple's tests. We're still conducting more
battery tests and will add them here.
According to FCC
radiation tests, the iPhone 4 has a digital SAR of 1.17 watts per
kilogram. With a heavy load of new goodies,
the iPhone 4 runs circles around its 3GS predecessor in bringing new
features. Some are unique to the device, and others come with the iOS 4
update. We'll cover the latter group first.
Multitasking
Though you've always been able to multitask with native iPhone
features like the music player, the option is now available for
third-party apps. Your primary access point is a multitasking menu
that's accessible by double-tapping the Home button. Once there,
you'll see a list of currently running applications along the bottom
of the display that you can scroll through using a sideways finger
swipe. The pop-up menu shows only four apps at a time, but you can
keep many more in the tray.
The new multitasking feature is accessible by double-tapping the Home button.
Managing the multitasking menu couldn't be easier. To open a running
app, scroll though the menu and tap its icon once. When you're ready
to end an app, first use a long press on the related icon and then
click the tiny delete icon in the top left corner. Switching among
apps is a simple process as well: As you move back and forth, you'll
return to the exact point you left. There's also a clear sense of
organizations with the most recently used app on the left side. All
things considered, it's a very Apple experience.
But is it
real? As you'd expect, Apple's multitasking works a little differently
than on other smartphones. Instead of having all device resources
available to every running app, iOS 4 lets only seven app services run
in the background. According to Apple, this arrangement will have
less of a drain on resources like battery life and memory than if it
gave developers free rein. Also, since background apps essentially
pause, it will free the system from having to juggle resources and
kill stalled applications.
So what can you do in the
background? Apple's seven approved processes include audio (you'll be
able to play Pandora radio, for example), VoIP services like Skype,
GPS/location for apps like TomTom, push notifications, and local
notifications (those that don't to have to go through a server), task
completion, and fast app switching (apps essentially hibernate not to
use the CPU). The latter two are most notable. With task completion,
an app will finish something it's already started even if you send it
to the background; it will send you an alert when it's through. Fast
app switching, on the other hand, is the app hibernation process that
allows you to toggle back and forth quickly and return to the same
place you left.
Though some have complained that the built-in
limitations mean that iOS 4 doesn't have "real" multitasking, we think
"incomplete" is a better description. Granted, you can't run
everything in the background--your Twitter feed, for example, won't
update while paused--but iOS 4 does allow you to run certain features
from multiple apps simultaneously. If that isn't multitasking, then we
don't know what is. What's more, it wouldn't be the first time Apple
limited features or took longer with development in order to produce a
desired customer experience. You may not agree with such a
philosophy, but Apple has always been honest about pursuing it. Like
so many things in technology, it just comes down to what works best
for you.
Nice, but not miles ahead Even after the
long wait we're quite pleased with the multitasking experience. As it
has a talent for doing, Apple has presented the feature in a slick,
easy-to-use manner. It performed beautifully without ever crashing or
freezing the phone; it didn't appear to negatively affect battery
life; and it accomplishes what it sets out do. But even with strong
points, we wouldn't agree that it's the "the best" way to multitask (a
common Apple claim). It may be slick and save you a few clicks, but
other approaches--such as the "deck of cards" interface on
webOS--continue to impress. Similarly, though limited multitasking may
result in more-efficient power management, we'll have to run comparison
testing with other smartphones before we can agree.
We also
don't share Jobs' view that Apple's solution isn't a task manager.
When he unveiled iOS 4 last April, Jobs took a dig at Android and
other operating systems that require you to close background
applications that might be slowing down the phone. "In multitasking, if
you see a task manager... they blew it," he said. "Users shouldn't
ever have to think about it." Fair enough, but we think it's a matter
of semantics. As with most task managers, the iOS 4 multitasking menu
allows you to scan through running applications and close any that
you're no longer using.
Granted, you may not have to kill
frozen applications as often as you would on, say, a Windows Mobile
phone, but you still have that option. We also found usability quirks
that are common with task manager apps. Pressing the Home button once,
for example, simply sends an app to the background; it does not end
it completely. To do so, you'll need to open the multitasking menu,
find the related icon, and end it there. And we couldn't overlook
another point. Now that a double-tap of the Home button opens the
multitasking menu, you can no longer use the control as a shortcut for
a designated feature. As such, the option is gone from the Setting
menu. A small price to pay for a new feature, we suppose.
Apps will come
We know that some CNET users are concerned that many existing apps are
not functioning in the background. Keep in mind that it will take
time for developers to update their apps for multitasking capability.
Apple plays no rule in making those updates, so contact the individual
developers for a time frame.
Home screen folders
Though we love apps as much as the next person, we've become tired of
scrolling through several pages of iPhone home screens. Thankfully,
that has changed with the addition of home screen folders. This is
another common feature that competing devices have long offered, so
it's nice to see Apple stepping up.
Folders clear up space on your home screen.
To get started, use a long press on the home screen so the icons
"jiggle." When your icons are dancing (they'll also have a tiny delete
icon in the corner), you can take an app and drop it on top of another
to create a folder. The folder will then appear as a square with tiny
icons of the included app inside. Tap the folder to access the
included apps and get an expanded view of the folder's contents.
Alternatively, if you want to remove an app, just drag it back to the
home screen.
Thankfully, you're awarded a fair amount of
flexibility for folder organization. You can add as many folders as
you like, change the default folder name, and add both related and
unrelated apps. Surprisingly, we could even group legacy features like
the Weather and Stock applications into a single folder. The process
is easy, but we wouldn't say it offers a huge change from the
equivalent experience on Android. And really, Apple, we're limited to
just 12 apps in one folder?
Email and enterprise
The iPhone always has been a functional email machine, but we've never
enjoyed switching back and forth among multiple accounts to read new
messages. Fortunately, iOS 4 has a new unified inbox that is accessible
under the "Mail" option on your home screen. Listed above your
individual inboxes is a new option for "All inboxes," which contains
messages from multiple accounts. You can't access individual folders
from the universal inbox, but you can delete and move messages. Here
again, it works well, but it's not vastly superior to how competing OSes
handle the same process.
Other email changes include the
capability to add multiple Exchange accounts, organize emails by
thread, jump directly to individual inboxes, resize photos before you
send, and open attachments with a preferred app. All are nice, but
we'll delve into a couple of our favorites for more detail. Emails in a
thread will now be designated by a small number on the left side of
the message header. Clicking the number will take you to a separate
screen that lists all relevant messages. It's a nice touch, and we like
that you can move or delete messages in the thread. We also like the
new option to delete emails directly from search results.
The iPhone 4's virtual keyboard is unchanged.
Worker bees will get options like enhanced data protection, mobile
device management, wireless app distribution, support for Exchange 2010,
and SSL VPN from Juniper and Cisco.
Home screen customization
Unlike the previous three features, this addition was low on our wish
list, but Apple's done a decent job rolling it out. Sure, you always
could change the standard black background using a third-party app, but
iOS 4 adds the native capability to the iPhone and iPod touch. First,
find the "wallpaper" option in the Settings menu and choose either a
provided wallpaper or a photo in your camera roll. After making your
selection, you'll have the option to set it as the wallpaper for your
home screen, the lock screen, or both.
It's all
straightforward, but there are a couple troublesome trade-offs. First
off, keep in mind that once you ditch the standard black background,
there's no way to get it back. You can take a photo of a black wall,
the night sky, or a dark room, but that's hardly the same thing. And
don't be surprised to find that some of your native wallpapers have
been replaced by new options. Apple giveth, and Apple hath taken away.
Spell check The iPhone has long had an autocorrect
feature that changes words as you type, but we've never considered it
to be completely useful. That's why we're bigger fans of the new spell
check feature that notifies you of unrecognized or misspelled words
with a red underline. It works when you're composing both emails and
text messages, and you get a list of suggested corrections. We'd like
more suggestions, but that's a small point.
Search
iOS 4 offers a few new searching options across various features. First
off, when typing a URL in the Safari browser, you'll see not only the
URL title of sites you've visited recently, but also the full Web
address. That's a nice touch since you can find the exact Web page that
you want. Over in Universal Search, you'll see Web and Wikipedia
results with the content stored on the phone. It takes a couple of
clicks to get them going, but it's convenient. And finally, you'll now
find a search bar for your text messages. It works just like the
search option for emails.
Game Center Coming
"later this year," Game Center will include features like a social
gaming network, the ability to invite friends to games, leaderboards
and achievements, and the opportunity for "matchmaking" (setting up
two people to play).
Connectivity iOS 4 adds
persistent W-Fi, which means the iPhone 4 will stay connected to a hot
spot even when it's in standby mode. This could have a negative
effect on battery life so we'll be watching. With wake-on wireless,
the handset promises to wake from standby when it comes in range of a
cellular network. It's not something we were asking for, but we'll
take it. Lastly, there's now support for using a Bluetooth keyboard.
We haven't had the opportunity to test this feature yet.
Additional changes
As with previous updates, iOS 4 also brings a selection of smaller
features and interface tweaks. Among them are a redesigned calculator
icon (the feature is the same), the ability to send apps as gifts,
alphanumeric pass codes, bigger font sizes for accessibility, enhanced
iPod-out capability, and a redesigned location icon in the Google Maps
application (it's an arrow instead of a bull's eye). You also get a
new Birthday Calendar that's accessible under the main calendar app.
We're still looking for a specific birthday event filed, however.
iPod player
With the iPhone 4, Apple continues to show that it positively shines
with mobile music and video. This is one area where the company beat
its competitors hands down. For the most part, the iPhone 4 iPod
player is unchanged, but we were glad to see a few new offerings.
There's now a convenient option for creating playlists on the go. We
did so in just a couple of steps and added a selection of tunes.
What's more, we're always happy when we can do something without going
through iTunes. Back in the multitasking menu, you'll find new music
player controls and a shortcut for locking the display rotation. To
get there, just swipe to the far left.
Camera The
iPhone's camera has always been decent, but it's lacked features found
on many basic phones. That's why we applaud the 5-megapixel
resolution, the new LED flash, and the 5x digital zoom. The handset
also has a new backside illuminated sensor, The biggest gain,
however, is its ability to record 720p high-definition video at a
constant 30 frames per second. The iPhone isn't the first handset to
offer this capability, but it delivers on quality. Of course, we'd
love more options like a brightness control and color tones, but we
doubt that we'll ever get them.
The camera now has a digital zoom.
The primary camera interface is about the same as the 3GS', with the
usual shutter control, camera/camcorder switch, and photo gallery
shortcut off to one side. A new flash control activates the LED on the
rear face. Thankfully, you can choose form auto or "always-on" modes.
Over in the opposite corner is a control for switching between the
front and rear cameras. When you're not making FaceTime calls, you can
use the front-facing VGA camera for self-portraits. Image quality
won't amaze, but that's not surprising considering VGA shooters are
hardly the pinnacle of technological development. It is great to be
able to take vanity shots, though.
We welcome the new camera flash.
The shooter also includes changes that came from iOS 4. Our favorite
is a 5x zoom for the still camera. When taking a photo, just tap the
screen to see the zoom bar. Use your finger to pan in and out, but
remember that since this is digital zoom, picture quality will degrade
as you zoom in. Also, you now can use the tap-to-focus feature in the
still and video cameras. We've never found that this feature makes
that much of a difference, but it certainly doesn't hurt to have it.
In
initial testing the camera quality is noticeably improved. We'll
start with still photos first. It's not an exaggeration to say that
iPhone 4 takes beautiful photos. Colors are bright and natural, there
was no visible image noise, and our shots were in focus. The bright
flash also makes a positive change. As with most LEDs it can make dark
images look a tad overblown, but we're just glad that we now can take
images in a dark room. We also love that there's no shutter lag like
there was with previous iPhones. The camera takes the shot the instant
you press the shutter.
The iPhone delivers great photo quality.
Video quality also impressed. You'll need to keep the phone steady,
but our clips were smooth and free of any pixels or hiccups. It also
handles motion quite well, and audio was in sync with the video. And of
course, you can cut your videos using the nifty video-editing feature
that originated on the iPhone 3GS.
Photo gallery
You can organize all images from an event or those that feature a
specific friend. For both, however, you'll need to have already used the
face-recognition options in iPhoto or Aperture and sync with iTunes.
One expected change appears to have vanished, however: when we played
with the initial beta version of iOS 4, we saw an option in the
gallery for rotating photos, but we can't find it again in the final
version.
FaceTime Apple is pushing FaceTime as one
of the iPhone 4's most-exciting features. It certainly looked good at
the WWDC demo, so we were eager to try it. After even a short test we
were pleased with the feature's quality and we like that it's an
integrated option that doesn't require an app. The incoming video can
be a bit pixelated and jerky, particularly when your friend is using
the front camera, but it wasn't bothersome. And really, that's to be
expected when using a VGA shooter. You'll see a slightly better feed
if your friend uses the rear camera, but not by much. The video from
your phone will show in the lop left corner; it looked great from
either camera. Also, you can use it in both portrait and landscape
modes.
Obviously, FaceTime only works with another iPhone 4. You activate
the feature after placing a call on a Wi-Fi network (more on that in a
minute). Once the call connects, you'll see an option for FaceTime
instead of the normal "Hold" control (we've no clue where that option
went). Both you and your friend must press the control to establish a
video chat; you then can mute the call or end it directly from the
FaceTime screen. And after you placed a FaceTime call for the first
time, you'll see the phone number listed twice in your recent calls
list. One entry will activate FaceTime directly, and the other will
place a normal cellular call.
That's not to say FaceTime wasn't
without its problems. On more than one occasion, we couldn't
establish a connection, even though we were using two iPhone 4s on
Wi-Fi. We even found on one handset that the FaceTime option wasn't
there when it should have been. The switch between normal and FaceTime
calls can take a few seconds, during which reception is faulty. We
never dropped a call during the switch, but it was annoying.
For
2010, FaceTime will work only on Wi-Fi. We've heard a lot of
grumbling about this restriction, but we don't think that's a bad
thing. Video chat uses a ton of data so we're sure the experience would
be better on Wi-Fi than on AT&T's strained network, anyway.
What's also great is that because you're on Wi-Fi, FaceTime calls will
not deduct from your cellular minutes. Jobs said Apple is working
with iPhone carriers to carry the feature (cue speculation on possible
new carriers), but he didn't offer other details. As long as Apple
kills the Wi-Fi limit in the next year, we'll be happy.
As
fun as it is, though, it's not a feature that we were burning for, and
we wonder if it will last past the novelty stage. This is not a
reflection on the quality of Apple technology--so back off,
fanboys--but rather on if users will really use it over the long term.
After all, video chat technology has been around since 2004 when
AT&T Wireless (remember that?) first debuted a very limited service
on the brick-size Motorola A845. The phone didn't last long, but
video chat is common around the world and in the US. AT&T runs its
Video Share on a limited number of phones, for example, and Sprint's
HTC Evo 4G offers the Qik video chat application. Each has a few
drawbacks, but they do exist.
.
Gyroscope The
iPhone 3Gs gave us a compass, but the iPhone 4 raises the bar by
offering a three-axis gyroscope. Like on an airplane, you'll get pitch,
roll, and yaw, and it's tied with the accelerometer to provide
six-axis motion sensing. Though by all means it will be useful to app
and game developers, it also just looks like a lot of fun. We'll
investigate this more over the next few days.
Tethering
The iPhone has always been capable of tethering, but AT&T has
lagged behind other carriers in offering an option for it. In its new
pricing plans, however, AT&T now offers the ability to use your
iPhone as a modem for your PC. You'll need to pay an extra US$20 to
get it, but at east it's there. We'll test this feature and report
back.
iMovie and iBooks iMovie brings movie-editing
capabilities to the iPhone. You'll pay US$4.99 for the app, but it's a
nice touch. We'll explore its capabilities after we can test it
thoroughly. Apple's e-book reader joins Amazon's Kindle app as an
option for bookworms. You will be able to access Apple's iBookstore to
purchase new content, and if you have an iPhone and an iPad, you can
read your book on both devices (with just one purchase) and sync your
current page. It looked nifty when Jobs offered a demo of iBooks
during his WWDC keynote.
Processor Under the hood
is the same 1GHz ARM Cortex A8 chip that's found in the iPad. Also,
though Apple hasn't specified the RAM, we know that it's 512MB. In
early tests the phone is quite a bit faster than the 3GS and certainly
the iPhone 3G. Menus, applications, and other features opened in a
flash. And as we mentioned earlier, the app switching in the
multitasking menu and the camera shutter didn't leave us waiting.
Performance
Call and data quality
Much has been said about problems with AT&T and the iPhone, and
even on the iPhone 4 call quality remains the biggest sticking point.
Indeed, when we tested the quad-band (GSM 850, 900/1,800/1,900) world
phone in San Francisco and Boston, we encountered mixed results, with
improvements in some areas, trouble in some areas, and no change in
others. On the upside, audio clarity was sharper, our friends' voices
sounded natural, and the volume was a tad louder than on previous
iPhones. Also, the noise-cancellation mic does a good job of screening
out background audio. Even when in a loud place we could continue with
our conversations without any problem. What's more, we heard no "side
noise" (the sound of our own voice coming back through the phone),
static, or interference.
We also noticed a decrease in dead
zones that we've typically encountered in San Francisco. In a couple of
notoriously troublesome spots, we were able to receive calls when we
had no luck with the 3G or the 3GS. Dropped calls were fewer, as well,
though we had more failed connections than we'd like. We had decent
results when we tested the phone on Cape Cod and rural areas of
Massachusetts. In fact, AT&T was more reliable in those places than
T-Mobile. Perhaps the antenna made a difference.
But then
again, perhaps it didn't. Soon after we posted this review we heard
from many CNET users who complained that when they held the phone in
the hand--a common occurrence, no doubt--the signal decreased within a
few seconds . The reports came mostly from people who covered the
notch on the phone's left side with their palm while holding it in
their left hand. Initially we had mixed results in replicating the bars
problem, and our experience varied widely by location, the initial
signal strength, the phone we were using, and the person using it. At
times we saw no difference, but other times we noticed the signal drop
from a full five bars down to two or three. When we moved our hand
away, the meter jumped back to normal. Though the number of bars isn't
the most accurate test of reception, it is the one that most users
rely on. Unfortunately, Apple removed the more reliable iPhone Field
Test feature from iOS 4.
In other areas, our experience was
more troubling. During call tests we found that when we touched the
antenna gap, the audio quality degraded significantly. We tested three
different iPhone 4s in various locations in San Francisco and
experienced problems using various hand positions, including one finger
on the gap, cradling the handset gently, and holding it tighter with
our left hand on either side. In all instances, we made sure not to
cover the microphone with our hands. At times our voice cut out
completely, whereas on other occasions the audio became garbled. We did
not, however, suffer any dropped calls. We also conducted data speed
tests using the Speedtest app from Xtreme Labs that showed slower
download and upload speeds. Other reviewers and media outlets have
reported similar results.
Regrettably, Apple's initial response
to the issue wasn't satisfying. On June 24, 2010, the first day of
iPhone 4 sales, Apple sent the following statement to PC Magazine:
"Gripping any phone will result in some attenuation of its antenna
performance with certain places being worse than others depending on
the placement of the antennas. This is a fact of life for every
wireless phone. If you ever experience this on your Phone 4, avoid
gripping it in the lower left corner in a way that covers both sides of
the black strip in the metal band, or simply use one of many
available cases."
Granted, keeping your fingers away from a
cell phone antenna is advisable for the best reception, and Apple is
hardly the first manufacturer to offer such advice. We see such
warnings commonly on handsets that have a bottom-facing antenna, but
users typically don't hold such a device with their palm or fingers
resting in that area. The iPhone 4, however, is the first phone to the
place the antenna in a natural gripping point. The iPhone 4 also
differs from other handsets in that its antenna is electrically
exposed. Instead of touching a rubber coating, you touch the antenna
directly. And when you bridge the gap, your finger appears to
interfere with the antenna's efficiency.
Finally, on July
16, 2010, Apple held an unprecedented press conference where CEO Steve
Jobs characterized the issues as being "blown way out of proportion,"
and denied that the iPhone 4's attenuation issues are worse than any
other smartphone's (we've already told you that we disagree with that
point). Though Jobs maintained that only a small number of users are
experiencing a problem, Apple is offering all iPhone 4 customers a
free case through September 30, 2010. In our testing, an
Apple-supplied "bumper" case solves any call quality issues,
preventing users from touching the gap in the iPhone's antenna on the
left side. You can get a refund if you've already purchased a bumper,
but if you're still not satisfied, you can return your phone for a full
refund within 30 days.
Certainly, we appreciate the free
case. We never advocated for an iPhone 4 recall, but we maintain that
the exposed antenna causes unique problems. In other words, don't be
surprised if next year's iPhone 5 is slightly redesigned. Indeed, most
customers should welcome the move given that the bumper solves the
attenuation problem, and they no longer have to shell out a galling
US$29 just to get it. But that doesn't mean Apple is off the hook
completely. We shouldn't have to use rubber and plastic bumpers just
to get good reception. And we shouldn't have to change the aesthetics
of the phone to make a reliable call.
On their end, callers
said we sounded reasonably good. During calls where we used a bumper,
they could hear us without any problems and they mentioned there was
less background noise than when we used the 3GS. The first iPhone had a
sensitive sweet spot, but we didn't notice that here. A few people
heard some interference, but they said it was manageable. Automated
calling systems could understand us most of the time, even if we were
on a busy street. On the downside, the iPhone 4 appears to still have a
problem with hand-offs between EDGE and the 3G network. The handset
still tries to hang on to weak 3G signal when it should switch to
EDGE. As we said with the iPhone 3GS, the reception jumped if we
switched off the handset's 3G radio in the Settings menu.
Speakerphone
calls were mostly satisfactory. We could hear our friends clearly,
though the volume was a tad distorted at the highest levels. You don't
need to be close to the phone to hear, but we had to be close to the
phone for our friends to hear us. That's not unusual, though. Bluetooth
headset performance was mixed. Bluetooth headset calls were fine,
Data connectivity
The quality of the data connection varied. Given AT&T's throttled
network in San Francisco, grahpics-heavy sites like Airliners.net and
Wow.com loaded in about 50 seconds, which is longer than on on the
other three major carriers. T-Mobile took about 40 seconds to load the
same sites, whereas Sprint and Verizon Wireless performed slightly
better. What's more, AT&T's 3G doesn't reach as far into buildings
or underground in transit stations.
As you'd expect, simpler
sites or pages built for mobile phones loaded much quicker, often in
15 seconds or less. EDGE browsing is a bit painful, so we suggest
using it rarely. In any case, use Wi-Fi whenever you can.
Signal strength meter
On July 15, 2010, Apple issued a promised software update that fixed a
problem of incorrect signal bars on the display. According to the
company, the iPhone 4 was incorrectly showing more bars in areas with
weaker signal. We're still evaluating this update and we'll report back
here with our findings. Keep in mind that the 4.0.1 update is
unrelated to the antenna's reception.
Music playback
With 3G turned on, we managed an impressive 59.02 hours in our longest
test. That more than beats Apple's promised time of 40 hours for
audio playback. When we conduct our music playback battery life test,
we start with a fully charged phone. The display is set to a
brightness level of 50 percent, and the backlight is set to turn off
after 10 seconds. All phones are set to the same volume level, which
we measure electronically to ensure fairness and consistency in
testing. If the phone includes an EQ setting, we set it to "flat." We
play a group of repeating audio files and record the amount of time
that passes until the phone's battery drains and it shuts off.
Battery life
The iPhone 4's bigger battery should mean more juice to get you
through the day. Apple officially promises 14 hours of EDGE talktime, 7
hours of 3G talktime, 40 hours of audio playback, 10 hours of video
playback, 6 hours of 3G browsing, 10 hours of Wi-Fi browsing, and 300
hours of standby. In early testing, the battery lasted a respectable
period. We used it heavily for about 5 hours and we were still going
relatively strong after a full charge. In the following days we were
continually pleased. Whereas previous iPhones died after a full day,
the iPhone 4 lasted into the next.
In tests with CNET Labs,
we recorded 14.55 hours of EDGE talktime and 7.76 hours of 3G
talktime, thus beating Apple's tests. We're still conducting more
battery tests and will add them here.
According to FCC radiation tests, the iPhone 4 has a digital SAR of 1.17 watts per kilogram.
