If you’ve been off the planet for the past month or so, you can be forgiven for not knowing there’s a new iPhone, and much of its feature set was confirmed today by Apple CEO Steve Jobs in his keynote address for WWDC in San Francisco. This 4th-generation iPhone is packed with new features — some of them catching up to competing phones, some surpassing competitors. Here’s a  quick list of what’s new, hopefully ending much of the speculation that’s been going on.

1. Availability: The release plan seems a little different than for the iPad, with five countries given first crack: US, UK, France, Germany and Japan being allowed online pre-orders on Jun 15th, and availability on Jun 24th online, at Apple and AT&T retail stores, and Best Buy and Wal-Mart. The rest of the release plan calls for 24 more countries in August, after the first five, then the remaining countries for a total of 88. According to the press release, the phone will be available in numerous countries by the end of July, including: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
2. Battery: Larger battery, 40% more talk time. Specifically, 7 hours talk time on 3G; 10 hrs Web browsing on WiFi and 6 on 3G; 10 hrs of video playback; 40 hours of audio playback. Standby mode: 300 hours (nearly two weeks).
3. Bing search. While Google is still the default search engine for mobile Safari, the new iOS allows for you to switch over to Bing if you want.
4. Cameras: 5MP camera with 5x digital zoom and LED flash for low light conditions. Front-facing and rear-facing cameras.
5. Color: Black and white models.
6. Developer support: Over 1500 new APIs for developers to access 100 new features.
7. Display. The predictions were right: the iPhone 4 has 4x the pixels, for a whopping 960×640 screen resolution, at 326 ppi (pixels per inch). The new “Retina” display gives it a much higher contrast than 3GS — apparently 800:1 contrast ratio, giving it an almost paper-like quality for display text. (Print magazines often have a resolution of 300 or 600 dpi — dots per inch.) The 3.5 inch screen has a resolution that is almost 80% the size of the iPad.
8. Email, enhanced: Unified email inbox. Attachment support.
9. Form factor: It has a more squared-off form factor than before — but you probably knew that from all the photos of “leaked” prototypes. It’s supposedly 24% thinner than before and claims to be the thinnest (9.3 mm) smartphone on the planet. Overall, it’s 4.5 inches tall, 2.31 inches, and just under 5 ounces. Unfortunately, the new form factor means the iPhone 4 has to have a new dock. The iPhone 4′s alloyed metal rim is not only strong (5x stronger than steel), it acts as the the phone’s antennae (plural), to improve reception.
10. Gyroscope. The iPhone 4 has a 3-axis gyroscope that can more accurately detect phone motion in 6 axes — a plus for video gaming.
11. iAd ad network. Apple says that they have advertising commitments through their new iAd ad network for $60M in 2010 alone. Steve Jobs claimed this morning that iAds will steal 48% of the mobile advertising market.
12. iBooks. iPhone will get its own iBooks, which will allow for bookmarks and user sticky notes to be added to digital books.
13. iOS iPhone OS. Despite some talk about the name “iOS” being owned by Cisco, iOS is what iPhone OS 4.0 is being called. It’ll be available for download on older 3G and 3GS phones on Jun 21st, and (probably) preloaded onto iPhone 4. (However, some new OS 4 features will not be available for 3G phones.) The iPad will get an upgrade this fall.
14. Keyboard support, Bluetooth. Just as with the iPad, the iPhone 4 will allow you to add a Bluetooth keyboard.
15. Memory: 2×128 = 256 MB RAM. 16GB and 32GB models. Looks as if they did not manage to use the new 64GB flash drives made recently available — meaning predictions of storage capacities of 64GB and 128GB were unfortunately incorrect.
16. MicroSIM. Uses the new microSIM.
17. Microphones: Two, for noise-cancelling.
18. Netflix: Netflix is coming to the iPhone App Store free of charge, and it’ll allow starting a movie on the iPad and finishing viewing on the iPhone, or vice versa.
19. Networks: 802.11n WiFi, with added quad-band HSUPA.
20. Pricing: The phones are $199 for 16GB and $299 for 32GB. Wonder what they’re saving the $399 price slot for. The new 8GB 3GS model will be available on Jun 24 for $99.
21. Processor: A4 processor, just like the iPad.
22. UI features, enhanced. Multitasking, Folders, enhanced Mail, “deeper” enterprise support.
23. Upgrades: If your AT&T contract is up any time in 2010, you are apparently eligible to upgrade to a 4th-gen iPhone immediately (as in Jun 24th or whatever date depending where you live). You have to extend your contract for two more years. If you’re merely eligible for a phone upgrade, you probably don’t qualify. However, I called AT&T and the very helpful CSR concluded that while my non-iPhone line’s contract, and that of my wife’s, ends Mar 2011, our LG Vu phones qualify for upgrades in Aug and Nov of 2010. We are eligible for a partial discount immediately. Meaning, we might have to pay $200 extra per phone over the new prices to change the LG Vu phones into iPhone 4, as well as get new iPhone data plans. However, according to what Engadget says that AT&T told them, if you already have an iPhone and want to upgrade it, you are eligibility immediately if your contract allows an upgrade any time in 2010. So please check your online account or talk to an AT&T CSR for verification. You can also dial *639# from your AT&T phone, but the resulting text message is not all that detailed. Ultimately, you might just have to walk into your nearby AT&T store and on Jun 24th and find out for sure.
24. Video chatting: It’s called FaceTime, and it allows two 4th-gen iPhones to video chat, but only over WiFi for now, with 3G support coming in the future. Given AT&T’s cellular data pricing plan changes, maybe that’s a good thing. Either camera can be used for FaceTime chats, in both portrait and landscape modes.
25. Video editing. Not only will the phone have HD video recording (720p@30fps), you’ll be able to edit video with a built in app, or with the upcoming iMovie for iPhone ($4.99).

So there you have it. There are all sorts of other features and details that are not listed here, but these are amongst the most important. The FaceTime commercial by director Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road, Jarhead) is below.

AT&T is giving some concession to keep the old unlimited iPad data plan — but the offered reason that very few people are using the full 5GB/month data cap doesn’t seem to hold water, especially with video calling coming. On the other hand, the claim that the new pricing will be more affordable for more people sounds like a spin on “we’re losing exclusivity soon, so we want to prevent financial bleeding before the fact by offering the lowest-priced data plans now.” Will Apple slap AT&T’s wrists over this ? Not sure, but by Monday, we should at least know what consumer electronics wonders Steve Jobs has in store for the rest of 2010, after Jobs’ keynote kicks off in the morning at WWDC.

Of course, it’s still fun to speculate until then, and now speculation is running towards multiple iPhone carriers in the USA, though not immediately. This is based on speculation about what Jobs meant at D8 this week when he said there might be an advantage to this, as well as other rumors that suggest AT&T’s exclusivity contract is coming to an end in Nov or thereabouts. This might be why AT&T has suddenly created several revenue stream opportunities for themselves around the iPhone and iPad, including specialized iPhone insurance, increased ETF (Early Termination Fee) rates, revised data plans that do not favor power users (i.e., probably most early adopters of the iPad), etc.

Other interesting tidbits out of D8: that the iPad concept predated the iPhone, and that the original project was called the Safari Pad. I guess the Newton was missed.

Meanwhile, a U.S. Justice Dept probe is looking at how Apple does business with non-music media businesses. Apple’s market capitalization just passed Microsoft’s this week, and a recent complaint from Adobe has already triggered an anti-competitive practices probe.

Probes take time and in the meantime, it’s pretty clear that Apple will be announcing a new iPhone some time in June — an iPhone that’ll be leaps and bounds, technologically, ahead of the last generation, in order to support all the new features that appear in iPhone OS 4.x.

Digitimes Research has a Q&A with senior analyst Ming-Chi Kuo about some of the iPhone rumors, but the existence of a new phone is not a rumor. In fact, BGR says in two-line post that AT&T has already confirmed to their employees that there is a new iPhone in June.

Unfortunately for consumers, AT&T seems to be upping the cost of ownership. While the new phone itself is possible going to cost only $18 to upgrade to from an older iPhone, AT&T’s ETF (early termination fee) for all smartphones has increased from $175 to $325.

BGR also says that AT&T is launching a new iPhone insurance plan that costs a ridiculous $13.99 and launches in June. That’s nearly half the cost of the data plan. There’s also a deductible fee to be paid, for some claims. Are they expecting an increase in thefts and planning to capitalize? Or are they losing exclusivity and trying to come up with new revenue streams?  Or maybe both? Considering that AT&T claims that 40% of iPhone sales are to business users, businesses might in fact approve the insurance rates and write them off against profits.

Oddly enough, this insurance is supposed to be available in the Apple App Store, but you have to sign up within 30 days of purchasing or upgrading to a new iPhone. In case you don’t feel like doing the math, that’s nearly $170/year in premiums.

We all probably know by now that another generation of iPhone is coming and that it’ll have numerous new features. Some of these features will catch Apple up with other handset manufactures, but other features will put them ahead of everyone else.

Foxconn, Apple’s Chinese manufacturer of the iPhone, will apparently ship 24M units of the next generation of the smartphone. The new phone is likely to be announced on Jun 7, 2010, during Apple’s WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference), and Foxconn will ship close to 5M units before H1 2010, with the rest of the units from July-Dec. Given that the 1st half of 2010 ends Jun 30th, I’m guessing that there’s an expectation of selling 5M units in June. Given that AT&T is offering an $18 upgrade fee from older iPhones, I wouldn’t be surprised if they exceed 5M units. Note: Unwired View thinks
the phone will be announced Jun 22nd, but that leaves a little over a week to move 5M units. I’d put my money on Jun 7, with a faster release to markets outside the U.S. than is the case for the iPad. (The iPad becomes available in Canada and select other countries this Friday, May 28th.)

Digitimes Research is saying that the gen-4 iPhone will boast a screen resolution of 960×640, which if correct is 4 times that of the current iPhones (480×320). Inside will be an “Arm Cortex A8 processor and a 512MB memory module.” However, other sites have speculated on the same A4 chip that is inside the iPad, as well 256MB of RAM, and possibly 128MB of storage, thanks to recently available, less expensive 64GB flash memory modules. It’ll like have a longer battery life as well — which will be necessary to power video chat on the go.

Confirmed New Features

Now in addition to features on the next-gen iPhone that we’ve recently discussed, and other openly confirmed and discussed features such as app folders and third-party multi-tasking, here are some recently revealed features:

1. Utilities folder on the default home screen containing the clock, calculator compass, and voice memo apps.
2. Tethering support. This was available in OS 3.0 but never offered. While the ability is there again in OS 4.0, AT&T or other carriers will not necessarily offer it. But if they do, you can finally connect your iPad WiFi-only model, or any WiFi device, for that matter, when you need to get online. That’d be a definite plus, as the Palm Pre Plus Mobile Hotspot feature that I use currently for my iPad is only as good as the battery life, which is maybe 2-2.5 hours while in use. If the new iPhone’s battery has a longer life, that’ll be a huge plus.
3. Screen lock, just like on the iPad, so that the screen doesn’t rotate on you if you’re lying down.
4. CDMA version, presumably for Rogers Canada, but possibly also for Verizon USA.

There will likely be many other features revealed this week and next — or until the phone gets announced.

Potential New Features

By “potential feature” I mean that a feature is either supported by evidence but not confirmed by Apple, or it’s a feature that may not be available in OS 4.0 but rather in upgrades down the road, or finally a plausible feature that has been rumored by one site or another.

1. Colors. Possibly as many as 5 case colors, though pictures of rumored prototypes show only black and white so far.
2. Video chat. Apparently the director of the movie American Beauty (Kevin Spacey, Mena Suvari), Sam Mendes, will be directing a series of commercials for the next iPhone, and Engadget says that a “trusted source” that one scene will have a simulated video chat between a mother and a daughter. It’s not like we didn’t already know it was coming, with all the evidence out there (including a video calls debugging feature), but this sort of thing helps cement the reality.
3. Front- and back-facing cameras, to maintain current camera abilities and to support video chat.
4. Camera flash, to light up dark environments.
5. Redesigned architecture and footprint: Thinner frame, larger battery, larger screen resolution.
6. Contextual advertising, local coupons, temporary location apps.

Of course, some of the above is still essentially speculation until the official announcement. We’ll all just have to wait and see.

There’s been yet another “leak” of a possible prototype of the 4th-gen Apple iPhone. A photo (above) shows both a black and a white phone with larger screens. Given all the rumors and SDK evidence, it seems obvious that the OS 4 iPhone will have video calling and the larger screen resolution necessary to pull that off.

Fortunately, in just 2 weeks, all the speculation will be put to rest when Apple’s 5-day WWDC (Worldwide Developers Conference) kicks off on Jun 7th. Steve Jobs will start the event off with a keynote address to over 5,000 developers at the sold-out event. There’s an email circulating around the Web that’s supposedly from Jobs telling someone that “you won’t be disappointed,” in reference to what he’s probably planning to announce at the conference. I.e., probably the new iPhone, other features of the new SDK, and a mention of the countries where the iPad will by then be available.

What Jobs might not know is the new but celebrated iPad hasn’t only been banned in some countries but also in New York’s Yankee Stadium of all places. Apparently the stadium’s security policy considers the iPad to be in the laptop category, and laptops are not allowed in the stadium.

Has anyone told Yankee Stadium security that even the TSA (Transportation Safety Authority) differentiates between iPads and laptops? That’s actually a very disappointing fact. If more venues ban iPads, then carrying a tablet computer around might not become a common practice. I carry my iPad with me wherever I go, almost without fail. Now if I’m driving, I could always leave my iPad hidden somewhere, but if I’m walking or taking public transit — which is very likely in New York — then what am I supposed to do with it? Considering London will have full Wi-Fi access for the 20102 Olympics, I’m guessing they won’t be banning the iPad at venues there. Well, given that many Apple stores are sold out of the iPad, especially the 3G model, I’m guessing not a lot of people are going to be worried about this sort of ban, at least for now.

Is Apple stealing the market? Google announced last week that they were shutting down their online store and now Nokia is closing their flagship New York store. The Chicago store, on the other hand, is not closing. Wait a minute; doesn’t New York have a larger population than Chicago? Wouldn’t it make more sense to do the closing the other way around?

AT&T just got the Palm Pre Plus, but they’re charging $150 for it despite Verizon’s lower price. However, if you’re a new AT&T customer, you can get the phone for $50, but without the free Palm Touchstone charging dock. AT&T’s Pixi Plus will be available Jun 6th, to join the new AT&T Palm Pre Plus. The free Touchstone charge deal doesn’t apply to the Pixi Plus [Engadget]. If you get any smartphone from AT&T, be forewarned that they’ve increased the early termination fee from $175 to $325, effective Jun 1st — whether you’re a new subscriber or renewing your service.

The U.S. FTC finally approved Google’s purchase of mobile ad network AdMob Inc. While it took them six months to approve, the decision was partly to do with Apple’s own purchase of ad network Quattro Wireless. If I’m not mistaken, Apple’s purchase will result in their iAd network, announced at the same event earlier this year where Steve Jobs revealed some of the features that iPhone OS 4 would have.

The iPad might have a very long lasting battery but most smartphones seem to fizzle out in just a couple of hours of use. For example, the Palm Pre Plus I bought for it’s Mobile Hotspot feature (to power my WiFi-only iPad), has a battery that dies long, long before the iPad. But Google’s Larry Page recently said that if your Android-powered device isn’t lasting a day, there’s something wrong with your apps.