WWDC 2010 Recap :: iPhone 4 and iOS 4

Yesterday in San Francisco, Steve Jobs kicked off Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference by announcing the new iPhone 4, iOS 4.0, and other goodies.  Let’s take a quick look at the highlights:

• iPhone 4 :: The next generation model is thinner, with a higher resolution display (called "retina display"), increased battery life, front-facing camera, flash on the rear camera, and two microphones for noise cancellation.  It will be available June 24 in both white and black versions for $199 with 16GB of built-in storage, and $299 for the 32GB version.
• Face Time :: This new feature allows you to have video chats with buddies using either the front or rear facing camera.  For now, it only works over wi-fi until carriers can catch up with the bandwidth needed.  This feature looks really cool and will make it unique among smart phones.
• iOS 4.0 :: This update, previewed back in April, will become available on June 21st, and it wil be a free upgrade to those with compatible devices, even on the iPod Touch.  Mr. Jobs demonstrated multi-tasking on the new iPhone, and it looks like Apple has gotten it right.
• Other Goodies :: The iPhone will have fantastic new apps, such as iMovie ($4.99), which will allow users to splice together clips they’ve filmed on their phone and add features like zooms and pans, transitions, and themes to their work.  Also, Apple released a version of its iBooks software for the iPhone and iPod Touch, which will allow users to make notes on the pages of their books and includes native support for PDF files.  What’s cool though is that the new version of iBooks syncs both purchases and reading progress between devices.

 Source:  "WWDC 2010: What You Need to Know" by Josh Lowensohn, published at CNET.