Apple’s hallowed iPhone 4 finally hit South African shores last night at midnight, to the sight of hundreds of consumers trying to get their hands on the first models in the country before local operators MTN and Vodacom run out of stock. 

 

We at TechSmart were fortunate enough to secure our own handset (16 GB) last night, and after several hours of using the device we can confirm that it’s every bit the smartphone phenomenon that Apple Steve Jobs makes it out to be. 

 

Set in a sturdy metal casing the iPhone 4 is somewhat heavier than we expected, this could be due to the glass panel used for the touch-screen interface. What immediately struck us is how thin the device is; an attribute which we are particularly fond of. The handset’s new angular design also leads us to believe that it is the most attractive iPhone yet, if not the most attractive smartphone currently on the market. 

 

Set up was relatively easy but first time iPhone users have to remember that access to iTunes 9.1 or later is essential for setting up a new iPhone 4 handset.

 

The first thing that popped out during first use was the screen, Apple’s new Retina display is simply amazing. The contrast and resolution it delivers is virtually unrivalled in this market, and it is certainly one of its strongest features. 

 

Apple also chose to outfit the iPhone 4 with its A4 system chip processor, which delivers 1 GHz of processing power. Rumour has it that the company also doubled the RAM from 256 MB to 512 MB. Either way, the difference was immediately apparent. The iPhone 4 is blisteringly fast and thus far we have had no problems with lag.

 

It also appears that Apple has managed to rectify the signal issues that plagued the device upon launch. Although we purposefully covered the bottom left hand corner of the iPhone 4 (where the signal receiver is located) we experienced no loss of signal while making calls or browsing. 

 

Overall, our first impressions of the device are more than positive. Keep your eyes peeled for an intensive review of the iPhone 4 which we will post soon.