The iPhone 4, which features video calling, a crisper resolution screen and the ability to shoot and edit high-definition quality video, went on sale in Britain, France, Germany, Japan and the United States last Thursday and Apple has sold more than 1.7 million new iPhones in the product's first three days on the market!

On top of that, iPhone 4 will be available in an additional 18 countries by the end of July: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

So register your interest with SingTel / M1 / Starhub now!

I have been waiting for this for the longest of time but now I am worried about the antenna / reception issue. Apple has designed silver edging on handsets to be part of the antenna system to improve signal strength but iPhone owners complained that holding the smartphone in a certain way cut signal strength.

iPhone Loses Reception When You Hold It By The Antenna Band

So does that mean that the phone will lose all signal if it is in a phone pouch / handbag?

Luffs and I caught The Karate Kid last night!

Synopsis
12-year-old Dre Parker could've been the most popular kid in Detroit, but his mother's latest career move has landed him in China. Dre immediately falls for his classmate Mei Ying - and the feeling is mutual - but cultural differences make such a friendship impossible. Even worse, Dre's feelings make an enemy of the class bully, Cheng. In the land of kung fu, Dre knows only a little karate, and Cheng puts "the karate kid" on the floor with ease. With no friends in a strange land, Dre has nowhere to turn but maintenance man Mr. Han, who is secretly a master of kung fu. As Han teaches Dre that kung fu is not about punches and parries, but maturity and calm, Dre realizes that facing down the bullies will be the fight of his life.

This movie was not only really spectacular, but it followed the old storyline beautifully even though there were a few changes. Now I feel like watching the original movie all over again! It is true that some of us feel that we did not need a remake but this touching film stands on its own - It is one of those rare appeals-to-all-ages kind of movie!

I like the scenes with Taraji P. Henson (Mrs Parker) portraying her role as a single mother. She was helpless at times but she tried to be strong for her boy but yet she wasn't too sure how to make him feel right in a foreign land.

Seeing the emotions portrayed by Jaden Smith (starred as Dre Parker) - Hiding from bullies, getting his butt kicked for no reason, leaving his home, not having a dad, meeting a cute girl, and subsequently finding a friend / a father figure was the whole movie. Jaden showed an overpowering commitment in the way his small wiry body is sculpted with training, the way he executes his kung fu with efficient skills and the way he proves in every frame that he is a star!

Han Wen Wen (Mei Ying) is such a sweetheart - That is why I need to show 2 pictures of her! She was Jaden's young, violin-virtuoso love interest with a luminous smile and a lyrical laugh. I think Luffs secretly likes her too!

How can I miss out Jackie Chan?!! This show has definitely given him a more interesting and conflicted character to work with. It is strange at first to see the infinitely charming Jackie Chan (Mr Han) as a withdrawn, almost surly, old man but he gave the film the extra emotional power it needs to be a worthy tribute to its beloved predecessor.

Thumbs up for these actors / actresses and this is a must-watch movie because I totally enjoyed it!

Work hasn't been all smooth-sailing but this article on Yahoo cheered me up alittle.

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Apple Unveils iPhone With Video ChatSAN FRANCISCO (AFP) – Apple unveiled a next-generation iPhone on Monday that features video chat, can shoot and edit high-definition quality video and has a crisper resolution screen.

"We are going to take the biggest leap since the original iPhone," Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said as he showed off the "iPhone 4" at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference here.

The iPhone 4 will go on sale on June 24 in Britain, France, Germany, Japan and the United States and will cost 199 dollars for the 16 gigabyte model and 299 dollars for the 32GB version.

The touchscreen smartphone, which comes in black and white versions, will be available in 18 other countries in July and 24 more in August.

The iPhone 4 includes more than 100 new features including a front-facing video camera to allow for video-conferencing between iPhones, a better still camera, an improved battery and a screen with significantly higher resolution.

To demonstrate the video chat program, called "FaceTime," Jobs, dressed in his trademark black turtleneck and blue jeans, called up Jonathan Ive, an Apple product designer, and held an iPhone-to-iPhone video conversation.

The iPhone 4 can also shoot and edit HD video. Randy Ubillos, Apple's chief architect for video applications, displayed an iMovie for iPhone video editing program available from Apple's App Store for 4.99 dollars.

Jobs touted the higher-resolution screen as a major leap forward. "There has never been a display like this on a phone," he said.

The 3.5-inch screen is the same size as on previous models but features 326 pixels per square inch, four times more pixels than the earlier iPhones.

"There is a magic number around 300 pixels per inch that is the limit of the human retina," Jobs said. "We are over that limit.

"That's going to set the standard for display for years to come."

The improved battery life allows for 40 percent more talk time, Jobs said, and the iPhone 4 -- at 9.3 millimeters or three-eighths of an inch -- is 24 percent thinner than the previous model, iPhone 3GS.

The iPhone 4, which runs on Apple's A4 processor, features a five-megapixel camera, an improvement on the previous three-megapixel camera.

Users will also have the option to use Microsoft's Bing as an Internet search engine in addition to Google and Yahoo! Google remains the default search engine.

Jobs joked that some of the attendees at the conference may have seen the iPhone 4 previously "because there have been a few photos around."

Technology blog Gizmodo obtained a prototype of the iPhone in April from a 21-year-old man who found it in a California beer garden, where it had been lost by an Apple software engineer, and published details of the device.

Apple launched the iPhone in 2007 and has sold more than 50 million as it battles Google's Android platform, the Blackberry from Canada's Research in Motion and others for the fast-growing market.

Before displaying the latest iPhone, Jobs said that more than five million digital books have been downloaded since Apple began selling its iPad tablet computer two months ago.

Jobs, who received a standing ovation as he walked on stage to address the more than 5,200 software developers attending the conference, said the 8,500 applications developed for the iPad have been downloaded more than 35 million times from Apple's App Store.

Apple has sold more than two million iPads since it went on sale in the United States in early April and in nine other countries late last month.

Jobs said that 225,000 applications for the iPhone and the iPod Touch were currently available and that five billion applications had been downloaded from the App Store as of last week.

The new iPhone received positive reviews from analysts, although most of the features were known already because of the Gizmodo leak.

Altimeter's Michael Gartenberg said Apple has "raised the bar once again by offering next year's technology at last year's prices.

"They are the first ones to make video chat easy and that will drive the sales," Gartenberg said.

Gartner analyst Carolina Milanesi said the iPhone 4 "keeps Apple ahead of the competition" by "driving software and hardware innovation hand in hand."

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Do visit the Apple website to learn more about this cool gadget!

Will Singapore be one of the 18 countries to get it in July or at least in August? Please let it be because I have been waiting for so long! And of course, I hope the price wouldn't be too high.

Sorry for the long hiatus!

Work has been so busy ever since I returned from Melbourne and I am too tired / lazy to blog when I get home from work.