Learn This Word: FaceTime. You're Going to Be Using It.

Despite a prototype leak in April, the iPhone 4 announcement at Apple’s WWDC still bore some surprises with a slew of new features in both hard and software. Apple continues to obliterate the mobile landscape as we know it. What does the iPhone 4 mean for consumers and other players in the market?

FaceTime ad directed by Sam Mendes

Front-facing Camera & Face Time

One of the most anticipated features of the iPhone 4 is video calling using the new front-facing camera. Apple calls it FaceTime and it works iPhone 4 to iPhone 4 over wi-fi with plans for 3G functionality in the future.

What this means:

• If FaceTime is truly free, this may strike a serious blow to VoIP companies such as Skype and Fring. The latter recently introduced 2-way video calls, but user experience has been buggy at best.
• Multi-party video calls may be introduced in future versions of iO.
• Interoperability. Apple is working to make FaceTime an open industry standard. Imagine live mobile video that is interoperable across different phones and carriers around the world.

What it probably means for you:

• Companies will gradually switch from Blackberries to iPhones, if anything else to verify that you’re really working from home as you said you were.
• Free local and international video calls over wi-fi mean Mum FaceTiming every hour to check that you’re still alive.
• Amorous chatting will take on a whole new dimension. People in long-distance relationships rejoice!
• Chatroulette-style apps will flood the app store. Enough said.

Demo of iMovie for iPhone at Apple's WWDC

720p HD Video Recording & iMovie

Not only can you record HD videos in 720p on the iPhone 4, you can edit them directly on the phone with the new app, iMovie for iPhone. Combine clips, add titles, effects and music to create your own mobile masterpiece. US$4.99 from the app store.

What this means:

• iPhone 4 has essentially turned every user’s phone into an HD pocket camcorder. Although its yet to be seen if the video quality is comparable to Flip and Kodak camcorders, the user experience will probably be good enough for casual users.

What it probably means for you:

• The internet gets further flooded with iFilmmakers who believe they’re the next Kris Kristofferson.
• Leaked mobile “homemade movies of affection” will look a lot slicker complete with an end credit roll.  

Steve Jobs demos the Toy Story 3 iAd

iAds

Apple calls their mobile advertising platform iAds and describes it as “mobile ads with emotion”. Tearing apart the concept of the static banner ad, iAds will allow users to watch videos, play games and more within the ad interface built into the iPhone. Already, the sales numbers for iAds are staggering: $60 million in pre-sold ads for the second half of 2010 and Steve Jobs is certain that Apple will own half of all mobile advertising by end year.

What this means:

• If the projections are accurate, Jobs has laid down the gauntlet and Google will have up their game to attract advertisers to the Google Mobile Ads platform on Android.

What it probably means for you:

• Advertising blindness will be a thing of the past. Ads might even be fun.
• Then again unlike Google services, you actually paid for the iPhone, shouldn't you have the right not to be advertised to?