Tuesday, May 25, 2010, 07:25 am

Commercials for Apple's next-gen iPhone to demonstrate video chat

By Sam Oliver

Television commercials for Apple's forthcoming iPhone upgrade will reportedly showcase the device's video chat abilities and will be shot by an Academy Award winning director.

Engadget declared that it "confirmed" through a source that Apple's new commercials will be directed by Sam Mendes, who won an Oscar for his work on "American Beauty." The tipster said that Apple's next-generation handset is being referred to internally as Mammoth/N90.

"A trusted source has confirmed to us that the ads will feature at least one spot where a mother and daughter are having a video chat conversation using the new front-facing camera that's been spied on the face of that iPhone floating around Vietnam and Northern California," editor Joshua Topolsky wrote.

The website also discovered actors on Twitter who revealed that they are auditioning for the commercial. One actress in New York confirmed that the spot will be directed by Mendes, while an actor in California said last week he was off to an audition.

The details of video chat come as no surprise, as two previous leaked prototype iPhones included a forward facing camera on the device, in addition to the traditional rear camera for shooting photos. Prototypes of the redesigned handset also featured a camera flash, custom A4 processor, larger battery, and higher resolution screen.


The new iPhone is expected to be announced at Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference, to be held June 7 through June 11 at Moscone West in San Francisco, Calif. Apple revealed on Monday that Chief Executive Steve Jobs will deliver the event's keynote on June 7 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time.