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iPhone 4 Retina Display matched by upcoming Sharp smartphone

Sharp has challenged Apple's smartphone display reign by announcing an Android smartphone with the same resolution and dimensions as the iPhone 4's Retina Display.

The Sharp IS03 will sport a 960 x 640 resolution on its 3.5-inch screen when it launches next month on Japan's KDDI au network, Engadget reports.

The new device will utilize the Sharp-developed Advanced Super View technology to improve the display's viewing angle. ASV is reportedly comparable to the In-Plane Switching technology used in the iPhone 4.

Sharp's new phone will have a 9.6 megapixel autofocus camera and will launch with the older 2.1 version of Android. The handset is currently slated for a Japan-only release.

It has taken Apple's competitors months to catch up to the iPhone 4 display. When the iPhone 4 was announced, it was billed as having "the highest resolution display ever in a phone." According to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, the Retina Display has a resolution that is higher than "the limit of the human retina" at standard viewing levels.

76 Comments

kaisdaddy 16 Years · 10 comments

...other companies are playing catchup to Apple. I don't think that display resolution on a screen the size of the iPhone's is going to get any higher for the foreseeable future. As time passes this will become the standard, which is fine as that is how technology improves. The thing that matters is what shows up on that screen when the device is turned on.

SpamSandwich 20 Years · 32917 comments

The 9 megapixel camera sounds impressive. I know nothing about the quality, but it beats Apple's still camera function (especially in the iPod touch, naturally). Apple really should give serious camera quality updates to as many devices as makes sense.

gqb 18 Years · 1933 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by SpamSandwich

The 9 megapixel camera sounds impressive. I know nothing about the quality, but it beats Apple's still camera function (especially in the iPod touch, naturally). Apple really should give serious camera quality updates to as many devices as makes sense.

Oh for god's sake.
9 mp on a device with the optics of a camera does nothing but produce huge files. When will people stop drooling over meaningless numbers?
I have an amp with an 11 on the volume dial to sell you.

tomlawler 18 Years · 48 comments

Quote:
Originally Posted by ghostface147

Well someone was bound to catch up.

In Japan only, but at what price? And why Android 2.1? What happened to Froyo and flash? Facetime? Inexpensive data plan? Voice and data concurrently? iTunes?
ASV is ASV, different from IPS. So, it's not the retina display, either.
So, what's happening to AppleInsider? Lousy reporting here.