Runs the tag line for the iPhone 4 and many owners would agree totally. The iExecutives at Apple often extol the virtues of the company’s superlative iEngineers but sometimes the reasoning behind each feature is lost in the hype so for the first time we can reveal the ideas of the design team.

For starters the phone is equipped with a proximity sensor which is usually used to save on power by switching the display off when you hold the phone to your ear. Apple iEngineers have used the sensor in a more interesting way enabling the iPhone to arbitrarily disconnect or even mute calls. The sensor also appears to be able to initiate calls and send text messages which is very clever and goes way beyond the capabilities of other phones in a similar price band.  This feature creates the impression that the iPhone is somewhat autonomous and with its own character thus helping to create a relationship with the end user.

iPhones have also appeared with yellow splotches and scratched screens. This is an example of cross-pollination between industries. iEngineers have noticed how people buy new jeans with a “lived-in” look because no-one has the time to wear jeans to create that rather faded look to the denim and holes in the fabric. The Apple design team are aware of this, hence pre-worn phones which allows the brand-new user to brag about how long they have had the iPhone. It is this attention to detail that sets Apple apart from the rest of the pack.

The best feature in the iPhone is the ability to lose the cell signal simply by HOLDING THE PHONE! This is a brilliant move and worthy of the Apple iEngineering department. Ever been on a call that you wanted to disconnect but didn’t want to appear rude? Well, now you can simply change your grip on the phone to cover the external antenna and the signal reception will degrade to a point that the call is dropped! How cool is that? No more interminable phone calls or guilt trips at having cut some-one off in mid-flow. You simply move your hand and your iPhone moves out of coverage! No other cell phone manufacturer has even come close to replicating this, often only being able to manage a slight attenuation to the signal, so this can genuinely be chalked up as a major achievement.

Of course, the iPhone is not without its blemishes and one problem concerns the implementation of the “out-of-coverage” feature. To ensure it is not enabled by accident Apple advices holding the phone is a particular way which does, if one hasn’t got small enough hands, lead to a grip reminiscent of the elderly ladies holding porcelain tea-cups with the lower fingers sticking out at an odd angle but I am sure this will develop into a pseudo-masonic gesture of the iPhone user community.