I think I may have sold my soul for the new iPhone 4, and I'm totally okay with it.

It just so happened last week that I was put in a position where I had some room to bargain and I had my eye on the iPhone 4. So I sucked it up, and did what I had to, and the next day an iPhone 4 landed on my desk. Perfectly timed, as I was inches away from wanting to smash the Nokia E72 I was forced to use (again) after my BlackBerry had a run in with some pink Tropica, and came out second-best.

I lovingly left my BlackBerry in the Tupperware filled with rice (apparently it helps draw moisture out of drowned phones) and spent a morning admiring the iPhone 4, sitting in its box. Eventually - after being prodded - I unboxed it, took my SIM card out of the Nokia and got ready to insert it into the iPhone. Problem. It only accepts MicroSIM cards. My choices: get a SIM swap, or have my SIM card cut. Luckily the device came with a prepaid MicroSIM - so I was able to use it, just not as my primary phone.

I'd managed to avoid reading anything about the iPhone 4 before getting my hands on one to review - so I knew nothing about the device, not even what it looked like. Gone is the white, curved rear exterior and smooth, slick finishes of the 3GS. It's been replaced with a heavier, sharper-edged stainless steel and glass affair. I'm inclined to think it's stunning, but to me it just looks like it will be prone to nicks and scratches. Still, Apple have packed in what they call a Retina Display -  a backlit LED that is by far the best I've seen thus far on a mobile device. Hands down, the display is noticeably brighter and crisper than the 3GS and with a 960 x 640 resolution (compared to the 480 x 320 on the 3GS) that's exactly the way it should be.

Insanely crisp - no matter how much you zoom in, there still doesn't seem to be any discernible pixelation. Apps look amazing, and there's detail in them that wasn't apparent on the 3GS. And yay! I have Hipstamatic back.

Things that were immediately apparent:

• There's finally the multitasking/switch application functionality that I've been looking for. 
• Battery life is much, much better than on the 3GS. If I have to charge this bad boy every other day, it's a lot.
• The front camera (yes, there are two cameras on the iPhone 4) would be very handy for those self-portrait pics.
• I like that the apps are organised in folders - means you don't have to scroll through pages and pages of apps to get to what you need.

Things I'm looking forward to trying out:

• Face Time: iPhone 4 to iPhone 4/new iPod touch video calling.
• Shooting some HD home video of my Kid.
• Trying my hand at mobile gaming - what with all the fuss made about Game Center.
• Seeing if there's an improvement in the camera - after all, there's an extra 2MP to play with now.

As for whether the iPhone 4 really does change everything (again) like Apple claim....I'll be able to tell you soon enough.