Apple iPhone 3GS launches in UK

The latest model in Apple's iPhone series has gone on sale in the UK.

The Apple iPhone 3GS introduces a range of new features, such as an improved camera that can take short videos, the ability to cut and paste text, a built-in compass and voice recognition.

Apple said the iPhone 3GS would be much faster at processing commands and loading web pages, although it would not divulge the specification of components used. Apple blogs have published specifications of the iPhone 3GS thought to have been inadvertently released by T-Mobile in the Netherlands.

The improved three-megapixel camera enables users to focus on a specific part of a scene shown on screen when lining up shots. The iPhone brings that part of the image into focus and adjusts white balance and colour accordingly.

Short videos can be taken and trimmed on the fly before being sent by MMS or email, or uploaded directly to a Youtube account.

Apple has responded to a major gripe from users – the 3GS enables people to cut and paste text in and between applications.

Unlike previous iPhone launches, the 3GS has met with a subdued response from consumers. Customers who already have an iPhone connected to the O2 network cannot upgrade unless they pay off the remainder of their existing contract.

Apple and O2 have also faced criticism from consumers over the cost of the 3GS. A petition started on the social-networking website Twitter had attracted 5,683 signatures when this article was published, urging O2 to offer "a reasonable way to upgrade to the iPhone 3GS".

O2 insisted that it was not feasible to lower the upgrade costs as contracts offered on the previous versions of the iPhone subsidised the cost of the hardware.

New customers will have to pay from £342.50 for 8GB iPhone 3GS on pre-payment tariffs, with the 32GB version costing £538.

Monthly tariffs start at £30 for an 18-month tie-in, with the handset itself costing from £184 to £274 depending on hard disk capacity. The iPhone is free on a selection of 18 and 24-month contracts.