REPOSTED FROM AFR.COM.AU

As enthusiasts gear up to queue outside Apple shops before the iPhone 5’s release on Friday, developers are waiting on Wednesday’s software update to begin revising their apps.

According to Apple, the iPhone 5 has a longer, 4-inch screen, the first change it has made to the phone’s screen size since it was launched in 2007 with a 3.5 inch screen. In response, app developers are reassessing their projects for functionality and opportunity.

The sales and account manager at Cyberdesign Works, Luke McCallum, told The Australian Financial Review a number of projects would need “re-engineering” to suit the larger screen size.

“It mainly affects the projects we have in production at the moment. So it creates more workload for us and adds costs to our clients that we didn’t anticipate,” he said. “And, we don’t actually know how it’s going to look yet, until we can get a handset in the office.

“Apps that have quite intricate interfaces to them, which are pixel specific, we’re going to have to figure out whether it’s even worth expanding them,” he said.

Adrian DeWits of Appiphany was concerned about delays in app approvals by Apple following a likely surge in approval requests.

The iPhone 5 will have 1136-by-640-pixel resolution compared with 960-by-640-pixel resolution in current versions, paving the way for movies and games.

A senior apps strategist at digital agency AppsCore, Matthew Parkes, said: “Now it’s wider you can focus the [game] on the centre and the controls on the side.” But, he said, that would have to wait until Apple released the new software.

Written by NEGAR SALEK

Original article