We alluded yesterday that the higher resolution screen on the Phantom iPhone of Redwood City would more-than-likely have double the horizontal and vertical pixels of the current iPhone screen (therefore quadrupling the pixel count), and now the ever-reliable John Gruber has weighed in on the likelihood of a new-and-improved double-PPI resolution.
The main take-away here is that while the current iPhone screen is gorgeous, Apple are trying to make the screen on the next iPhone look as clear as the print found in expensive glossy magazines. The new screens would have a pixels per inch (PPI) resolution of around 325. To put this in context, all previous iPhones have about 162 PPI, and the current line of MacBooks have about 133 PPI. Put simply, this new screen will blow your mind, and probably your eyeballs.
From a technical perspective, the new pixel count makes sense, as (presumably) all existing iPhone apps will easily, simply — and most importantly — laglessly scale up to fit the new screen. While these lower resolution apps may look a little donky on the large iPad screen, the re-scale will be undetectable on the smaller iPhone screen.
You can read John Gruber’s full analysis over at Daring Fireball.