The latest iPhone from Apple that is the 3GS version can play video up to 1080p. Yes 1080p! The hardware is capable of doing it but the problem is with the software as Apple yet has not put the feature in its product and limited iPhone from playing 1080p. We can expect that Apple with an update would allow us to run 1080p video officially otherwise we have the hacking options as well So, are we just a software update away from having the 3GS become one of the most popular ultra portable HD video players?
This capability of iPhone 3GS was first discovered by a Chinese Forum where it was discussed then after that guys from engadget.com researched some luck on it.
A bit of googling quelled our biggest concern – will the iPhone 3GS be able to output the video after having decoded it? There are composite and component cables for the iPhone but still no HDMI cables. Nonetheless, the answer seems to be positive – component video cables are capable of handling up to 1080i/60Hz video so there is no need to worry.
Still, 1080i offers great quality and 720p and 1080i content is much more common than 1080p so most of the time it’s not even a problem. Of course nothing is certain until it’s official, but it seems that the iPhone 3GS just might be capable of outputting HD video. And most (if not all) LCD TVs have component inputs so keep your fingers crossed.
