San Francisco ? Apple CEO Steve Jobs’ unveiling Monday of the next-generation iPhone — it’s thinner, has a higher-resolution display and comes with video chat — may have lacked a single “Wow!” moment. But coupled with the launch of a new operating system and mobile advertising service, the message to competitors was unambiguous: Catch us if you can.

The stainless-steel-and-glass mobile device is nearly 25 percent thinner than its predecessor and runs on the company’s in-house A4 chip, the speedy and power-sipping processor at the heart of the iPad. It gives the iPhone 4 longer battery life, including 40 percent more talk time.