Today's smartphones do many things besides making and receiving calls. For example, they take photos, shoot video, play music, and provide drivers with directions via GPS technology.

After taking on these complicated types of tasks, smart phones can now be used for a simpler task: to function like a pocket mirror.

DLP Mobile, a mobile-application-development company that specialize in Apple iPad and iPhone, BlackBerry, and Google Android software, has released a new iPhone 4 program called the Mirror Ap(http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mirror-app/id37358304?mt=8).

The application uses the new iPhone's front-facing camera to function like a high-definition vanity mirror. The Mirror App yields an exact image rather than a mirror image.

Unlike the camera itself, which requires several input functions to activate, the Mirror App works with a single click. It has four adjustable light setting-which can help in dark conditions-and three adjustable light gradients, said DLP Mobile CEO Zak Tanjeloff. The gradients simulate the light intensity in different places and under different conditions.

Users can work with a sliding scale to make color corrections as desired to account for various ambient light sources.

Some iPhone applications that claim to offer mirror functionality simply turn off the device's display to provide a reflection in the glass display surface.

DLP Mobile is currently building a Mirror App version for the new Android phones, which also have forward-facing cameras.

Apple declined to comment on why it approved the Mirror App for iPhone 4, saying that the large volume of products available in the iStore makes it impossible to discuss the merits of each.

According to analyst Will Strauss with market research firm Forward Concepts, Apple approved the Mirror App because it is harmless and might make a few customers happy.