Is it fair to say the iphone 5 is all hype?

[jaymzuk]

From Tim Cook:
"“iPhone 5 and iOS 6: the biggest things to happen to the iPhone since the iPhone.”"

and nice responses btw, does anybody think the iphone 5 was a "catchup" phone to catch up with the samsung galaxy phones and motorola and stuff? Are they ahead of their competition again?

I'm not sure it's a catch-up phone because the 4S was, and still is very competitive versus the Samsung Galaxy SIII.

I agree with the Forbes article in that there isn't quite a wow factor about the iPhone 5 (I think a few people need to remember the days when they said that specs aren't everything), but I think the next twelve months will be interesting to see what flagship handsets come from Samsung, HTC and Nokia, and how their feature sets (Not specs) match-up.

If Google can move Android on in a meaningful way similar to how they have with the concerted efforts of Project butter, then the two OS's being evenly matched may well drive innovation

 

[erawsd]

I keep seeing these threads where people claim its all fluff and its another incremental upgrade -- what I haven't seen is any examples of what else Apple could do with the hardware that would bring along this revolution.

They gave us a bigger screen, LTE, improved battery life, and faster performance across the board. In terms of usability, this is probably the biggest hardware leap forward in the phone's history.

 

[MH01]

Not sure what you're asking. If you want to discuss meet me at The Blue Oyster Bar on Howell street.

Thats what I was insinuating. Sorry do not swing that way.

 

[jaymzuk]

I keep seeing these threads where people claim its all fluff and its another incremental upgrade -- what I haven't seen is any examples of what else Apple could do with the hardware that would bring along this revolution.

They gave us a bigger screen, LTE, improved battery life, and faster performance across the board. In terms of usability, this is probably the biggest hardware leap forward in the phone's history.

So what you're saying is that the company that prides itself on innovation, and has sued supposedly in it's name should be content with feature-matching?

The iPhone 5 looks like a good phone, but in terms of real-world additional features or usage, it's only a significant upgrade for a few.

I understand that many people may think that these boards have become overrun by fandroids taking every opportunity to bash Apple. But the hardcore Apple fans have yearned for this mainstream popularity, and frequent, significant innovation in ways that no-one had dreamt about before have delivered Apple to this place. Along with that, it has generated a large fan-base which has come to expect the unexpected and the great from Apple, and for once, it hasn't delivered that. You may think it unfair, you may think it unjust, but secretly many people on this forum and many like it have wanted Apple in this position, and these are the consequences. The bar for Apple is far, far higher than for Samsung, for HTC and for Nokia.

 

[erawsd]

So what you're saying is that the company that prides itself on innovation, and has sued supposedly in it's name should be content with feature-matching?

The iPhone 5 looks like a good phone, but in terms of real-world additional features or usage, it's only a significant upgrade for a few.

I understand that many people may think that these boards have become overrun by fandroids taking every opportunity to bash Apple. But the hardcore Apple fans have yearned for this mainstream popularity, and frequent, significant innovation in ways that no-one had dreamt about before have delivered Apple to this place. Along with that, it has generated a large fan-base which has come to expect the unexpected and the great from Apple, and for once, it hasn't delivered that. You may think it unfair, you may think it unjust, but secretly many people on this forum and many like it have wanted Apple in this position, and these are the consequences. The bar for Apple is far, far higher than for Samsung, for HTC and for Nokia.

It is unrealistic to expect Apple (or any company) to be innovative every year -- not only isn't it technically feasible but it is wholly unnecessary. The fact that Apple continues to sell more iPhones than the last, would suggest that most fans are quite happy.

The truth is that HTC, Nokia, and Samsung are under far more pressure to innovate. They have a product that has not captured the masses the way Apple's product has and so it makes sense that they are forced to rethink and make drastic changes to the way things work.

 

[Gregintosh]

And when they finally ad NFC u will be loving it and using it

U know nobody asked for a thinner phone.

Their solving problems that nobody asked to solve


Give us a better iOS

Give us a bigger screen not taller.

Seeing calendars in portrait mode is not a feature lol

I sure will love NFC when it arrives well done and is already accepted everywhere or arrives with some deals from major payment processors. But right now it's not necessary.

Taller is also bigger, yet its still small enough to be used with one hand and fit in my pocket. Not everyone wants a tablet in their pocket.

Yes, they solve problems we didn't know we had, but that's what a good company does. That's how Apple came up with the iPhone to begin with (and were laughed at by RIM and Steve Ballmer).

 

[itoddm]

When the original iPhone came out it was incredible. I loved it. When the iPhone 4 came out, I loved it because it was totally redesigned and looked like a new product. iPhone 5, well I'm kind of going with the hype. I've had the 4 for 2 years. I'm ready for a new phone and Apple is what I have used since the beginning and will probably continue to use. So I'm thrilled to get a new phone but wish they had been some type of style redesign. (yeah I know it is taller but something to set it apart from the 4.

Regardless I'm still anticipating its arrival.

 

[austinguy23]

It will be a huge commercial success meaning they'll sell an ungodly number of them, but from a technological point of view it is disappointing.

But then, most iPhone owners aren't techies so they don't know any better. They just think "Golly, it's thinner & lighter - cool!"

 

[Plainsman]

Here's my two cents, for what its worth:

Yeah, I think the iPhone 5 is overhyped. I do believe people are being ridiculous going ga-ga over this thing. It's a phone, people. Jesus is not coming down from Heaven to give you the iPhone 5. Now, do I think it may be a good machine? Yes and many Android users will buy this phone. I base this opinion on personal experience.

As background: I'm new to Apple products altogether. I've never owned a Mac. The smartphones I've owned are all Androids. I've avoided the Apple branded products for 25 years, until now. Why? Hardware quality and OS stability. The OG Droid I had was probably the best smartphone I have had. It was well built, the OS was stable and was well updated. Since then, I have had several smartphones that have ticked me off (Blackberry and Motorola). Their quality has gone through the floor, especially with the worthless excuse for a phone: Droid Bionic. Motorola and VZW treats that phone like a redheaded stepchild even though they made a big deal about it a year ago. After that, I'm done with the garbage builds they make with the Android interface. It's either hardware built decently with poor software support or hardware that feels like it came from Toys-R-Us and semi-decent software support.

I've heard enough complaints and comments from other Android owners to conclude that iPhone 5 will be a huge success not from the massive overhype of the phone. It will be because there are enough former Android owners that are fed up with the garbage being sold and want quality hardware with quality software support. That is why I'm buying the iPhone 5.