Anyone glad they got iphone 5 last year?

[jaenicky]

Got my iphone 5 last year and seeing how its being discountinued and being replaced by 5C i kinda feel lucky i got it because basically 5c is iphone 5 in a plastic shell.

5C contract price is pretty much the same as iphone 5 ($6 handset monthly payment + $60 mobile plan = $66 per month). ps. im from Australia.

 

[maflynn]

You can still find an iPhone 5 today if you want.

I'm meh on apple dropping the iPhone because they released a superior phone in the 5s. The same thing will occur next year with the 6. Like every other company they improve and roll out new products.

I don't get upset of them dropping an older outdated product, even if I own that particular model.

 

[billycuth]

You can still find an iPhone 5 today if you want.

I'm meh on apple dropping the iPhone because they released a superior phone in the 5s. The same thing will occur next year with the 6. Like every other company they improve and roll out new products.

I don't get upset of them dropping an older outdated product, even if I own that particular model.

I agree for the most part, but this product was only around for a year... I mean, I think they should have kept the 5 as the low end device instead of the 4s, but that's just me. Or kept the 5 alongside the 5c in that tier so that customers could choose metal or plastic (haha that sounds funny)...

It's odd that they chose to change it up in this way this year. Almost like admitting the 5 was some kind of mistake....

 

[maflynn]

It's odd that they chose to change it up in this way this year. Almost like admitting the 5 was some kind of mistake....

I don't see it that way.

For me, its like the 5C is the 5 but in plastic. Too similar to have both a 5 and 5c at near the same price point. Regardless of the plastic body, the 5C is taking the 5's place because of the price point and older generation components.

Don't get me wrong, the 5C is a bit oddly positioned phone, priced a bit higher then everyone was expecting. Offering nothing other then a colored plastic body.

I suppose something had to give, between the 5C and the 5 given that one would cannibalize the other in sales.

 

[PaulOBrain]

I agree for the most part, but this product was only around for a year... I mean, I think they should have kept the 5 as the low end device instead of the 4s, but that's just me. Or kept the 5 alongside the 5c in that tier so that customers could choose metal or plastic (haha that sounds funny)...

It's odd that they chose to change it up in this way this year. Almost like admitting the 5 was some kind of mistake....

I disagree, I think the reason why they brought out the 5C is to repackage the same phone to generate more buzz than just have the previous model available. If they basically just repackaged the 5 it was hardly a mistake.

I think they had to discontinue the iPhone 5 with the release of the 5C. The 2 just wouldn't sit right selling alongside each other. I couldn't care less to be honest doesn't make my iPhone 5 any less of a phone.

 

[billycuth]

You guys are missing my point. They've done the whole "take last year's product, lower the price $100 and take the phone from 2 years ago, slap 8GB in it and give it away on contract" pretty much since there was a "last year's phone"...

What I am saying is, because they've repackaged last year's product, added a couple of enhancements, but made it out of a cheaper material that they say holds up better and then immediately discontinuing last year's model (you couldn't even buy a 5 in the Apple store after the announcement - you had to go to a carrier or other 3rd party for left over stock) that it's almost like saying "we made a mistake on the 5, we know the quality wasn't there and we're fixing it with this.

I just find it odd is all. I am not saying I know for sure one way or another. But it just appears that way to me. They've never done this before...

 

[Ramio]

You guys are missing my point. They've done the whole "take last year's product, lower the price $100 and take the phone from 2 years ago, slap 8GB in it and give it away on contract" pretty much since there was a "last year's phone"...

What I am saying is, because they've repackaged last year's product, added a couple of enhancements, but made it out of a cheaper material that they say holds up better and then immediately discontinuing last year's model (you couldn't even buy a 5 in the Apple store after the announcement - you had to go to a carrier or other 3rd party for left over stock) that it's almost like saying "we made a mistake on the 5, we know the quality wasn't there and we're fixing it with this.

I just find it odd is all. I am not saying I know for sure one way or another. But it just appears that way to me. They've never done this before...

My guess is they made the 5c to maximize profit. They could charge the same as the 5 and make more money. If the 5 had issues then why are they selling the 5s, which is pretty much the same phone externally?!.

 

[matttye]

You guys are missing my point. They've done the whole "take last year's product, lower the price $100 and take the phone from 2 years ago, slap 8GB in it and give it away on contract" pretty much since there was a "last year's phone"...

What I am saying is, because they've repackaged last year's product, added a couple of enhancements, but made it out of a cheaper material that they say holds up better and then immediately discontinuing last year's model (you couldn't even buy a 5 in the Apple store after the announcement - you had to go to a carrier or other 3rd party for left over stock) that it's almost like saying "we made a mistake on the 5, we know the quality wasn't there and we're fixing it with this.

I just find it odd is all. I am not saying I know for sure one way or another. But it just appears that way to me. They've never done this before...

I don't think it's like that at all.

I think it's more like they've realised that having two phones that look exactly the same means that for all intents and purposes, to the average consumer at least, they are the same phone.

With the 5c they're offering more of a selection and it should appeal to a wider customer base.

But yes, I'm glad I got my 5 - because I like it.

 

[R.Stoychev]

I'm happy that I got my iphone 5 last year, now I'm waiting for the 6 gen iphone..

 

[jaenicky]

I dont think quality issue was the reason they discontinued iphone 5. To me its margin of profit. If they were to sell iphone 5 they had to sell it at a lower price and that would have made a dent in their proft so they decided to bring out 5C.
Like i said before, last years iphone 5 contract price is same as iphone 5c contract price in Australia.
Think about that for a moment. You wait a year and you get for the same contract price an iphone 5 with plastic back. Its strange.

 

[maflynn]

What I am saying is, because they've repackaged last year's product, added a couple of enhancements, but made it out of a cheaper material that they say holds up better and then immediately discontinuing last year's model (you couldn't even buy a 5 in the Apple store after the announcement - you had to go to a carrier or other 3rd party for left over stock) that it's almost like saying "we made a mistake on the 5, we know the quality wasn't there and we're fixing it with this.
/QUOTE]

I get your point but if the 5 was a mistake why is the 5S nearly the same phone externally. Like most new iPhones, it has a new CPU (A7) and a few more enhancements but like other S models the improvements are small compared to the 5.

My point is that if the 5 was a "mistake" because they dropped it in lieu of the 5c they would have made changes to the 5s that were outside the typical range of S model improvements.

I understand the sentiment because similar feeling were felt for the iPad 3 vs the iPad 4.

 

[billycuth]

I dont think quality issue was the reason they discontinued iphone 5. To me its margin of profit. If they were to sell iphone 5 they had to sell it at a lower price and that would have made a dent in their proft so they decided to bring out 5C.
Like i said before, last years iphone 5 contract price is same as iphone 5c contract price in Australia.
Think about that for a moment. You wait a year and you get for the same contract price an iphone 5 with plastic back. Its strange.

The 5c required some re-engineering and tooling. I am not sure, but I think it would have actually been cheaper for them to continue making the 5.

Again, I could totally be wrong, it's all just my opinion. They changed what they'd done for years for (as far as I can tell) little to no real reason.

I think the pre-orders for the 5c kind of bare out my point. People are not ecstatic over a plastic phone, no matter what price point it was meant to fill.

They'd have been better off keeping the 5 and using the 5c to replace the 4s on the low end (maybe free on contract for a 16GB and $99 for a 32GB)...

That said, I don't know their costs. I am just trying to figure out why they'd dump what I consider to be a very good phone in the iPhone 5.

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I understand the sentiment because similar feeling were felt for the iPad 3 vs the iPad 4.

OK. I wasn't here for that transition because I bought an iPad 2 years ago and have been happy with it so I haven't felt the need to change.

I guess I wish they had kept the 5 is all.

 

[50548]

I dont think quality issue was the reason they discontinued iphone 5. To me its margin of profit. If they were to sell iphone 5 they had to sell it at a lower price and that would have made a dent in their proft so they decided to bring out 5C.
Like i said before, last years iphone 5 contract price is same as iphone 5c contract price in Australia.
Think about that for a moment. You wait a year and you get for the same contract price an iphone 5 with plastic back. Its strange.

You're correct, Sir - the 5C is a disguised attempt at increasing profit margins for Apple, which have fallen steadily over the last years due to a lack of innovation and devices attractive enough to make people pay more for them.

Get an iPhone 5 and forget about the 5C.

 

[PaulOBrain]

I understand the sentiment because similar feeling were felt for the iPad 3 vs the iPad 4.

I think that was a different scenario, I think changes had to be made there to get the iPad 4 a lightening port and better internals as I think there was also a mistake with the iPad 3 being too underpowered for the retina display.

As for the iPhone 5 I don't think there was a mistake made there as maflynn correctly pointed out the 5S is the same externally and the 5 doesn't have any performance issues. Its still a great phone and will still be supported by Apple if not sold anymore. I think they just repackaged it to give that feeling of a new product being brought out and to minimise costs as said in the thread.

 

[Booji]

No regrets here...my 5 was a nice upgrade from my 4.

I'm still on the fence if to upgrade to the 5s. I don't mind an annual upgrade as iPhone resale is very easy where I live and I'm not tied to locked phone contracts.

 

[Apple fanboy]

No regrets here...my 5 was a nice upgrade from my 4.

I'm still on the fence if to upgrade to the 5s. I don't mind an annual upgrade as iPhone resale is very easy where I live and I'm not tied to locked phone contracts.

This. I'll keep my 5 another year, then upgrade to the 6. It will still command a reasonable resale value.
The idea behind the 5c is to try and get some sales in China where they are well behind the competition (because of pricing not features).

 

[bigcstyle4]

They know what they're doing here and it's a great idea. It's still last year's phone $100 cheaper like always but repackaged and is generating a lot of buzz. People would not be debating between the 5s and "last year's phone" if it was still the 5. I know a couple of people in real life that are considering it that wouldn't have cared less if it was just an iPhone 5.

 

[megapopular]

When it comes time for lots of parents and probably a great deal of women to get a new iPhone or upgrade their iPhone a couple of things will happen. They will look at the price. They will see the option of several colors. People probably associate the iPhone with an entry level price of $199... When they see the $99 option a lot of people will jump on that opportunity...

They'll "luck out" by getting a phone that offers more usage time thanks to the slightly larger battery and get a phone that probably will survive falls and drops a bit better than iPhone 5 or an iPhone 5s would. 5c is going to make Apple a lot of money!!

 

[Adelphos33]

To me, the iPhone 5C is an upgrade from the iPhone 5. Better battery life, more solid feel, color customization, etc. I understand that people feel that the plastic is a downgrade from the metal, but I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of reviewers next week say the iPhone 5C feels great and may even prefer it to the 5S in the hand. I actually with they made a few more minor upgrades to the 5C. I got the 32G version.

 

[jaenicky]

To me, the iPhone 5C is an upgrade from the iPhone 5. Better battery life, more solid feel, color customization, etc. I understand that people feel that the plastic is a downgrade from the metal, but I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of reviewers next week say the iPhone 5C feels great and may even prefer it to the 5S in the hand. I actually with they made a few more minor upgrades to the 5C. I got the 32G version.

I respectfully disagree, there is no way 5C is an upgrade from iphone 5. If you had the option to chose at the same price iphone 5 or iphone 5C would you chose iphone 5C? I cant imagine many would. Iphone 5C is a good phone and i like the colours but its a step down for me.

 

[Carl Sagan]

People are getting confused by the 5C but it's simple really. What Apple have done is found a way to sell you last years phone at nearly the same price but drastically reduce the cost to make it thus boosting their profit margins.

You watch at their next earnings call how they announce a remarkable uplift in profits...

 

[Ramio]

People are getting confused by the 5C but it's simple really. What Apple have done is found a way to sell you last years phone at nearly the same price but drastically reduce the cost to make it thus boosting their profit margins.

You watch at their next earnings call how they announce a remarkable uplift in profits...

Simply this. The 5 is definitely the better buy. Same internals, 5s construction but same price as the plastic 5c.

 

[megapopular]

I respectfully disagree, there is no way 5C is an upgrade from iphone 5. If you had the option to chose at the same price iphone 5 or iphone 5C would you chose iphone 5C? I cant imagine many would. Iphone 5C is a good phone and i like the colours but its a step down for me.

On a usabilitity level the 5c offers 2 hours of additional web browsing time... That is something to think about, too!

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Simply this. The 5 is definitely the better buy. Same internals, 5s construction but same price as the plastic 5c.

The 5c starts at $99... It's not the same price. Yes, it's plastic but it also has additional battery life which is nothing to scoff at. I understand some people may not like the plastic aspect but there are some obvious gains to be had in buying the 5c. That's reality.

 

[matttye]

Simply this. The 5 is definitely the better buy. Same internals, 5s construction but same price as the plastic 5c.

The 5c improves on battery life, more LTE bands, and the front-facing camera performs better in low light situations due to an upgraded sensor.

So it has superior hardware, it's just not of such a premium build quality.

 

[Adelphos33]

Simply this. The 5 is definitely the better buy. Same internals, 5s construction but same price as the plastic 5c.

The weakness IMO of the 5 was battery life (which has apparently been improved for both C and S) and construction (too light). 5C has improved on both. Also, as of a couple of months ago, iPhone 5 cost $299 for the 32G. I got the 5C for $199. I thought about a $299 5S but the phone is too light, IMO, and I wasn't really impressed with the champagne or white (black looks pretty good).

I passed on 5 last year and am looking forward to my 5C arriving on Friday. Money isn't the issue here. Both phones are great, run iO7 7 beautifully, etc. I may miss the A7 processor in a year or two, we shall see, but I'll have that on my iPad this winter.