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Apple Introduces iPhone 4S with A5 Chip, Faster Graphics, Siri Voice Assistant
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Gosh what a bunch of whiners! While I wasn't blown away by the announcement (and a little annoyed that it has taken Apple this long to announce what they did), I'm not altogether disappointed with the 4S.
Mainly because:
1) The iPhone 4 has a great design. It didn't sit as comfortably in your hand as the 3G, but I agree with what Steve said about it being a like a classic Leica camera. It's fantastically designed, it looks beautiful, uses quality materials and is well put together. Nothing else on the market competes.
2) One of the main pulls of an iPhone 4 is the Retina Display. It's not as big as the newer Android phone ones, but it's still very impressive. I think comparable screens are just starting to come through the pipeline now?
With the design and screen size out of the way, look at what you have. It's a good spec, and a quality 1080p camera specifically will be hard to beat.
Having said that, again I'm a little annoyed that they waited so long to announce the 4S and I won't be going out of my way to get one. I'll see if my carrier will offer me a decent upgrade considering my contract is up if nothing else. If not, then my younger brother who has been looking to inherit my iPhone 4 will be sorely disappointed, and will have to look into getting an iPod Touch instead
Mainly because:
1) The iPhone 4 has a great design. It didn't sit as comfortably in your hand as the 3G, but I agree with what Steve said about it being a like a classic Leica camera. It's fantastically designed, it looks beautiful, uses quality materials and is well put together. Nothing else on the market competes.
2) One of the main pulls of an iPhone 4 is the Retina Display. It's not as big as the newer Android phone ones, but it's still very impressive. I think comparable screens are just starting to come through the pipeline now?
With the design and screen size out of the way, look at what you have. It's a good spec, and a quality 1080p camera specifically will be hard to beat.
Having said that, again I'm a little annoyed that they waited so long to announce the 4S and I won't be going out of my way to get one. I'll see if my carrier will offer me a decent upgrade considering my contract is up if nothing else. If not, then my younger brother who has been looking to inherit my iPhone 4 will be sorely disappointed, and will have to look into getting an iPod Touch instead
If apple goes 1280x853 on the next iPhone like most other high end android devices will soon(720/800,depending on aspect ratio), you would get both.
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Business Decision
Folks, I understand the disappointment. I'm disappointed too... I want it all and I want it now.
Now let's look at this as a business decision. I'm sure that Apple COULD give us a larger screen now... but we would surely sacrifice battery life. I'm sure they COULD change the form-factor... but they have the #1 and #2 smartphones already with positive feedback on both form factors. Introducing a brand new iPhone while they are still top of the heap in sales would essentially have them competing against themselves.
This is a smart business move that moves the bar and improves the specs. How many of us would complain about an iPhone with a 4" screen that has only 4 hours battery life? I would! They will let the current model have its time in the sun while they work on the next model to get it right. In the end, we go with Apple because we trust their products... which means we trust their judgement to not push out a product they feel isn't ready just to have what everyone else is offering.
I am not a paid Apple spokesman... but sometimes I feel like they owe me...
Folks, I understand the disappointment. I'm disappointed too... I want it all and I want it now.
Now let's look at this as a business decision. I'm sure that Apple COULD give us a larger screen now... but we would surely sacrifice battery life. I'm sure they COULD change the form-factor... but they have the #1 and #2 smartphones already with positive feedback on both form factors. Introducing a brand new iPhone while they are still top of the heap in sales would essentially have them competing against themselves.
This is a smart business move that moves the bar and improves the specs. How many of us would complain about an iPhone with a 4" screen that has only 4 hours battery life? I would! They will let the current model have its time in the sun while they work on the next model to get it right. In the end, we go with Apple because we trust their products... which means we trust their judgement to not push out a product they feel isn't ready just to have what everyone else is offering.
I am not a paid Apple spokesman... but sometimes I feel like they owe me...
So many complainers...
I don't know why anyone expected anything than a .5 upgrade. It's the same thing they've done in the past. Apple makes such revolutionary devices from time to time, so everyone just expects that every device that comes out will be something groundbreaking.
If you have a 4 already, then this upgrade is not for you. If you have an aging 3GS, this is significant. To say that "Android is taking over" blah blah blah...irrelevant and untrue. Doesn't matter if they have bigger screens or a bigger phone selection. The overall user experience is nowhere near as polished as the Apple user experience, and they will continue to dominate in this area.
I for one will happily be ordering a new 4S this Friday.
I don't know why anyone expected anything than a .5 upgrade. It's the same thing they've done in the past. Apple makes such revolutionary devices from time to time, so everyone just expects that every device that comes out will be something groundbreaking.
If you have a 4 already, then this upgrade is not for you. If you have an aging 3GS, this is significant. To say that "Android is taking over" blah blah blah...irrelevant and untrue. Doesn't matter if they have bigger screens or a bigger phone selection. The overall user experience is nowhere near as polished as the Apple user experience, and they will continue to dominate in this area.
I for one will happily be ordering a new 4S this Friday.
Number 6 is the only one that really matters. Apple is a corporation. As a corporation, they are out to gain market share. This phone does that for them as an incremental step without putting out a radical design to compete with themselves (they already own the #1 and #2 spots with iP4 and 3Gs).
You listed number 6 negatively... I tell you it's the best reason to do what they did... and it's smart.
As much as I like Apple, this will only bring a smile to Samsung et al. Apple was behind and needed to get significantly ahead, not barely catch up. Different ball game now and the competition has a year to extend the gap now. Disappointing to say the least.
I was going to buy it for my wife but £499 WITH CONTRACT!!!
I have paid just slightly more for my sim-free iphone4.
Joke
So how much unlocked if available at all.
It's £499 without Contract - it's on the Apple Store page, Sim Free.
Umm... yeah it does. At least to me. What kind of ego do you have to even proclaim that it's "major bs"? Seriously, different strokes for different folks. Why is that so hard to understand?
if you want android/samsung galaxy...then buy it...
if you are buying it because there's no new case on the new iPhone and no number change to 5 then you are making a bad purchase decision.
if you are buying it because there's no new case on the new iPhone and no number change to 5 then you are making a bad purchase decision.
What did you expect a chip in your brain?
Considering the price its a winner if it has the same exact chip as the ipad 2 then that is one power cpu/gpu for such a small devise.
Of course there is always Android for the rest of you, muhahahaha.
Exactly. A phone is a tool. People need to pick the right tool that helps them best in their daily lives. I'm a big Apple fan but the iPhone didn't cut it for me in my daily routine. Android fits that bill for me at the moment.
Your talking to children you need to tone down the big words like "because" and "purchase decision" way to big a concepts for them to grasp their poor little young minds around.
There are good reasons to complain. Its been a long time since Apple released iphone 4, given their financial position they could have produced lots of different phones by now.
Its probably just a commercial decision - if they release iphone 5 too soon with everything they could think of, then they won't have enough interesting ideas to sell the iphone 6 etc
Siri does look game changing though. If it works as well as that, its going to be huge (its actually creepy - skynet...)
Its probably just a commercial decision - if they release iphone 5 too soon with everything they could think of, then they won't have enough interesting ideas to sell the iphone 6 etc
Siri does look game changing though. If it works as well as that, its going to be huge (its actually creepy - skynet...)
Looks like Apple is moving toward Steve's original vision...
Look at this video from 1987 and tell me that it doesn't resemble a bit of what we are now seeing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRH8eimU_20&feature=related
Look at this video from 1987 and tell me that it doesn't resemble a bit of what we are now seeing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRH8eimU_20&feature=related
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Of course there is always Android for the rest of you, muhahahaha.
And there's nothing really wrong with using Android. It's a tool just like iOS. They are different tools that accomplish tasks in different ways. If you like the iOS way with your phone, that's great. I prefer Android because I can do SO much more with the device than I can with iOS. It's all up to personal preference.
Seriously Apple? 15 months for THIS garbage? OH GREAT DUAL CORE, NOW WE CAN RUN OUR 3.5" SQUARE HOME SCREEN EVEN... FASTER? Apple, get the clue. The iPhone is FAST. People don't care how great Infinity Blade 2 will run on this phone. They want to not have to bust out the magnifying glass to see it.
I knew damn well this would happen. So where was I this past Sunday? Signing my "Goodbye" to Apple and my "Hello" to Samsung. The Galaxy S II is the best phone I've ever used. This thing is gorgeous. I still have my iPhone 4, it's on Craigslist as we speak. Holding them side by side is EMBARRASSING to the iPhone. Thanks for the ride, Apple. I love your products but I'm far from an idiot. You had 15 months to give us what we wanted and you failed miserably.
iFanboys can flame me all you want, but it just proves the point that you have no ability to make a logical decision. A) 300 bucks for a 1.5 year old design that sucked to begin with or B) innovation that Android manufacturers actually put into their products instead of trying to sue this piss off their biggest competitor? I choose option B.
I knew damn well this would happen. So where was I this past Sunday? Signing my "Goodbye" to Apple and my "Hello" to Samsung. The Galaxy S II is the best phone I've ever used. This thing is gorgeous. I still have my iPhone 4, it's on Craigslist as we speak. Holding them side by side is EMBARRASSING to the iPhone. Thanks for the ride, Apple. I love your products but I'm far from an idiot. You had 15 months to give us what we wanted and you failed miserably.
iFanboys can flame me all you want, but it just proves the point that you have no ability to make a logical decision. A) 300 bucks for a 1.5 year old design that sucked to begin with or B) innovation that Android manufacturers actually put into their products instead of trying to sue this piss off their biggest competitor? I choose option B.
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Sorry about newbie question. I don't have experience with unlocked iPhone. I spend half my time in US and half in Europe (Austria).
If I buy unlocked 4S will I be able to use that ONE device to get both a contract with AT&T in US, *and* with Austrian iPhone carrier? That is, can I have two active contracts in two countries on one device since it's a world phone? Is the SIM switchable with tool since I guess that might be the main issue?
What about IMEI, etc? Is that going to be a problem? Thanks.
Sorry about newbie question. I don't have experience with unlocked iPhone. I spend half my time in US and half in Europe (Austria).
If I buy unlocked 4S will I be able to use that ONE device to get both a contract with AT&T in US, *and* with Austrian iPhone carrier? That is, can I have two active contracts in two countries on one device since it's a world phone? Is the SIM switchable with tool since I guess that might be the main issue?
What about IMEI, etc? Is that going to be a problem? Thanks.
But remember that the A5 benchmarked well better than any of the other processors offered in Android phones. Battery is better, OS is better, camera is at least on par, screen resolution is better. The only thing you can say is the screen size, which is perhaps the main feature a phone, as Steve Jobs pointed out himself last year. I wonder why Apple couldn't make an edge-to-screen 3.8-4" display and keep the phone size the same.
Apple overall still delivers a better experience and Android is still playing catch up. I will probably end up buying the 4S. For as much as I use it, the increase speed itself is worth $199.
Technically it should work but we don't have the specific specs yet. It's dependent on the frequencies the Australian carrier uses and even IF they will sell the 4s unlocked. There's nothing official on that yet.
Ok then get an Android, nothing wrong with that but sorry to break your bubble but for a lot of us this is a cool upgrade since we did not want lower resolution or thinner phone or even a different design.
They gave us a better camera which of course is great for catching the police doing bad things to good people. They gave us way better CPU/GPU and now they gave us orgasmic talking AI, now all that is left is for the iphone to talk to me dirty and I am all set. Oh yes I still like the sexy glass and metal look but do enjoy your Android please and its plastic body I am sure from all us Apple iPhone fans that we know some people really like plastic
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Have you notice there are way to many Android fangirls on a MacRumor site. I guess not much excitement on the Android sites.
Ok then get an Android, nothing wrong with that but sorry to break your bubble but for a lot of us this is a cool upgrade since we did not want lower resolution or thinner phone or even a different design.
They gave us a better camera which of course is great for catching the police doing bad things to good people. They gave us way better CPU/GPU and now they gave us orgasmic talking AI, now all that is left is for the iphone to talk to me dirty and I am all set. Oh yes I still like the sexy glass and metal look but do enjoy your Android please and its plastic body I am sure from all us Apple iPhone fans that we know some people really like plastic
Do you really have to feel superior over the lowly Android users? Is that how you justify purchases for yourself? There's no "bubble" being burst on my end. A phone is a tool and you have to pick the best tool for YOUR life. If iOS fits your needs in YOUR life, then that's fantastic. I'm truly happy for you. (That's a serious comment too). But is it beyond you that other people have other needs that the iPhone just doesn't meet? Is it beyond you that iOS isn't always the best solution? Can you see that?