Grade the Event

[ReanimationN]

D.

There were some decent upgrades to be found in the 5S, but they seemed like the kind of upgrades that could have easily been minor bullet points listed after some major new features.

 

[CosmoPilot]

B+

Can't understand how so many in here are bashing the 5S? NFC is not going anywhere...give it a rest. Smartphones from here on out will only make incremental upgrades...there is just no more technology to squeeze into these devices at present.

Pros:
A7 is a beast. Just listen to iPhone 5 owners (myself included) talk about how fast/speedy their phone is. The A7 doubles this! How does this warrant a grade of "D"? 64-bit! We won't see the fruits of this until devs convert intensive apps, but at least it is...what's the word everyone loves to use....oh yeah, "future proof!"

M7. The possibilities are vast. Read Apple's website on just a few of the things iOS7 takes advantage of with this chip. Auto converts to walking turn-by-turn directions when it knows your walking....auto disables Wi-Fi alerts when driving...

Camera! If for any other reason, I love upgrading my iPhone every year just to get a better camera (note I didn't say the only reason). I take lots of pics, and the 5S camera capability is a HUGE improvement over the already impressive iPhone 5.

iOS 7 is built on a 64 bit kernal.

Free iWorks/iLife apps (of course, this is also a con since I already own them).

Touch ID. Although it is locked to 3rd party devs, this is an amazing tech to include in a smartphone. From all accounts, this works flawlessly in true Apple fashion...it just works! Next year, we will probably all pre-order the iPhone 6 using the Apple Store app and our finger!

Color options! This is a "tock" cycle update, but Apple didn't just upgrade the internals of the iPhone 5. They pushed themselves this year and expanded their product line up. My point, you have many more options for a new iPhone than you had during the 4S release cycle.

No gimicky features! Unlike Samsung and others, I'm actual happy when Apple doesn't release features that are not ready for prime-time.

Cons:
3 major announcements (A7, Camera, Touch ID). I get it...we all want the WOW announcement. But given the "tock" cycle...it is what it is.

No pre-orders for 5S! This is just ridiculous. No excuse Apple...some of us do not like standing in lines.

Storage remains unchanged. How many years until you give us 128GB? When I travel, it would be nice to have more movies on my iPhone.

Battery life! Seriously disappointed here. I was really hoping for a 2 or 3 hour battery jump with a more efficient processor. The iPhone 4 had a tremendous battery. It would be nice to get an iPhone that could match it some day...maybe the iPhone 6?

 

[whtrbt7]

I give a B+ for product and a C- for presentation.

Product:
The iPhone 5C is actually quite nice. While it's not the budget phone I thought it would have been (and killed in that category), it is a middle line phone with enough quality design and engineering going into it. I like that it used a steel frame underneath the hardened poly. Overall it's still an iPhone 5 in a better designed case. On contract price at $99 and off contract price of $549 is fair but I was hoping that it would be cheaper and really kill the entry smartphone market. On the whole as a middle line phone, it's still pretty attractive at the prices they are offering and it's a decently redesigned iPhone 5.

The iPhone 5S is again decent but when actual production gets released, I hope that the front screen is flush with the chamfered edge and it's not as brittle as the iPhone 5. Overall, the addition of the touchID fingerprint sensor with the sapphire crystal lid is quite nice on the iPhone 5S. The addition of the gold color will also cause a stir in consumer markets and possibly be a newer gold trend in color/fashion. The 64 bit architecture in the new phone is a welcome change however Apple is still 2 years early on this tech and current users won't see as much of a difference in daily use until some time has passed. Gamers will welcome the A7 and the 64 bit architecture since the graphical performance on the phone is a beast. I'm hoping for big things to come for Apple but close to 2 years from now.

The iPhone cases are pretty good this time around. The 5C cases are colorful, playful, and mod. Silicone makes for excellent protection at cheaper prices. Apple will sell a lot of these. The 5S cases are equally nice but they hide the design of the 5S so while those that love cases will love how slim and leathery the new cases are, they will miss the actual design of the phones when covered with the case.

iOS7 is great as 64 bit. It's going to change the way we use our iPhones. I also like that Apple is providing all new purchasers with iWork, iPhoto, and iMovie. Those are the basics of what Apple wants us consumers to use. The real changes will come 1-2 years from now once developers start bringing really advanced 64 bit apps to the App Store. It's the first step to really viable mobile computing.

Presentation:
By far the most disappointing part of the iPhone announcement was the presentation. I hate to say it but Tim makes me nervous watching and hearing him speak at these things. He's a really accomplished COO but he lacks the showmanship that some others at Apple are really great at doing. He stammered probably 5 times and mistook the Pages slide for the Numbers slide. Maybe it was a lack of preparation or nerves but these announcements are all about marketing and showmanship. Sir Jony Ive did a great job in the videos while Phil Schiller and Craig Federighi did decently well presenting today. There were a couple moments that I felt that they wanted to jump out of their skin presenting but I feel that they are being judicious with what cracks come out of their mouths and what excitement they really want to bring to the event. Tim, if you're reading this, please have someone present for you. You've got to play towards your strengths and let others play towards their strengths. Being a CEO doesn't mean you don't have any weaknesses, it means that you need to know yourself and your weaknesses and have others around you support you and use their strengths to resonate with your strengths. Nobody would blame you for just introducing the people you trust during the presentations. Again, these presentations are about showmanship and really "selling" the product to customers as well as the world. It's one of the reason why there was always a "One more thing...." in the old presentations besides Steve just wanting to show off.