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iPhone 5C or 5S?

A

AceC

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 10, 2013
98
1
I'm likely upgrading to a new iPhone today. I currently have an iPhone 4.

I'm considering the iPhone 5C or 5S, leaning towards the 5C, due to the cheaper price.

My question about the 5C, is since it is a plastic finish, does it seem to overheat more when charging, or just be a problem in general? I also don't know if the white color or the blue one looks better.

Also, what makes the 5S so much better?

Can anyone who has either recommend which one?
 
I would recommend 5s just because the camera, in my opinion, is much better. Also, i love the touch ID.
 
No, if that were true, they'd overheat with any plastic case you put on the iPhone since 2007. The 3G/3GS had plastic case too.

The 5s has fingerprint unlocking and metal case (other improvements are minor, at least for the time being). Only you can decide if that's an advantage.

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the caveman said:
I would recommend 5s just because the camera, in my opinion, is much better.
Click to expand...

The improvement isn't as large as the jump from 4S to 5, and I believe the 5c has the same rear camera as the 5.
 
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Go with the 5S. It is Apple's flagship and most current iPhone model right now and will be good for at least another 3 years.

The 5C is essentially last year's 5 but with plastic casing and a slightly improved front camera is all. All the internals are identical to last year's iPhone 5.

The 5C might be current and up to full speed right now, but next year when iOS 8 is released, it will almost certainly get left in the dust on a couple of features. The hardware inside will be 2 years old by that point.

The 5S, on the other hand, with the A7 and M7 processors and 64 bit CPU, will still be quite capable of taking advantage of most if not all features.
 
TWD98j said:
The 5C might be current and up to full speed right now, but next year when iOS 8 is released, it will almost certainly get left in the dust on a couple of features. The hardware inside will be 2 years old by that point.
Click to expand...

If history is any indication, even the 5s will get left in the dust on at least one feature next year.
 
Both are a massive upgrade from the 4. My brother bought a 5C last week because he doesn't really care and the differences between the 5C and 5S weren't big enough to him. But if you have the money or if the differences are big enough to you, I would go with the 5S.

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TWD98j said:
Go with the 5S. It is Apple's flagship and most current iPhone model right now and will be good for at least another 3 years.

The 5C is essentially last year's 5 but with plastic casing and a slightly improved front camera is all. All the internals are identical to last year's iPhone 5.

The 5C might be current and up to full speed right now, but next year when iOS 8 is released, it will almost certainly get left in the dust on a couple of features. The hardware inside will be 2 years old by that point.

The 5S, on the other hand, with the A7 and M7 processors and 64 bit CPU, will still be quite capable of taking advantage of most if not all features.
Click to expand...

The 1gb of RAM will slow both of those phones down before the CPU's start to become an issue.
 
AceC said:
I'm likely upgrading to a new iPhone today. I currently have an iPhone 4.

I'm considering the iPhone 5C or 5S, leaning towards the 5C, due to the cheaper price.

My question about the 5C, is since it is a plastic finish, does it seem to overheat more when charging, or just be a problem in general? I also don't know if the white color or the blue one looks better.

Also, what makes the 5S so much better?

Can anyone who has either recommend which one?
Click to expand...

Seeing how you're not even super-keen about the 5S and are leaning towards the 5C, id go with the 5C. Save yourself some money. Right now its basically $0 at a lot of retailers, you could get it cheap (on a 2 yr contract).

The only difference you'll see with the 5S is a better camera/flash that takes better nighttime photos, touch ID, and slightly faster applications. Oh the 5C weighs slightly more but still weighs less than the 4S/4.

The blue one looks best imho.
 
I'm not upgrading but I have an iPhone 4. I say go with the 5s. It's much faster and will be even faster then the 5c in the future when more apps use 64 bit processing. The 5s has a really good camera with true tone flash. So when you take a picture in low light your phone will try and find the best combination of color of its 1,000+ combinations. Touch ID is really cool too. It's also 112 grams the 5c is 132 grams and your current 4 is 138 grams. The 5s is also 7.6 mm thin! The 5c is 8.97 mm thin and the 4 is 9.3 mm thin. So I think you should get the 5s even with the higher cost. If you do go with the 5c do me a favor DONT GET THE WHITE please please don't. That's my least favorite of all of them and it's the one I see the most. Why if you getting a 5c with a slogan "for the color" get a color.
 
If you can afford it, go for the 5s, otherwise buy a 5C.
Difference isn't really noticeable (I'm a 5s owner and I had an iPhone 5) in daily use.
Camera and TouchID are a real advantage,but mainly the only advantage.
 
Coming from the 4 I would recommend the 5c. It will blow you away with how fast it is plus the camera upgrade is nice and it will run iOS 7 very smoothly.

Now if you were coming from a 4s I would say get the 5s so you can make the jump seem more worth it with the premium aluminum finish, A7 processor, even better camera/flash and the speed....my god the speed.
 
5C is really nice :)

I went with the 5C, the 5s is to ugly and fragile.
If the 6 looks nice I will jump ship then.

The 5C just feels so right in your hand.

I have a lot of cameras so the iphone will never be my main camera anyway.
 
I was actually just at the Apple Store today because I plan to upgrade my phone within the next week, and I can strongly say 5S. The 5C feels too much like my plastic Galaxy S III, which I was trying to get away from. You're also gaining a better camera, the A7 chip and the M7 Co-processor. I vote for the 5S without a question
 
AceC said:
Can anyone who has either recommend which one?
Click to expand...

They're both great phones. Pick the one you like and enjoy it. I think the blue or green 5c models look awesome.

Personally I went with the 5s because I wanted the faster processor and GPU, plus TouchID seemed kind of neat. Additionally, I needed the 64GB capacity that the 5s offers but the 5c doesn't.
 
Get the 5s. You're buying a 2,000 dollar contract or so so what's an extra 100 bucks gonna do.
 
AceC said:
I'm likely upgrading to a new iPhone today. I currently have an iPhone 4.

I'm considering the iPhone 5C or 5S, leaning towards the 5C, due to the cheaper price.

My question about the 5C, is since it is a plastic finish, does it seem to overheat more when charging, or just be a problem in general? I also don't know if the white color or the blue one looks better.

Also, what makes the 5S so much better?

Can anyone who has either recommend which one?
Click to expand...

Let me put it like this...

I am a huge "TECH" guy. I have had every iPhone since it's birth. I had the iPhone 5 for about 4 days before I decided the design was inferior to me. I stayed with my 4s until the 5s and 5c came out. I went with the 5c because IMO it is a better design and feels better all together. Also the difference in speed is minimal at the moment. I have had both side by side and it's nothing to write home about.

Only you can decide which one is better for you... However if you are one that keeps the phone for the length of a contract... I'd have to say 5s as much as I despise the 5/5s design.. It's more "future proof." I personally will upgrade to the iphone 6 if it is completely redesigned that's why I got the 5c...

The 5c is still a good phone and it has done everything Apple wanted it to do...

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T5BRICK said:
The 5c is faster, slimmer, has better battery and a bigger screen than the 4 that the OP is currently using.

I'd personally go for the 5s, but the 5c would be a huge upgrade from what he's using right now.
Click to expand...

This is exactly how I feel. The 5c is miles better then the iphone 4. However the only way is get the 5s is if I keep the phone for the full contract. If he's going to have the phone 2 years or more he should probably go for the 5s. Personally I just don't like the 5 and 5s design at all but I upgrade every year so the 5c fit me perfect
 
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John9721 said:
I was actually just at the Apple Store today because I plan to upgrade my phone within the next week, and I can strongly say 5S. The 5C feels too much like my plastic Galaxy S III, which I was trying to get away from. You're also gaining a better camera, the A7 chip and the M7 Co-processor. I vote for the 5S without a question
Click to expand...

If you really feel the iPhone 5c like a galaxy s3 I strongly suspect you didn't touch it ....
 
I like the looks of the 5c, but the internals of the 5s. Depending on your needs, do you want the latest components in your phone, especially you use a subsidy to purchase the phone, i.e., locked in for 2 years.

While I like the looks of the 5c a bit better then the 5s, I'd be hesitant to buy last years technology with this years dollars and be locked in for 2 years (again if you go the subsidiary route)
 
maflynn said:
I like the looks of the 5c, but the internals of the 5s. Depending on your needs, do you want the latest components in your phone, especially you use a subsidy to purchase the phone, i.e., locked in for 2 years.

While I like the looks of the 5c a bit better then the 5s, I'd be hesitant to buy last years technology with this years dollars and be locked in for 2 years (again if you go the subsidiary route)
Click to expand...

I'd like to have a 5c with 5s internals and black color.
 
Max(IT) said:
I'd like to have a 5c with 5s internals and black color.
Click to expand...

Get a black case for your 5s - problem solved. One of the biggest differences in the 5c and the 5s is the colors. You want black, all you're getting is a difference in materials being used. That is a iPhone 5 and a so called black iPhone 5c is the same except one's plastic. Putting on a case solves theta problem
 
AceC said:
I'm likely upgrading to a new iPhone today. I currently have an iPhone 4.

I'm considering the iPhone 5C or 5S, leaning towards the 5C, due to the cheaper price.

My question about the 5C, is since it is a plastic finish, does it seem to overheat more when charging, or just be a problem in general? I also don't know if the white color or the blue one looks better.

Also, what makes the 5S so much better?

Can anyone who has either recommend which one?
Click to expand...
5c hands down
 
maflynn said:
Get a black case for your 5s - problem solved. One of the biggest differences in the 5c and the 5s is the colors. You want black, all you're getting is a difference in materials being used. That is a iPhone 5 and a so called black iPhone 5c is the same except one's plastic. Putting on a case solves theta problem
Click to expand...

Actually not .... The bigger difference is the grip and the shape.
I like rounded shape much more than iPhone 5/5s edges, and I think iPhone 5s is too thin.
5c still is a thin phone, but it is just perfect.
 
go for the 5s... you are applying for a 2 years long contract, so you will use the same phone for two years.... 5s during your second year will be only a generation shy of the latest iphone...
 
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