New 4-Inch 'iPhone 5e' Could Feature A8 Chip, 1GB of RAM, Apple Pay and VoLTE Calling

[furi0usbee]

16GB...

I hope the iPhone 7 starts with 32GB at least.

Nope! Tim (and the fanboys around here) will tell you 16 GB is ALL you need. And if you want more, simply pay Apple more money. Funny, I can see that being Tim's viewpoint, but the guys around here, who are the ones who have to pay that "more money?" That never made sense to me.

All the data and every app we use has gotten larger in size, yet that good ole 16 GB is standing strong. I kinda wish my rMBP only had 16 GB HDD. It was make it much easier to organize things, as I could just throw out 90% of the stuff I don't "need."

 

[Arcus]

I would love to be able to go back to my 4" phone.

 

[macnewbie91]

Incorrect, the demand is there, the profit margins aren't - the engineering is more difficult and Apple would have to charge MORE for a 4" phone with the same specs as the 6s where its much easy to put all that stuff.

Larger phones are much easier to make, which is the primary reason Samsung started getting bigger and then passed it off as "offering larger screen sizes for the customer" its just lazy engineering - but everyone is blinded by screen sizes so its irrelevant really.

Perhaps it's "lazy engineering," but it certainly has caught on because people want bigger screens and better battery life. 4" phones offer mediocre battery life and a screen where you have to peck at the letters just to type a text message.

 

[BornAgainMac]

Apple doesn't get it. All Apple really needs to do is make the same margins with the smaller iPhone. Why do they have to make it inferior? Why does Apple not get it?

 

[Poochi]

If this is true, losing respect for Apple. I have been turned off in the last year or so.

Bring back the days where the only difference is the screen size (same inert).

 

[LizKat]

When there is so much hate, it is clear most people do not like this development.

Apple must not sell this phone. They just want to sell off their unused iPhone 6 inventory in guise of a new phone.

It better have 2 GB RAM or it would be DOA just like Apple Watch. Only extreme die hard fans or collectors would buy it.

It will compete poorly with Samsung Galaxy S7

Wow. Talk about jumping to conclusions.

 

[macnewbie91]

Apple doesn't get it. All Apple really needs to do is make the same margins with the smaller iPhone. Why do they have to make it inferior? Why does Apple not get it?

Apple cannot make the same profit margins with a smaller iPhone while putting high end hardware in it.

First, it is hard to put the same hardware in a puny device compared to a large device, due to battery constraints.

Second, name one flagship phone that has a 4" screen.

 

[PortableLover]

No thanks apple LOL. Hopefully its actually two 4 inch phones, 6S mini(without 3d touch) & this cheaper A8, that replaces the 5s

 

[bushido]

well thats one way not to much 3D Touch i guess

 

[Popeye206]

Low range specs and paltry 4" screen for $500? I expect this phone to flop dramatically. At these prices you can get high-end Android phone with 32GB base storage.

LOL@ Yet another flop you've proclaimed - seems avery article you proclaim another Apple fail. So I guess according to you, Apple will do nothing right in 2016 and be out of business by June.

BTW... the prices you quote are Retail vs Street price... two very different things. Besides... this is all rumors at this point.

Lastly... they are building these for emerging markets and I'm guessing they will do quite well. For customers wanting more from a smaller phone, I'm also guessing that an A8 in a iPhone 5 would be very snappy.

 

[Jsameds]

Perhaps it's "lazy engineering," but it certainly has caught on because people want bigger screens and better battery life. 4" phones offer mediocre battery life and a screen where you have to peck at the letters just to type a text message.

iPhone users managed just fine for seven years.

 

[mbh1976]

I pray this rumor is wrong. Basically this is barely an upgraded 5S, but now it's thinner for some reason so will likely have awful battery life and compromises additional internal upgraded specs. Can Apple stop focusing on thinness and attributing smaller to budget? No one ever thought the 5S was too thick and just because I want a 4-inch phone doesn't mean I don't want higher end specs.

 

[macnewbie91]

iPhone users managed just fine for seven years.

There was a lot of outcry about the tiny screen and crappy battery life from Apple users before the 6 plus and 6S plus came out. I found myself even trying Android for a while because I was sick of the tiny screen.

 

[mbh1976]

iPhone users managed just fine for seven years.

Love all these high and mighty folks who talk smack about people who like/want a 4-inch phone when up until 2 years ago they were using them (and 2 years before that using a 3.5-inch). Some people would like a phone that can be used with one hand and that also has some tactility- not some thin/rounded device that is impossible to grasp/use.

 

[igorsky]

This is one area where they copy Android phones and shouldn't. Why do all manufacturers insist on using low end specs for small phones?

Because the real market for small phones is completely opposite to the blogosphere's perceived market for small phones.

 

[till213]

So the c as in "cheap" wasn't cheap enough?

 

[Jsameds]

- Rumour hits from non-Apple source
- MR users assume it is correct, and also invent other things about said device off the top of their heads that they also assume are correct
- MR users get mad at Apple

 

[mbh1976]

no touchid, no buy

obviously it will have touchID

 

[geoff5093]

Mainly because they haven't got the engineering ability to fit everything they do in the massive handset into a smaller frame. You'd think this is where Apple, with its wizardry, years of making powerful 4" flagship phones and money could succeed. Seems they just don't want or need to though.

Because that is what smaller screened phones are today... Low end phones.

The phone needs a smaller battery to fit in the smaller body. They'll have a lower number of pixels because they don't need as many on the screen, and you can only put so many specs in for a lower price point.

Just face the facts, the smaller screen phones aren't in high demand as much as the small phone lovers think they are.

Lots of people want small phones. Do you know why there is so much demand for large phones? Because no one makes a small phone that people want, they are either gimped on specs or are from some no-name manufacturer that no one knows about.

I strongly disagree that they make them low end because of the size. Look how thin they are able to make phones now, the ability to make small phones isn't that difficult. Most of what takes up large phones is simply the display and a bigger battery. The actual circuitry of a phone is very small and could easily fit in a 4" body. Also, seeing as how Sony has a 4K display in a 5.x" phone proves that you can get much higher PPI than what Apple currently offers. Besides, the display is the biggest battery culprit. Smaller display = ability to use a smaller battery. Besides, Android phones have twice the capacity of Apple phones in roughly the same size, so it's possible to get larger batteries in that form factor.

 

[Taipan]

So after the not so great success of the 5C with 1-year-old hardware they are now trying the same with 2-year-old hardware?

 

[newdeal]

a lot of people could be interested in this. My wife 8gb iPhone 5C (should never have bought an 8gb phone) could get upgraded to this if the price is right. She doesn't want a bigger screen but would like a better camera and more storage

 

[cliffster82]

*chomps popcorn.* I'm just hear for the comments. Carry on..

 

[bollman]

4", sure, but what about 3,5"? Sometimes when I feel like I would want an iPhone again I take out my old, still working iPhone 8GB from 2007 and just marvel at the perfect size, ergonomics and looks. Then I take a look at my wife 5S and hate on it a bit, then look at my friends 6S and be confused and then at the 6S Plus and just be disgusted.

My life is not in my phone, I have great computers with large, beautiful screens for that. My phone is a replacement for a point-and-shoot camera and a great way to check email and do some searches and in a pinch some work. I listen to some podcasts, and play the occasional time wasting game if I'm waiting but that's it and I'm pretty sure I'm not alone!

I'd like a phone about the same size as the original iPhone but with current specs! I'm fed up with all small phones using 5 years+ old technology and VGA cameras. Easy to use in one hand, comfortable to hold and speak in and decent battery life. No need for week long battery times, charging every day is OK as long as the phone kicks some ass and not feel like Windows 95 on a 386 with 1MB of RAM...

 

[LizKat]

Nope! Tim (and the fanboys around here) will tell you 16 GB is ALL you need. And if you want more, simply pay Apple more money. Funny, I can see that being Tim's viewpoint, but the guys around here, who are the ones who have to pay that "more money?" That never made sense to me.

All the data and every app we use has gotten larger in size, yet that good ole 16 GB is standing strong. I kinda wish my rMBP only had 16 GB HDD. It was make it much easier to organize things, as I could just throw out 90% of the stuff I don't "need."

I definitely understand your points, but you (and probably most of us on these forums) do not represent the entire market. A lot of people are perfectly happy to use the device as a phone and to stream music, read mail and exchange messages, check the news, shop for something, pay a few bills, that's about it. 32GB to them is like 128GB to me, like... overkill. I have tended to like 64GB on a phone but I haven't found 32GB a hassle with the 5c and I might even get a 16GB 4" phone (whatever Apple decides to name it) after I see the actual specs. The 64GB I used to favor was from before I had a mini iPad, and before music streaming.

 

[dannys1]

Just a bit of banter, calm down. Besides I don't see why everyone is complaining, it was never going to be a flagship device. Why not buy the 6s, we are literally talking about a .7 inch difference.

BANTER!! Another word you should be banned from the internet from using. You didn't even say it ironically man, whats wrong with you.