Next-Generation iPhone with LTE, NFC, and 1 GB RAM Reportedly Still in Engineering Testing

[cube]

While I understand your frustration about the iPad getting short changed (and completely agree), your logic is flawed.

A good example is the Galaxy S3. The S3 may never receive an OS upgrade. Samsung (and a few other companies) make their products "obsolete" the day they come out. There's no guarantee the S3 will get 4.1 Jelly Bean, which is something Apple would never allow to happen.

Secondly, The 3GS has 256mb RAM and it will get iOS 6. The iPad runs as smooth as it ever did on iOS 5. It's still a worthwhile tablet.

The year the iPad came out, it was much faster than any Android tablet I used, regardless of how much RAM other tablets had. It's about hardware and software being optimized for each other, not about specs.

The iPad 1 showed its RAM weakness not long after I bought it.

 

[IJBrekke]

I upgraded to an iphone 4 the week it came out from Verizon. That was February 11. I didn't get a 4s. What is the thinking on a subsidized upgrade from Verizon on the iPhone 5? Will they make me wait to December/ February, or will they give me a subsidized upgrade at the time of release?

Verizon allows you to upgrade after 20 months, so October should be perfect for you.

 

[Boatboy24]

The concept of merging my travel card, keys, wallet, mp3 player, loyalty cards, calendar, address book is pretty cool. Imagine getting into your house/car with your phone....

It's very cool. But also imagine losing your phone...

 

[timber]

Looking at the past Apple will just launch an iP4s with a new case/screen and some small Mhz, LTE, or similar improvements.

Apple could of course surprise us (I doubt it).

For those who care about specs the next iPhone should be the one to look after

 

[GenesisST]

The concept of merging my travel card, keys, wallet, mp3 player, loyalty cards, calendar, address book is pretty cool. Imagine getting into your house/car with your phone....

Imagine losing your phone... :-S

EDIT: I was beaten to it by Boatboy24

 

[robertnq]

I upgraded to an iphone 4 the week it came out from Verizon. That was February 11. I didn't get a 4s. What is the thinking on a subsidized upgrade from Verizon on the iPhone 5? Will they make me wait to December/ February, or will they give me a subsidized upgrade at the time of release?

I have verizon and done the same as you. Check your acct upgrade date, mine is Oct 7, 2012. I did sign a new contract the day i got the iPhone 4.

 

[3282868]

You like having your "Pocket Picked"

What does that?

Do you mean NFC isn't secure? (and I'm honestly asking)

----------

Speaking of the "holding it wrong", I think that's a prime example of what journalists' paraphrasing can do to you. Jobs' actual phrase, "avoid holding it that way", to me sounds pretty reasonable and non-accusatory but "you're holding it wrong" feels so much more negative.

Agree. The whole thing was a media "scandal" over a silly phone. I still love "Antennae-Gate" though, such fun times

 

[vartanarsen]

NFC and LTE is good.....but will it blend?

 

[Sedrick]

To those who are super excited to have everything within one device... it's convenient, until you drop your phone into some water, and can't call for help, access your car, summon a locksmith, pay for a ride home, or prove who you are.

Someone stealing your phone, having access to not just your ID and contacts, but house, car, accounts, ect...

I'm all for the future, but until there is some safe (proven) security, and redundancy in case of the unforeseen, I will gladly lug around my wallet, car and house keys.

Wise words my friend. Add in being miles away from anywhere, you have an accident or your car breaks down and your phone battery dies.

Occasional purchase at the store is one thing, but let's not get carried away.

Putting all your eggs in one electronic basket is just crazy talk.

 

[Woodcrest64]

While I understand your frustration about the iPad getting short changed (and completely agree), your logic is flawed.

A good example is the Galaxy S3. The S3 may never receive an OS upgrade. Samsung (and a few other companies) make their products "obsolete" the day they come out. There's no guarantee the S3 will get 4.1 Jelly Bean, which is something Apple would never allow to happen.

Secondly, The 3GS has 256mb RAM and it will get iOS 6. The iPad runs as smooth as it ever did on iOS 5. It's still a worthwhile tablet.

The year the iPad came out, it was much faster than any Android tablet I used, regardless of how much RAM other tablets had. It's about hardware and software being optimized for each other, not about specs.

Agreed! I love my Galaxy S2 LTE but having to wait 4 months or longer for a just released OS update is silly. My next phone will be a nexus based one.

 

[piecloud]

It's very cool. But also imagine losing your phone...

Much better than losing my wallet. I can disable everything in one click, and restore it in a new phone within minutes. If you have a passcode, it'll be even more secure. You also have chance of locating it with Find My iPhone. Try doing that with your current wallet. Imagine all the banks and credit card accounts have to call and cancel. Getting all the loyalty cards etc...,

 

[xsdeus]

2gb of RAM is for the iphone 5s

It wouldn't surprise me if the iPhone 5 is released with 768MB of RAM, leaving 1GB of RAM for the next iteration. For iOS 6, 768MB should be more than enough for majority of the users.

 

[Hastings101]

does it need to be said? Yes.

Shut up and take my money!

-1, need a new catchphrase


Something like

....but will it blend?

would be much better.

 

[manu chao]

Apple always tweaks their OS's (OSX anyone?) to provide a good experience with less RAM.

I've heard this from a credible source (somebody like John Siracusa of Arstechnica) as well: when compiling OS X the optimisation is set for minimum size not maximum speed. Because in a I/O (and RAM) restricted world, smaller size actually means faster.

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That's what the top model cost.

It's not a bad price. Other countries have it REALLY bad.

Weren't the prices like:

16 GB $499, 16 GB + 3G $529
32 GB $599, 16 GB + 3G $629
64 GB $699, 16 GB + 3G $729

Of course, these are the US prices without tax. But adding 25% VAT (which is pretty much the highest rate worldwide with only two exceptions), this translates into $911. Unless you live in a country with high custom duties or generally very high costs of doing business, it it is rather difficult to get to $1000.

----------

Apple doesn't play the spec game? You're so wrong. They act as if they don't, but they really do play the spec game. Before the iPad 2, there was - if I remember correctly - only one (or two) tablet with a dual core processor. iPad 2 was the first mass produced tablet with a dual core processor.

Remember iPhone 4? A4 processor: new architecture, higher clock speeds. Retina display with a high pixel density and IPS technology.

iPad 2, iPad 3 and iPhone 4S all saw an immense push GPU-wise: they were able to offer GPU performance which the competition couldn't deliver - even if they wanted to.

Apple is very much playing the spec game: they act as of they aren't playing the game.

They play the performance game, not the spec game. They tout technical advantages if they bring clear performance benefits to the user, they don't tout technical improvements that only bring small performance improvements (*). So, of course, they will advertise the retina screen because it is clear and obvious improvement for the user.

(*) You might argue about the 8 MP vs. 5 MP camera of the 4s. But the camera had other clear improvements beyond the MP, ie, low light performance. And MP is a spec you cannot hide (as is storage size), thus not mentioning it would not really take it out of the overall marketing message.

 

[KdParker]

I upgraded to an iphone 4 the week it came out from Verizon. That was February 11. I didn't get a 4s. What is the thinking on a subsidized upgrade from Verizon on the iPhone 5? Will they make me wait to December/ February, or will they give me a subsidized upgrade at the time of release?

time of release.

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There are already Android phones with 2GiB RAM, even if ICS was developed with 1GiB in mind.

And????Why does that matter?

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To those who are super excited to have everything within one device... it's convenient, until you drop your phone into some water, and can't call for help, access your car, summon a locksmith, pay for a ride home, or prove who you are.

Someone stealing your phone, having access to not just your ID and contacts, but house, car, accounts, ect...

I'm all for the future, but until there is some safe (proven) security, and redundancy in case of the unforeseen, I will gladly lug around my wallet, car and house keys.

how about eye scans and finger prints for access?
Lets just skip the carrying this data in your phone.

 

[Allenbf]

Definitely. Unfortunately I think it will still be quite some time before the smartphone becomes the ONLY thing you need on your person. Be we are seeing the beginnings for sure.

There already is a special door lock you can install on your house which can be unlocked when you walk up to it with your smartphone. I saw it on shark tank. And of course there is remote start for cars from smartphones. So keys will be on the way out soon.

I think one of the last thing will be ID cards. Once smartphones can be a legitimate form of ID/drivers license, I think wallets will slowly become extinct.

This is the only part I can't wrap my head around. I just can't see gov't moving over to something like this, so I think we'll always need a wallet for ID/DL. Unless my grandmother is correct and everyone is required to get microchipped,

 

[duckyforlife]

OnStar App

The concept of merging my travel card, keys, wallet, mp3 player, loyalty cards, calendar, address book is pretty cool. Imagine getting into your house/car with your phone....

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/onstar-remotelink/id393584149?mt=8

I am not saying Apple shouldn't do this great idea, but you do realize there is such technology that already exists, don't you? I also don't know if I like the idea of having my phone be in charge of my travel card (would that be my passport?)

Still cool idea, nonetheless!

 

[Premonition]

And Apple - as usual - will be the last one.

Actually I think Apple will get there before RIM

 

[cube]

Weren't the prices like:

16 GB $499, 16 GB + 3G $529
32 GB $599, 16 GB + 3G $629
64 GB $699, 16 GB + 3G $729

Of course, these are the US prices without tax. But adding 25% VAT (which is pretty much the highest rate worldwide with only two exceptions), this translates into $911. Unless you live in a country with high custom duties or generally very high costs of doing business, it it is rather difficult to get to $1000.

Maybe it was $900 when I bought because of the exchange rate fluctuations, but not less.

There are countries which have less than 25% VAT but high duties. You would pay around $2000 for that iPad there.

 

[andyx3x]

I upgraded to an iphone 4 the week it came out from Verizon. That was February 11. I didn't get a 4s. What is the thinking on a subsidized upgrade from Verizon on the iPhone 5? Will they make me wait to December/ February, or will they give me a subsidized upgrade at the time of release?

Verizon can give you the exact date they'll let you upgrade. I would call them.

 

[DrMotownMac]

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/onstar-remotelink/id393584149?mt=8

I am not saying Apple shouldn't do this great idea, but you do realize there is such technology that already exists, don't you?

Um, and pay the monthly OnStar fee for the service? Just in case I get into an accident where I can't reach my cell phone (like in their commercials -- the only real use for the service)? No thank you. I'll wait for Apple to come out with NFC technology and an app which doesn't require a ridiculous monthly fee forever.

 

[yanki01]

it all sounds good, but will it look good?

 

[cube]

Maybe it was $900 when I bought because of the exchange rate fluctuations, but not less.

There are countries which have less than 25% VAT but high duties. You would pay around $2000 for that iPad there.

Apple also does not sell at exchange rate + tax in other countries, they always add some percentage for themselves.

 

[andyx3x]

A good example is the Galaxy S3. The S3 may never receive an OS upgrade.

Now this is just nonsense.

 

[NYCMacFan]

The LTE and NFC are long overdue, but that should be a nice addition. The 4 inch screen, even though I'm not completely sold that I'll like more height on the phone, should also look good. But 1 GB of RAM? If this report is true, that's just not enough and it's behind industry standard. My 4S gets bogged down if I don't close out apps (which I don't want to ever have to worry about). If these reports are true, I'm not convinced this phone is going to be a significant enough upgrade for me to not switch over to an Android 4.1 phone. I mean, a new Nexus is due in November; if this comes out in October then I'm just going to wait. Guaranteed updates and guaranteed better specs

Still prefer Apple OS, but have same concern. Especially on Screen. Most of the time we hold phones vertically. So this extra space is completely useless to me. I really want say a 4.3 screen that is wider like Nexus or Samsung S3. Was let down by 4S. Let down on this as well. Really annoying if I have to go Android as I also use an ipad, mac laptop and desktop. But these reports on iPhone 5 are real let down for me.