Photo of Plastic Packaging with 'iPhone 5C' Name Surfaces

[applemotor]

i wanna one of those things as a food container

My first thought was "cool new Jello mould"......until I saw the 'hamster coffin' post

 

[KPOM]

lol, ok, good point. But what I mean to say is after the iPhone 4, they wouldn't go back to that design.

Steve Jobs made a big deal about the beauty of the iPhone 4 because it was "glass wrapped in stainless steel" or something to that effect. Apple has made a fashion statement with their brand, at least as far as their smartphone lineup goes: premium materials for a premium experience. And they had to do that because after the first iPhone, every hardware developer and their mother started making iPhone knock-offs, so they set themselves apart by at least not making their device look like a black plastic piece of crap like everyone else was (and still is) making!

That's why the 5S will still be aluminum. That said clearly people find the "free" iPhone 4 to be popular, so there is a market for a cheaper product. The iPhone 5 manufacturing process is very complex and doesn't lend itself to lower production costs. This way Apple can get everyone onto a larger screen and lightning port a year sooner, rather than having to keep the 4S as the "free" phone on contract. Also, Samsung has shown that it is possible to sell a plastic-bodied phone at a high price.

 

[ClemyNX]

I'm beginning to think the next iPhone will not be a 5S.

It makes more sense to have these generation names:

This fall: iPhone 6 and iPhone 5C
Next year: iPhone 7 and iPhone 6C
2015: iPhone 8 and iPhone 7C

This also makes sense if Apple is going to release a bigger screen size. They could add a different suffix to the model.

In other words the phones will be named after the generation of their insides, the processor and graphics. Suffixes will be for other designations such as case configuration and screen size.

Kind of interesting it's called the 5C.

We are expecting a 5S though that's not a given.

So we will have a 5S and a 5C.

But what happens after that? Will we have an iPhone 6 and 6C and a then 6S and another 6C?

Maybe it should be called the iPhone 5SC

IF this is genuine and the budget iPhone is called, "iPhone 5C" I don't think the supposed, "iPhone 5S" will be called "5S". Consumers could get confused when going to purchase such a device, especially with a price cut on the iPhone 5 while supplies last. It would be, "5, 5S, and 5C"? Does anyone else see this as being very, "un-Apple"? I can see it now, a teen asks his grandma for a new iPhone and she gets confused. I think the budget iPhone MAY be called, "5C" but the "5S" MAY actually be, "iPhone 6".

Yes, if it is indeed called 5C and the new one is called 5S it would bring a lot of mess next year. I don't know how they could manage it.
Maybe they are going for the iPhone 6 directly. Or maybe they'll do whatever odd name change as they often do and consumers won't notice.

 

[joachimnb]

Because some people have spent years deriding the competition for their usage of plastics.

As many have pointed out, the material used is not as important as the execution. Using a plastic shell that is one seamless part will avoid the issues that other manufacturers have (multiple parts cobbled together lead to creaking, cracking, and the like). As you rightly pointed out, Apple proved this with the 3G/3GS.

Of course, there was the reason .

 

[lolkthxbai]

It would not make sense to keep making the 5 and sell it at the 0 subsidized price point, because the 5 is expensive to make. The CNC machining, materials, and inlays are far more costly than injection molded plastic. To sell the 5 at a low price would hurt margins.

Better to use existing expensive tooling for the high end 5S.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

I completely agree, but what about leftover stock? Or would they try to sell all remaining stock before the new iPhone launches?

 

[blairwillis]

C is for Cookie

 

[Patriot24]

And so the "Apple's magic plastic is special" propaganda begins...

That's not what I said. The philosophy is the same regardless of the material - reduce the number of parts to increase rigidity and increase quality feel. The videos of prototypes that we've seen thus far seem to indicate that the plastic backs are very rigid and don't feel cheap as everyone is assuming.

Most if the people complaining about the usage of plastic as a "low quality material" probably have a half-assed plastic or rubber case on their iPhone right now.

 

[Retired Cat]

Well I did.

But I still got a 3GS, which plastic shell ended up cracking (without any drop) because I put it in my jean's back pocket.

Sure you'll tell me that it was my fault for putting in my back pocket and sitting on it repeatedly, but my iPhone 4S shows no signs of cracking from the pressure of my butt, and I doubt it will since it feels much more solid than the 3GS.

The back of my 3GS was all scratched up, but my 4S only shows a few very tiny scratches that are hard to see unless I tilt the device toward the light.

But hey, people in this forum "convinced" me that plastic is stronger than metal...

I hope that the plastic used for this iPhone 5C will be more resistant than the 3GS.

All materials have advantages and disadvantages. Glass and steel resists bending, but glass panes can easily shatter on impact. Anodized Aluminum won't shatter, but the anodized coating can scratch off.

I have seen some people say that their aluminum iPhone 5 bent when they sat on it.

Plastic is generally shatter resistant and can be made scratch resistant. That doesn't mean it can't crack, obviously, but I don't think it is necessarily better or worse than glass, steel, or aluminum when it comes to phones.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[mdelvecchio]

Even the packaging looks cheap...

get over it, dude, it's not marketed for you. china and India are apples new big markets -- and people there can't afford $600 phones.

 

[bretm]

That naming seems plausible but I prefer naming it:

iPhone Lite and iPhone Pro or simply iPhone and iPhone Pro.

iPhone Pro? That's funny.

 

[Technarchy]

Prediction:

iPhone 5C
$449 - $499 unlocked
$99 subsidized
6 color options
16gb only

Same specs as current iPhone otherwise

 

[Retired Cat]

Photo of Plastic Packaging with 'iPhone 5C' Name Surfaces

I completely agree, but what about leftover stock? Or would they try to sell all remaining stock before the new iPhone launches?

I imagine that there would be a sale to clear out old stock, although leftovers can be held for use as warranty replacements.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[mdelvecchio]

They just made your ears bleed because they were 4 times too big for the ears.

Had to get a pair of speakers a couple days after I purchased my first iPod.

fit me just fine.

 

[KPOM]

Everything that defined Apple - design and (build) quality - has now gone down the drain with these cheap knock-off looking, plastic iPhones. I don't like the direction Apple is heading

I disagree. Apple has used plastic in the past. The original iBook and MacBook come to mind. Just because Samsung uses flimsy plastic doesn't mean Apple will.

That said, I can see some people buying this instead of the 5S because they perceive it to be more durable or less needing of a case. That could have an impact on margins if the mix shifts but overall volumes stay the same. The iPad mini comes to mind here.

 

[egodspeed]

Carbon Fiber Thought, Post #2

The phone will be carbon fiber. This plastic case the phone will go in will obviously have a clear cover on it to show off the color phone. It will be just plastic.

Here's another thought on the material of the phone itself... iPhone 5CF looks like a stupid name, but iPhone 5C makes sense and will have multiple purposes... 1 - for indicating color, 2 - for indicating carbon fiber.

Here's something to think about:

Kevin Kenney - Senior Composites Engineer - Worked at Kestrel Bicycles and was credited with being a pioneer in carbon fiber bicycle frame design. He was hired by Apple just last year.

Apple has been exploring a different shell material and design for years. Sure, the reports indicate MacBooks, but why stop there:
https://www.macrumors.com/2009/04/3...iber-composite-materials-for-exterior-shells/


The phone could be Liquidmetal with a color coating:
https://www.macrumors.com/2010/08/0...quidmetal-technologies-advanced-metal-alloys/

After all, here are some characteristic properties of LiquidMetal:

- High Yield Strength
- High Hardness
- Superior Strength/Weight Ratio
- Superior Elastic Limit
- High Corrosion Resistance
- High Wear-Resistance
- Unique Acoustical Properties

 

[Tiger8]

lol, ok, good point. But what I mean to say is after the iPhone 4, they wouldn't go back to that design.

Steve Jobs made a big deal about the beauty of the iPhone 4 because it was "glass wrapped in stainless steel" or something to that effect. Apple has made a fashion statement with their brand, at least as far as their smartphone lineup goes: premium materials for a premium experience. And they had to do that because after the first iPhone, every hardware developer and their mother started making iPhone knock-offs, so they set themselves apart by at least not making their device look like a black plastic piece of crap like everyone else was (and still is) making!

And most, if not all, fashion houses have released lower cost lines of their products, starting from Channel to feakin' Gap; and it did not affect their top brand instead got them more customers. What's the big deal in Apple doing it?

 

[trogdorDR]

If the theory about being like the current iPod touch packaging is true, wouldn't there need to be some printing on the back of these boxes too (for instance the memory capacity and all the regulatory information and whatnot)? Unless you think it would all be added by a sticker?

We only see one "back" in this pic (at the top left), but its blank.

 

[mdelvecchio]

I just don't get this. Why do people get so caught up in a $50 to $100 difference in the hardware of a phone when they are agreeing to a $2500 outlay for service over the next two years? I wouldn't give it a second thought for an infinitely better piece of hardware, and especially better operating system.

the price diff will be more than that. you don't live in china or India where very few have $650 USD to spend on a phone.

 

[ritmomundo]

Image
The packaging appears to be a white plastic box that would hold the device and associated accessories and documentation. A front cover, unseen in the photo but perhaps clear to show off the various color options for the device itself as seen on Apple's iPod lineups, would appear to rest on a small lip around the interior.

It looks way too small to be the back casing for a phone/charger/etc, with a front cover. Look at the size of the screw in the corner of the bin for size comparison.

 

[mdelvecchio]

Which means that it is able to be recycled. Whether it is actually recycled (and how environmentally friendly that process turns out to be) is a whole other question...

you could make the same weak argument about paper and cardboard recycling. but you don't, do you?

 

[petrucci666]

'C' is 'S' in Cyrillic.

Maybe this represents the iPhone 5S for the Russian market? Seems plausible.

iPhone 5C just has too many ways it can get ridiculed - Crap, Cheap etc.

 

[Retired Cat]

Photo of Plastic Packaging with 'iPhone 5C' Name Surfaces

I hope this is $399 for a 16GB unlocked, and $499 for 32GB unlocked. That would incredible.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[Casiotone]

All materials have advantages and disadvantages. Glass and steel resists bending, but glass panes can easily shatter on impact. Anodized Aluminum won't shatter, but the anodized coating can scratch off.

I have seen some people say that their aluminum iPhone 5 bent when they sat on it.

Plastic is generally shatter resistant and can be made scratch resistant. That doesn't mean it can't crack, obviously, but I don't think it is necessarily better or worse than glass, steel, or aluminum when it comes to phones.

I understand that now, but at least for me, the 4S proved to be the most durable casing. And the glass back is only $29 to replace if it shatters (and shattering does absorb a lot of the impact of a drop).

I don't know about the 5 durability for putting in a back pocket, I'm sceptical about those reports of bent iPhone 5, I can only imagine it bending if you put something else in your pocket which I never do.

I've seen only one video of this, and it looked like someone had used a vise grip to bend it. I do believe though in the fact that the black anodization on the iPhone 5 can get all scratched up, and would get the white version for that reason.

 

[Patriot24]

The phone will be carbon fiber. This plastic case the phone will go in will obviously have a clear cover on it to show off the color phone. It will be just plastic.

Here's another thought on the material of the phone itself... iPhone 5CF looks like a stupid name, but iPhone 5C will have multiple purposes... 1 - for indicating color, 2 - for indicating carbon fiber.

Here's something to think about:

Kevin Kenney - Senior Composites Engineer - Worked at Kestrel Bicycles and was credited with being a pioneer in carbon fiber bicycle frame design. He was hired by Apple just last year. Something to think about, I guess.

Apple has been exploring a different shell material and design for years. Sure, the reports indicate MacBooks, but why stop there:
https://www.macrumors.com/2009/04/3...iber-composite-materials-for-exterior-shells/


The phone could be Liquidmetal with a color coating:
https://www.macrumors.com/2010/08/0...quidmetal-technologies-advanced-metal-alloys/

After all, here are some characteristic properties of LiquidMetal:

- High Yield Strength
- High Hardness
- Superior Strength/Weight Ratio
- Superior Elastic Limit
- High Corrosion Resistance
- High Wear-Resistance
- Unique Acoustical Properties

They aren't going to use the latest and greatest materials on a low cost product.

 

[Tankmaze]

well, as one forum member already named this iPhone 5C when I asked what it will be called so yeah, congrats to that person.

edit : this guy
https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/17528005/