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Bise 22

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 30, 2011
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I have never owned an iPhone before and am wondering if I should buy an AT&T iPhone now or wait for the iPhone 5? I really want a retina display and was thinking of buying the new iPod touch (I currently have 32GB 3rd Gen) but I've been planning on waiting for the iPhone 5 and it really wouldn't make sense to have both.. What should I do? If the iPhone 5 won't be a major update I wouldn't care to purchase an iPhone 4 right now.
 
Well personally I'm waiting, and if I were you I would probably do the same, I mean there's not even that long to go.
 
If you have the money go for it now. Then you can sell it and up upgrade to the next revision.
Just check with AT&T about the subsidized price and the full price difference that they may want to charge you when the new one comes out.
it is just a matter of money.
If you can sell it in eBay unlocked you may compensate the difference.
 
Most likely and as pointed out by Engadget,the so called iPhone 5 won't be a major update. Besides, there always will be the next one coming around the corner. If you like it-buy it now,you'r not gonna live forever (or are you?:p)
 
I'm waiting, but I have a 3GS to hold me off until the refresh.
If I didn't, I would have bought one.
 
Most likely and as pointed out by Engadget,the so called iPhone 5 won't be a major update. Besides, there always will be the next one coming around the corner. If you like it-buy it now,you'r not gonna live forever (or are you?:p)

The iPhone 5 will be a major update. Engadget reported it is rumored to have a new form factor, as well as dual core processor, and a potential dual core GPU, the 543. It will be a massive update.

You'd be insane not to wait. The iPhone4 hardware is actually virtually identical to the 3GS, the processor is just bumped up 200mhz in speed. The next iPhone will be a massive leap in power.
 
I was in the same boat as you. I went ahead and dove in. Typing this from my new Verizon iPhone. :) Apple products hold their value very well. So when iPhone 5 comes out, I'll probably just sell this one and probably have like a $300 difference in buying the new one. Assuming it's as impressive as I'm hoping it will be.
 
Do yourself a favor & wait. Apple is in transition, and they will have to improve significantly or fall behind.
 
The iPhone4 hardware is actually virtually identical to the 3GS, the processor is just bumped up 200mhz in speed. The next iPhone will be a massive leap in power.

What? Retina display, more RAM, front camera, 5MP camera, LED flash, A4 chip...how are all of these identical to the 3GS in any way?

OP, I would buy the iPhone 4 now. If the next update are just slight increase, then you wouldn't have waited. If it is a good upgrade, then you can probably sell the iPhone 4 for between $400-$500 and pay only $200-$300 to get the new iPhone 5, which would basically be subsidized pricing.
 
Most likely and as pointed out by Engadget,the so called iPhone 5 won't be a major update. Besides, there always will be the next one coming around the corner. If you like it-buy it now,you'r not gonna live forever (or are you?:p)
It doesn't need to be a major update, it just needs to be able to make calls without dropping the signal.

Ah, the old, unoriginal, boring "there will always be the next one coming" response...how quaint. There is a HUGE difference between waiting for something coming in a few months and something a year on after that. Just use some common sense eh?
 
The iPhone 5 will be a major update. Engadget reported it is rumored to have a new form factor, as well as dual core processor, and a potential dual core GPU, the 543. It will be a massive update.

You'd be insane not to wait. The iPhone4 hardware is actually virtually identical to the 3GS, the processor is just bumped up 200mhz in speed. The next iPhone will be a massive leap in power.

Listen to Mr Factual here.

"It will be a massive update".

Here is one undeniable fact:

You know absolutely nothing, just like the rest of us.

So stop taking rumours, twisting the words, and stating things like they're facts.

Personally, given the time/money spent on the iPhone 4 design, I don't see it changing yet. But I could be wrong ...

And as for the hardware being virtually the same as the 3GS. Just ... no. There's more than 200 more megahertz, and the chip used in either device is COMPLETELY different. The advantages of the A4 is more than just those 200MHz.

Hardware wise, there's 512mb RAM, a better camera, HD video recording, front facing camera, and the Retina Display.

Seriously ... think before ranting.
 
Last edited:
Listen to Mr Factual here.

"It will be a massive update".

Here is one undeniable fact:

You know absolutely nothing, just like the rest of us.

So stop taking rumours, twisting the words, and stating things like they're facts.

Personally, given the time/money spent on the iPhone 4 design, I don't see it changing yet. But I could be wrong ...

And as for the hardware being virtually the same as the 3GS. Just ... no. There's more than 200 more megahertz, and the chip used in either device is COMPLETELY different. The advantages of the A4 is more than just those 200MHz.

Hardware wise, there's 512mb RAM, a better camera, HD video recording, front facing camera, and the Retina Display.

Seriously ... think before ranting.

Agreed he might not know it 100%, but enough credible sources are claiming a Dual Core.
That itself will make the iPhone 5 a big update.
Honestly, every iPhone hardware update was massive, 3G to 3GS brought brand new chips than the original iPhone and iPhone 3G didn't have.
Sure it looked the same, but that doesn't mean that it was a minor update.
Don't judge a book by it's cover people.

Time/money spent on the iPhone 4 design? They spent more on the original iPhone and threw it out the door with the release of iPhone 3G.

The iPhone 5 will have a new hardware design. Why? Bad media and press on the antennagate.
Apple will make a brand new looking iPhone 5 to get the antenna issue out of people's head.
Not to mention that the person in charge of the iPhone 4's antenna design left Apple a few weeks after the official complaints.

Anyway, to answer your question.. wait, and you won't be disappointed. Otherwise, you'll be hitting yourself in about 5 months when everyone else has the brand new iPhone.
 
I have given it a lot of thought and I'm just going to go ahead and get an iPhone 4. I'll be using it until the 2 year contract is up, but that's ok because it does exactly what I want.
 
hello i'm in the same situation as you. iphone 4 is already fantastic. i don't want to wait for another 5 or 6 months or whatever months for my iphone. also i don't believe the upgrade will bring any revolutionary updates. so after the 2 year contract i'll just buy another one
 
Just my personal opinion but (as much as I crave the white iPhone 4 when it comes out Feb 27th) buying an iPhone 4 would be like throwing my money down the drain since that gives me alot less time to enjoy my iPhone before I sell it on Craigslist for next years model.

If I buy it now then I would only have it for 4 months before the next gen model drops the iPhone 4's price on Craigslist by $100-$200 dollars. Yuck :(

I'd much rather wait the 4 months and enjoy a full 12 months with the next gen iPhone before I sell it on Craigslist for a great price in addition to a wonderful combination of any of the below features:
- Dual core
- Re-designed antenna for no death grip
- Better camera
- Larger screen
- Bigger battery
- NFC
- More RAM
- White model from the start
 
My contract is getting over by 16th march. I am damn sure i am going to wait. If you take a phone now, not only you will miss this release of iphone you will miss the next year's too. Then that will make you 2 Gen's behind :p So wait for a few months.
 
Just buy it now. The next iPhone prob won't see any major upgrades and it's still at least 4 months away.

yeah i dont think it will have any major design update, except maybe an antenna modification (which 95% of people have no issue with btw), the iPhone 4 design update was the last one since the iPhone 3G.
 
I decided to go ahead and get the current iPhone 4 as well. The one enhancement I am really looking for in my next phone is 4G capabilities. In the area where I live and work, 4G will not even be available until late 2011/early 2012 at the earliest, so even if the next version of the iPhone is 4G compatible (which is unlikely from what I've read), it won't be of much use for at least 6 months after its release. Other than that, the current hardware is more than enough for my needs- I'm not much of a power user and rarely play any games on it. I'd rather wait and upgrade in summer 2012.

One other deciding factor was the camera. I take tons of pictures, and I think Apple got it perfect with this one, as it's by far the best designed phone camera on the market right now. With the rise of Android phones and their progressively higher megapixel counts, I'm worried that Apple may buy into the megapixel race and subsequently downgrade the camera in the next model by upping the pixel count. Unless they proportionally increase the size of the sensor, which would be difficult without making the phone thicker, adding more megapixels will degrade overall image quality.
 
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I say buy it now. This way, you can get the iPhone 6 when it comes out in 2012.

I think 2012 will be a significant upgrade for the iPhone. I don't see this years model being a huge leap forward

In 2012, we might get 4G and other hardware goodies. The iPhone4 should run any software update Apple pushes out until 2012, so the only real reason to wait is if you believe the hardware upgrade will be enough to bypass the 2012 model. I personally don't believe it will be as significant, so I would buy now with the intent of upgrading in 2012
 
I have never owned an iPhone before and am wondering if I should buy an AT&T iPhone now or wait for the iPhone 5?

That all depends on what you want to do with your iPhone. Do you want to watch Hulu? Read amazon books? Stream music? Watch Netflix? Put on any kind of subscription content on it? Well if you do I would then wait until after June.
 
That all depends on what you want to do with your iPhone. Do you want to watch Hulu? Read amazon books? Stream music? Watch Netflix? Put on any kind of subscription content on it? Well if you do I would then wait until after June.

If not for hardware then why would you wait until after June JRoDDz? Do you mean because of the subscription controversy Apple is in currently and it will be worked out by June?
 
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