Was the Iphone 4S rushed?

[gadget123]

With rumours the Iphone 5 was delayed was the Iphone 4S the rushed patch job to reach the Christmas market? There was a huge media demand for a new design yet the current model is breaking sales records so even if Apple never meant to the Iphone 4S could be a hit.

But you have to wonder why they could have not announced the Iphone 4S in the summer even if production delays meant it would not come until October?

The key thing is the 8MP rumour was last year was it not? It was always going to be this and could have been in any Iphone. A5 for me not much difference between the previous model speed changes look small.

But if they redesigned the 4 would it not have been a waste to release a new model with a totally new design and only give the Iphone 4 design one year?

Also with the 4S going so well could we see the current design last one more cycle before a change?

 

[iSIILENT]

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Does software updates ring a bell ... Wait and see what the updates bring

 

[deeddawg]

Announcing a new model well in advance of availability tends to kill sales of the current model. You typically only see this done if there's not a current model or if there's a competing model coming to market before your device and you want potential customers to hold off on buying the competition.

No telling whether the next iPhone will be a redesign, but the pattern so far seems to be to hold a design for two iterations (3G/GS, 4/4S). No telling whether this will continue or not.

The only things I'm certain about are (a) there will be a new iPhone at some point, (b) there will be a new design at some point, and (c) no matter what happens there will be plenty of people complaining about it one way or another.

 

[MacDawg]

I don't believe there was ever a design change planned for this release
There may very well be one for the next release, but that is not a certainty

And as much clamoring as there is for a bigger screen, there are a number of reasons why that very possibly won't happen either

Most/all of the design change/screen hype and speculation comes from a vocal minority of users, not from the majority and certainly not from Apple

 

[Zephyr240]

Not rushed. It was more polishing a diamond that had a few tiny flaws in it.

Remember, rumors are rumors, Apple never mentioned anything about iPhone 5.

 

[akacaj]

I personally love the iPhone 4 design and I am glad that they kept it around for at least another year. This saves me money on accessories that I would have had to re-buy had there been a new design. The updated specs are a welcome change and well worth the upgrade in my opinion. Especially since I can sell my iPhone 4 for more than I paid for it.

 

[Leslie Tan]

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There will be 4s with 5 when they announce next yr like it used to with 4 & 4s currently. The 4s will be the 8 or 16 gb version. Whether the 5 will be redesign is still hard to see.

I am guessing they halt on 5 this year is because of the lte features. If 5 were to release this year using non lte feature, it will cause them to redesign again next year because of lte inclusion. That's why they are saving the design for next yr alongside with lte inclusion. That way they don't have to double work on internal redesign with 5 body.

 

[EdMan]

Well if you really think about Apples product cycle, a new design would really benefit the iP4 purchaser who should be coming out of contract. The 4s really benefited the 3Gs owners like myself, as this was a nice step up for us even though it was probably not that thrilling for those with a 4.

Sure there are many loyal Apple customers who buy every new product when it comes out. Apple likes keeping customers in that 2 year cycle commitment. I think Tim Cook will be much more conservative than Steve Jobs was as far as his strategy for running the company. So to answer your question, no it wasn't rushed. Very well planned.

 

[LizKat]

If you think Apple is not nimble enough to make hay from reaction to its own rollouts, never mind behavior of competitors, think again.

They may or may not have suspected there would be massive demand for what has turned out to be the 4S. "You never really know!" is the only thing you really know about the future.

The big reaction to 4S would not in itself derail or advance work already in progress on a hardware redesign, but it might let them be more flexible in scheduling the next rollout. It definitely gives them a breather, and they could indeed use the next cycle to improve the iOS even further and just point towards hardware to come.

Like right now if we still just have a 3GS, we can see via the software upgrade some features that point towards Siri (even if they were designed FOR Siri and the 4S but, like Reminder, were then also made available to some older hardware). The flip side of that is releasing the newer software ahead of the hardware for which it's meant, and not turning on any hardware-limited options, just having those as unreferenced stubs, with code held back that only works with the hardware being readied for future release.

Really it depends on what they have in the hardware pipeline, how much time they'd like to have to hone its capabilities, what they can see of where the competition is trying to go next, and how much pressure they feel to put another compelling reason to buy an iPhone out there in the marketplace inside of 12 months. Most of those factors are pretty dynamic, so the answer could keep changing.

 

[BLOND37]

Not rushed. It was more polishing a diamond that had a few tiny flaws in it.

Remember, rumors are rumors, Apple never mentioned anything about iPhone 5.

yea but they didnt deny them either

 

[MacDawg]

yea but they didnt deny them either

They never comment on rumors

 

[BLOND37]

With rumours the Iphone 5 was delayed was the Iphone 4S the rushed patch job to reach the Christmas market? There was a huge media demand for a new design yet the current model is breaking sales records so even if Apple never meant to the Iphone 4S could be a hit.

But you have to wonder why they could have not announced the Iphone 4S in the summer even if production delays meant it would not come until October?

The key thing is the 8MP rumour was last year was it not? It was always going to be this and could have been in any Iphone. A5 for me not much difference between the previous model speed changes look small.

But if they redesigned the 4 would it not have been a waste to release a new model with a totally new design and only give the Iphone 4 design one year?

Also with the 4S going so well could we see the current design last one more cycle before a change?

one comment, one question: i had a 4 and got the 4s. i do notice a big change in speed. those with the 3GS would even more so..

and i know this is speculation - when do we think the 5 will come out?

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They never comment on rumors

oh i know. was just saying.. sin of omission vs comission LOL

 

[malias4]

i think it was not rushed at all, prob next summer we will se the iphone 5 going out redesigned !!

 

[gadget123]

one comment, one question: i had a 4 and got the 4s. i do notice a big change in speed. those with the 3GS would even more so..

and i know this is speculation - when do we think the 5 will come out?

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oh i know. was just saying.. sin of omission vs comission LOL

Iphone 5 depends if they made this new October window as a new timescale for new launches or if it was a genuine delay. If the Iphone 4S looks dated come next summer they may revert back to the old schedule? But it seems to be doing well and it makes sense to have an Ipad window early on and Iphone/Ipod in time for Christmas. I never liked the summer launches coming from Sony Ericsson I was always use to a high end new model around October.

 

[Savor]

Just a placeholder. I actually believe that article that Steve Jobs was really working on the next iPhone. But his health might have delayed it, so the 4S was used to buy more time. It takes at least two years to plan these BIGGER projects. I bet when the 3GS was announced in June of 2009, the iPhone 4 was already in development at the halfway point and SJ was involved more with that than just a spec bump of the 3GS.

My mom got a 3GS for FREE with contract since she isn't much into tech. She loves it, but I always tell her by the time her contract is up in 2013, she can always pick up the 4S for offered FREE with contract. I will then just pick up her 3GS for souvenir sake and add to my iPhone collection. I like that we are in different years for an iPhone. She is part of the "s" cycle in the odd-numbered years and I am part of the real upgrades with the redesigns in the even-numbered years. So I end up getting both the iPhones with "s" included once she moves onto the next one. I will likely get a 4S handed to me for FREE by 2015 while I will be enjoying whatever latest iPhone is out there by then.

 

[JForestZ34]

Personally I think it was delayed from the normal launch time due to a couple of things.

First was probably battery management issue with the dual core A5.

Then the biggest IMO was Steve's health.

And last but not least, it came out on Verizon a couple of months before the summer


James

 

[HawaiiMacAddict]

I like that we are in different years for an iPhone. She is part of the "s" cycle in the odd-numbered years and I am part of the real upgrades with the redesigns in the even-numbered years.

Would you care to explain that comment there, Skippy? Are you saying that the iPhone 4S isn't a "real" upgrade simply because it didn't get a case redesign? What about the rest of it? I would hardly call the iPhone 4S a placeholder. I am coming from an iPhone 4 myself and thoroughly enjoy my new iPhone 4S. Would I have like to see a redesign? Yes, like everyone else, but the current design is also very nice.

There are a ton of improvements in the iPhone 4S over the iPhone 4, and I, for one, am getting a bit tired of the argument that the iPhone 4S isn't a "real" upgrade.

 

[gadget123]

Would you care to explain that comment there, Skippy? Are you saying that the iPhone 4S isn't a "real" upgrade simply because it didn't get a case redesign? What about the rest of it? I would hardly call the iPhone 4S a placeholder. I am coming from an iPhone 4 myself and thoroughly enjoy my new iPhone 4S. Would I have like to see a redesign? Yes, like everyone else, but the current design is also very nice.

There are a ton of improvements in the iPhone 4S over the iPhone 4, and I, for one, am getting a bit tired of the argument that the iPhone 4S isn't a "real" upgrade.

NFC technology was hinted to come but never arrived. A proper camera flash too would have been nice.