iPhone 5 is here, First thoughts

So the iPhone 5 finally came. If you are anything like me, then almost a year ago on Oct. 14th 2011, you were heavily disappointed with the iPhone 4S that was supposed to be the iPhone 5. But now alas, the real iPhone 5 came out, and I do feel for those who purchased the 4S. So without further ado, let me me highlight the new features of this phone, as well as the pro's and con's. Also some advice for you folks who purchased the iPhone 4S less than a year ago.

First of all, The iPhone 5's new breakthrough design.

So the new iPhone has managed to become even thinner, and lighter. I think this is a pretty good feature for the iPhone. The screen got stretched a little so now it is a 4 inch screen. This is a well overdue change but now it is here. In my opinion a 4.2 screen would have been much better. The reason apple gives for only stretching it is because it will still fit in your hand like the iPhone 4S. The other change in the design is the headphone jack is at the bottom of the phone. This also has its pro's and con's but I personally prefer it at the bottom as well.
One of the new design changes also includes the smaller charger port or charging dock. This may mean faster charging times and quicker data transfer. I believe it is about time Apple got with the times and got rid of the ridiculous charger port it had. But on the other hand, get ready to change all your accessories or buy adaptors. Unfortunately this means a bigger hit to your wallet. As you can see in the pictures, the back has a 2 tone approach. I personally do not like it at all but I have heard a lot of people like it.


Now, enough about the design. I talked so much about it because that is what seems to be the biggest change. 

Network Speeds, LTE
Not much to say here, except what we already know, LTE simply means faster data. LTE in some cases can be as fast or faster than your home internet or your WIFI connection. However upgrading to LTE is not a feature that I will congratulate Apple for, as it is long overdue, and nothing new to the market. Samsung, HTC, and a few others already had LTE when the 4S was released. But welcome apple now to the LTE world.


A Few other quick mentions that I think are a good improvement are: 

• First of all the headphones. They have a nice new design and apparently will be more comfortable and sound better. 
• As well I am pleased that face time finally works on the cellular network, meaning you no longer HAVE to be connected to wifi when using it. 
•  The camera has been improved as well, but not by too much, however the panoramic picture taking is nice. 
• The screen size obviously, is a nice improvement although not the best size in my opinion. 
• The new processor. The A6, is better than the A5. Almost 2 times as fast. For full tech specs see the link at the bottom of this article. 

So that has been the rundown of the main changes done to the iPhone 5. Is it worth buying if you already own the iPhone 4? I would say yes it is, especially if you are already due for an upgrade with your current service provider. The iPhone 5 will be noticeably better in many ways than the iPhone 4.

 Is it worth buying now if you just bought the iPhone 4S Last October or even recently?  In my humble opinion. Absolutely NOT. I believe it was a little greedy of apple to take a lot of peoples money with the iPhone 4.5, less than a year before releasing the actual iPhone 5. They could have released with ease the iPhone 5 last year. If you already have the 4S, the difference is not huge and definitely not worth the early upgrade fees, or attempting to sell the iPhone 4S at a loss on kijiji. I would wait it out until the upgrade is due.

In conclusion, I believe that if this iPhone was released last October, then the hype would have been worth it, and I would have actually been excited. However, if you clear your head of the hype and look at the facts, it is actually starting to look like apple is no longer the pioneering company it once was. There is too much evidence that it is now playing catch up to Samsung and other brands, and I personally see more value in some of the android devices such as the Galaxy S3 by Samsung. But one thing is for certain, iPhone 5's will sell really well this year either way, I commend apple for building such a loyal customer base, but for me, it is no longer a leader in the smartphone business.



http://www.apple.com/ca/iphone/specs.html