IPhone 4S: A5 chip, 8MP camera, and Siri voice recognition(apple.com)
apple.com
IPhone 4S: A5 chip, 8MP camera, and Siri voice recognition
http://www.apple.com/iphone/#4s
22 comments
The iPhone 4 is (apparently) Apple's most successful product launch ever. It has been for me their most useful product ever. I am rarely without it. It's my phone, my music player, my camera, my alarm clock, my kitchen timer, my only game system, and often my web browser. It is also the most solid-feeling, elegant, understated thing Apple has ever sold me.
Apart from "faster", "better at connectivity", and "better at taking pictures", where does Apple have to go with this thing? A new chassis design? Why?
I agree that this was a boring keynote. But I think it's boring because Apple has got this particular product design nailed. It may not be the best phone we'll ever see, but they're holding 20 and the dealer is showing 6.
Apart from "faster", "better at connectivity", and "better at taking pictures", where does Apple have to go with this thing? A new chassis design? Why?
I agree that this was a boring keynote. But I think it's boring because Apple has got this particular product design nailed. It may not be the best phone we'll ever see, but they're holding 20 and the dealer is showing 6.
Apart from "faster", "better at connectivity", and "better at taking pictures", where does Apple have to go with this thing? A new chassis design? Why?
And that's my fear. The first decade of the 2000s' Apple would answer this question with something you didn't think you needed. But it was a gamechanger.
I could imagine Steve Jobs walking out on stage and saying:
"We did the Retina Display. We changed displays forever. The iPhone4 is the best display on any phone, and it's been almost a year and a half since we released it. But there's a huge glaring problem with it -- it's 2D." At this point you begin to hear the audience pick up in anticipation.
"The world isn't in 2D. You can't appreciate the vibrance of a 3D world fully when projected onto a 2D surface. People have tried 3D though." Steve pulls out a the red/blue paper glasses from his pocket. Tosses it on the floor. The modern 3D TV glasses from his pocket, tosses it on the floor. Pulls out an EVO 3D. Looks at it for a second. Tosses it on the floor.
"You don't do something, unless you can do it right. We figured out how to do 3D right."
Maybe next year.
And that's my fear. The first decade of the 2000s' Apple would answer this question with something you didn't think you needed. But it was a gamechanger.
I could imagine Steve Jobs walking out on stage and saying:
"We did the Retina Display. We changed displays forever. The iPhone4 is the best display on any phone, and it's been almost a year and a half since we released it. But there's a huge glaring problem with it -- it's 2D." At this point you begin to hear the audience pick up in anticipation.
"The world isn't in 2D. You can't appreciate the vibrance of a 3D world fully when projected onto a 2D surface. People have tried 3D though." Steve pulls out a the red/blue paper glasses from his pocket. Tosses it on the floor. The modern 3D TV glasses from his pocket, tosses it on the floor. Pulls out an EVO 3D. Looks at it for a second. Tosses it on the floor.
"You don't do something, unless you can do it right. We figured out how to do 3D right."
Maybe next year.
So we're setting the bar for new Apple products at "3D cell phone". Got it. :)
Maybe I shouldn't speak for kenjackson, but I don't think 3D was actually the feature he was hoping for, just an example of the kind of industry-changing innovation of which Apple is capable but was completely absent today.
And I say this not because I think you missed his point, but in a probably futile attempt to head off discussion about how 3D is stupid.
And I say this not because I think you missed his point, but in a probably futile attempt to head off discussion about how 3D is stupid.
Yes, I'm no Steve Jobs. I have no idea if 3D is a dead fad or the next big thing (even in Android land it appears to have died pretty quickly) -- it just made for a convenient example narrative. Although I must admit I think taking out an Evo 3D, looking at it, and then tossing it away would be get a fair bit of applause. :-)
3d is a fad that will most likely never be a differentiating feature in a cell phone.
How many people at the Sprint store are seriously going to pick up the HTC Evo 3D and say "screw the iPhone 4S, I'm buying this thing because it's 3D!"
How many people at the Sprint store are seriously going to pick up the HTC Evo 3D and say "screw the iPhone 4S, I'm buying this thing because it's 3D!"
Next year, people will be wondering why they bought an HTC Evo 3D when Apple announces the iPhone 5D. :)
..and lots of people will be disappointed if they keep the chassis design on the iPhone 3D :)
I think it's funny how everyone expects a new design every year, just because that's how the cell phone world has always been. Looking at the iPod, Apple only had a few designs that they gradually improved and made smaller.
I think it's funny how everyone expects a new design every year, just because that's how the cell phone world has always been. Looking at the iPod, Apple only had a few designs that they gradually improved and made smaller.
any "3D" where the images are on one plane and the brain thinks that it is seeing depth—that is, several planes—will ultimately fail. so my prediction is that the iphone will never get 3D until it becomes, the eyePhone.
My concern is that even Apple doesn't think this phone is innovating enough to be a real successor to the iPhone 4.
I've been waiting to buy an iPhone for half a year, because I assumed that getting the iPhone 5 would be worth the wait. Oh, well...
I've been waiting to buy an iPhone for half a year, because I assumed that getting the iPhone 5 would be worth the wait. Oh, well...
The big clue I got to this not being a successor to the iPhone 4 was when they continued to call it an iPhone 4.
Just buy the new i4S. The i4 is a great, great device.
Just buy the new i4S. The i4 is a great, great device.
I've been thinking about it and I've decided that I will buy the new i4S. I am still disappointed, but you're right: it's a great product.
"The Galaxy S II though is pretty close to this. In terms of the raw HW I think I might call it a draw now."
I'm pretty sure the SGX543MP2 blows everything else out of water currently:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4686/samsung-galaxy-s-2-intern...
The offscreen numbers are resolution independent and as far as I can tell the 4GS should be near identical with the ipad.
Basically no one is going to surpass the 4GS hardware until Q2 2012 when 28/32 nm phones are shipping and the iphone 5's chip will already be on display in the ipad 3.
A lot of people expected the 4GS/5's A5 to have one GPU disabled but I guess they can just turn it off dynamically for battery and somehow handle the heat when it's needed.
I'm pretty sure the SGX543MP2 blows everything else out of water currently:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4686/samsung-galaxy-s-2-intern...
The offscreen numbers are resolution independent and as far as I can tell the 4GS should be near identical with the ipad.
Basically no one is going to surpass the 4GS hardware until Q2 2012 when 28/32 nm phones are shipping and the iphone 5's chip will already be on display in the ipad 3.
A lot of people expected the 4GS/5's A5 to have one GPU disabled but I guess they can just turn it off dynamically for battery and somehow handle the heat when it's needed.
You lost me at Mango and iOS being in the same category - and then you want to "throw Android out and start from scratch"?... what?
Android is not quite iOS but its a very close second and better than what anyone else has been capable of creating.
Android is not quite iOS but its a very close second and better than what anyone else has been capable of creating.
iOS and Mango are in the same class in fundamentals. Use a device with iOS, Mango, and Android. Honestly, try it. The iOS and Mango device respond very similarly to basic things like swipes, pinches, etc... Android is a lot more jittery, even on the SGII HW. The odd thing with Android is that it's not a LOT less jittery on the G1 (although it is).
Android is second best in apps. And #1 in terms of market dominance. But if you jump back and forth for a week between the iPhone for and Nexus S, you'll feel a huge difference.
Android is second best in apps. And #1 in terms of market dominance. But if you jump back and forth for a week between the iPhone for and Nexus S, you'll feel a huge difference.
I personally don't see much of a difference between the OSes in terms of lag. I know there is a meme that iOS doesn't lag but my iPad lags all the time (and always has). If I do a big sync I have to restart the device because it's unusably laggy. My Nexus One with Gingerbread rarely lags at all.
* I don't really like Android that much (or iOS).
* I don't really like Android that much (or iOS).
I think that there's selection bias at work. I have an android phone, but test software for a company that only has an app for iphone (owner is iphone fan). As a result, I have to frequently borrow other people's iphones to test things with the app - and I find that the amount of missed swipes, jitteriness and responsiveness is very similar between the iphone and my 'lowly' motorola defy. If I have a lot of crap running on the defy, it performs worse, but in normal use, I don't find the touchscreen responsiveness much different between these phones.
To be honest though, I'm running CM7 and not the stock image. Still, I see iphone/pad users miss swipes all the time or have to try repinching a few times, but for some reason it registers less on a shiny device.
To be honest though, I'm running CM7 and not the stock image. Still, I see iphone/pad users miss swipes all the time or have to try repinching a few times, but for some reason it registers less on a shiny device.
Dead right on this. The big 2 complaints I hear from iOS to Android users are the stutter and app/content discoverability. Google should be able to plug both of these gaps though and if this release doesn't do it they stand to lose a lot to forked implementations like Amazon's.
New Android update next week though. Is it just me or did they really miss a golden opportunity to go head to head before people pre-order 4GS's this week. Google should have counterprogrammed their event for tomorrow.
New Android update next week though. Is it just me or did they really miss a golden opportunity to go head to head before people pre-order 4GS's this week. Google should have counterprogrammed their event for tomorrow.
Android was designed when mobile GPUs were an oddity and stylus input was the norm. As such, rendering is mostly done in software and both redraw events and input are handled by the CPU. Mango and iOS were designed with hardware acceleration in mind, and render everything to 3D textures so they can use the GPU to get that smooth feel.
The ICS reveal later this month will reveal whether Google has addressed this issue. Most of Honeycomb is already GPU-accelerated, but not all of the performance issues were fixed.
The ICS reveal later this month will reveal whether Google has addressed this issue. Most of Honeycomb is already GPU-accelerated, but not all of the performance issues were fixed.
> The iOS and Mango device respond very similarly to
> basic things like swipes, pinches, etc... Android
> is a lot more jittery, even on the SGII HW.
Now, maybe the 4G offers a smoother experience than Android (no GC + hardware acceleration?), I don't know, but the 3G experience was sure as hell nothing to write home about. I can say, however, that my Atrix is noticeably more responsive after switching from Motorola's firmware to Cynanogen Mod, but -- again -- I don't know how it compares to a 4G.
iPhone 3G came out in 2008 - nice, because it was new - but yes, had lots of lag - better than the competition (at the time). 3GS gave it a bit of a boost. iPhone 4 was the first (in my experience) iPhone to significantly reduce lag/latency in most areas - the shutter speed was it's achilles heel (it sucks). I'm upgrading to the 4S for one reason only - Supposed zero shutter lag.
perhaps try the camera out in a story before forking over the cash first :)
There was an article posted here a while back comparing Android's screen painting to IOS. Basically, Android behaves like every other OS's screen painting API, where when the screen needs to scroll, the whole thing must be re-rendered, but iOS renders the whole screen and uses a view camera to pan the screen beneath, hence fast scrolling.
(Please forgive my poor use of terminology. I'm sure someone else can do a much better job of explaining this.)
(Please forgive my poor use of terminology. I'm sure someone else can do a much better job of explaining this.)
You're pretty much right. Apple renders their entire UI to OpenGL textures, and uses their nice GPU and scene manipulation to get the incredibly smooth feel. Android, up until Honeycomb, renders the UI in software, which ties up the UI thread with redraw events as well as input detection.
You'll see the limitations of Apple's model in mobile Safari: scrolling too fast gets you to unrendered sections of the page, which must be rendered and filled in software; as well as pinch zooming, where you get a blurry zoomed texture for a moment or two while the software re-renders the page and updates the texture.
You'll see the limitations of Apple's model in mobile Safari: scrolling too fast gets you to unrendered sections of the page, which must be rendered and filled in software; as well as pinch zooming, where you get a blurry zoomed texture for a moment or two while the software re-renders the page and updates the texture.
No doubt this upgrade will get bad press for lacking "wow" factor. Buy the phone, sell the shares.
But really, do people care so much about a redesign? Near field what? 3D?! Come on... For 3GS owners like me this is an enormous upgrade, for 4 owners it will still be very noticeable. When you add the iOS 5 improvements & cloud mobile life will be much smoother. Very much like when the 3GS came out.
But really, do people care so much about a redesign? Near field what? 3D?! Come on... For 3GS owners like me this is an enormous upgrade, for 4 owners it will still be very noticeable. When you add the iOS 5 improvements & cloud mobile life will be much smoother. Very much like when the 3GS came out.
Sorry, what is mango?
Windows Phone OS
Windows Phone 7 RC 1
If the 4S is using, more or less, the same GPU as the iPad 2 it has at least one major hardware advantage. (there seems to be about 8 different models of Galaxy S so possibly one of these random models has a better GPU than the other?)
With Apple, it's not about specs, it never has been. It's about the UX and I've not seen anything on Android that can match the iPhone 4 much less the 4S. The iPhone 4's specs may be 16 months old, but the iPhone 4 UX is from 2015.
Hi,
You are completely right.
You have not tried a 4S, so you're just making stuff up. Like your comment about time travel. I'm sure that time travel can not be done by the apple people, unless they know Michael J Fox. Which I guess they may know him, considering Steveo (he hates it when I call him that) wears a black turtle neck some times. He also really loved a drink before, but not so much now after that whole incident with the 12 livers he had to take from interns.
In summary, your prophetic ideas are astounding and wise past your years. Well, wise past the years of anyone in our generation, and the previous five generations before.
One more thing...
Steve does wear cool specs though. I think the success of apple is at least 46.34% to do with the CEOs specs. The new vice president in the video didn't put on a good pair for this showing. They were kind of too thin, and not thick and black enough. Really, he should take some fashion classes, because he would have gotten a D- for his outfit this time.
You are completely right.
You have not tried a 4S, so you're just making stuff up. Like your comment about time travel. I'm sure that time travel can not be done by the apple people, unless they know Michael J Fox. Which I guess they may know him, considering Steveo (he hates it when I call him that) wears a black turtle neck some times. He also really loved a drink before, but not so much now after that whole incident with the 12 livers he had to take from interns.
In summary, your prophetic ideas are astounding and wise past your years. Well, wise past the years of anyone in our generation, and the previous five generations before.
One more thing...
Steve does wear cool specs though. I think the success of apple is at least 46.34% to do with the CEOs specs. The new vice president in the video didn't put on a good pair for this showing. They were kind of too thin, and not thick and black enough. Really, he should take some fashion classes, because he would have gotten a D- for his outfit this time.
I would guess they're banking on LTE for the iPhone 5... so in that step up you'll see a much bigger upgrade, but as a technology LTE is probably a bit immature for Apple's standards.
Unless data caps get overhauled with LTE rollouts (hahaha, right), it's impossible for me to get excited about stupid fast connections you can only use at full throttle for about 45 minutes per month.
Sprint just capped their WiMax phone tethering and modems, they'll surely cap the phones themselves when load increases.
Sprint just capped their WiMax phone tethering and modems, they'll surely cap the phones themselves when load increases.
Well I think in LTE the number of resource elements assigned to a UE will vary depending on the other phones connected to the eNodeB. So in theory it's not a problem anyways, because everyone will have an iPhone ;)
LTE is still ridiculously power hungry in every device that has it. I'd like to see them avoid it until it gets a bit more under control
If it's not a unique disadvantage, do you really think it will affect sales? To overcome it I suppose they would need to find a more power efficient processor. MIMO is kind of a power hungry application what with the calculating a new spatial correlation matrix every few milliseconds. It would seem like the limitation will be universal to all other phones unless a phone manufacture buys some chip manufacturer with a mythical chip that solves the problem then keeps the tech to themselves.
>will it effect sales?
Sure it will: People will use it if it's there. If they don't put it in, people won't use it and will continue to laud the iPhone's battery life.
Sure it will: People will use it if it's there. If they don't put it in, people won't use it and will continue to laud the iPhone's battery life.
Anybody else getting "Access Denied"?
You don't have permission to access "http://www.apple.com/ on this server. Reference #18.770d50c0.1317755591.9fc5eb4
You don't have permission to access "http://www.apple.com/ on this server. Reference #18.770d50c0.1317755591.9fc5eb4
I was hoping for an iPhone 5 with a new design, but I'm still very excited about this. The extra processing power combined with the low level speed improvements in iOS 5 are going to be HUGE for app developers.
The only letdown for me is seeing Apple do things that compete with their app developers: the new Cards app, Reminders, etc.
The only letdown for me is seeing Apple do things that compete with their app developers: the new Cards app, Reminders, etc.
If you develop an app that is so universally useful that everyone would want it on their phone, Apple will copy it.
You are picking up nickels in front of a bulldozer but in exactly this kind of apps some people managed to pick up lots of nickels before the bulldozer got them.
I've been having a hard time understanding all the clamor for a new form factor. The 3G to 3GS bump was all about performance and software. It makes sense for the 4 to 4S to also be about performance and software. The next form factor change will be the iPhone 5 in the same way that the iPhone 4 was a form-factor change.
This seems like a reasonable allocation of R&D dollars to me. I don't think the form factor has to change every year.
Apple's next earnings call will be interesting. I'm curious as to why the product cycle for the iPhone changed this time around with the fall intro rather than summer. Was it component supply? engineering delays? market timing strategy with the holidays? milking the existing iPhone 4 demand? all of the above?
This seems like a reasonable allocation of R&D dollars to me. I don't think the form factor has to change every year.
Apple's next earnings call will be interesting. I'm curious as to why the product cycle for the iPhone changed this time around with the fall intro rather than summer. Was it component supply? engineering delays? market timing strategy with the holidays? milking the existing iPhone 4 demand? all of the above?
> This seems like a reasonable allocation of R&D dollars to me. I don't think the form factor has to change every year.
Even more so because their audience cycles with 2-years contract (or so they believe, at any rate), so it makes sense to keep designs for 2 years.
Even more so because their audience cycles with 2-years contract (or so they believe, at any rate), so it makes sense to keep designs for 2 years.
you guys make a good point on the design not needing to change. the iPhone 4 chassis design is essentially perfect as far as I'm concerned. the letdown, i think, is in the excitement of something that looks new, just like the excitement of seeing the original iPhone and seeing the iPhone 4 for the first time.
however, aside from aesthetics, i think the case is in need of some new features. for one, the home button is overloaded in ways that multi-touch could fix. double tap on the lock screen to get the fast camera button, double tap when unlocked for fast app switching, etc.
fast app switching is awkward and not easily discoverable; it would be much nicer if i could swipe left or right on the bottom bezel to switch apps. also, with the new Notification Center, it would be nice if i could swipe from the top bezel instead of the screen, thus causing less interruption to third party apps.
as far as people wanting a bigger screen, i disagree. the Retina Display was brilliant in that it kept the exact same aspect ratio as the original iPhone. no app had to change to support it (aside from offering larger graphics assets).
anyway, that's my $0.02 :)
however, aside from aesthetics, i think the case is in need of some new features. for one, the home button is overloaded in ways that multi-touch could fix. double tap on the lock screen to get the fast camera button, double tap when unlocked for fast app switching, etc.
fast app switching is awkward and not easily discoverable; it would be much nicer if i could swipe left or right on the bottom bezel to switch apps. also, with the new Notification Center, it would be nice if i could swipe from the top bezel instead of the screen, thus causing less interruption to third party apps.
as far as people wanting a bigger screen, i disagree. the Retina Display was brilliant in that it kept the exact same aspect ratio as the original iPhone. no app had to change to support it (aside from offering larger graphics assets).
anyway, that's my $0.02 :)
Intel does this with their tick-tock yearly processor rollout
All numbers seem to indicate that apple can't even keep up with the iphone4 demand more than a year after the release
All numbers seem to indicate that apple can't even keep up with the iphone4 demand more than a year after the release
People seem to be missing the point about Siri. When compared to the free app released two years ago, it's been neutered.
Where's OpenTable? StubHub? TaxiMagic? We've seen WolframAlpha and Yelp, but that's it. Wikipedia still has a full list. I count 19 services. https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Siri_%28softw...
Siri promised to organize not just your phone, but the world outside your phone. Apple has integrated first-party apps beautifully, but heard not a peep about third-party services. Neither web services nor native apps can disclose their offerings to Siri.
The easy answer is that Apple doesn't want Siri competing with their app market.
I don't think it's so simple, and I don't think Apple is so short-sighted. After all, if someone's going to make your business obsolete, you want it to be you. Everyone and their grandmother has an app store now. What makes Apple's store distinctive is not only the quality of the apps, but the depth of the apps. Fart apps are obviously shallow (they're semantically non-existent), but a native port of a web service is pretty shallow too. How many verbs are required to interface with craigslist? How many kinds of nouns exist on Yelp? These apps have the capacity to be supplanted by Siri integration, but Apple missed the boat.
I'm comforted by Apple's admission that this is "beta" software. iOS didn't ship with any SDK (despite the obvious potential), and the reason turned out to be as innocuous as "it wasn't ready."
We've glimpsed the post-app world. Don't mess it up, Apple.
Where's OpenTable? StubHub? TaxiMagic? We've seen WolframAlpha and Yelp, but that's it. Wikipedia still has a full list. I count 19 services. https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Siri_%28softw...
Siri promised to organize not just your phone, but the world outside your phone. Apple has integrated first-party apps beautifully, but heard not a peep about third-party services. Neither web services nor native apps can disclose their offerings to Siri.
The easy answer is that Apple doesn't want Siri competing with their app market.
I don't think it's so simple, and I don't think Apple is so short-sighted. After all, if someone's going to make your business obsolete, you want it to be you. Everyone and their grandmother has an app store now. What makes Apple's store distinctive is not only the quality of the apps, but the depth of the apps. Fart apps are obviously shallow (they're semantically non-existent), but a native port of a web service is pretty shallow too. How many verbs are required to interface with craigslist? How many kinds of nouns exist on Yelp? These apps have the capacity to be supplanted by Siri integration, but Apple missed the boat.
I'm comforted by Apple's admission that this is "beta" software. iOS didn't ship with any SDK (despite the obvious potential), and the reason turned out to be as innocuous as "it wasn't ready."
We've glimpsed the post-app world. Don't mess it up, Apple.
"And iPhone 4S is a world phone, so you can use it almost anywhere. Whether you’re a GSM or CDMA customer, you can roam GSM networks in 200 countries around the world."
The term 'roam' is throwing me off there, does that mean you can't swap in your own sim card? That you have to use the roaming feature on whatever your current carrier is?
The term 'roam' is throwing me off there, does that mean you can't swap in your own sim card? That you have to use the roaming feature on whatever your current carrier is?
Most likely. Most iPhones are sold locked to a specific carrier. Only recently (this summer) were you even able to buy unlocked ones inside the US.
On the other hand, it was always possible to unlock the phone with third-party tools or in countries with better consumer protection than the US,.
Well, so far there is no pricing available for an unlocked version of the iPhone 4S, and I assume the contract versions will carrier locked within the USA :(
Unlocked phones are available in most countries which are not the US.
They're... not cheap. On the french store, the unlocked 4S is advertised as starting from 629€ (which would be for the 16GB version)
They're... not cheap. On the french store, the unlocked 4S is advertised as starting from 629€ (which would be for the 16GB version)
Yeah, I realize they are available in most other countries, just not historically the U.S. Which is why I was super excited when they finally started selling unlocked iPhone 4's in the U.S. this past summer. I seriously hope they don't go back to only selling locked phones again. Thankfully, it does look like an unlocked version will be available. If you go to the Apple Store Online, then to the iPhone 4 page, on the right hand side you see a section titled "Get answers before you buy," and below that "About the unlocked iPhone." Clicking on that gets you to this page: http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone/family/iph... which reads: "The unlocked iPhone includes all the features of iPhone but without a contract commitment. You can activate and use it on the supported GSM wireless network of your choice, such as AT&T in the United States.* The unlocked iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S will not work with CDMA-based carriers such as Verizon Wireless or Sprint."
That's not bad if it's unlocked outside of the USA, like the Droid 2 World phone.
From footnote 4 in the tech specs at http://www.apple.com/iphone/specs.html ("CDMA available only if iPhone 4S is sold and activated for use on a CDMA network."), I'm guessing/hoping that if you get a CDMA phone in the US, it will come with an unlocked GSM radio.
CDMA doesn't use a SIM card, they do EMEI whitelists on their end instead (to prevent devices from authenticating with their data/voice networks that they haven't sold).
If Apple has an agreement with all major CMDA networks in the USA (i.e., Sprint and Verizon) then the 4S will NOT work on those networks unless you buy it from the carrier.
This results in more money for the carrier (and presumably Apple). Unfortunate, since I wanted a world phone where I could actually use it in multiple countries with multiple SIMs.
If Apple has an agreement with all major CMDA networks in the USA (i.e., Sprint and Verizon) then the 4S will NOT work on those networks unless you buy it from the carrier.
This results in more money for the carrier (and presumably Apple). Unfortunate, since I wanted a world phone where I could actually use it in multiple countries with multiple SIMs.
What this means is that Apple is opting to disable the CDMA radio unless it is sold to a customer on a CDMA network. They avoid paying licensing fees to Qualcomm this way.
Yes, and I believe (and hope!) it also means that if you're going to tie yourself into a 2-year contract with a CDMA carrier, they won't lock down the GSM for you. Especially so since it's advertised as a "world phone", and CDMA carriers don't really distribute SIM cards (-:
I'm a 32GB 3GS owner on a lapsed ATT contract, and I'll be pre-ordering a Verizon 32GB 4S model on Friday. Two things bother me, but weren't deal-breakers:
1) It sucks that it still has the iPhone 4's flawed design, with glass going right up to the edge of the front and back, requiring a case so it can survive a fall. I've always preferred to keep my iPhones naked.
2) $400 for the 64GB model with two-year contract? Really? No storage capacity upgrade since last year's model (the entry level $200 model still ships with 16GB storage), with memory capacities ever-increasing and prices falling, feels like nickel-and-diming. I guess I didn't really need 64GB after all.
Other than that, the new Siri Voice Assistant looks sweet, the 8MP/1080p camera also looks nice, and I'm looking forward to the improved performance.
1) It sucks that it still has the iPhone 4's flawed design, with glass going right up to the edge of the front and back, requiring a case so it can survive a fall. I've always preferred to keep my iPhones naked.
2) $400 for the 64GB model with two-year contract? Really? No storage capacity upgrade since last year's model (the entry level $200 model still ships with 16GB storage), with memory capacities ever-increasing and prices falling, feels like nickel-and-diming. I guess I didn't really need 64GB after all.
Other than that, the new Siri Voice Assistant looks sweet, the 8MP/1080p camera also looks nice, and I'm looking forward to the improved performance.
>requiring a case so it can survive a fall.
I never really understood this position. First off, I've dropped my phone several times, somehow it's not even scratched that I can find
Secondly, gorilla glass is considerably harder than most internal components. I can't imagine what you'd be doing to the inside of a plastic phone you're dropping that hard.
Secondly, gorilla glass is considerably harder than most internal components. I can't imagine what you'd be doing to the inside of a plastic phone you're dropping that hard.
While it may survive drops on relatively soft surfaces like wood or carpet, I can only assume that materials such as ceramic or concrete will win over glass. I say that as someone who has worked with glass, albeit not with Corning Gorilla Glass in particular.
My naked original iPhone and 3GS phones have been dropped many times on hard surfaces (like concrete), and have only had minor dents and cracks in the plastic and metal, which I'm totally fine with. Having the glass shatter is not OK, hence the need for it to be recessed behind a protective rim, or failing that, the entire phone enclosed in a protective case, which adds to the device thickness and makes it ugly.
My naked original iPhone and 3GS phones have been dropped many times on hard surfaces (like concrete), and have only had minor dents and cracks in the plastic and metal, which I'm totally fine with. Having the glass shatter is not OK, hence the need for it to be recessed behind a protective rim, or failing that, the entire phone enclosed in a protective case, which adds to the device thickness and makes it ugly.
While I've certainly dropped it on hardwood floors for most of the drops, I've dropped in into ceramic, shut a car door on it, dropped it on concrete, on asphalt, on granite, and even onto my macbookpro, which was on the floor.
(I'm not especially klutzy, I'm an iOS developer, so am constantly handling the phone and plugging and unplugging it from the cord)
That little sucker is hardy.
(I'm not especially klutzy, I'm an iOS developer, so am constantly handling the phone and plugging and unplugging it from the cord)
That little sucker is hardy.
I drop my iPhone onto hardwood floors at least once a week. I have a small visible scratch in the middle of the front and that's it.
I know the phones do shatter, and I've seen it happen, but I'm rough on mine and it has not been fragile.
The 64GB pricing is nickel-and-diming; storage is their pricing segmentation mechanism, so taking the highest storage option is never going to feel good; you're opting for the "I'm price insensitive" bucket.
I know the phones do shatter, and I've seen it happen, but I'm rough on mine and it has not been fragile.
The 64GB pricing is nickel-and-diming; storage is their pricing segmentation mechanism, so taking the highest storage option is never going to feel good; you're opting for the "I'm price insensitive" bucket.
Wood is softer than glass, and it's normal that the glass doesn't shatter in that case.
The cost of 16GB memory is apparently $8. They are making a killing out of this.
I'm in your shoes.
I'll be going for 64GB, as I've maxed out my iPhone storage for over a year (Apps alone are 8GB), and have had to put quotas on my media just to get some stuff in there.
$100 more over a 2-year TCO is a small fraction of the total. If you assume just the data plan alone, 24mo x $20 (VZ 1GB) = $480 and with voice, all told, it's over $2k...
Yeah, I'll pay 5% more over 2 years for double the storage.
I'll be going for 64GB, as I've maxed out my iPhone storage for over a year (Apps alone are 8GB), and have had to put quotas on my media just to get some stuff in there.
$100 more over a 2-year TCO is a small fraction of the total. If you assume just the data plan alone, 24mo x $20 (VZ 1GB) = $480 and with voice, all told, it's over $2k...
Yeah, I'll pay 5% more over 2 years for double the storage.
I hate to give them the satisfaction, but I'm still debating. I'll see how much I can get for my 3GS; maybe that'll influence me.
The fact that I can now stream all my music to myself with iTunes Match frees up a good deal of space. My current 32GB 3GS is also filled to the brim, but there are a lot of apps that I never use which could be cleaned out.
The fact that I can now stream all my music to myself with iTunes Match frees up a good deal of space. My current 32GB 3GS is also filled to the brim, but there are a lot of apps that I never use which could be cleaned out.
It was up for a second...
*Update: There it's back. This is the first iphone that made me go "meh".
*Update: There it's back. This is the first iphone that made me go "meh".
I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the speed bump. I believe everyone is underestimating just how fast the A5 is going to make this phone.
How does it impact battery life? To be honest I find the existing generation fast enough (and while I do enjoy gaming on my ipod touch 4g, I find 3d graphics completely overkill) but really the battery life is what's abysmal...
Good question. The results in mobile devices seems to be counter-intuitive, to me. A faster processor often means that, according to usage patterns, the work gets done faster and the machine can go into one of the many power-saving states more quickly, leading to better battery life. That probably varies by what you're trying to do, but for a smart phone the sooner it's done and back in your pocket, the better.
The CPU bound processes in most apps are tiny portions of the entire app.
Don't take my "back in your pocket" comment too literally. The CPU is going to go into low-power states quite frequently while you're using these I/O bound applications you describe, and the sooner it can, the better.
I don't think what I'm saying is controversial in the mobile industry. For example, here's an old article that has a quote about the effects of Intel's Quick Start technology from back in the year 2000 that captures what I'm saying:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/2782/2
“"Intel has figured out that it is best to use full CPU power for a split second to finish a task and then put the CPU to idle as this conserves battery life the best. Although one may suspect that when running complex operations the CPU would not have time to go idle, this is not the case. To illustrate this point, Intel used an example of DVD playback. Very stressful on the system as a whole, Intel's quick start technology allows the CPU to "hurry up" and perform the DVD decoding operations and then go idle until the frame is displayed to screen and the next scene needs to be calculated. This saves battery life because, although the system may require 3 watts or so to "hurry up", the power consumption goes down near .25 watts when idle. By averaging these two numbers, one can quickly see how quick start can extend battery life."”
I don't think what I'm saying is controversial in the mobile industry. For example, here's an old article that has a quote about the effects of Intel's Quick Start technology from back in the year 2000 that captures what I'm saying:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/2782/2
“"Intel has figured out that it is best to use full CPU power for a split second to finish a task and then put the CPU to idle as this conserves battery life the best. Although one may suspect that when running complex operations the CPU would not have time to go idle, this is not the case. To illustrate this point, Intel used an example of DVD playback. Very stressful on the system as a whole, Intel's quick start technology allows the CPU to "hurry up" and perform the DVD decoding operations and then go idle until the frame is displayed to screen and the next scene needs to be calculated. This saves battery life because, although the system may require 3 watts or so to "hurry up", the power consumption goes down near .25 watts when idle. By averaging these two numbers, one can quickly see how quick start can extend battery life."”
While what you're saying about CPUs is correct, that is not the main battery hog in smartphones (additionally why Apple is staying so far from LTE at the moment)
The biggest demon is by FAR the radios. The amount apps and the phone use that is mostly determined 1> by how much the user wants notifications (which are basically implemented by constant polling, even in background notifications), or 2> how network intensive the apps are that a person is using. Additionally, stuff like having bad connections to your cell provider make the radio receiver power have to be turned up (as well as broadcast, but the receiver is the worst part usually), and constantly using bluetooth will kill you as well. The bad thing about the radios, especially if you have stuff like lots of apps doing push notifications, as well as a fast polling interval for your mail, is that you're doing this even when the phone is in your pocket.
Second to the radios is technically another radio, but people only do 1 way comms with it and don't really think of it as a radio: THE GPS SYSTEM. Apple vastly improved this (it used to pretty much leave the system on, now it pulses it on and off unless your app requires the older mode for some reason, such as Navigon type turn by turn navigation). Again, this is a part of the phone that optimization did help with (as often time the GPS radio doesn't come on if the phone can figure out your location from other mechanisms), but still, you're generally speaking going to see most GPS heavy apps running while the user is using them. Sure driving faster will get the phone in their pocket faster, but I'm not sure an added hour of battery life is worth unsafe driving.
I'm not saying graphics and the like don't eat up huge chunks of power, I'm just saying that a vast majority of people eat most of their power on much more pedestrian things than Infinity Blade.
The biggest demon is by FAR the radios. The amount apps and the phone use that is mostly determined 1> by how much the user wants notifications (which are basically implemented by constant polling, even in background notifications), or 2> how network intensive the apps are that a person is using. Additionally, stuff like having bad connections to your cell provider make the radio receiver power have to be turned up (as well as broadcast, but the receiver is the worst part usually), and constantly using bluetooth will kill you as well. The bad thing about the radios, especially if you have stuff like lots of apps doing push notifications, as well as a fast polling interval for your mail, is that you're doing this even when the phone is in your pocket.
Second to the radios is technically another radio, but people only do 1 way comms with it and don't really think of it as a radio: THE GPS SYSTEM. Apple vastly improved this (it used to pretty much leave the system on, now it pulses it on and off unless your app requires the older mode for some reason, such as Navigon type turn by turn navigation). Again, this is a part of the phone that optimization did help with (as often time the GPS radio doesn't come on if the phone can figure out your location from other mechanisms), but still, you're generally speaking going to see most GPS heavy apps running while the user is using them. Sure driving faster will get the phone in their pocket faster, but I'm not sure an added hour of battery life is worth unsafe driving.
I'm not saying graphics and the like don't eat up huge chunks of power, I'm just saying that a vast majority of people eat most of their power on much more pedestrian things than Infinity Blade.
True. I didn't mention radios (or the backlight, for that matter) because I was replying to a specific question regarding the effect of the speed bump.
Battery life is supposed to be better - 8h talk time.
As an Android user and admitted Google fanboy, there's a secret part of me that always hopes the new iPhone will be so much and so unequivocably better that I'll want to switch.
I really like the iPhone 4/4s ID, but I am a bit disappointed that there's not a shiny new chassis with something to blow me away.
No doubt the camera (now even more so) is better than anything on any Android device, probably by a lot. The pixel density, contrast, and surface proximity of the screen is fantastic. Hardware-wise, the only thing I can ask for is LTE (hell on the battery, I know) and a bigger screen (impossible to maintain pixel density, I know, but I love the 4.3" screen on my Droid X, I don't think I could go back).
Software-wise, with the new notification system, I think the only major feature I want now is something like Locale or Tasker, background apps that allow me change phone settings according to different criteria, e.g. when I'm at home, my ringer and wifi turns on, when I leave home they turn off.
I really like the iPhone 4/4s ID, but I am a bit disappointed that there's not a shiny new chassis with something to blow me away.
No doubt the camera (now even more so) is better than anything on any Android device, probably by a lot. The pixel density, contrast, and surface proximity of the screen is fantastic. Hardware-wise, the only thing I can ask for is LTE (hell on the battery, I know) and a bigger screen (impossible to maintain pixel density, I know, but I love the 4.3" screen on my Droid X, I don't think I could go back).
Software-wise, with the new notification system, I think the only major feature I want now is something like Locale or Tasker, background apps that allow me change phone settings according to different criteria, e.g. when I'm at home, my ringer and wifi turns on, when I leave home they turn off.
> I want now is something like Locale or Tasker, background apps that allow me change phone settings according to different criteria, e.g. when I'm at home, my ringer and wifi turns on, when I leave home they turn off.
Yeah a more integrated Reminder, which can handle switching settings: it has geofenced tasks and todos, system hooks would be pretty cool.
Yeah a more integrated Reminder, which can handle switching settings: it has geofenced tasks and todos, system hooks would be pretty cool.
Yes, exactly. But, unfortunately, it's the kind of fiddly sort of feature that I don't expect to be high priority for Apple. I.e. the lack of it in no way stops me from recommending the iPhone to the vast majority of people that ask me which phone to get.
The A5, camera, and increased storage are worth the upgrade. I do wonder if the camera API will change based on the keynote.
For those in the US curious about their upgrade eligibility, use this link: https://buyiphone.apple.com/WebObjects/IPACustomer.woa/wa/IP...
I'm finding that I'm eligible for the fully subsidized price after only about 17 months from getting my iPhone 4.
I'm finding that I'm eligible for the fully subsidized price after only about 17 months from getting my iPhone 4.
8 megapixels, but on how large sensor? Not surprisingly, all sample images are taken in bright sunlight. I doubt that the camera will perform anywhere near Nokias N8, or reasonably priced point'n'shoot. Well, I guess that people should be lucky that Apple didn't put in something silly like 16MP 1/2.3" sensor in it.
Argh, I hate when I get downvotes without explanation.
The fact is that sensor size affects image quality as much, if not more than megapixel count, and if the camera is marketed with statements such as "With 8 megapixels and all-new optics, this just might be the best camera ever on a mobile phone." I feel that both inquiring a major factor of image quality and comparison to current market leader are justified.
The fact is that sensor size affects image quality as much, if not more than megapixel count, and if the camera is marketed with statements such as "With 8 megapixels and all-new optics, this just might be the best camera ever on a mobile phone." I feel that both inquiring a major factor of image quality and comparison to current market leader are justified.
It does have an f2.4 lens, so it should be good in lower light.
AT&T has consistently let it's best customers upgrade to new iPhone releases without enforcing the contract -- charging subsidized prices to upgrade to newer iPhone models. Will Sprint and Verizon done the same, or is switching to Sprint now will commit one to sit out next iPhone?
Wait what? I've been AT&T since the original iPhone and AT&T has never let me upgrade, despite the massive amount of money I spent on my mobile plan.
Really, they let me upgrade from 3G to 3GS to 4. And I waited to get 3G few month after it originally came out.
See this article on from 2009: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10266781-37.html
update: Based on my recollection, with 3G and 3GS, AT&T only asked for 1 year contract, not two. When new iPhone was released, sometime in June or July, anybody with contact renewal through October was marked as elegible to sign new contract, and received contract pricing on the newly released model if iPhone.
See this article on from 2009: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10266781-37.html
update: Based on my recollection, with 3G and 3GS, AT&T only asked for 1 year contract, not two. When new iPhone was released, sometime in June or July, anybody with contact renewal through October was marked as elegible to sign new contract, and received contract pricing on the newly released model if iPhone.
More information please. What does 'let me upgrade' mean?
You can always upgrade it is just a matter of how much of a subsidy you want. Near the end of your contract you'll get the full subsidy on the new phone. One month into your contract you won't get any subsidy on the new phone.
There seems to be some people here who think there is a super secret way to purchased phones at subsidized prices without fulfilling (or nearly fulfilling) the contract on their previous subsidized phone. I don't think so. TANSTAFAAL
You can always upgrade it is just a matter of how much of a subsidy you want. Near the end of your contract you'll get the full subsidy on the new phone. One month into your contract you won't get any subsidy on the new phone.
There seems to be some people here who think there is a super secret way to purchased phones at subsidized prices without fulfilling (or nearly fulfilling) the contract on their previous subsidized phone. I don't think so. TANSTAFAAL
This doesn't make sense. When you near the end of your 2-year contract AT&T will subsidize your purchase of your next phone (e.g. the $199, $299, $399 price points for the 4S announced today).
If you aren't near the end of your 2-year contract then you are basically still paying off the purchase of your original phone and so AT&T (and other carriers) aren't going to give you the subsidy to purchase a new phone although they might pro-rate it.
How has your experience been different?
If you aren't near the end of your 2-year contract then you are basically still paying off the purchase of your original phone and so AT&T (and other carriers) aren't going to give you the subsidy to purchase a new phone although they might pro-rate it.
How has your experience been different?
Yes, when I'm near the end of my contract, AT&T is happy to offer me subsidized iPhone pricing. But they haven't offered me any breaks earlier than that.
You seem to think that someone else got a break that you didn't get but then you describe a situation that sounds exactly like what everyone else has experienced.
I'm not sure why you have an expectation that any carrier would subsidize a new phone before you've effectively paid them for the previous phone. Obviously there is room to haggle on the margins of the contract but the entire business model of subsidized phones and 2-year contracts is designed around the idea that the 2-year contract is there to pay off the initial equipment subsidy. TANSTAAFL
I'm not sure why you have an expectation that any carrier would subsidize a new phone before you've effectively paid them for the previous phone. Obviously there is room to haggle on the margins of the contract but the entire business model of subsidized phones and 2-year contracts is designed around the idea that the 2-year contract is there to pay off the initial equipment subsidy. TANSTAAFL
Read upthread.
I have no expectations about subsidized pricing. I am not price sensitive. Someone said something, I expressed surprise. That's all.
I have no expectations about subsidized pricing. I am not price sensitive. Someone said something, I expressed surprise. That's all.
OK. Looks like the original comment that you replied to was vague on details. I'm guessing when you dig down into them, there was no actual deal.
Any word on when the real iphone5 will arrive?
The 4S seems like a rather pitiful flagship by apple standards.
The 4S seems like a rather pitiful flagship by apple standards.
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2 year release cycles - you've got 12 months to sit tight my friend.
in consolation the iPad 3 (the real successor to the iPad) should be out within 6m.
in consolation the iPad 3 (the real successor to the iPad) should be out within 6m.
> you've got 12 months to sit tight my friend.
8~9 is more likely, this year's delay was due to iCloud (and maybe a bit iOS5), not iPhone. It's not unlikely they'll snap back to June-July next year, so that the release of the new iPad and the new iOS don't drift 6 months apart.
8~9 is more likely, this year's delay was due to iCloud (and maybe a bit iOS5), not iPhone. It's not unlikely they'll snap back to June-July next year, so that the release of the new iPad and the new iOS don't drift 6 months apart.
I really don't get it. Why's everyone underwhelmed? Is a new case the only thing people wanted?
I imagine that at least some of the disappointment is due to a lack of surprises. We've pretty much known for months that at a minimum the new iPhone (whatever model number it ended up having) would have incremental improvements over the iPhone 4. That is, we expected to see the A5 processor, and a better camera, slightly better battery life, etc. But we were simulatenously hoping that Apple would throw us a curve ball too, something that no one had predicted, whether that was a new form factor or, you know, ... something else. There was no "one more thing".
Yeah, this is exactly why I'm disappointed. They literally showed nothing during the Keynote that I didn't already know about.
Seems like it. The two biggest gripes I've seen is they wanted a bigger screen and redesign. The bigger screen would have been nice, but is it really bothering so many people that it looks the same?
I'm moving on from a 3GS so I plan on getting the 4S.
I'm moving on from a 3GS so I plan on getting the 4S.
I'm moving on from a (near death) 3G, so I'm thrilled if the disappointed fanboys stay home on launch day. It would be agonizing if I had to wait for months while the early-adopter crowd huddled outside of Apple stores to replace their in-contract iPhone 4s with the newest shiny.
Apple failed to manage expectations - rumors ran rampant about a new design, larger screen, iPhone 4S and an iPhone 5, LTE/WiMAX...
In the face of all the rumors of possible updates, an S version of what we already had is underwhelming. In the past Apple has done a great job of strategically leaking info to the press when rumors were getting out of hand (iPad 2 Retina Display is a recent example) - that did not happen this time.
In the face of all the rumors of possible updates, an S version of what we already had is underwhelming. In the past Apple has done a great job of strategically leaking info to the press when rumors were getting out of hand (iPad 2 Retina Display is a recent example) - that did not happen this time.
i have a feeling that we've seen a variety of the iterations apple has been working on behind the scenes. apple doesn't like to comment on rumors as it might show their hand. i do think that there is an ipad with double linear resolution and an iphone with a body design/home button/larger screen similar to the rumored iphone 5. i think the disappointment comes from the fact that apples lead times are much, much longer than the year long release cycles. apple's secretiveness helps manage expectations by not promising things that don't ship, but does little to manage the raging speculation that makes a 4S seem downright boring.
Of course what spins in the rumor mill could possibly be indicative of what future iterations of the product could hold. It's a well-documented fact that Apple's product pipeline is planned out for at least the next five years. However, my point lied in the fact that Apple didn't leak anything to quell overzealous rumors (which is customary for them - of course they wouldn't comment on it publicly, but Apple does leak information to journalists to guide speculation and hype).
Speaking solely for my perception after watching the ad linked above: It seems like the features they are highlighting for this phone are either baseline improvements that happen with every single new release (faster processor, better camera) or they are features which appear to be playing catch up with Android (voice recognition, notifications).
It's certainly possible this set of improvements adds up to a terrific phone. But the ad did nothing at all to sell that to me.
It's certainly possible this set of improvements adds up to a terrific phone. But the ad did nothing at all to sell that to me.
I don't get it either, it's pretty much what the rumors predicted.
Because Apple did nothing to quash rumors of the iPhone 5. This makes me think that the decision not to launch it was made very late. Usually Apple is better about managing expectations.
There is no end to the amount of noodling we can entertain about Apple's "expectations-setting". "The orbital laser cannons must have been canceled at the last minute!"
In the end, you have to evaluate the device on its own merits. The iPhone 4 may be Apple's most successful product ever, so perhaps this is just "if it ain't broke"-ism. The iPhone 4 is holding its own against all the Android competitors; is it the C.W. now that the 4S will do worse?
In the end, you have to evaluate the device on its own merits. The iPhone 4 may be Apple's most successful product ever, so perhaps this is just "if it ain't broke"-ism. The iPhone 4 is holding its own against all the Android competitors; is it the C.W. now that the 4S will do worse?
"Usually"? Apple almost never comments on rumors one way or the other. I can't even think of any cases where they did off the top of my head.
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Anybody else getting "Access Denied"?
You don't have permission to access "http://www.apple.com/ on this server. Reference #18.770d50c0.1317755591.9fc5eb4
You don't have permission to access "http://www.apple.com/ on this server. Reference #18.770d50c0.1317755591.9fc5eb4
Any word on whether Nitro javascript acceleration will be allowed in local webkit-based apps?
The latest news was that iOS 5 only adds Nitro for homescreen web applications. At least tabbed browsing is now in Safari, so there is less reason to use 3rd party browsers, though that is little comfort to mobile app developers using webkit.
How can I get a Verizon CDMA 4s which is gsm unlocked for international travel?
Apple's site is back up.
A5, iOS5, why not iPhone5??? Huge marketing miss. Everything else being perfect.
Oct 4 ... besides that, I agree.
I'm confused. It's priced at $199. That's the same as the iPod Touch. Has it really gone down that much? Or am I missing something?
And what's with the "Free" 3GS?
And what's with the "Free" 3GS?
Those prices are only available on two year contracts.
That's the price if you sign up for a 2-year contract. This is typically how they show the prices of iPhones since most consumers in the U.S. have no idea what a phone costs before the subsidy is paid by the carrier (and wouldn't pay it.)
Free means free with a 2 yr. subsidized contract.
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Is their DNS hacked?
From whois apple.com:
APPLE.COM.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM.WAS.PWNED.BY.M1CROSOFT.COM APPLE.COM.MORE.INFO.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM.IS.OWN3D.BY.NAKEDJER.COM APPLE.COM.IS.0WN3D.BY.GULLI.COM APPLE.COM.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM
EDIT: This is completely false and untrue (well the DNS hack part).
See this Superuser thread for more details: http://superuser.com/questions/37954/how-to-use-command-line...
From whois apple.com:
APPLE.COM.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM.WAS.PWNED.BY.M1CROSOFT.COM APPLE.COM.MORE.INFO.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM.IS.OWN3D.BY.NAKEDJER.COM APPLE.COM.IS.0WN3D.BY.GULLI.COM APPLE.COM.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM.AT.WWW.BEYONDWHOIS.COM APPLE.COM
EDIT: This is completely false and untrue (well the DNS hack part).
See this Superuser thread for more details: http://superuser.com/questions/37954/how-to-use-command-line...
I sincerely hope Apple isn't about to do a replay of the Mac. Great introduction with incredible technology. But a few years into it, begins to stagnate.
HW wise this nothing like the iPhone 4. The iPhone 4 was a far superior device over the Galaxy S phones. The Galaxy S II though is pretty close to this. In terms of the raw HW I think I might call it a draw now. The camera is superior on the iPhone I suspect, but the small screen size negates that win.
Based on this trend, unless Apple has some aces in its sleeve, over the next year we'll see Android phones clearly pull ahead in HW.
SW though iOS still kills Android. Mango and iOS seem to be the ones that have the fundamentals down. I almost think someone needs to throw Android out and start from scratch. The inability for that OS to be stable and the fact that its still sometimes jerky on SGII HW is embarrassing.