iPhone 5

[pyroscott]

Samsung had just unveiled its orion core at the END of 2010, which was later used in the GSII. .

 

I'm pretty sure this whole discussion started with the iPhone being compared to 4Q 2010 tech. For the record, that is the "END of 2010."

 

You are certainly entitled to think that the iPhone is cutting edge innovation, but nearly every component in the iPhone 5 was either in use in 4Q2010 on a smartphone (and being ridiculed by apple fanboys for being unnecessary) or in the R&D process to be released soon after. You are right about the 45nm chips. For some reason I was swapping 32 and 45 in my head. 32nm is much newer tech. In fact, this might be the first ARM A15 chip out there, so maybe this iPhone is pucshing innovation on some level. http://semiaccurate.com/2011/12/01/samsung-starts-sampling-world%E2%80%99s-first-cortex-a15/

 

I personally was looking forward to seeing SOMETHING new in the iPhone 5 announcement. It was a major disappointment that they just seemed to bring themselves up to roughly the same level as the flagship phones that were released months ago instead of pulling ahead.

 

Either way, this conversation is completely off topic and should be continued in a different thread.

[shaunm82]

Does this go up for pre-order tonight? And would it be midnight? Have to get this thing for the wifey..there was no convicing on going with any of the new phones besides this one..

[MacinJosh]

Does this go up for pre-order tonight? And would it be midnight? Have to get this thing for the wifey..there was no convicing on going with any of the new phones besides this one..

 

12:01 am tomorrow morning.

[digiblur]

Could a mod please move these off topic posts to an apple thread?

 

Makes it easier for me to stay away from the cult.

 

Sent from my C64 w/Epyx FastLoad cartridge

[shaunm82]

Guess I'm stayin up then.. thanks Josh!

[xenadu]

Couple of things, in no specific order.

 

1. I guess you guys are still laboring under the idea that people care about specs. People care about the apps they can run, not the processor's Mhz or the amount of RAM. Most people don't even understand the difference between disk/SSD storage and RAM - they'll use the two terms interchangably. Android devices still have slower UIs than iPhones; they've gotten noticeably better with each major OS release and due to Moore's law but the difference remains. I would also remind you that there are tens (maybe hundreds?) of different Android phones on sale right now just in the US - most of which are mid-range or low-end models that aren't as capable or fancy as the latest-and-greatest, ship with an already out-of-date OS version, and will never see an update. If you think that doesn't color people's opinion when comparing with the iPhone then you are mistaken. Look at Samsung simplifying and shrinking their device lineup; Android handset makers should do more of this and stop selling crappy low-end devices that hurt their brand, but I suspect the carriers are driving that bus so I doubt it will happen.

 

2. I think the leaks really hurt their ability to surprise people with this one and I expect the secrecy cops at Apple to start going insane trying to lock down the leaks for future devices... the problem is Apple sells so damn many of them and launches in so many countries in such a short time that the secrecy may be impossible to maintain going forward because they have to manufacture so many of them starting at least a couple of months in advance. I also think some of the lack of surprise is mostly nerds/journalists who follow this stuff (most people don't), partially a sign of a maturing industry, and to some degree represents healthy competition in the industry.

 

3. Most people are on 2-year contracts and upgrade every two years. If you have an iPhone 4S I would *not* recommend upgrading, the 4S is a fine device. If you are concerned about cost then staying one model year behind is an excellent idea and unlike Android devices, you can be assured of new OS updates to your year-old device. Even the lowly 3GS, a phone introduced in 2009, is getting iOS 6. It may not be as speedy or have all of the new features but it works and you won't get left out of apps that start requiring iOS 6. That's about 1000x times better than all of the Android manufacturers combined and 1000000x better than Windows Phone, where the current devices won't ever run WinPhone 8. (Personally I have to upgrade to test my apps on the new device but that's an edge case - otherwise I wouldn't bother. I skipped the iPhone 4 since I was able to get a retina iPod Touch to do my testing).

 

4. They continue to focus on screen quality, graphics performance, thin & light, battery life, etc... the things people care about today. I'm not sure what you are expecting? The screen is in-plane touch, supports the full sRGB color space (extremely rare on almost all LCDs these days) and richer colors, and has reduced glare. The thing is thinner and lighter but managed to slighly improve battery life. The screen is bigger without being XBOX HUGE or impossible to operate with one hand... and in fact a bigger screen was the #1 thing people tended to complain about. What else are you expecting? Some manufacturers will continue to throw random features at the wall to see what stick but in general smart phones will simply continue to get faster, thinner, and lighter. If we ever see a real breakthrough with battery technology (like workable Lithium-air batteries) then they'll take a jump in battery life.

 

5. On NFC: It would have been nice but good luck getting merchants to upgrade. When we honeymooned in Canada recently everyone there had hand-held card scanners (and Canadian customers entered their PIN #s for a purchase). Even delivery drivers and waiters had them so the card never left your possession. Why haven't we already rolled this out in the states? It would cut down on a lot of fraud and is way easier than trying to read CC #s over the phone. It may eventually happen but I can promise you that 95% of everyone who sees these NFC image-macro jokes won't have a single clue what NFC is or why they'd want it. I suspect this is an area (like Apple with TV stuff) that is limited by entrenched players and Apple isn't willing to tackle something unless they believe they can add real value, but see below about that.

 

6. Everyone said the same BS about the iPhone 4S (what? it looks the same?!?!) but they sold more iPhone 4S devices then they had of any previous phone. They continue to break sales records and generate massive profits. Some of my AAPL shares have over doubled in value. So go ahead and pat yourself on the back for being so much smarter than everyone else. In the mean time we'll all go use the apps we love and get on with our lives And those of us smart enough to see Apple's greatness and buy shares will laugh all the way to the bank. Betting against Apple has been a losing proposition for 10 years now (no floppy drive?!? no serial ports?!?!? what, an mp3 player without wifi?!? Balmer on competing against the iPhone: "We like our chances". Laptops with internal batteries?!?! etc.) But no, these people are all just iSheep, buying Apple's nonsense.... right. Apple never innovates, brings nothing to the table. OK buddy, maybe if you keep believing that hard enough it will come true some day.

 

7. The camera - you should check out the video. This thing takes pictures insanely fast. The low-light performance is fantastic... I'm shocked it can do what it does with such a tiny sensor. Covering the lens with synthetic sapphire so it is extremely difficult to scratch is a nice move - that's why high-end watches use it. Lots of people have been won-over by the iPhone's camera and I predict more of the same for the future. The Lens alignment stuff will impress photography geeks but I predict most users won't care.

 

8. The new connector - About time and I am extremely happy it connects in either direction. The dock connector was OK for its time but I never really liked it and am happy to see it go away. It is also smart that it is digital and dynamic - it should last more than a decade since it can be enhanced, the speed can be increased, etc all without changing the connector or losing backward compatibility. If you've ever looked at the dock connector pinouts - it was ridiculous what they had to do to overload certain pins based on resistance values on other pins, etc. Downside is the price for the adapters though... I understand the new cables/adapters have actual chips in them that process the digital signal, converting it to other formats or outputting analog signals, but Apple should have lowered the price by $10 for both the adapter and extension cable.

 

9. I think Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix, etc all have a huge problem on their hands... the existing ISPs want a piece of the money and are slowly clamping down with data caps, bandwidth restrictions, etc in order to get it. The day is coming soon where buying a movie isn't just $9.99 on one of these digital stores - it will also cost you $1.20 in data charges from your ISP. Whether you pay it directly or people like Netflix pay for access on the back-end, it will ultimately come out of your pocket. On the other end, the content owners are being ridiculous... part of that is the media empires where the cable company owns a movie studio and broadcast network, thus trying to ensure you can't cut the cord and forcing high prices for digital movies.

 

I think in the future Apple, Google, etc are going to *have* to put up cash to fund a new ISP that goes out and lays fiber, at least to the top metro areas. The US government and state governments have simply been bought and there is zero chance of any internet infrastructure projects (like the railroads where all the long-distance and trans-contitental rails were public-private partnerships or interstate highways), nor of any actual reform of the dualopoly situation. So this will be critical for them to compete in the future and they had better get on it sooner rather than later before more states pass bills making it illegal to compete with the telcos (see Tenn, Kentucky, etc).

 

They will also need to start buying some studios and cable networks or just start their own. Again, fund it at arms-length, but you need to do something to break the hold these guys have on the content industry. Do away with artificial release dates and other nonsense.... the day I see a trailer on TV for a movie I should be able to go download it. The rest is just BS to protect an outdated business model.

 

10. Inductive charging - this is one place I think Apple is dead wrong about and they need to get this into their devices ASAP. I want a single mat I can plug in and cover my nightstand with so when I lay my iPhone and iPad down they just charge. It's an annoyance to have to plug your devices in every night. Granted - the new connector will help - but as long as batteries are stuck on Li-ion tech we'll have to charge them regularly and we might as well make that easier.

 

 

 

So that's it; I expect the iPhone 5 to sell really well and I expect it will continue to have the lowest return rate and highest satisfaction in the industry. I expect certain geeky folks to moan and complain about this spec, that spec, or some random doodad that no one cares about so they can feel smugly superior to the plebs (what Android activism is really about), and I continue to expect them to be ignored. Oh and I continue to expect certain hardcore (and also smug) Apple fans to have no perspective and an inability to call Apple out where they mis-step but that's nothing new.

[pyroscott]

Could a mod please move these off topic posts to an apple thread?

 

Makes it easier for me to stay away from the cult.

 

Sent from my C64 w/Epyx FastLoad cartridge

 

You started it... lol

 

When I get back to my computer I will move them.

[Adrian28]

I was considering getting my 1st Iphone device but i couldnt justify buying this. Nothing stood out to me.

[centermedic]

I don't think I have seen anybody on this site not say that Apple makes a good product and they will sell like hotcakes. The issue that most people have(including myself) is that Apple continues to produce a product that is a year behind the times yet states that it is innovative. That's like the old american west airlines. They would charge you as much as Delta or United but the stewardesses would wear blue jeans. Once you realize that you have paid extra for window dressing you tend to be less enamored with the product.

[strung]

I have a hunch that the camera (and to a lesser extent the display--resolution, color accuracy, etc.--and camera/filter/photo editing apps) is what sells the iPhone. Ever since the 4 and in particular the upgraded camera on the 4S, the iPhone sales really have taken off.

[Odell]

I used to work with a guy who would always make sure that the bosses were made aware of even the smallest bit of work that he accomplished. He would cc the boss on emails that made him look good and memo when something good happened that he had a hand in. He never outright lied about his accomplishments but even if he was doing something that everyone else was already doing he made sure the bosses noticed it. Guess who got the most perks, raises, etc.? Whenever other employees would complain around me I always told them; "Don't hate the player, hate the game." This guy knew what it took to get what he wanted out of the process and he was willing to do it. He wasn't doing anything unethical, he was just playing the game by the rules that were in place.

 

I see Apple in much the same way. They have discovered a formula and a marketing strategy that allows them to present themselves as innovators and revolutionary thinkers in the marketplace. They make sure that whatever they do is positioned to send the right message to the consumer. Someone above said that most consumers don't care about specs. He's right. They could care less if it has an A6 processor or whatever GPU. Apple has built enough trust in the marketplace that all they have to do is say; "It's 2x faster." and people will believe it. Besides that, they do produce overall good products. Do they perform exceedingly better than other offerings in the maketplace? No, but that's not the point. Does the consumer perceive that they are markedly better than the competition? For the most part, yes. That's all that matters. Besides, the reality is that their offering don't perform markedly worse than the competition either. Let's be honest, there are a lot of guys on this site who are overlooking the very real and troubling LTE connection issues of the EvoLTE because they like HTC products and they want to like the Evo. If the iPhone 5 has similar LTE connectivity issue the Apple haters will be screaming from the rooftops.

 

Some of their other business practices are worthy of derision but why hate them for marketing their products better than just about everyone else?

[shaunm82]

Welp, just pushed the pre-order through. Sprint's site was insanely bogged down..maybe it through the ordering process via Apple pretty quickly. Wife wanted the white 32GB model..

[digiblur]

 

You started it... lol

 

When I get back to my computer I will move them.

 

Josh did it.

 

Sent from my C64 w/Epyx FastLoad cartridge

[MacinJosh]

Josh did it.

 

Sent from my C64 w/Epyx FastLoad cartridge

 

Wait! What? How did I do it?

[pyroscott]

Wait! What? How did I do it?

 

You set off the chain reaction that exploded in the PRL thread... Nice job...

[MacinJosh]

You set off the chain reaction that exploded in the PRL thread... Nice job...

 

It seems it's not the only chain reaction I've started lately.