TechSupportRich » Phones

The iPhone 5

Rich — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 00:05:38 +0000

When the iPhone first came out it was called the iPhone. The next one was the iPhone 3G because it had 3G and the first one didn’t. Then came the iPhone 3G S. So called because it was a faster iPhone 3G. Then came the iPhone 4. It was the fourth iPhone, and the first time that the number in the name indicated the generation of the device. Now we have the iPhone 4 S. That basically says that it’s a faster version on the iPhone 4. The next iPhone won’t be the fifth generation of the iPhone. There is no technology associated with the number 5. With the iPhone 4 and 4S being of the same external design, the next phone won’t even be the fifth new look of the device. There’s no way I can think of that happily links the next iPhone and the number 5. Maybe it will be the iPhone 4G next.

iPhone 4S Battery Life

Rich — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:00:28 +0000

iPhone Owner 1: Hey! Have you seen those location services on Android? They’re shit, they run down your battery really quick!

iPhone Owner 2: Yeah, iPhones are better because their batteries last for ages!

iPhone Owner 1: Actually my iPhone 4S is getting terrible battery life.

iPhone Owner 2: I think it might be to do with those new location services we got?

iPhone Owner 1: Really?

Android Owner: [FACEPALM]

iPhone 4S Pre-Orders Start

Rich — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 12:45:29 +0000

Today is the day you can pre-order your new iPhone 4S. I took a look at the prices of the handset on the 3 network in the UK. They’re the network that I’m on with my Galaxy S2 so there I can do the fairest comparison.

First of all, my handset was free. I get 500 minutes, 5000 texts, and 1GB of data for £30 per month, on a 24 month contract.

Then to compare that to the iPhone 4S. I’m comparing the 32GB model, because that’s what my S2 has. You can get the 4S on the same tariff that I’m currently on, except that the monthly fee is £35, not £30. £5 per month extra for 24 months is £120. And on this particular tariff, the handset costs £139. That means that over the life of the contract you’re paying £259 more to own the iPhone 4S.

I know some of you out there have actually gone and pre-ordered the phone, so I have to ask. What feature in particular do you think is worth an extra £259 over what Android has to offer? What makes the iPhone 4S that much better than everything else. Is it Siri? If Siri came out as an Android app, and offered exactly the same functionality as the iPhone version, but cost £259, would you think it was worth it?

Maybe it’s the camera? Maybe the camera is worth £259, even though you can pick up a Panasonic Lumix TX20, the best point and shoot camera available, for £229.99.

Maybe it’s the retina display? Event though the Nexus Prime has the same 320dpi pixel density, on a much larger screen, and will almost certainly be available for free.

Apple Concedes All Law Suits

Rich — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 01:42:04 +0000

“Competitors have been trying to copy it, but none of them have come close”

- Philip W Shiller, “Let’s Talk iPhone” event 2011.

The iPhone 4S

Rich — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 00:05:53 +0000

My last post was written before the iPhone announcement. This post is my initial early reaction, or the part I like to refer to as “Before Simon explains to me why I’m wrong”.

The thing that makes me feel bad is that I know some of you have been waiting for this phone. I mean really waiting, over-running the end of your contracts, just to wait for the next iPhone, and this is what Apple have given you. They took an extra four months over this handset and came out with something that would have been slightly dated back in June, and is just a joke now.

There’s no doubt that the iPhone 4S is better than the iPhone 4. That’s what the S stands for – better. Unfortunately I just don’t think it’s better enough. Lets take a look at it. For starters there’s a 1GHz dual core A5 chip, which Apple fans will tell you is just as good as the 1.5GHz dual core chips that are now available in Android phones, and will certainly be better than the 2GHz quad core chips we’re expecting to see in Android phones at the beginning of 2012. There’s a new 8MP camera that will apparently be a great deal better than every other 8MP Android phone. The retina display remains the same, but I’m sure it will in some way be classed as better than the higher resolution and bigger screened Android phones.

There’s also the new voice control. You’ll be able to control all sorts of things on your iPhone just by talking to it. For me personally, voice control still lives in the “I’ll believe it when I see it” category of technology. The voice control in Android works brilliantly in nice quiet environments. The noisy environment of a car, which is the only place I ever want to use it, just causes too many problems for it to actually work. Right now I’m willing to bet that the iPhone will work just as well, but of course I’m happy to be proved wrong with that one. Working or not, I’m not a fan of voice control, but I’m sure there’ll be some people out there who love it and use it many times each day.

And that’s your lot for iPhone 4S specific features. There are new functions added to iOS 5, but being honest, they read like a list of new features for a two version old copy of Android. For example, iOS 5 will include Apple versions of Google Talk, Android Notifications, and extremely limited social network integration that only works with Twitter.

Remember, I love Apple products. I’m writing this post on a MacBook while watching something on the AppleTV. As I look up from the screen, there are at least three iPods in my field of vision. However I think the iPhone continues to be the Emperor’s new clothes. Only Apple can put out a phone with features and technical specs that match an eight month old Android handset, and have the world call it amazing.

On the 11th of this month, Google and Samsung are going to announce the next Android Nexus phone. Expect it to have at least an 8MP camera, 1280x720p 4.5″ screen, and 1.5GHz processor. It will also come with the next version of Android, which we don’t really know anything about yet, except that it will have all the features of iOS 5 that are already in there.

So should you buy the iPhone 4S? I really can’t think of a compelling reason to do so. Not even if you’ve got a load of iOS apps. Just take the £200 you were planning to spend on the iPhone, get yourself the Nexus phone instead, buy Android versions of all your iOS apps, and then spend the remaining £150 on a nice treat for yourself. On Tech It Or Leave It, I said that iOS and Android were just too close to each other to keep arguing over which was better. Now I’m going back on that to say that the Apple emperor is actually naked. He doesn’t really have new clothes, just his meat and two veg hanging out there for all to see.

The Next iPhone

Rich — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:51:47 +0000

I don’t know what it’s going to be called, or what it’s going to do. We’ll all find out in a few hours. I won’t though. I went and bought theatre tickets for tonight so I’m going to pretty much miss the whole thing. Still, I think we’re going to see an amazing show, and I’ll be able to catch up on the news later. That means there won’t be a live strem from Simply Syndicated while the keynote is happening. I know you don’t care really, but one person did ask, so I thought I’d say it.

My personal prediction is for a cheaper version of the iPhone 4, maybe bumped up to being a 4S, and an iPhone 5, which will be an absolute beast with the A5 processor and something around a 4″ screen. It’ll probably have an 8MP camera which will be great. They will sell lots of them and people will like them. I doubt there will be any other things going off. They may well show off that voice recognition thing we’ve heard about, listen to the latest Tech It Or Leave It if you haven’t.

You might remember, a while ago, I said I was going to get the next iPhone when it came out. I didn’t wait, and ended up getting a Galaxy S 2. Will this iPhone make me regret that choice? At the moment, I don’t think so.