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Plus, "simply a taller screen and newer processor", really? New screen, new processor, new innards, new machining and construction, new connector, new iOS, new

by batista 14y ago

Plus, "simply a taller screen and newer processor", really? New screen, new processor, new innards, new machining and construction, new connector, new iOS, new camera, improved battery life AND lighter. NFC and wireless charging? Who promised you that? And who delivers those at the moment? You might want to see this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r1CZTLk-Gk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r1CZTLk-Gk

quaunaut 14y ago
Name for me one brand new feature. This is a product update, this isn't deserving of a new version number, and it certainly isn't "the biggest thing to happen to the iphone since iphone". This isn't to say it's a bad device, just infinite hype for zero payoff.
- evan_ 14y ago
  > Name for me one brand new feature. LTE
  - morsch 14y ago
    That's just an implementation detail of an improvement of an existing feature.
    - pooriaazimi 14y ago
      Then wireless charging and NFC could be counted as mere improvements (of existing features, i.e. cable charging and scanning barcodes) too!
      - camiller 14y ago
        Well, to be fair, NFC is capable of two way communication where scanning a barcode is one way communication. You are comparing galaxies to apples ;) As an android (GS3) user I would have liked the iPhone to get NFC (and NFC based mobile payments) for the simple reason that the more phones capable of NFC payments the more merchants are likely to support it which benefits all of us (or at least all of us interested in paying for things with our phones). The same argument would hold true for wireless charging, but it would probably be unlikely for Apple to adopt the emerging "Qi" wireless charging standard and instead roll it's own.
        evan_ 14y ago
        > Well, to be fair, NFC is capable of two way communication where scanning a barcode is one way communication. OK, then NFC is just a slightly improved Wifi+Bonjour.
        fleitz 14y ago
        You could use the front facing camera and display a barcode on the iPhone screen. Voila NFC. I know I'm going to take down votes for this, but for 90% of the population NFC is a solution in search of a problem. For most people cash, credit, or debit work just fine. NFC isn't a 10X better payment solution. Most people have to carry something on them to carry cards, drivers licenses, etc in which they will place their payment card. Instead of fiddling with your wallet, now you're fiddling with your phone. NFC is as silly as using bump for payments.
        camiller 14y ago
        Fair enough, but there are at least some point of sale systems that have NFC already, I have yet to see a system that is set up to display a barcode for the phone to read and then read a barcode on the phone (without moving the phone).
        jarek 14y ago
        > For most people cash, credit, or debit work just fine. Phones worked just fine for most people in 2006. Phones' screens were just fine in 2009... Paypass and Paywave are a considerable improvement over chip and PIN or singing a slip of paper. Faster, less fumbling. Necessary, no; an improvement, yes.
        fleitz 14y ago
        Ok... lets rehash... The iPhone was a 10X improvement over what was out there, if you upgraded your whole phone experience got better. Retina was a 4X improvement (4X as many pixels) after looking at retina the 3GS looked ugly, if you upgraded your entire phone experience got better. Now lets take a look at what happens if you get an NFC phone, you still have to take your wallet, and then you have to ask everyone whether their payment system supports NFC. 95% of the time you're going to be taking out your wallet. It's not a 10X improvement therefore adoption will be slow. And it still doesn't work when the power is out unlike cash. I'm actually starting to go away from any payment system that isn't cash, because cash is universally accepted, even the Olympics takes cash. If NFC was on par with the aforementioned features it would be in the new phone.
    - r00fus 14y ago
      That kind of thinking would have said that the WWW was just a slight improvement over gopher back in the 90's.
      - morsch 14y ago
        I'm not sure what you mean. 3.5G to LTE is a simple improvement along a one-dimensional axis - bandwidth. Maybe two metrics, if you want to account for the latency improvement. There are no such straightforward metrics for comparing Gopher and WWW. So no, that kind of thinking does not arrive at WWW being a slight improvement over Gopher. That's not to say incremental improvements to existing features, such as LTE, can't be reason enough to sell a device (note that wasn't the question, though). As others have pointed out, though, Edge to 3G felt like a more significant step than 3G to LTE, though, just as 56k to 1 Mbit DSL felt like a more significant step than 1 MBit to 16 Mbit or 16 Mbit to 50 Mbit.
- podperson 14y ago
  Most cellphone makers will come up with a new product name or number because someone sneezed at the factory, and you're complaining that Apple went from 4 to 5 in two years merely because they improved every single aspect of the phone? Gee. Tough crowd.
- batista 14y ago
  "infinite hype"? Where? They announced an event, the day came, they announced the product. A slogan like that on the product announcement/product page, does not amount to "infinite hype". If you want to see "infinite hype", check the Microsoft Courier and other hypeware, in which videos were made, the press touted it for months, it was announced to be "the future" and nothing came of it. "Zero payoff"? Really? It's an amazing device to upgrade to, after your 2-year contract ends, even if it doesn't have magic unicorn powers. It's the best iPhone YET made, period, I don't think someone can argue against that (and no, it's not a guarantee with any product update to be better than the last one). Your response amounts to the proverbial: "No wireless, less space than a Nomad. Lame". >Name for me one brand new feature "Brand new" is used here to preempt any mention of the tons of incremental improvements?
  - quaunaut 14y ago
    Every previous iPhone had a new feature that was a pretty BFD. This is the first without.
    - unfoldedorigami 14y ago
      LTE
    - roc 14y ago
      Funny, I seem to recall that the disillusioned techie reaction to the 4S was that it was also a non-update. Same shell. Modest internal updates and the only feature of note (Siri) was panned as an app that Apple bought that merely caught it up to other phones that already had voice control.
      - wmf 14y ago
        One problem with the 4S was the rumors of an iPhone 5 with a tapered design. (If you Googled for iPhone it would autocomplete "iPhone 5" — I guess bad rumors are now self-reinforcing.) At least this time the rumors were accurate and people can't complain that they were expecting more.
    - 14y ago
- think-large 14y ago
  >Name for me one brand new feature. Navigation App
  - wahsd 14y ago
    Third party apps exist and it's in no way a new feature. Next thing you know you'll call Angry Birds a new feature if they ship it with the phone.
- bratsche 14y ago
  Why does every new phone have to be a fucking revolution? It's a better phone than the last one. If you're not impressed, don't buy one.
  - rodion_89 14y ago
    > Why does every new phone have to be a fucking revolution? I completely agree. But Apple has a habit of making it seem like everything they do is revolutionary. It's very good marketing. > Apple reinvents the phone [1] > This changes everything. Again. > The biggest thing to happen to iPhone since iPhone > A magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price > Resolutionary Again, I agree with you. But what I'm getting at is that Apple's brand of marketing creates a lot of hype and I'm sure they like it that way. [1] http://web.archive.org/web/20070113215301/http://apple.com http://web.archive.org/web/20070113215301/http://apple.com
    - cheap 14y ago
      Dear Mister Obvious, Every marketing team ever has created hype. Ever.
      - freyr 14y ago
        Right. And when Apple creates hype, people for some reason buy into it. In droves. I don't understand why so many people blame Apple for this.
        rodion_89 14y ago
        > people for some reason buy into it It's not just "some" reason. They have one of the best marketing departments in the world who do an excellent job. > I don't understand why so many people blame Apple for this. I'm blaming Apple for doing a damn good job of marketing their products.
    - acomar 14y ago
      What I don't get is why the comments of "meh" are getting attacked with so much vitriol.
- m_eiman 14y ago
  Let's compare this to the changes in Samsung Galaxy S3 compared to the S2: - Slightly larger screen - Faster CPU - Improved camera - Added LTE - Faster Wifi - Added NFC - Added a couple of sensors - Better battery life - Heavier Not a whole lot different from the iPhone changelist, and I bet it's not a whole lot different from any other phone maker's changelist between generations either.
  - tjoff 14y ago
    Let's compare the time-frame. Last time the iPhone had such a changelist was in june 2010. The S2 came out 12 months prior to the S3. When you only release one phone every 24 months people are right to expect more. That, or you could compare the S2 with S3 against the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S...
    - kahawe 14y ago
      But Samsung didn't deliver any magic in the S3 - and what could Apple have delivered as a super-duper-WOW feature? I cannot think of any technologies out there that they haven't squeezed in there yet and I don't think "wireless charging" is anything to really care about, novelty and "OMG!" factor aside. Adding NFC would have also been just catching up and personally, I cannot see the benefit from NFC and it looks like Apple can't either. So what is left then? What COULD they have added to floor people? Nuclear reactor? Drones? I cannot think of anything.
- Steko 14y ago
  I'm not aware of any phone shipping this month that's a true Cortex A15 device. There are a lot of Krait phones, but that's a half step away.
- batista 14y ago
  >Every previous iPhone had a new feature that was a pretty BFD. This is the first without. Larger screen. It's a BFD for some people, for they have been tearing their hearts out at forums for ages how Android has that and the iPhone doesn't. And 3G -> 3GS didn't bring anything to the table. Or 4 to 4S for that matter, considering that Siri was already available as an app.
- kisielk 14y ago
  I think people complaining about the tag line are missing out on the obvious pun.
- branchan 14y ago
  This isn't deserving of a new version number? Tell me, how many Samsung Android devices are there?
- jsz0 14y ago
  it certainly isn't "the biggest thing to happen to the iphone since iphone" If you look at the changes between previous models it really is. Just about every single component has been upgraded. There have never been this many changes at once in an iPhone. The 3GS->4 upgrade comes close but when you get into the sort of second tier of features the 4S->5 list is quite a bit longer. If you're judging it by significance of the upgrades that may be a little different. I think the 3GS->4 still wins out there. On the raw numbers though the 4S->5 simply has more changes.
- kahawe 14y ago
  > Name for me one brand new feature I don't understand all the negative reactions - name one brand new and truly "wowing" feature the new Galaxy brought to the table? Pretty much all modern smartphones are at the technological cutting-edge and I cannot think of much they could possible squeeze into those things. You already have all sorts of sensors and pretty much all connectivity options you could possibly want and it can do frakking 3D games in the palm of your hand too and play music and videos and etc. NFC could be interesting but I am happy enough with paying with my CCs or directly playing with my ATM card in a LOT of stores here in Europe. I don't see what paying-over-NFC could do for me. And wireless charging? Sounds incredible and very "sexy" for the average user but really, very "meh" for me. You still going to have to plug something in somewhere... I could not care less. I can understand people feel a little disappointed but really, what was everyone expecting??? ALL current smartphones were just relatively small updates to existing models. Everyone is doing the "xx% slimmer/lighter/longer/bigger" increments and has been for some time now. There was no "paradigm shift" in ANY one of them. What were people hoping Apple would do... add a nuclear reactor or some drones or what?
mibbitier 14y ago
> new connector How is "new connector" a good thing? It's still not USB. Looks like iPhone is playing catchup. How times change!
- icefox 14y ago
  No more putting in the connector upside down
- batista 14y ago
  >How is "new connector" a good thing? It's still not USB. Well, it's smaller enabling the phone to be thinner, more durable design, can go in either side up, and it's faster. >Looks like iPhone is playing catchup. How times change! Catchup to what? Phones with USB chargers?
  - mibbitier 14y ago
    Name a feature the iPhone has, that say a Samsung S3 doesn't have. There are several the S3 has that aren't there on an iPhone.
    - loumf 14y ago
      There are many. The easiest answer is being able to run iOS apps -- which for many overrides almost anything else. Another is deep integration with Macs and AppleTV -- that solves real problems for me that (for example) wireless charging does not -- it's better, but not along a vector I care about (i.e. would make a decision on or pay for). Even just counting hardware, a giant battery and a much better processor enable a lot of use cases. Does the S3 have three mics, equivalent WIFI speed, as good a camera?
      - Steko 14y ago
        Cmon man, besides the fact that it's thinner, lighter, sturdier, has a higher density screen, a better screen technology, better graphics performance, better phone quality, a better camera, better media ecosystem, better apps, and will get timely & regular OS updates for several years what else have the Cupertinians done for us lately?
thematt 14y ago
New processor, new internals, new OS, new camera are all just expected upgrades at this point. Where's the innovation? That's what I'm expecting.
- veemjeem 14y ago
  What about the reversible cable connector? When was the last time you had a cable that didn't require looking at the cable before plugging it in? I know it's not really an innovation, but I don't understand why all cables can only have one way of going in -- when you plug in your usb cable, it's not obvious that it's upside down. Nobody looks at their audio cable when they plug in earphones; why can't normal computer cables be like this? It does take a little more circuitry to detect orientation, but it seems like it would be worth it for a connector that gets used a lot.
  - lovskogen 14y ago
    Since forever, audio jack cables (I'm 25).
    - checker 14y ago
      Digital cables, then?
      - ripperdoc 14y ago
        Optical SPDIF
  - igrekel 14y ago
    Yes... But the micro USB cable is interchangable between many devices. There is always one somewhere when you forgot yours. Making it something completely new and unstandard and charge 30$ for an adaptor to everything up to your car that supported the old connector does not seem to be that much of an improvement. I see a lot of trouble in adopting the new iPhone and not many gains other than its faster lighter and lasts longer.
HarshaThota 14y ago
> NFC and wireless charging? Who promised you that? And who delivers those at the moment? I believe the new Lumia 920 by Nokia has both NFC and wireless charging. Not that those alone make one better than the other but just pointing out that they do exist.
will_work4tears 14y ago
NFC: http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/#available http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/#available Wireless charging: Lumia http://mashable.com/2012/09/05/nokia-wireless-charging/ http://mashable.com/2012/09/05/nokia-wireless-charging/
- bergie 14y ago
  Didn't some of the old webOS devices have wireless charging as well?
  - camiller 14y ago
    c /some/all/ All the webOS devices had wireless charging (although with the earlier ones you had to buy a replacement back cover) But no NFC
sophacles 14y ago
NFC and wireless charging? Who promised you that? Sorry, false dilemma and totally disingenuous. Just because no one promised it doesn't mean that one couldn't hope for it or be disappointed at its absence. Similarly, having big deal features like those are reasonable expectations for comparison to the original Iphone for "bigness" which I interpret as "important new features that will change how most people use phones in a radical way". It would in fact be a really big deal if Apple included those - NFC is a fantastic idea that the Iphone could really launch into big-time use. It would in fact be a really big deal if they had wireless charging. Both those would more or less require all the other phones did it too, drastically changing the landscape for a lot of things.
- cube13 14y ago
  >Sorry, false dilemma and totally disingenuous. Just because no one promised it doesn't mean that one couldn't hope for it or be disappointed at its absence. Similarly, having big deal features like those are reasonable expectations for comparison to the original Iphone for "bigness" which I interpret as "important new features that will change how most people use phones in a radical way". And I'm disappointed that Apple isn't giving everyone a pony. They never promised it, but I'm disappointed that it's not there. I was going to call mine Bob. I fail to see how being disappointed when features that were never promised aren't delivered is valid disappointment. Apple never promised it because they aren't doing it for this device. It could be coming in the future, or it might not. If, for example, Apple had made official statements about including NFC or wireless charging(not the "rumors" that seem to be the replacement for actual journalism in tech), then disappointment would be warranted. But Apple hasn't done that at all. Would it be nice if they included it? Sure. But they didn't. This happens just about every time a new piece of tech is announced by everyone, and, quite frankly, it's getting annoying. People complaining about how Samsung isn't doing retina-style displays on their midrange tablets. Or complaining that Nokia is making Windows phones. Or that Apple hasn't included everything that everyone has ever wanted in a phone. With a cherry on top. There are valid complaints about the new phone and news today: I'm skeptical of the reported battery life, considering all the new tech in the device, and that they made it that much smaller. Or that the majority of the iOS6 features won't be available to the pre-4S iPhones. Or that iTunes is still going to be a resource hog. Or that there's a new connector.
hammock 14y ago
Samsung Galaxy S3, of course. And has for about four months now. NFC, wireless charging, quadcore processor, and a 4.8" screen all in a lighter, thinner package than the iPhone 5. EDIT I meant iPhone 4
- mrharrison 14y ago
  Its not lighter. The galaxy s3, is also bulkier. http://mashable.com/2012/09/12/iphone-5-compared/ http://mashable.com/2012/09/12/iphone-5-compared/
  - wahsd 14y ago
    Depends on your definition of bulky. Considering it has a larger screen and all the other features mentioned, your argument is invalid. The GIIS has a larger, wider screen, three times the battery, and a microSD slot weighs only .7 oz more and will be getting jelly bean soon...dude, you're rationalizing. It's sad. I know, it hurts. But you have to grow up and realize that Apple is not a God. You can leave the cult. Dear Leader is dead.
    - awj 14y ago
      > Considering it has a larger screen and all the other features mentioned, your argument is invalid. I'm not going to "leave the cult" if you're going to use the exact same kind of logic. From an objective (i.e. comparing sizes and weights) standpoint, the Galaxy is bulkier. From a "features important to wahsd / unit area" standpoint, it's much more space efficient. Neither of those points make his argument invalid.
- randomdrake 14y ago
  The S3 weighs 4.7oz and is 8.6mm thick. The iPhone 5 is 3.9oz and is 7.6mm thick. The iPhone 5 is around 18% lighter and 12% thinner than the S3. I often see people fumble with the S3, especially one-handed, so I'm not sure the size is a good thing.
  - 14y ago
mpclark 14y ago
Everybody delivers NFC in their high-end handsets now. http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/ http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/
- tomelders 14y ago
  Why are people clamouring for NFC? What are people doing with it that I don't know about! Is there some magical dimension I'm not privy to where NFC is everywhere?
  - mpclark 14y ago
    Yes, the magical dimension is short way forward along the 't' axis. There are a whole bunch of big NFC programmes being lined up in various countries, many backed by multiple mobile networks. In the US Isis is looking interesting and in the UK there is Project Oscar. France has Cityzi. NFC is set to permeate many aspects of our lives, including payments, access control, transportation ticketing. It also enables some neat new marketing possibilities. Right now the industry is solving the much talked about 'chicken and egg' situation by getting NFC handsets out there. High end phones shipping without NFC are now a rarity (which is why I'm disappointed tonight) and things are getting into position for the technology being revealed with a splash and folks finding that their existing handsets already have the right hardware that allows them to be part of the big new thing. In short, you should be looking for NFC in your next handset not because it will be useful today or tomorrow, but because you'll be wanting it during the 18-24 month lifetime of the phone.
    - Steko 14y ago
      There is no guarantee that what's being put in phones today is going to be necessary or compatible with what ends up "winning" mobile payments. Notably last month a group of major retailers (walmart/target/711/sears/best buy...) announced they are going to push what sounds like a non-chip solution.
      - mpclark 14y ago

by batista 14y ago

quaunaut 14y ago

Name for me one brand new feature. This is a product update, this isn't deserving of a new version number, and it certainly isn't "the biggest thing to happen to the iphone since iphone". This isn't to say it's a bad device, just infinite hype for zero payoff.

evan_ 14y ago
> Name for me one brand new feature. LTE
- morsch 14y ago
  That's just an implementation detail of an improvement of an existing feature.
  - pooriaazimi 14y ago
    Then wireless charging and NFC could be counted as mere improvements (of existing features, i.e. cable charging and scanning barcodes) too!
    - camiller 14y ago
      Well, to be fair, NFC is capable of two way communication where scanning a barcode is one way communication. You are comparing galaxies to apples ;) As an android (GS3) user I would have liked the iPhone to get NFC (and NFC based mobile payments) for the simple reason that the more phones capable of NFC payments the more merchants are likely to support it which benefits all of us (or at least all of us interested in paying for things with our phones). The same argument would hold true for wireless charging, but it would probably be unlikely for Apple to adopt the emerging "Qi" wireless charging standard and instead roll it's own.
      - evan_ 14y ago
        > Well, to be fair, NFC is capable of two way communication where scanning a barcode is one way communication. OK, then NFC is just a slightly improved Wifi+Bonjour.
      - fleitz 14y ago
        You could use the front facing camera and display a barcode on the iPhone screen. Voila NFC. I know I'm going to take down votes for this, but for 90% of the population NFC is a solution in search of a problem. For most people cash, credit, or debit work just fine. NFC isn't a 10X better payment solution. Most people have to carry something on them to carry cards, drivers licenses, etc in which they will place their payment card. Instead of fiddling with your wallet, now you're fiddling with your phone. NFC is as silly as using bump for payments.
        camiller 14y ago
        Fair enough, but there are at least some point of sale systems that have NFC already, I have yet to see a system that is set up to display a barcode for the phone to read and then read a barcode on the phone (without moving the phone).
        jarek 14y ago
        > For most people cash, credit, or debit work just fine. Phones worked just fine for most people in 2006. Phones' screens were just fine in 2009... Paypass and Paywave are a considerable improvement over chip and PIN or singing a slip of paper. Faster, less fumbling. Necessary, no; an improvement, yes.
        fleitz 14y ago
        Ok... lets rehash... The iPhone was a 10X improvement over what was out there, if you upgraded your whole phone experience got better. Retina was a 4X improvement (4X as many pixels) after looking at retina the 3GS looked ugly, if you upgraded your entire phone experience got better. Now lets take a look at what happens if you get an NFC phone, you still have to take your wallet, and then you have to ask everyone whether their payment system supports NFC. 95% of the time you're going to be taking out your wallet. It's not a 10X improvement therefore adoption will be slow. And it still doesn't work when the power is out unlike cash. I'm actually starting to go away from any payment system that isn't cash, because cash is universally accepted, even the Olympics takes cash. If NFC was on par with the aforementioned features it would be in the new phone.
  - r00fus 14y ago
    That kind of thinking would have said that the WWW was just a slight improvement over gopher back in the 90's.
    - morsch 14y ago
      I'm not sure what you mean. 3.5G to LTE is a simple improvement along a one-dimensional axis - bandwidth. Maybe two metrics, if you want to account for the latency improvement. There are no such straightforward metrics for comparing Gopher and WWW. So no, that kind of thinking does not arrive at WWW being a slight improvement over Gopher. That's not to say incremental improvements to existing features, such as LTE, can't be reason enough to sell a device (note that wasn't the question, though). As others have pointed out, though, Edge to 3G felt like a more significant step than 3G to LTE, though, just as 56k to 1 Mbit DSL felt like a more significant step than 1 MBit to 16 Mbit or 16 Mbit to 50 Mbit.
podperson 14y ago
Most cellphone makers will come up with a new product name or number because someone sneezed at the factory, and you're complaining that Apple went from 4 to 5 in two years merely because they improved every single aspect of the phone? Gee. Tough crowd.
batista 14y ago
"infinite hype"? Where? They announced an event, the day came, they announced the product. A slogan like that on the product announcement/product page, does not amount to "infinite hype". If you want to see "infinite hype", check the Microsoft Courier and other hypeware, in which videos were made, the press touted it for months, it was announced to be "the future" and nothing came of it. "Zero payoff"? Really? It's an amazing device to upgrade to, after your 2-year contract ends, even if it doesn't have magic unicorn powers. It's the best iPhone YET made, period, I don't think someone can argue against that (and no, it's not a guarantee with any product update to be better than the last one). Your response amounts to the proverbial: "No wireless, less space than a Nomad. Lame". >Name for me one brand new feature "Brand new" is used here to preempt any mention of the tons of incremental improvements?
- quaunaut 14y ago
  Every previous iPhone had a new feature that was a pretty BFD. This is the first without.
  - unfoldedorigami 14y ago
    LTE
  - roc 14y ago
    Funny, I seem to recall that the disillusioned techie reaction to the 4S was that it was also a non-update. Same shell. Modest internal updates and the only feature of note (Siri) was panned as an app that Apple bought that merely caught it up to other phones that already had voice control.
    - wmf 14y ago
      One problem with the 4S was the rumors of an iPhone 5 with a tapered design. (If you Googled for iPhone it would autocomplete "iPhone 5" — I guess bad rumors are now self-reinforcing.) At least this time the rumors were accurate and people can't complain that they were expecting more.
  - 14y ago
think-large 14y ago
>Name for me one brand new feature. Navigation App
- wahsd 14y ago
  Third party apps exist and it's in no way a new feature. Next thing you know you'll call Angry Birds a new feature if they ship it with the phone.
bratsche 14y ago
Why does every new phone have to be a fucking revolution? It's a better phone than the last one. If you're not impressed, don't buy one.
- rodion_89 14y ago
  > Why does every new phone have to be a fucking revolution? I completely agree. But Apple has a habit of making it seem like everything they do is revolutionary. It's very good marketing. > Apple reinvents the phone [1] > This changes everything. Again. > The biggest thing to happen to iPhone since iPhone > A magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price > Resolutionary Again, I agree with you. But what I'm getting at is that Apple's brand of marketing creates a lot of hype and I'm sure they like it that way. [1] http://web.archive.org/web/20070113215301/http://apple.com http://web.archive.org/web/20070113215301/http://apple.com
  - cheap 14y ago
    Dear Mister Obvious, Every marketing team ever has created hype. Ever.
    - freyr 14y ago
      Right. And when Apple creates hype, people for some reason buy into it. In droves. I don't understand why so many people blame Apple for this.
      - rodion_89 14y ago
        > people for some reason buy into it It's not just "some" reason. They have one of the best marketing departments in the world who do an excellent job. > I don't understand why so many people blame Apple for this. I'm blaming Apple for doing a damn good job of marketing their products.
  - acomar 14y ago
    What I don't get is why the comments of "meh" are getting attacked with so much vitriol.
m_eiman 14y ago
Let's compare this to the changes in Samsung Galaxy S3 compared to the S2: - Slightly larger screen - Faster CPU - Improved camera - Added LTE - Faster Wifi - Added NFC - Added a couple of sensors - Better battery life - Heavier Not a whole lot different from the iPhone changelist, and I bet it's not a whole lot different from any other phone maker's changelist between generations either.
- tjoff 14y ago
  Let's compare the time-frame. Last time the iPhone had such a changelist was in june 2010. The S2 came out 12 months prior to the S3. When you only release one phone every 24 months people are right to expect more. That, or you could compare the S2 with S3 against the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S...
  - kahawe 14y ago
    But Samsung didn't deliver any magic in the S3 - and what could Apple have delivered as a super-duper-WOW feature? I cannot think of any technologies out there that they haven't squeezed in there yet and I don't think "wireless charging" is anything to really care about, novelty and "OMG!" factor aside. Adding NFC would have also been just catching up and personally, I cannot see the benefit from NFC and it looks like Apple can't either. So what is left then? What COULD they have added to floor people? Nuclear reactor? Drones? I cannot think of anything.
Steko 14y ago
I'm not aware of any phone shipping this month that's a true Cortex A15 device. There are a lot of Krait phones, but that's a half step away.
batista 14y ago
>Every previous iPhone had a new feature that was a pretty BFD. This is the first without. Larger screen. It's a BFD for some people, for they have been tearing their hearts out at forums for ages how Android has that and the iPhone doesn't. And 3G -> 3GS didn't bring anything to the table. Or 4 to 4S for that matter, considering that Siri was already available as an app.
kisielk 14y ago
I think people complaining about the tag line are missing out on the obvious pun.
branchan 14y ago
This isn't deserving of a new version number? Tell me, how many Samsung Android devices are there?
jsz0 14y ago
it certainly isn't "the biggest thing to happen to the iphone since iphone" If you look at the changes between previous models it really is. Just about every single component has been upgraded. There have never been this many changes at once in an iPhone. The 3GS->4 upgrade comes close but when you get into the sort of second tier of features the 4S->5 list is quite a bit longer. If you're judging it by significance of the upgrades that may be a little different. I think the 3GS->4 still wins out there. On the raw numbers though the 4S->5 simply has more changes.
kahawe 14y ago
> Name for me one brand new feature I don't understand all the negative reactions - name one brand new and truly "wowing" feature the new Galaxy brought to the table? Pretty much all modern smartphones are at the technological cutting-edge and I cannot think of much they could possible squeeze into those things. You already have all sorts of sensors and pretty much all connectivity options you could possibly want and it can do frakking 3D games in the palm of your hand too and play music and videos and etc. NFC could be interesting but I am happy enough with paying with my CCs or directly playing with my ATM card in a LOT of stores here in Europe. I don't see what paying-over-NFC could do for me. And wireless charging? Sounds incredible and very "sexy" for the average user but really, very "meh" for me. You still going to have to plug something in somewhere... I could not care less. I can understand people feel a little disappointed but really, what was everyone expecting??? ALL current smartphones were just relatively small updates to existing models. Everyone is doing the "xx% slimmer/lighter/longer/bigger" increments and has been for some time now. There was no "paradigm shift" in ANY one of them. What were people hoping Apple would do... add a nuclear reactor or some drones or what?

mibbitier 14y ago

> new connector How is "new connector" a good thing? It's still not USB. Looks like iPhone is playing catchup. How times change!

icefox 14y ago
No more putting in the connector upside down
batista 14y ago
>How is "new connector" a good thing? It's still not USB. Well, it's smaller enabling the phone to be thinner, more durable design, can go in either side up, and it's faster. >Looks like iPhone is playing catchup. How times change! Catchup to what? Phones with USB chargers?
- mibbitier 14y ago
  Name a feature the iPhone has, that say a Samsung S3 doesn't have. There are several the S3 has that aren't there on an iPhone.
  - loumf 14y ago
    There are many. The easiest answer is being able to run iOS apps -- which for many overrides almost anything else. Another is deep integration with Macs and AppleTV -- that solves real problems for me that (for example) wireless charging does not -- it's better, but not along a vector I care about (i.e. would make a decision on or pay for). Even just counting hardware, a giant battery and a much better processor enable a lot of use cases. Does the S3 have three mics, equivalent WIFI speed, as good a camera?
    - Steko 14y ago
      Cmon man, besides the fact that it's thinner, lighter, sturdier, has a higher density screen, a better screen technology, better graphics performance, better phone quality, a better camera, better media ecosystem, better apps, and will get timely & regular OS updates for several years what else have the Cupertinians done for us lately?

thematt 14y ago

New processor, new internals, new OS, new camera are all just expected upgrades at this point. Where's the innovation? That's what I'm expecting.

veemjeem 14y ago
What about the reversible cable connector? When was the last time you had a cable that didn't require looking at the cable before plugging it in? I know it's not really an innovation, but I don't understand why all cables can only have one way of going in -- when you plug in your usb cable, it's not obvious that it's upside down. Nobody looks at their audio cable when they plug in earphones; why can't normal computer cables be like this? It does take a little more circuitry to detect orientation, but it seems like it would be worth it for a connector that gets used a lot.
- lovskogen 14y ago
  Since forever, audio jack cables (I'm 25).
  - checker 14y ago
    Digital cables, then?
    - ripperdoc 14y ago
      Optical SPDIF
- igrekel 14y ago
  Yes... But the micro USB cable is interchangable between many devices. There is always one somewhere when you forgot yours. Making it something completely new and unstandard and charge 30$ for an adaptor to everything up to your car that supported the old connector does not seem to be that much of an improvement. I see a lot of trouble in adopting the new iPhone and not many gains other than its faster lighter and lasts longer.

HarshaThota 14y ago

> NFC and wireless charging? Who promised you that? And who delivers those at the moment? I believe the new Lumia 920 by Nokia has both NFC and wireless charging. Not that those alone make one better than the other but just pointing out that they do exist.

will_work4tears 14y ago

NFC: http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/#available http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/#available Wireless charging: Lumia http://mashable.com/2012/09/05/nokia-wireless-charging/ http://mashable.com/2012/09/05/nokia-wireless-charging/

bergie 14y ago
Didn't some of the old webOS devices have wireless charging as well?
- camiller 14y ago
  c /some/all/ All the webOS devices had wireless charging (although with the earlier ones you had to buy a replacement back cover) But no NFC

sophacles 14y ago

NFC and wireless charging? Who promised you that? Sorry, false dilemma and totally disingenuous. Just because no one promised it doesn't mean that one couldn't hope for it or be disappointed at its absence. Similarly, having big deal features like those are reasonable expectations for comparison to the original Iphone for "bigness" which I interpret as "important new features that will change how most people use phones in a radical way". It would in fact be a really big deal if Apple included those - NFC is a fantastic idea that the Iphone could really launch into big-time use. It would in fact be a really big deal if they had wireless charging. Both those would more or less require all the other phones did it too, drastically changing the landscape for a lot of things.

cube13 14y ago
>Sorry, false dilemma and totally disingenuous. Just because no one promised it doesn't mean that one couldn't hope for it or be disappointed at its absence. Similarly, having big deal features like those are reasonable expectations for comparison to the original Iphone for "bigness" which I interpret as "important new features that will change how most people use phones in a radical way". And I'm disappointed that Apple isn't giving everyone a pony. They never promised it, but I'm disappointed that it's not there. I was going to call mine Bob. I fail to see how being disappointed when features that were never promised aren't delivered is valid disappointment. Apple never promised it because they aren't doing it for this device. It could be coming in the future, or it might not. If, for example, Apple had made official statements about including NFC or wireless charging(not the "rumors" that seem to be the replacement for actual journalism in tech), then disappointment would be warranted. But Apple hasn't done that at all. Would it be nice if they included it? Sure. But they didn't. This happens just about every time a new piece of tech is announced by everyone, and, quite frankly, it's getting annoying. People complaining about how Samsung isn't doing retina-style displays on their midrange tablets. Or complaining that Nokia is making Windows phones. Or that Apple hasn't included everything that everyone has ever wanted in a phone. With a cherry on top. There are valid complaints about the new phone and news today: I'm skeptical of the reported battery life, considering all the new tech in the device, and that they made it that much smaller. Or that the majority of the iOS6 features won't be available to the pre-4S iPhones. Or that iTunes is still going to be a resource hog. Or that there's a new connector.

hammock 14y ago

Samsung Galaxy S3, of course. And has for about four months now. NFC, wireless charging, quadcore processor, and a 4.8" screen all in a lighter, thinner package than the iPhone 5. EDIT I meant iPhone 4

mrharrison 14y ago
Its not lighter. The galaxy s3, is also bulkier. http://mashable.com/2012/09/12/iphone-5-compared/ http://mashable.com/2012/09/12/iphone-5-compared/
- wahsd 14y ago
  Depends on your definition of bulky. Considering it has a larger screen and all the other features mentioned, your argument is invalid. The GIIS has a larger, wider screen, three times the battery, and a microSD slot weighs only .7 oz more and will be getting jelly bean soon...dude, you're rationalizing. It's sad. I know, it hurts. But you have to grow up and realize that Apple is not a God. You can leave the cult. Dear Leader is dead.
  - awj 14y ago
    > Considering it has a larger screen and all the other features mentioned, your argument is invalid. I'm not going to "leave the cult" if you're going to use the exact same kind of logic. From an objective (i.e. comparing sizes and weights) standpoint, the Galaxy is bulkier. From a "features important to wahsd / unit area" standpoint, it's much more space efficient. Neither of those points make his argument invalid.
randomdrake 14y ago
The S3 weighs 4.7oz and is 8.6mm thick. The iPhone 5 is 3.9oz and is 7.6mm thick. The iPhone 5 is around 18% lighter and 12% thinner than the S3. I often see people fumble with the S3, especially one-handed, so I'm not sure the size is a good thing.
- 14y ago

mpclark 14y ago

Everybody delivers NFC in their high-end handsets now. http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/ http://www.nfcworld.com/nfc-phones-list/

tomelders 14y ago
Why are people clamouring for NFC? What are people doing with it that I don't know about! Is there some magical dimension I'm not privy to where NFC is everywhere?
- mpclark 14y ago
  Yes, the magical dimension is short way forward along the 't' axis. There are a whole bunch of big NFC programmes being lined up in various countries, many backed by multiple mobile networks. In the US Isis is looking interesting and in the UK there is Project Oscar. France has Cityzi. NFC is set to permeate many aspects of our lives, including payments, access control, transportation ticketing. It also enables some neat new marketing possibilities. Right now the industry is solving the much talked about 'chicken and egg' situation by getting NFC handsets out there. High end phones shipping without NFC are now a rarity (which is why I'm disappointed tonight) and things are getting into position for the technology being revealed with a splash and folks finding that their existing handsets already have the right hardware that allows them to be part of the big new thing. In short, you should be looking for NFC in your next handset not because it will be useful today or tomorrow, but because you'll be wanting it during the 18-24 month lifetime of the phone.
  - Steko 14y ago
    There is no guarantee that what's being put in phones today is going to be necessary or compatible with what ends up "winning" mobile payments. Notably last month a group of major retailers (walmart/target/711/sears/best buy...) announced they are going to push what sounds like a non-chip solution.
    - mpclark 14y ago