Report: iPhone 5S Launch Date; Apple's Reputation on the Line

[billgatez]

Apple typicaly takes what they have and adds one or two new things. Probably going to see wireless AC, NFC and the finger print scanner.

 

[Vladislaus]

A fingerprint reader on a snartphone as already been done, as do 3d cameras, wireless charging and waterproof smartphones. Temperature and humidity sensors??? I'm not a weatherman.

 

[house70]

[citation][nom]halcyon[/nom]Ericburnby, insulting House70 is not helping whatever cause you are championing. Unless you troll intentionally?[/citation]
That's OK, man, I know (and everyone knows) I'm right. Numbers reflect it, too. In his case, truth hurt badly and he lost it. He's just a kid.

 

[appleaway]

I have apple from 3 till 5. But the change to lightning adapter has many issue my docs, charger including iPad has to be replaced and the charger cost about $30. I'm getting away from apple to my recent purchase of Glaxy 4 phone and samsung tablet. Can't take apple any more

 

[Non-Euclidean]

[citation][nom]masterofevil22[/nom]This guy above me is right. People will still buy it no matter what and no offense, but they will believe until the end of time that it is superior when in fact they are simpleton phones that make people who are normally uneasy with electronics feel somewhat savvy or even smart. Change scares these people and comfort and simplicity along with "look how cool I am that I can afford an Apple product" will keep their sales rolling. There will always be these types of people. They are not going any where and neither is apple. Btw, yes, I know there are much "better" alternatives. I own one, so I'm not an Apple salesman or anything, I'm just saying.[/citation]

Agreed!
Why are those people even allowed to choose what they want? They should be forced to buy non-Apple products!

 

[nino_z]

I have never owned an apple product, yet i am a big fan of the late Steve Jobs. While he was still alive apple was still offering a few interesting features. Now that he is gone it seems like it's lost its bite.

Other than that - i stick to android. Open Source is just so much better since i can also tweak it however i like. Not to mention things like exchangable batteries for those of us who want to used their phone for more than 1 year.

 

[sundragon]

[citation][nom]Non-Euclidean[/nom]Agreed!Why are those people even allowed to choose what they want? They should be forced to buy non-Apple products![/citation]

Here here!


I mean anyone who chooses different from me and buys Apple products is obviously and idiot and doesn't deserve to use a smart phone, they should have a Nokia soap bar phone from 10 years ago!

/sarcasm

 

[sundragon]

[citation][nom]nino_z[/nom]I have never owned an apple product, yet i am a big fan of the late Steve Jobs. While he was still alive apple was still offering a few interesting features. Now that he is gone it seems like it's lost its bite.Other than that - i stick to android. Open Source is just so much better since i can also tweak it however i like. Not to mention things like exchangable batteries for those of us who want to used their phone for more than 1 year.[/citation]

Wow, at least you give reasons for your choices instead of branding anyone who disagrees with you an idiot... What the hell are you doing on Tom's?

 

[voodoobunny]

5-inch, 1920x1280 (iPhone 4S*4) for backward compatibility. Offline Siri. Doubled storage (min 32GB, max 128GB). Gesture recognition. HDR simultaneous still+video camera (which they *need* to compete with the latest Androids).

 

[downhill911]

What Reputation?

 

[voodoobunny]

oh, and waterproof would be good. So would wireless charging, a wireless dock (is high-speed near-field possible?), 4K wired output over Lightning connector to go with a 4K Apple Television.

 

[halcyon]

I really don't like the soft scratch/dent/nick-prone aluminum of the iphone 5. ...just to make it a little lighter? ...because we were all complaining the 4/4s was too heavy? That was the big fail to me. I prefer the quality of apps I've seen in the app store but I'll stick with Android for now. It may not be as simple but I like the customability.

Apple has some things to fix with the next iphone IMO.


Apple has some thi

 

[game junky]

I have tried Android and though there are features I like (active backgrounds specifically) that I wish were available without jailbreaking, I have grown very comfortable with my iPhone. For me, I upgrade generations based on the value I can get for my phone and the feature enhancements available to that new version. Here are things I will never complain about that Apple fairly consistently upgrades on their phones: camera, processor/GPU, screen res & RAM. Sometimes the difference in price isn't worth it, sometimes it is. More than anything, I have stuck with the iPhone because it is just easy to get stuff done on them without having to make a lot of tweak. I am not one of those people who needs to have the latest and greatest in order to feel good about myself, but I will invest in a new phone if it will improve my quality of life. The iPhone5, for example, was worth the upgrade from an iPhone4 for me because of it finally allowed LTE on an iPhone, had a wider display and a quicker user experience. Plus, I only paid $150 for the 64GB version because I traded in my old phone. I can't imagine Apple is going to have enough changes in this upcoming model to make me want to pay full retail for the device but who knows. I remember how much of a stepup the original iPhone was from anything on the market and I remember how much of a step-up the 3G was from the original iPhone. Maybe they still have a little magic left in their development team...maybe

 

[cypress187]

Batteries haven't had any big upgrades for a few years now. That would be great if they could get a major upgrade. My iPhone 4S dies off rather quickly because of wifi, bluetooth, phone calls, texts, emails, and all the apps continuously pinging the servers for updates.

 

[Frank Kat]

Wow so many things. The UI is so old school. Its hard to believe that it pretty much has the same feel as the original of many years gone by. Its so stagnant.Scanner on the button......get ride of that silly button and fill it with more display area. Please don't make it heavier or thicker. Get back to a sexy enclosure,the brick look is pure barfola. Simplify pairing like is is on competitive products and clean up Air Play it's really not that useful. The formatting issues really suck. Who really wants to mirror a tv show. Mirroring has little use and was done because it's simple....no innovation there. There are hundreds of things that could make this platform better and more attractive for customers. I suppose when the thinking happens in a vacuum the outcome is pretty predictable. I therefore have extremely low expectations.

 

[Bricktop]

First off, I'm not a fan of Apple. I actually hate their business practices (Foxconn working conditions, overpriced devices, contractual "ownership" of component supplies, price fixing of both music and e-books, stupid patents, aggressively starting a suing war with the competition, etc...) and thus I never bought any of their products. It's not a great excuse because I don't research all of the companies I buy products from.
On the flip side, it's difficult for me not to like Google. The company that brought free apps and free GPS to smartphones. Even free texting with Google Voice. With cellphone carriers being some of the most hated companies in the US, it's hard not to like a company that takes their overpriced services and makes them free. Then again, anyone else notice how major carriers have consistently made service plans more expensive?

Anyway, Apple will live for quite a while. They currently have a few things going for them. The company has seemless connectivity between all of their products, as well as other products. Most new vehicles and every new home stereo is compatible with an every iPod/iPhone. At least until they changed the connector. The GUI is supposedly easier to use and crashes less than Android devices. Apple's cameras are among the best used in a smartphone. HTC and Nokia may be better this time around, but they don't have a large market-share, at least in the US. The Apple SoC generally dominates the competition, especially the graphics performance. Qualcomm's SoC's probably have nothing on the next Apple SoC. As a result of all of this, the iPhones are well rounded pieces of hardware. Many of the competitors have historically cut too many corners in their development, or not had access to the supplies that Apple takes a strangle hold of.

If this next phone flops, Apple will be fine. Nearly every phone they release flops initially (scratched from the factory, dropped calls, battery issues, app issues, etc...) and lines a mile long still form outside the building. It's to the point that if I were to ever buy an iPhone, I would never buy it within a month of its launch date. I would wait to see what is wrong with it first. It's the simple things, like testing and quality control at launch that Apple seems to consistently fail at. That never stops the Apple loyalist. It is these loyalists that will ensure the company never fails.

 

[ben850]

Widgets and expandable memory that can be mounted as a USB drive. Guess I'll keep dreaming!

 

[anti-painkilla]

[citation][nom]ryanhmusic[/nom]I'll be upgrading from a 4s to this.I am a fan of apple but not a fanboy - I recognize that other companies now make better smartphones but I like the interface and I don't want to leave it yet. Maybe later I'll try android again but my last use of it was less than satisfactory because I am used to the iOS.As a T-Mobile customer using a factory unlocked device, the support for the correct wireless specs is important, having no service is getting tiring. Since T-Mobile now sells the iPhone, one would presume upcoming models would have support for the correct T-Mobile bands.Sure, it's probably not going to be revolutionary but as long as its an evolution of the current product, many people will buy it. Doesn't make them blind iSheep, it makes them comfortable. What's wrong with comfortable? Some people don't have the time it takes to jump around OSs and phones, constantly learning how to use them again and again - doesn't mean we should hate on them. I am one of those people. I'm sure if I had started on Android and tried to switch to iOS, I wouldn't have liked I started on iOS and am comfortable there - no need to switch for me and many others.[/citation]

I like your level headedness. And this is exactly why phones should sell. Personal preference of the interface not branding.

Some people prefer specs, some people prefer openness and freedom, some people prefer a stable and easy interface.

The problem is when people buy the 'shiny' one and say it is OMGSOAMAZING.

 

[016ive]

I personally hate Apple but I can't deny they make good stuff!

 

[kentlowt]

This is just plain silly. How much WOW can you do with a phone...it makes calls yup, it sends text messages yup, I can check my email yup, I can browse the web in a pinch yup, I can schedule appointments and set alarms yup. You can get an app that will do just about anything I want...The only thing we really need are the incremental improvements like better cases, buttons, faster processors, better software, better displays etc. etc.

 

[cats_Paw]

Reputation? What reputation? .
Jokes aside, i dont like Apples aproch to their customers.
For me, that is KEY. Companies like Apple and EA are very dissapointing in their strategies, and i belive that they should evolve, or they will eventually die.
How long can you sell the same phone before people feel insulted?
How long can you produce games that are frustrating and not loose your customers?
Well, i guess we will find out, since they aint changeing their minds.

 

[cats_Paw]

Reputation? What reputation? .
Jokes aside, i dont like Apples aproch to their customers.
For me, that is KEY. Companies like Apple and EA are very dissapointing in their strategies, and i belive that they should evolve, or they will eventually die.
How long can you sell the same phone before people feel insulted?
How long can you produce games that are frustrating and not loose your customers?
Well, i guess we will find out, since they aint changeing their minds.

 

[nebun]

what they really need is better battery life and make the phone more durable, also improve reception

 

[ericjohn004]

I own an iPhone 4. And I'm surely no idiot. I use Windows 7 on my 2,000$ desktop PC. So the reason I own an iPhone is not because it's "simple". And it's surely not because I look "cool".
I own an iPhone because it's high quality. It works, and I never have any problems with it. I think it's the best phone out there. Not only in terms of features, speed, and looks. But It's quality is second to none. And they normally are the fastest and have the best features, and they surely look the best.
It's also very unique. When you own an apple iPhone, you know you own something special. Not just some other generic phone that everyone else has. And it's for this reason that people buy them. Because it's "special" to have one of these products. It's set apart from everything else, and this is why Apple keeps selling these things.
I don't upgrade every iPhone they come out with. I'm still 3-4 generations behind. I'll probably get the iPhone 5S though. Personally I think they come out with phones way too often. They should come out with one every 2 years. This goes for tablets as well.
Apples products, save for there desktops and laptops, are just the best that anyone has to offer in my eyes. And that's not to say that their desktops and laptops aren't quality, as I'm sure they are top notch. It's just that I think for what most people use desktops or laptops for, like power users, require something like Windows 7 to fully utilize everything in the most efficient way. Not to mention that apple is sooo expensive for way less quality parts. We have an apple all-in-one at the house and it cost nearly 2,000$, and in no way does it come close to the performance of my desktop. So unless your just super rich and can afford an Apple with a GTX680 and a 3570k or 3770k then your not going to get a high performance Apple product.

 

[mynith]

Waterproof casing would be nice. Not revolutionary, just nice. Fingerprint scanners are a stupid idea. Biometrics make for reasonably good security but poor reliability. A sufficiently complex passphrase is going to remain the de-facto security standard for some time.