Apple iPhone 5 - Review

Introduction

The iPhone 5. As in five million units sold over the course of a … weekend. Can't say no to that. This is the latest installment in the smartphone series that changed the mobile phone industry and we can understand people couldn't wait. Now, what is it they couldn't wait for?

The Apple iPhone 5 brings the long anticipated larger screen and more capable internals that we already know are ready to trade blows with the most powerful chipsets out there.

There's also the new slender, slimmer body that no photos really do justice to. If all of Apple's claims are true then the iPhone 5 is a real engineering masterpiece - double the performance in a more compact package without sacrificing anything in terms of battery life.

They could've done worse. A lot worse. But this is Apple telling you to prepare to be wowed. So you have every right to play hard-to-please.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM and quad-band 3G support with 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.76 Mbps HSUPA
• LTE support where carriers support it and CDMA support when sold by CDMA carriers
• 4" 16M-color LED-backlit IPS TFT capacitive touchscreen of 640 x 1136px resolution
• Scratch-resistant screen glass, fingerprint-resistant coating
• 1.2GHz dual-core custom-designed CPU, PowerVR SGX543MP3 GPU, 1GB of RAM, Apple A6 SoC
• iOS 6 and iCloud integration
• 8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and touch focus
• 1080p video recording at 30fps
• 1.2MP secondary front-facing camera
• Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot
• GPS with A-GPS connectivity; digital compass
• 16/32/64GB storage options
• Accelerometer, proximity sensor and a three-axis gyro sensor
• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated secondary microphone
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack, stereo Bluetooth v4.0
• Excellent audio output quality (though worse than 4S)
• Apple Maps with free voice-guided navigation in 56 countries
• Voice recognition, Siri virtual assistant
• Supports HD Voice (needs carrier support too)
• FaceTime video calls over Wi-Fi and cellular
• Impressively slim and light
• Great battery life

Main disadvantages

• Aluminum body looks cool but is easy to scratch
• Proprietary connector, incompatible with previous-gen accessories (needs adapter)
• The new display is not proportionally bigger, but only taller
• Unadapted apps run letterboxed due to the unusual resolution
• nano-SIM support only
• Apple Maps app not up to scratch
• No USB Mass Storage mode
• No FM radio
• No stereo speakers
• No microSD card slot
• No NFC connectivity (though that may be nitpicking)
• Stuck with iTunes for loading content
• Mono audio recording in videos

Specifications

• GENERAL :           2G Network       GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 - GSM A1428                CDMA 800 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 - CDMA A1429
• 3G Network  :     HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 - GSM A1428                CDMA2000 1xEV-DO - CDMA A1429
• 4G Network :      LTE 700 MHz Class 17 / 1700 / 2100 - GSM A1428 or LTE 850 / 1800 / 2100 - GSM A1429   LTE 700 / 850 / 1800 / 1900 / 2100 - CDMA A1429
• Announced :       2012, September
• Status :  Available. Released 2012, September
• BODY :   Dimensions        123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm
• Weight : 112 g
• DISPLAY :              Type      LED-backlit IPS TFT, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
• Size :       640 x 1136 pixels, 4.0 inches (~326 ppi pixel density)
• Multitouch :        Yes
• Protection :         Corning Gorilla Glass, oleophobic coating
• SOUND Alert types  :       Vibration, proprietary ringtones
• Loudspeaker :     Yes
• 3.5mm jack :        Yes
• MEMORY :           Card slot              No
• Internal :               16/32/64 GB storage, 1 GB RAM
• DATA :    GPRS     Yes
• EDGE  :   Yes
• Speed :  DC-HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSDPA, 21 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps, LTE, 100 Mbps; Rev. A, up to 3.1 Mbps
• WLAN :  Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi hotspot
• Bluetooth :          Yes, v4.0 with A2DP
• USB :       Yes, v2.0
• CAMERA  :            Primary                8 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, autofocus, LED flash, check quality
• Features :             Simultaneous HD video and image recording, touch focus, geo-tagging, face detection, panorama, HDR
• Video :   Yes, 1080p@30fps, LED video light, video stabilization, geo-tagging, check quality
• Secondary :          Yes, 1.2 MP, 720p@30fps
• FEATURES :          OS          iOS 6
• Chipset :               Apple A6
• CPU  :     Dual-core 1.2 GHz
• GPU :      PowerVR SGX 543MP3 (triple-core graphics)
• Sensors  :              Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
• Messaging  :        iMessage, SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email
• Browser  :             HTML (Safari)
• Radio :   No
• GPS :       Yes, with A-GPS support and GLONASS
• Java :      No
• Colors :  Black/Slate, White/Silver - nano-SIM card support only
• - Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
• - Siri natural language commands and dictation
• - iCloud cloud service
• - Twitter and Facebook integration

There are many sides to the Apple iPhone 5's story. You can, for example, look at the progress it makes and compare it to the last major Apple release, the iPhone 4. That one was truly revolutionary - or, as the saying went back then, resolutionary. It had the most impressive screen on the market, a camera that few could beat, an incredibly attractive design, and processing power that equaled the most impressive droids at the time.

In comparison, the iPhone 5 brings a modest screen update, which is nowhere near as impressive as a four-fold increase in resolution brought by the iPhone 4. The performance of the camera is basically identical to the one on the 4S, and while the phone looks nothing short of stunning, the finish threatens to deteriorate quite quickly if not looked after. Not to mention that it just lacks the wow factor of the iPhone 4.

All we're left with is a surprisingly solid chipset - and we mean a surprise that most quad-cores will hardly call pleasant. But at the end of the day, Apple has failed to live up to its own upgrade standard set with the iPhone 4. What we mean is the iPhone 4S could get away with many things but not the iPhone 5 - not a second year in a row.

Yes, another side to the story is the upgrader's dilemma. So you have an iPhone already and you love it, but you are looking for ways to take that iOS experience a step further. Is the iPhone 5 the device you were hoping to get?

If you own the iPhone 4, then probably yes. At this point your home-button is probably starting to give up on you (those are known not to age well), you are looking to get some extra speed and a little extra screen estate, without writing off the investments you made in apps and the iPhone 5 delivers that easily. True, the screen could have grown a little more and the anodized aluminum case could have been more durable, but the latest iPhone is still a worthy upgrade. And a real no-brainer if you own one of the older generations of the Apple smartphones.

 

Apple iPhone 4

Things are far less straightforward if you have the iPhone 4S, though. Sure, the iPhone 5 is faster and slimmer, but is that enough to warrant the pricey upgrade? Given that the 3.5" screen is so easy to manage with one hand, you probably won't really feel much difference from the slimmer waistline. The camera is the same and the pixel density has no room for improvement, so all you'll be getting is more speed (to what's by no means a slow device) and some extra height to the screen.

 

Apple iPhone 4S

Turn another page and you see the iPhone 5 right in the middle of a heated smartphone battle. The Android open-source army is as strong as ever, while Windows Phone 8 has finally emerged as a real alternative for those, who don't mind a closed ecosystem such as Apple's.

The new Apple has a couple of strong arguments in its favor. Firstly, the A6 chipset is one of the snappiest around and is ready to face anything you throw at it. It may not win every fight, but it will never suffer humiliating defeats either. Secondly, the iPhone 5 is arguably the best looking of all the smartphones around. That weapon would have been even more potent, had it not been for the aluminum finish quality issues.

However, the iPhone 5 was let down by what has been the lineup's greatest strength thus far. We are talking the iOS 6 operating system, which seems to be falling behind the curve. After the fiasco with the new Apple Maps some are even saying that iOS 6 is a step backwards from iOS 5. Now, we wouldn't go that far as the new OS release teaches the iPhone family plenty of new tricks, but we can't overlook the fact either that while Android finally caught up in terms of fluidity and smoothness, iOS is yet to match the functionality of its competitors.

That's why the Galaxy S III and the HTC One X will sleep well, knowing very few (if any) of their owners will be tempted to jump ship. The LG Optimus G will also be glad to know that it's entering a game with a very open end, rather than being brought to the slaughter.

     

Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III • HTC One X • LG Optimus G E973

The Nokia Lumias and the HTC Windows Phones will also probably find reasons to cheer in the fact that they are finally ready to trade blows with the iPhone, instead of taking the punching bag role of their predecessors. Even though the Microsoft platform still has a long way to go to match the two industry heavyweights, it now has more trumps in its hand than just the bargain price.

   

Nokia Lumia 920 • HTC Windows Phone 8X

The great news for Apple is that the closed ecosystem is yet again working in their favor. We wouldn't want to underplay the loyalty of Apple fans but a commitment like that is hard to back out of for purely financial reasons too. iPhone users can be anything from pleased, faithful and devoted, to addicted, but a tiny bit of that involves protecting their investment in apps, services and interconnected Apple devices.

Furthermore, if you are only now looking to join the Apple family, you don't need to look any further than the latest. The price difference is negligible between an iPhone 5 and a brand new 4S.

In conclusion, the Apple iPhone 5 is a very solid effort, a purchase which few are likely to regret. However, it fails to be one of the revolutionary products its maker is known for.

We are not sure if it's due to complacency or the innovation well has simply dried up, but Apple has let competition catch up and even take the lead second year in a row. Had the iPhone 5 come out last year, when everyone was expecting it, it would have been a trend-setter, but now it seems to be relegated to a follower and the worst part is the pricing department didn't even get the memo. Off contract, it's probably the most expensive smartphone in Europe.

Then again, the momentum gained will certainly help mask some of the iPhone 5 weaknesses and the unprecedentedly loyal user base will make the smartphone a success, in the profit game. And that's the only game big companies play, anyway. So, those maps will eventually get fixed and Apple will pat themselves on the back for a job well done. A nine-to-five job though, not the inspired and visionary piece of work we all know this company can deliver.

Then again, the momentum gained will certainly help mask some of the iPhone 5 weaknesses and the unprecedentedly loyal user base will make the smartphone a success, in the profit game. And that's the only game big companies play, anyway. So, those maps will eventually get fixed and Apple will pat themselves on the back for a job well done. A nine-to-five job though, not the inspired and visionary piece of work we all know this company can deliver.