For those of you who weren’t up early (or late) enough to view the various liveblogs, streams and tweets related to the Apple iPhone event this morning, or don’t have the patience to scroll down the different feeds (including ours on the Gadgets Facebook page), here’s what we know about the new iPhone 5c and 5s:
Fantastic Plastic Machine: The iPhone 5c
The iPhone 5c leaks that surfaced online were right. It’s a plastic-backed device that comes in five colors that packs value and the expected Apple quality in a lower-priced device. The 5c comes in Blue, Pink, Yellow, Green and, of course, White, packs a 4-inch Retina display and an A6 processor. The device is LTE-capable, has the new Bluetooth 4.0 standard and 802.11 a/b/g/n connectivity. It also comes with a higher capacity battery, and a camera upgraded to 8MP, plus a five-element lens. It also boasts a larger sensor (much like the approach other manufacturers have taken) and software tweaks that promise better performance overall.
On-contract pricing for the 5c is set at USD 99 for the 16GB model, of USD 199 for the 32GB variant. Early speculation that the “C” in the device’s name would stand for “cheap” have been shot down, firstly by the solid construction thanks, in part to machined, not molded holes in the case, and the slightly steep USD 549 and USD 649 off-contract price for the 16 and 32GB models respectively.
Those who want one will have a short wait ahead of them. Pre-orders start on the 13th, and the phones are expected to ship to a few first-launch countries on the 20th. The rest of the world should have theirs later this year.
The changing of the guard: iPhone 5s
The iPhone 5s, on the other hand, comes in three colors, the rumored Gold, Silver and “Space Grey.” The biggest feature on the device is the heart of it, which will be a 64-bit A7 chip and Open GL/ES 3.0 compatibility that should drastically improve performance for apps, multitasking and daily tasks, and much improved smoothness, frame rates, polygon counts and effects. Those that saw the demo of Infinity Blade 3 (which will be a launch title) remarked at the current-gen-console-level graphics and amazing effects, particularly with shading, particles and smoothness. Users should not experience any hassle with the change though, as the device is backwards-compatible with all old 32-bit apps already on the market.
The phone also has the physically larger sensor that runs at 8 MP, five-element lens, and smart camera software as on the 5c, as well as a flash that dynamically changes temperature depending on the lighting available in the frame. It now also supports 120 fps slow-mo recording and promises much improved photo and video even over the iPhone 5.
Another feature rumored to make an appearance was the fingerprint sensor, which is in fact present in the iPhone 5s. the sensor, which is integrated in the “Home” button. The button retains its old use as a physical key, but will now also work to unlock your device once it senses your fingerprint. It learns to better identify the proper print the more you use it, and is also tied in to app purchases from the phone.
The 5s reportedly has enough juice to power it for 10 hours of video, or LTE/Wi-Fi browsing and 250 hours of extra standby time, about a day longer than the iPhone 5. LTE is now also supported globally, so there should be just one iPhone 5s (and 5c) to serve all the users around the world.
Apple has left out several technologies such as NFC, the newer Wi-Fi protocols and will be available for USD199, 299 and 399 for the 16, 32, and 64GB versions respectively. They will also not be phasing out the iPhone 4s, instead opting to retire the iPhone 5 to give way to the new kids.
Lucky Number 7
Finally, iOS 7 will be rolling out starting the 18th of September, to all iPhones from the 4 newer, the iPad 2 and newer, the iPad Mini and the 5th Gen iPod Touch.
There is enough new stuff to keep us all going for at least a few months, and lines are apparently already forming outside Apple retail points.
Are you going to get one, or will you stick to your current-gen device? Let us know!
Photos via Buzzfeed and The Verge