Although the iPhone 4S may have arrived on the scene a little later than anticipated and it certainly wasn’t the iPhone 5 like many industry experts predicted, it was definitely worth the wait. The iPhone 4S, released on Tuesday, October 4th, 2011, may look a lot like the iPhone 4 that came before it, but on the inside it has enough new features and software options to set it completely apart.
The iPhone 4S will be available in the usual sizes of 16 gigabytes, 32 gigabytes, and 64 gigabytes. These models will cost $199, $299, and $399 respectively, as long as a service contract of two years is bought together with the machine. It will be available in the usual colors of black and white.
[via Flickr]
If you would like to save money and use an iPhone SIM only contract, an unlocked version of the phone will be available at a slightly higher price. SIM only deals associate your phone contract with your SIM card and not with the phone itself. This allows you to keep the same chip and upgrade your phone whenever you like. With an iPhone SIM only contract you can take advantages of lower rates by buying a SIM card from the company of your choice and using it in any phone. Unlocked iPhone 4S models will cost $649, $749, and $849 for the 16, 32, and 64 gigabyte models & will be available in November in US.
Although there has been no official explanation of the reasoning behind Apple’s choice to release this model as the iPhone 4S instead of the iPhone 5, there is plenty of speculation floating around. Apple has a history of releasing primary upgrades under the same model name and number with a simple “S” tacked onto the end. In 2009, for example, the new iPhone model was named the iPhone 3GS instead of the iPhone 4. There were few exterior changes made to the 3GS; the vast majority of the upgrades were to the inner workings of the machine. The same is the case with this upgrade. Few exterior changes and lots of interior upgrades evidently merited only an “S” instead of a whole new number.
[via Flickr]
The few exterior changes made to this new iPhone model include a slight shift in location of the side buttons and a brand new side slot for a SIM card. The iPhone 4S is compatible with both CDMA and GSM networks, and the new SIM slot is made to hold a GSM SIM card.
On the inside, the iPhone 4S features both a faster processor and a new antenna system. The dual-core processor means that the iPhone 4S will load faster and have better graphics than any other iPhone to date. Apple spokespersons claim the 4S will be twice fast as its predecessor and load graphics seven times better. The new antenna system features two interchangeable antennas for faster Internet access and better call quality. This system was built in response to complaints about the call quality of previous iPhone versions and the phenomena of signal being lost to the phone when it was picked up or touched.
iPhone 4S will sport the recently released iOS 5. iOS 5 boasts 200+ new features for the iPhone, iPod Touch & the iPad. It includes all new Notifications center, iMessage, iCloud support, Reminders, Newsstand, etc.
This new iPhone model supports the latest and fastest forms of cellular data transfer. When used with the latest cellular data transfer technology, the 4S can get upload speeds of up to nearly six megabytes per second and download speeds of over 14 megabytes per second – twice the maximum download speed of the iPhone 4.
The battery in the 4S has also been improved. It will provide a total of eight hours of talk time on 3G networks – an hour more talk time than the iPhone 4. Although these claims haven’t been extensively tested, the iPhone 4S is purported to be able to get up to six hours of 3G Internet use, nine hours of Wi-Fi Internet use, 40 hours of music playback, and ten hours of video playback.
The rear-facing camera featured on the iPhone 4S is now up to eight megapixels – three megapixels more than the camera on the iPhone 4. The aperture is also slightly wider, and the custom-designed lens has been improved in order to ensure colors that are more vivid and clearer night photography. Thanks to the faster chip, focusing the shot, finding the right exposure level, and taking the picture is faster than ever. The picture-taking software comes with automatic face detection that is able to identify as many as ten faces in a single photo. The video resolution is up to 1080p, which means higher quality but also larger video files.
The iPhone 4S also comes with an advanced voice-command feature known as Siri. Siri is able to respond to voice commands in a number of different languages. Most iPhone 4 accessories will still work with the new iPhone 4S, thanks to their similar sizes and shapes.
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This can be great for the new Mango OS and Windows Telephone 7.
five. If the Nokia handsets to be announced at Nokia World on
10/26 have a killer design as reported, the Mango harvest could take a massive bite of apple next year.