The highly anticipated iPhone 5 is now out, but some of the specs of Apple's new smartphone aren't a major change from its predecessor.
The iPhone 4S marked a big beginning for the future of Apple's smartphone products, using Retina Display, introducing Siri, and an impressive eight-megapixel camera.
But what's new for the iPhone 5?
The iPhone 5 is keeping Siri, but she has improved on understanding accents and commands better than on the iPhone 4S.
Siri, according to Apple, has not learned a new language, maintaining the same as the iPhone 4S: English (U.S., UK, Canada, Australia), Spanish (U.S., Mexico, Spain), French (France, Canada, Switzerland), German (Germany, Switzerland), Italian (Italy, Switzerland), Japanese, Korean, Mandarin (Mainland China, Taiwan), Cantonese (Hong Kong).
The Retina Display continues on the iPhone 5. The iPhone 4S however featured a 960x640 pixel resolution at 326 ppi (pixels per inch), but perhaps due to the screen increase by just 0.5-inches, the iPhone 5's 4-inch screen now has a resolution of 1136x640 with 326 ppi.
As for networks, the iPhone 4S is available in 2G and 3G networks and the iPhone 5 is following the trend. The new advantage for the iPhone 5 is 4G LTE, which is a major plus for Verizon customers as it has the largest coverage for LTE in the US compared to rival mobile carriers. Despite the 4G LTE advantage for Verizon, the iPhone 5 will be available on 4G LTE as well for AT&T and Sprint.
When it comes to battery talk time for the iPhone 4S, on a 3G network it could last up to eight hours, and expect the same for the iPhone 5. The improvement is seen in the internet use as you can use it for approximately 10 hours, up from six hours on the iPhone 4S' 3G and nine hours on Wi-Fi. Audio and video playback remain the same for the two devices with 40 and 10 hours of use, respectively. Standby time improves by 25 hours from the iPhone 4S to the iPhone 5 which uses up to 225 hours.
The iPhone 5 has a stronger battery capacity (mAh) compared to previous iPhones. Its battery life is expected to have a capacity of 1140mAh, which is 10mAh higher than the iPhone 4S. The higher the mAh, then the device will be "stronger" and "healthier," according to Webopedia.
When it comes to cameras, there's good news and bad news. The bad news is the rear-facing camera will remain the same at eight-megapixels with iSight camera. Both devices will still have the ability to take panoramic pictures, record videos in HD with 1080p and up to 30 frames per second with audio, LED flash, and autofocus.
The good news is a new feature for the iPhone 5 will be the FaceTime HD camera with 1.2-megapixels and HD video with 720p and also using 30 frames per second.
The operating system (OS) for the iPhone 5 is the new iOS 6 compared to the iOS 5 or 5.1 for its predecessor. The new OS will feature new apps, notably to its maps and YouTube systems. The YouTube app has been removed as a pre-installed app, but as Latinos Post reported on Tuesday, Google has worked on a new app to make YouTube an easier feature for Apple devices.
Wireless connectivity for the iPhone 5 includes Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology and Wi-Fi. The new Apple smartphone is using the same Bluetooth wireless technology as the iPhone 4S. As with the iPhone 4S, there is no Near Field Communication (NFC) on the iPhone 5.
The headphones for the iPhone 5 are a plus. The iPhone 5 will feature the new EarPods which has reportedly been in development for the last three years with remote and mic.
When it comes to carriers, it will be the same as the iPhone 4S, only for AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon. The device will go for $199 for 16GB. $299 for 32GB, and $399 for 64GB when signing a contract with any of the three mobile carriers. AT&T, Sprint, or Verizon. T-Mobile, as with previous iPhones, will not carry the iPhone 5.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
