Oct 04

iPhone 4S Rumor Fact Check: How Pre-Event Speculation Held Up

Posted in: Apple, iPhone, iphone 4s, Phones, rumors, Today's Chili

To say expectations were high for Tuesday’s iPhone event at Apple HQ would be an understatement.

Apple is infamously secretive, and few words of what news Apple’s event held in store were leaked prior to the event. Or rather, few accurate words. Most of the other rumors were dispelled.

We’ve taken a look at a few of the most pervasive rumors to have made the rounds before the event, as proposed by publication. Let’s see how everyone checked out.

The Good

Some rumors, reports and predictions were right on.

Sprint would carry the iPhone
The Wall Street Journal spoke truth when they reported that the nation’s third largest carrier would begin carrying the iPhone this year.

  • No Steve Jobs
    We predicted that Steve Jobs would be a no-show (onstage at least) at today’s iPhone event. As CEO, it made sense that Tim Cook would lead the event, with other members of Apple’s team jumping in for various demos.

    The “Meh”

    Some speculation was down the middle: Not entirely false, though not entirely true, either.

    Apple’s voice control and recognition system, Siri.
    Everything about it was pretty spot-on, except for the name, which 9to5Mac, which broke the news, said would be called Assistant.

    The Gnarly

    Here are some predictions that were big stinkers: They were completely wrong. Maybe Apple laid a false trail that they picked up on, but it’s more likely that people just let their imaginations run a bit wild.

    NFC capabilities
    One of the earliest rumors was that the next iPhone would feature NFC. Bloomberg perpetuated this story in January. BGR added fuel to the fire in May, reporting from a source that an NFC-enabled iPhone was all but “imminent.”

    The next iPhone would sport a different look
    A larger, flatter, teardrop-shaped iPhone did not make an appearance today. This Is My Next started that rumor with a mockup posted on their site, and a host of mockups and case designs followed suit. An iPhone with a flat metal back (9to5Mac) also didn’t show up. Neither did one with curved glass (Digitimes).

    The name
    We now know it’s the iPhone 4S and not the iPhone 5. Being Apple’s next iPhone, pretty much every tech blog — us included — referred to Apple’s next generation iPhone as the iPhone 5.

    The iPad 3 would make a surprise debut.
    The parts may be (may be) being prepared, Digitimes, but no iPad 3 landed today.

    Two iPhones
    Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore was one of the first to start this rumor, that Apple would be releasing a dramatically changed iPhone 5 and a budget iPhone.


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    Oct 04

    How the iPhone 4S Stacks Up With the Best of the Rest

    Posted in: Android, Apple, BlackBerry, droid, galaxy s ii, iPhone, iphone 4s, Phones, RIM, Today's Chili, windows phone

    At its iPhone 4S event on Tuesday, Apple boasted of its new phone’s specs by comparing it to a number of Android competitors. But as much as newly minted CEO Tim Cook raved about the 4S, the question remains: Does the 4S truly stack up to the rest?

    For the sake of comparison, we’ve taken some of the latest and greatest handsets across today’s most prominent mobile operating systems and broke them down relative to the new iPhone. First, we have the Droid Bionic, Motorola’s latest and greatest 4G smartphone offering. There’s also the Samsung Galaxy S II, the much-anticipated sequel to the popular Galaxy line. And of course, we have to include the underdogs: Samsung’s Focus (which runs Windows Phone 7.5, a.k.a. Mango), and one of RIM’s most recent handsets, the BlackBerry Bold 9900.

    So let’s get to it.

    The Guts

    First, let’s compare these guys on what matters most: Their insides.

    The Samsung Focus packs the weakest punch sporting a 1-GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, while the Blackberry Bold has a slightly faster 1.2-GHz Snapdragon model. The iPhone 4S and the Droid Bionic both house 1-GHz dual-core chips, the 4S an Apple-designed A5 processor, the Droid Bionic an A9 processor. The Samsung Galaxy S II also features a 1.2 GHz dual-core chip.

    Honestly, single-core chips are yesterday’s news. iPhone or not, two cores are indeed better than one.

    We weren’t given the specifics of the iPhone 4S’s battery, but it’s safe to say it’s either the same as the iPhone 4’s, a 1420 mAH battery, or better. The Blackberry Bold sports the smallest in the battery department, a 1240 mAH battery, while the Samsung Galaxy S II has the largest, a 1650 mAH one (the better to juice up that super large display with). Schiller promised us up to 14 hours of talk time with the iPhone 4S; we’ll see if that holds water.

    Screen size

    Only the BlackBerry measures in smaller than the iPhone when it comes to display size. The Bold has a practically teensy 2.8-inch LCD. The iPhone 4S has a 3.5-inch retina display, just like its predecessor. The Samsung Focus has a larger 4-inch Super AMOLED display.

    The Android models embrace the “bigger is better” ethos: The Droid Bionic has a 4.3-inch qHD display, but the Galaxy S II trumps even that with a gargantuan 4.52-inch Super AMOLED screen.

    Although the larger phones are great for media consumption, a smaller phone fits more easily into pockets and doesn’t look ridiculous when you actually talk on it. Display size, therefore, is largely a matter of personal preference and depends on how you plan to use the phone.

    It should be noted that the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is the only one of the bunch to include a hardware QWERTY keyboard (and not a slide-out version), while the rest utilize onscreen touch-based keyboards.

    Camera

    The Samsung Focus and BlackBerry Bold both have 5 MP cameras on board. We thought that pictures taken with the Focus were sub-par, and somewhat on the blurry side. It does offer HD video recording capabilities, though. The Focus is an older phone, it came out in 2010, but the Bold 9900 debuted this year.

    8 megapixels seems to be the standard in 2011. The Droid Bionic has an 8-megapixel camera. The Samsung Galaxy S II does as well. Both take bright, detailed photos. So finally, the iPhone 4S joins the 8-megapixel trend, also with photo editing functions. All three of these guys have 1080p video recording capabilities, so you can capture whatever it is like you like to capture with your smartphone camera with exquisite clarity and detail.

    Network

    The Samsung Focus and Droid Bionic are single carrier guys. The Focus runs on AT&T’s HSPA+ network, while the Bionic sails on Verizon’s CDMA and LTE networks.

    The BlackBerry Bold 9900 is the first 4G BlackBerry, and it’s available on T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon’s networks.

    The Samsung Galaxy S II comes in different flavors that run on AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint’s networks. We tested the Epic 4G Touch, which is available on Sprint’s 4G Wi-Max network.

    The iPhone 4S will be available on AT&T, Verizon and Sprint.

    Conclusions

    Hardware wise, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is really the only phone that’s behind the times (though saying RIM needs to catch up is hardly news). Android and iOS are still battling neck and neck for world smartphone domination. And we should have some new Windows Phone Mango handsets later this fall, which should bump up Windows Phone’s offerings to better match that of Android and iOS (hopefully, at least).

    See Also:


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    Oct 04

    Apple’s iPhone 4S, iOS 5 and iPod roundup: details, specs and release dates

    Posted in: Apple, att, ios, ios 5, Ios5, iphone 4s, itunes, keynote, live, mobilepostcross, Today's Chili

    Phew, what a day! Apple’s done its fair share of introducing today, and now it’s on us to distill everything down into something understandable by folks who don’t have the time to pore over every single morsel of iPhone and iOS 5-related news oozing from Cupertino. You can relive our liveblog right here — for everything else, get schooled below.

    iPhone 4S

    iOS 5

    iPod / Mac / other news

    Apple’s iPhone 4S, iOS 5 and iPod roundup: details, specs and release dates originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Oct 04

    Apple’s iPhone 4S event video now online

    Posted in: app, Apple, AppleIphone, att, cdma, ios, ios 5, Ios5, iPhone, iphone 4s, keynote, live, LiveBlog, smartphone, Sprint, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw

    Looks like we weren’t the only ones shooting video at today’s ‘Let’s Talk iPhone’ event. Apparently Apple had some folks there with cameras as well. Cupertino has posted video of the event, so between that and our liveblog, you can relive the magic — or disappointment — again and again. Check out the action in the Source link below.

    Apple’s iPhone 4S event video now online originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Oct 04

    AppleCare+ debuts for $99, offers to cover accidental damage in addition to the standard fare

    Posted in: Apple, iPhone, iphone 4s, mobilepostcross, Today's Chili
    Once upon a time, the AppleCare Protection Plan was a service provided by Cupertino to extend out the life of your iPhone warranty for an extra year and enable Apple reps to help with additional customer service concerns. It still offers all of that, but now a Plus has been added to the title. The new plan was revealed as the cloak over the Apple Store lifted after today’s keynote, with the boxes shipping out the same day as the iPhone 4S. What’s so “plus” about it, you might ask? It’s plus $30, for one, getting a price bump from $70 to $100. The good news, though, is that it also now offers two instances of protection from accidental damage… for a $49 fee each time. It’s a fair deal less than shelling out full retail price for a fresh one, of course, but there doesn’t appear to be any other new features beyond what we’re already used to getting. Oh, except for “one more thing”: whereas its predecessor could be obtained and activated anytime within the first twelve months of your purchase, it appears that AppleCare+ has to be bought at the same time as the valuable treasure it’s protecting. We’re still sifting through the fine print, so we’ll holler if we come across any other changes. This raises the question: does the accidental damage handling justify the higher cost?

    [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

    AppleCare+ debuts for $99, offers to cover accidental damage in addition to the standard fare originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Oct 04

    Official iPhone micro-USB adapter quietly sneaks into UK Apple Store

    Posted in: Apple, AppleIphone, att, breaking news, cdma, ios, ios 5, Ios5, iPhone, iphone 4s, keynote, live, LiveBlog, mobilepostmini, smartphone, Sprint, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw


    It looks like Apple’s making good on its promise to standardize its charger port for EU territories. Behind all the big hitters announced by Apple today, an official micro-USB adapter has shuffled into the UK’s online store in a very typically English way. Sure, there have been third-party options for a while, but this one’s the real deal and looks set to go on sale on October 14th, alongside the newly crowned iPhone 4S. We hope and expect that this will come packaged with Apple’s latest phone in Euroland — but on the off-chance that it doesn’t, we’d question whether charging an extra £8 obeys the spirit of the regulation.


    [Thanks, Cameron]

    Official iPhone micro-USB adapter quietly sneaks into UK Apple Store originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Oct 04

    Everything You Need to Know About Apple’s New iPhone 4S

    Posted in: Apple, Features, iphone 4s, Phones, Today's Chili

    Apple finally delivered on its promise of a new iPhone during an event Tuesday at the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California.

    It’s no totally new “iPhone 5,” mind you; Apple’s revamped iPhone 4S brings an incremental hardware upgrade to the popular iPhone 4. But the 4S’ stat boost is no slouch, adding a host of beefier under-the-hood specs to an already impressive device.

    In usual Apple style, the company dropped a wealth of information on the public all at once. We’ve gathered the crucial details on the new iPhone 4S so you know what you’re in for when they hit the shelves Oct. 14.

    Apple’s Hot New Processor: The A5

    In a step up from the iPhone 4’s single-core A4, the 4S will sport the A5 processor, an Apple-designed, Samsung-made chip that boasts two cores and can be found in the iPad 2. That means better graphics processing (up to 7x faster than the previous iPhone, according to Apple VP Phil Schiller), faster iOS performance and significantly enhanced gaming. Apple’s demo of the iOS-exclusive Infinity Blade II game looked smooth as silk and almost Pixar-esque in quality, according to Wired.com’s Apple reporter, Christina Bonnington.

    A Faster World Phone

    The 4S will run on AT&T’s HSPA+ network, which means download speeds of up to 14.4 Mbps, and uploads reaching 5.8 Mbps (according to Apple, that is). While Apple says it’s “4G speed,” make no mistake — HSPA+ ain’t 4G proper. It’s not LTE, it’s not Wi-Max. We’re thinking the battery drain of a 4G antenna was too much for Apple to sacrifice, not to mention the infancy of existing 4G networks.

    Also, that speed will only come on AT&T’s HSPA+ network — not Sprint’s, not Verizon’s. Bummer for those on different carriers.

    The iPhone 4S will also come with both GSM and CDMA antennas, which means you’ll be able to use the phone anywhere around the world. A nice touch, especially for business-class jet-setters.

    Carrier Agnosticism

    The first iPhone launched exclusively on AT&T. To Apple’s chagrin, the network couldn’t handle the influx of data-hungry customers, and complaints of terrible AT&T service have been widespread ever since. In February of this year, the iPhone 4 finally came to Verizon’s vaunted network. Continuing the trend toward carrier agnosticism, Apple said Tuesday the iPhone 4S would be available on Sprint’s wireless network for the first time (as well as Verizon and AT&T).

    It’s a huge slap in the face to AT&T, which once held the keys to the iPhone kingdom. Now, Apple must compete with Android’s multicarrier reach and can’t afford to play favorites in the carrier arena.

    New Camera for Smartphone Shutterbugs

    The iPhone 4S really beefs things up on the photo front. It packs an 8-megapixel camera that comes in at 3,264 x 2,448 resolution. That’s 60 percent more pixels than the iPhone 4’s 5-megapixel camera. A backside-illuminated sensor ensures that those extra pixels don’t go to waste by gathering more light into the shot. The iPhone 4’s camera is composed of five Apple-designed lenses (there were four in the iPhone 4), providing a 30 percent sharper image. It’s got an f/2.4 aperture, which lets in more light, and a hybrid IR filter for better color accuracy and more color uniformity.

    The camera can also take 1080p HD video with real-time image stabilization. Temporal noise reduction should help in low-light scenarios.

    Siri, the Voice-Activated Digital Assistant

    The iPhone 4S will launch with a beta version of Siri, a voice-controlled, language-deciphering virtual assistant — probably the coolest feature revealed during Tuesday’s event.

    Think of Siri as Hal 9000, only nicer. Wondering what the weather is like in Paris? Ask Siri, and she’ll tell you (yes, Siri has a female voice). Looking for a good local restaurant? Apple’s partnership with Yelp will aid Siri, pulling up nearby eateries and ratings straight from Yelp’s user-generated reviews site, all using your GPS data. Exchange rates, stock market information and other data will be just a question away — Siri will even read back your SMS messages from your pocket if you ask her to.

    While Siri will launch in beta (a very Google-esque move by Apple, a company notorious for only shipping products that are fully finished), we’re excited to give this feature a test drive.

    Pricing and Launch Date

    Not so fast, eager beavers — the iPhone 4S isn’t available just yet. The phone will launch Oct. 14 on three of the big four U.S. carriers (AT&T, Verizon and Sprint). It will come in 16-, 32- and 64-GB versions at $200, $300 and $400, respectively. And yes, they’ll come in two colors: black and white. Preorders start Friday, so get your mouse-clicking fingers at the ready if you must own Apple’s latest, greatest iPhone.

    See Also:


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    Oct 04

    Apple’s ‘Let’s Talk iPhone’ post-event live broadcast!

    Posted in: Apple, AppleIphone, att, breaking news, BreakingNews, cdma, ios, ios 5, Ios5, iPhone, iphone 4s, keynote, live, mobilepostcross, smartphone, Sprint, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, video, vzw

    Well, that was fun. If you wanted to read along with the liveblog, but couldn’t hang with all of those words, or if you just need some help processing all of the Cupertino-based iPhone 4S-related excitement, stay-tuned. Tim Stevens, Darren Murph and a number of guest Fraggles (schedules pending) are live on the scene to help you wade through the deluge of news from today’s Apple event.

    Update: And we’re done! Check out video of the broadcast after the break!

    Continue reading Apple’s ‘Let’s Talk iPhone’ post-event live broadcast!

    Apple’s ‘Let’s Talk iPhone’ post-event live broadcast! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Oct 04

    iPhone 4S vs. the smartphone elite: Galaxy S II, Bionic and Titan

    Posted in: 1080p, 720p, Android, Apple, AppleIphone, att, BlackBerry, cdma, galaxy s ii, GalaxySIi, gingerbread, Google, hspa, HTC, ios, ios 5, Ios5, iPhone, iphone 4s, keynote, live, LiveBlog, lte, mango, Microsoft, mobilepostcross, motorola, nokia, qualcomm, RIM, samsung, smartphone, snapdragon, Sprint, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw, windows phone, windows phone 7, WindowsPhone, WindowsPhone7

    Now that we know how the iPhone 4S stacks up against the iPhone 4, let’s take a look at how Apple’s latest smartphone compares to its mightiest competitors on the other major platforms — Android and Windows Phone. In Google’s camp we chose the superlative Samsung Galaxy S II models (focusing on the announced US variants) along with the Motorola Droid Bionic for its qHD and LTE chops. We then picked the upcoming HTC Titan to bat for Microsoft’s team. RIM’s not included here since it’s still stuck in the junior leagues. We left out the intriguing Nokia N9 because it’s a niche player. Check out the fancy table after the break — the results are pretty clear cut!

    Continue reading iPhone 4S vs. the smartphone elite: Galaxy S II, Bionic and Titan

    iPhone 4S vs. the smartphone elite: Galaxy S II, Bionic and Titan originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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    Oct 04

    iPhone 4S: I Am Disappoint

    Posted in: Apple, iPhone, Today's Chili, top

    Straight up: I’m a little disappointed with the new iPhone 4S. I was hoping for more. My expectations were higher. I wanted something extra special, largely because I’ve been waiting for it for So. Very. Long. More »

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