iPhone 4 vs 4S
I was lucky enough to be one of the first few hundred people in NYC to get an iPhone 4S. I arrived a little bit after 7am and had my phone by 930am. See my earlier photo, but incredible how many people either camped overnight or were there by 4 or 5am.
The staff was very friendly (did their whole “YAAYY! and clapping upon entrance which was fun) and then allowed us to hang out in the theatre seats while we waited for someone to activate our account. Free coffee was also passed out, which is something I’m working on being able to drink. A+ service as always.* Now, on to the phone…
Considering every ad I’ve seen so far has the following, listed in this order, these are the highest priority reasons for upgrading including: performance, camera/video, iOS5/iCloud, and Siri.
Performance
Is it faster than the iPhone 4? Yes. Is it worth the upgrade only for the performance? Meh…not really. Remember when you had an iPhone 3G running iOS 4.0 and it was god awful slow? Like 10+ seconds to launch email or the camera. The iPhone 4 doesn’t suffer such delays with iOS 5.0, in fact I’d say it runs pretty well. The performance is a bit snappier when held side by side, but I wouldn’t notice it for 90%+ of the things I do. Really slow apps, like Yahoo’s Fantasy Football, or loading FIFA 12, are considerably faster. 2x seems high, but possible. Graphics do looks pretty sweet, but the games I play don’t need it (SSG anyone?). Overall, yes it’s faster, but it’s not worth $200.
Camera
The “who has more megapixels” fight is pretty stupid. I think most people are starting to realize that it’s more about the quality of the lens and sensor that matter and this is an amazing improvement. The idea that you can launch the camera (without unlocking your phone), have the app launch, take a photo and then switch to video mode in under 2 seconds is more than just the new processor. It’s about the whole hardware being integrated. As for the quality of the photos and the video, I’ll let you decide.
iPhone 4 Picture:
iPhone 4S Picture:
iPhone 4 Video:
iPhone 4S Video:
iOS5/iCloud
I’ve written enough about this the past few months, but yes, iOS 5 is the best update Apple has ever done to iOS and iCloud will be amazing. I love both and will keep me a loyay Apple customer for years, and I don’t just mean for phones. Tablets, home entertainment, etc. As Steve said, “it just works”.
Siri
Ok, so this is the big question everyone I’ve talked to since I got the phone has asked me. How accurate is it? What’s the breadth of things it can answer? Does it work? Well, in short, it does work. Apple’s decision to limit the amount of things Siri can do, and then forward everything else to a web search, was very smart. It keeps the lexicon of possible actions small and concise. No new terminology to learn, just ask it. Very well done. The text cognition is so good that I was able to call my wife on work speaker phone and have her ask Siri a few questions. Only missed one.
Do I really think I’m going to use this a month from now? Honestly, I’m not sure. It’s just easier to text someone or write a note. I guess it comes down to whether it really is faster to use Siri. If it’s not, I’ll use it for a few weeks as a party trick and then, like voice control, I’ll stop using it.
AirPlay Mirroring
As I wrote in my original iPhone 4S post, the airplay mirroring is what I’m most excited about. I know few people have Apple TV’s but this is just flat out genius. For so long people have been trying to create the perfect remote control. Instead of having a device control another device, simply have the remote be the creator of content. The iPhone is both the remote and “box” sending content to the TV. Genius. Watch full HD movies from your iPhone on to your TV. Play games. Slideshows. Maps. You name it! So. Cool. This is one feature I’ll be using for years to come.
So, Overall…
Luckily, I’m a “mobile guy” so I can justify getting every new device under the sun. My thoughts are still roughly the same before I actually held the device. Do I think this is the best phone ever built? Absolutely. Do I think it’s a huge upgrade from 3GS? YES. But so far as upgrading from an iPhone 4 goes, unless you use your iPhone 4 for very high end performances, like video editing, graphics rendering, high end games, etc. than you probably won’t need this upgrade. The photos look great, but not that much better. I think it’s obvious that Apple knew this and added in Siri specifically to entice the current iPhone 4 users to upgrade.
I still the majority of sales are going to come from 1) those who aren’t on smart phones, 2) were original droid owners and want an iPhone for whatever reason, or 3) currently have a 3GS. That said, they’ll sell more 4S’s than any other model yet. Congrats Apple on creating the best phone ever…again.
*The night before I went to Apple store to verify the process for launch date and exchange my Apple TV which was bricked on the latest update. While waiting for my Apple TV I showed the Genius Bar employee how my home button stopped working reliabily (really had to press it). She went and replaced it on the spot as well. Now if that’s not service, I don’t know what is. #AppleCustomer4Life
