Mobile Technology

Apple announces iPhone 5 – its thinnest, lightest and most powerful phone to date

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Apple has announced the release of its new iPhone 5
The iPhone 5 features a 7.6 mm anodized aluminum body that is 18 percent thinner and 20 percent lighter than iPhone 4S
The iPhone 5 offers 44 percent better color saturation and full sRGB rendering
iPhone 5 comes in either white & silver or black & slate, and will be available in the US for a suggested retail price of US $199 for the 16GB model, $299 for the 32GB model, and $399 for the 64GB version
Apple has announced the release of its new iPhone 5
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Apple today unveiled the iPhone 5. Whether by accident or design, many of the features of the iPhone 5 were already known – or at least heavily suspected – well before the official unveiling of the device by Apple today. The 4-inch screen in 16:9 aspect ratio? Yep. A smaller dock connector? No surprises there. LTE compatibility? Absolutely. A faster chip packed inside a slimmer casing? Yes and yes. Thankfully, for those of us needing to find something to write, there were a few features that Apple managed to keep under its hat until the official unveiling.

The 4-inch Retina display will likely be the first thing one notices when looking at the new iPhone. It packs 1136 x 640 pixels up from the 960 x 640 pixels of its predecessor, but at the same pixel density of 326 ppi. Pick the device up and reduction in thickness and weight will become apparent. At 7.6 mm thick, Apple is calling the iPhone 5 the thinnest smartphone in the world – a title it probably won’t hold for long. Its anodized aluminum body is 18 percent thinner than the iPhone 4s and 20 percent lighter.

Along the underside of the body you’ll find a new “Lightning connector” that Apple says is not only smaller, but more durable and smarter. It is reversible and will adapt to different devices to deliver only the signals relevant to that device. For those with a stack of 30-pin accessories, there is a Lightning-to-30-pin adapter.

Other features include:

  • An A6 chip that gives up to twice the CPU and graphics performance of the 4S
  • LTE/DC-HSDPA based wireless
  • An updated 8-megapixel camera with a sapphire crystal lens cover
  • Panorama feature for capturing panorama images of up to 28 MP with a sweep of the device
  • A new FaceTime HD camera for capturing 1.2 MP stills and 720p video at up to 30 fps
  • A new Maps app to compete with Google Maps that features turn-by-turn navigation and a new Flyover view
  • New noise canceling tech for reducing background noise alongside a new beam-forming, directional microphone
  • Addressing one of the biggest criticisms of Apple’s mobile devices there are newly designed EarPods
  • Siri has been upgraded to include support for more languages and provide access to things such as sports scores, restaurant recommendations and movie listings
  • One notable omission is the heavily rumored near field communication (NFC) technology.

    The iPhone 5 runs on iOS 6, which will be made available to all Apple users as a free upgrade as of September 19. It will be available in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the U.K. on Friday, September 21, rolling out in 22 other countries on the 28th. Customers can pre-order beginning Friday, September 14.

    The iPhone 5 comes in either white-and-silver or black-and-slate, and will be available in the U.S. on a two-year contract from US$199 for the 16 GB model, $299 for the 32 GB model, and $399 for the 64 GB version. The iPhone 4S will also now be available for $99, while the iPhone 4 will be available for free on a two-year contract.

    Source: Apple

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    18 comments
    MasterG
    Memory card support? So its the iphone 4 but faster? Let me know when they come up with something new
    GraLoc25
    Here we go again! Want an Ip 5 in Australia - have we got an apple deal for U! 16 = Au$799, 32 = Au$899, 64 = Au$999!!!! Tell Apple to get real, or get stuffed!
    JPAR
    Huge anti-climax
    So marginally bigger screen and a slightly slimmer / lighter /faster device.
    The rest is nonsense - I mean it must be desperate if they're highlighting new headphones as a major advance.... (most people probably don't bother using the 'free' ones)
    Time to stop the annual update nonsense and wait until they have something new to offer.
    Inappropriate Response
    I think the hardware looks great, it's iOS6 I have the problem with. It seriously needs a refresh, what are they playing at /?
    Kostadin Iliev
    "Apple announces iPhone 4.1 ..." : )
    Rocky Stefano
    Seriously how much "innovation" can you expect over something that's been developed for six+ years? In any case I'll take the Lumia 920 over that turd any day
    Michael Harvey
    Apple claims this to be the worlds slimmest smart phone, i think this claim is false as the Oppo Finder is 125*66*6.65mm by my maths this is slimmer than the 7.6mm thickness of iphone 5.
    The oppo is available now and has been on the market for awhile.
    Apple often claim to be a leader however are often the follower, and just market as the leader... mmm
    I must say I laughed at "Apple announces 4.1...."
    Mike Hallett
    What cost technology, eh? Isn't this what all the fuss is about in China? http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=511136
    Jason Pope
    Yup.. Apple is a day late and a dollar short again.. still SD screen.. still smaller screen than all other top tier phones. still stuck with the memory they give you.. still cannot change the battery..
    and still the same stale OS.
    and no NFC.. removing Google maps.. what exactly is new and exciting here?
    habakak
    Wow...what did you people expect? Smartphones and the iPhone specifically are MATURE products. I guess you are the kind of people who've been waiting on flying cars since 1930? Smartphones will only improve incrementally from here. And here are where 90% of the changes will lie. Faster processor and connectivity, more memory, lighter weight, higher resolution camera and longer battery life. What will change more dramatically is the places you'll have broadband access at (for instance what about subways, on the ocean, etc?), the amount of hardware that will interface with the phone and it will become your wallet and source of identification. That's about it. Enough change right there to be excited about.