There's a fine line between amazing and Apple. Normally, you see Apple leap past amazing with the same efficiency as a knife going through butter. Surprisingly though, on October 4th, at the the iPhone event, it seems Apple came short of Apple. Not to say that the iPhone 4S was anything short of amazing. Just unexpected. But then again it is Apple.
Take the launch of the iPhone 4, for instance. They introduced 2 new cameras, HD quality recording, an LED flash, a new display which was 4 times better than the previous, a new 3 axis accelerometer, a new kind of glass screen which was 30 times tougher than plastic or so they claimed.
And now, the iPhone 4S, what would you expect ? You're all probably getting anxious by now so I'll just skip ahead and give you an overview of the new features, some of which actually are quite mind-blowing. ( Spoiler alert: You probably won't be typing in your reminders anymore. ) Here they are -
1. New 8 Megapixel Camera - A mindblowing camera with a new lens system ( maximum aperture upto f/2.4 ) and new filters. Apple has also decided to upgrade the camera to include improved backside illumination sensor, excellent auto white balance, advanced color accuracy, face detection, and reduced motion blur.See some untouched photos taken from this Camera here.
2. Siri is definitely the most impressive and also my favorite feature of the iPhone 4S. Essentially it's a voice based personal assistant for you on your iPhone. But exactly what can it do ? It can do anything. CHeck your stocks, the weather, date and time, set an alarm, set a reminder, define a word, look it up on wikipedia, find you applications, send and read out your texts and emails even find you a good restaurant or movie. And more. And all you have to do is ask in casual language. Based on Apple's demonstration, it seems to understand and work with remarkable ease but only time will tell how useful it really is. Below are some pictures demonstrating its use.
3. HD 1080p Video Recording - With the right resolution, this quality of video recording is absolutely amazing and it is probably the best video camera you'll be owning. If it isn't its still quite nice for something that fits in your pocket.
4. Complete with iOS 5 ( All 200+ features of the world's most advanced mobile operating system ) including notification centre, advanced image editing, news stand, reminders, twitter integration, safari reader and reading list, iMessage, keyboard and lock screen shortcuts, and wi-fi sync ( syncs with your computer over the wireless network automatically whenever you put it on charging )
5. iCloud integration - Stop worrying about your storage space. You now have 5GB extra storage space for free without it cluttering your iPhone. It allows you to store your content "in the air" wirelessly and also sends the same content to all your devices. So no matter where you are, no matter whether you're using an iPad, iPhone, iPod or Mac, your data will be on all of them.
6. Dual Core Apple A5 Processor - Twice as fast with 7 times faster graphics, Apple's new processor is meant to give the iPhone 4S a lightning boost. As if the iPhone 4 wasn't fast enough.
7. 2X Faster Data Downloads as compared to the iPhone 4 - Data downloads are now able to reach a super fast speed of 14.4 MBPS as compared to 7.2 in the iPhone 4
8. New antenna system - iPhone 4S is the first phone to intelligently switch between two antennas to transmit and receive, so call quality is better.
9. World Phone - iPhone 4S is a world phone, so you can use it almost anywhere. Whether you’re a GSM or CDMA customer, you can roam GSM networks in 200 countries around the world.
10. Built in iOS Applications - Any iOS device is known for the excellent built in Applications and App store applications that come with the gadget. And these are the foundation of iOS Devices which make it such a pleasure to use.
What they missed out on
1. A new design. Everyone loves a new design. Its what tells it apart from the old one. And everyone likes to see Apple's gadget with the new design.
2. Larger screen area - Something which was very much expected but not included in the 4S
3. Some amazing new technology ( Apart from Siri ) - When Apple comes out with a new gadget, people expect there to be some sort of new groundbreaking technology which other phone companies would then make a cheap imitation of and sell it at a lower price. For example, this time, I expected there to be a new 3D touch. Too imaginative ? Maybe but thats what one expects from Apple.
Whatever one might say, the iPhone ( Whichever model it be ) is still far far ahead in the smartphone race. And sometimes you just have to accept the fact that the experience often beats the technical aspects.
CYM Rating - 8