Tag Archives: iPhone 5

Apple sells over 5 million iPhone 5s during launch weekend

To say Apple’s latest iPhone is popular is a huge understatement. In a press release outed on Monday, Apple reported that over five million iPhone 5s were sold in three days over the course of the device’s launch weekend (Friday, September 21 to Sunday the 23rd). Two million of them were preordered in the first 24 hours. In addition, Apple shares that over 100 million devices have been updated to iOS 6 since its September 19 debut.

“Demand for iPhone 5 has been incredible and we are working hard to get an iPhone 5 into the hands of every customer who wants one as quickly as possible,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook. “While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date. We appreciate everyone’s patience and are working hard to build enough iPhone 5s for everyone.”

To restate what Cook said in his obligatory quote, the press release admits: “Demand for iPhone 5 exceeded the initial supply and while the majority of pre-orders have been shipped to customers, many are scheduled to be shipped in October.”

Today the iPhone 5 is available in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore,and the UK. On September 28 it goes on sale in 22 more countries and by the end of the year it will be sold in over 100 countries. This is only the beginning for the smartphone to beat. Jump after the break for the full PR.

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Apple unveils iPhone 5, previews revamped iTunes & showcases new iPod family

On Wednesday Apple unveiled the next-generation iPhone and it’s called the iPhone 5. They also used their stage time to discuss iTunes+iPod, showing off a redesigned iTunes Store for iOS, a simplified version of iTunes for desktop, and showcasing the next-generation iPod nano and touch. We begin with the top story…

iPhone 5

The iPhone 5 is a beautiful piece of hardware made entirely of glass and aluminum. It’s the thinnest and lightest iPhone to date, measuring at 7.6mm thin (that’s 18% thinner than the iPhone 4S) and weighing 112 grams (20% lighter than the 4S). Apple’s calling it “the world’s thinnest smartphone.” The screen has grown for the first time to 4-inches, boasting a Retina display with 326 pixels per inch and a resolution of 1136×640. The additional screen real estate allows for a fifth row of apps in the home screen, and all of Apple’s apps take advantage of it. Third party apps will see the letterbox effect, but developers can easily tweak their apps to also fill up the screen properly. The iPhone 5 also features 44% more color saturation than it’s predecessor and integrated touch sensors in the screen make it 30% thinner than before outputting a sharper image and less glare in sunlight.

The bigger screen is just the tip of the iceberg. The new iPhone packs ultrafast wireless with built-in GPRS, EDGE, EV-DO, HSPA, HSPA+, DC-HSDPA, and, yes, LTE. In the U.S., LTE will be provided by Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint. A single chip does voice and data; also inside is a single radio chip and a dynamic antenna. 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi is there as well.

The newly designed-by-Apple A6 chip features a CPU that’s 2x faster than before, with 2x faster graphics as well. The chip itself is 22% smaller than the previous A5 processor. Apple managed to make battery life better, too. It goes like this: 8 hours of 3G talk time, 3G browsing, and LTE browsing; 10 hours of Wi-Fi browsing and video playback; 40 hours of music playback; and 225 hours of standby time.

Both the back-facing iSight camera and the front-facing FaceTime camera have been upgraded. The iSight cam features an 8 megapixel sensor (3264×2448) with backside illumination, hybrid IR filter, five-element lens, and fast f/2.4 aperture. The 25% smaller design also boasts a dynamic low light mode, spatial noise reduction, a smart filter for improved color matching, better low-light performance, and faster photo capture (40% faster than the 4S). 1080p HD video recording is still here with improved video stabilization, face detection, and the ability to take photos while recording video. The back-facing camera can also take panoramic shots now thanks to a simple enhancement in the Camera app in iOS 6. Moving to the front side, the FaceTime camera takes 1.2 megapixel photos, shoots 720p HD video, and features backside illumination, face detection, and FaceTime over cellular (with Verizon and Sprint only).

Audio is better with three built-in microphones located in the front, back, and bottom of the phone. The improved speaker design is 20% smaller than before and features a five magnet transducer, a noise-canceling earpiece, and wideband audio for better phone call performance.

Say goodbye to the nearly decade old 30-pin dock connector. Apple announced the new Lightning connector that is found in the iPhone 5. It’s 80% smaller than its predecessor, it’s all-digital with an 8-signal design and adaptive interface with improved durability and get this–it’s reversible, meaning you can plug it into the bottom of your device face up or down. Apple will sell a 30-pin to Lightning adapter for those who own accessories like sound docks that were strictly designed with the 30-pin connector in mind.

Apple spent time detailing the next version of their mobile OS, and you can read all about iOS 6 right here. It brings Apple-designed Maps, the new app Passbook, and enhancements to Notification Center, Safari, Mail, Photos, and Siri (among over 250 new features) to the iPhone and its brethren. It’s available as a free upgrade to iPhone 4S, 4, 3GS, 3rd-gen iPad, iPad 2, and 4th-gen iPod touch owners on September 19.

Now it’s time to talk pricing and availability. The iPhone 5 features a two-tone exterior and will come in two hues: black/slate and white/silver. It’s priced exactly like the 4S was: $199 (16GB), $299 (32GB), $399 (64GB). It’s available for preorder starting Friday, September 14 and ships one week later on September 21 in the U.S., Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. A week after that it releases in 20 more countries, and by December it will ship in 100 countries with 240 carriers around the world. In other news, the iPhone 4 (8GB) is free and the iPhone 4S (16GB) is dropping to $99 effective immediately.


Continue reading Apple unveils iPhone 5, previews revamped iTunes & showcases new iPod family

Apple to unveil the iPhone 5 September 12

Here we go people. The moment you’ve all been waiting for is almost here. Today Apple sent out invitations inviting press to attend a special event where the company will announce the next iPhone. The invite, posted above, teases “It’s almost here” and features a giant number 12 (referring to the date September 12) and its shadow is the number 5 (likely referring to the name of their next smartphone, the iPhone 5). After Apple reset the naming scheme with the third-generation iPad and simply called it “the new iPad,” most were led to believe that the next iPhone would shed a number and be known as “the new iPhone” to be in line with its bigger sibling. The 5 featured in the invite, however, has people speculating again. Will it be the iPhone 5, or perhaps the number here refers to the amount of new devices the company will unveil? In addition to a new iPhone, also in the rumor pipeline is an iPad mini and Apple typically announces updated iPods in September. Things to think about.

Other things to think about: how will the next-gen iPhone be different from the 4S? iOS 6 will ship out the gate, obviously, and rumor has it that it will sport a larger 4-inch screen and it is very likely that it will take advantage of 4G LTE speeds. Add to the speculation in the comment section below.

For now, mark your calendars; the date is September 12 and the time is 10AM PST. It all goes down at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and you can be sure that all the details will be posted here as soon as Tim Cook and company wrap up the festivities. At last, iPhone 5 here we come.