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Dear Apple, please bring the iPhone 4s into the future
There's something awful about being in love with an outdated piece of technology, but I will hold onto my iPhone 4s until the day it dies. You may find yourself asking why, but the answer is simple. The iPhone 4s is the best designed phone Apple has ever released. Even as new generations of iOS and iPhones have been released the 4s keeps chugging along, showing its age with each new update but still powering on through waves of abuse from users and Apple alike. Now there are rumors Apple is going to release a 4" iPhone 6, and if they prove true I have one simple request for Apple. Just put new guts into the body of the iPhone 4s. For the love of god, don't try to make it any thinner. Sure, I would love to have something thinner, but the major problem with iPhones since the 4s is that they're fragile as hell. I've had my iPhone 4s for three years. During those years I've dropped it countless times on a cornucopia of hard surfaces without ever cracking the front screen. It almost reads like an infomercial: drop it on concrete, hardwood, tile, marble, dirt -- it survives them all. Yes, I finally earned myself a crack this year, but it took years of effort and constant use. Meanwhile my wife is now on her third 5c, with the screens on her first two each shattering the first time they fell on the ground. I've seen similar problems with the 5, 5s, 6, and 6 Plus. The guts are from the future, but the screen can't survive the war of actual daily use. You can make all the promises you want about futuristic glass, but if you keep making that glass insanely thin it will keep breaking. Yes, you can use a case but that doesn't protect your phone from everything. Even bulletproof vests have weak points. Even the 4s can be broken if you try hard enough. Apparently, I haven't tried hard enough. As an experiment, I've intentionally never used a case with my 4s. They've always been easy to replace, so I wanted to see what it would take to kill it. Right now I still don't entirely know how to kill this beast through everyday use. Your iPhone 6 may have a super computer brain, but my 4s has a bomb shelter body. Whether you call it the iPhone 6s mini or the iPhone Classic, please Apple, for the love of all that is good and decent in the world, keep your eyes on the under-appreciated design that still leads your other phones in sales in developing markets. Let the people who want massive thin phones have them, but also make room at your table for those of us who want a small, but hard to kill, beast in our pockets. Give the 4s body another shot at glory, and you'll find me lining up a month in advance. Please Apple, honor your best design. Improve its insides and bring a classic into the future.
How much does iOS 8.1.1 improve your iPhone 4s?
This may surprise some of our readers, but the iPhone 4s is still wildly popular. Sales of the device accounted for 25% of iPhones sold in the first three months of 2014, and that's just new phones. There are still a sea of users out there with holding onto their iPhone 4s thanks to its size, usability, durability, and price. Naturally whenever Apple releases a new iOS we iPhone 4s users shake in fear. Could this be the update that kills our phone? Sadly for many users iOS 8 was the move that finally affected the basic usability of their 4s, this writer included. Apps crashed, third party keyboards were sluggish, battery life too a serious hit, and everything was generally slower. We know we're using old hardware, but since Apple was still until very recently actively pushing the iPhone 4s as an entry point -- one that's incredibly popular overseas in expanding markets -- the hit from this latest update was a harsh one. Apple seems to have noticed the complaints of their 4s users if their latest iOS 8 update is any indication. iOS 8.1.1 is targeted specifically at iPhone 4s and iPad 2 users whose devices have been slowed down by the new OS. If you're a iPhone 4s user who has burned in the past by updates it can be hard to trust again, we understand. This reviewer is one of you. However, in the interest of journalism I have updated my Verizon iPhone 4s to iOS 8.1.1 to test it so you don't have to. My final conclusion: It's worth the jump if you've already upgraded to iOS 8. In the 32 hours since updating I have not experienced any app crashes, with Safari being noticeably faster when browsing over Wi-fi and 3G alike. When I upgraded my device suddenly had 300MB of space suddenly open up. iMore is reporting some iPad users have discovered up to 500MB of newly freed space on their devices after upgrading, confirmed by our own Victor Agreda. If you experience this freed up data please let us know in the comments. Battery life is slightly improved, but may only net you around an extra 30 minutes over the day. This is improved by fully closing apps when you're done with them. Double tapping the Home key to scroll between apps no longer sometimes registers double taps as a single tap and vise-versa. For the first time since updating to iOS 8 it's easy to scroll between open apps again. If you've already updated your 4s to iOS 8 you need to download this update. The improvements are subtle, but if you've been pulling out your hair they're important. That being said, if you have not updated to iOS 8 stay away. Keep iOS 7 and accept it is probably as good as it is going to get for our beloved iPhone 4s'. We are currently using technology that is living on borrowed time and this latest update from Apple is a welcome gift to those of us who keep a phone until it dies, not just when a new one comes out. Even with these improvements iOS 8 is a noticeably slower experience than iOS 7. Third party keyboards are nice, and the changes to the control panel and menus are welcomed, but the trade off on battery life and general speed aren't worth it. Then again this update could be more than just throwing loyalists a bone. It's entirely possible that Apple has noticed that iPhone 4s users still love their devices, and we are legion. If you're on the fence about updating and you already have iOS 8, rest easy. An improvement is here just for you. Those of you with iOS 7 still living peacefully on your device, congratulations, but with a caveat. Should this update signal a new willingness on Apple's part to take the literal millions of iPhone 4s users seriously as a user base we may be getting more updates with us in mind in the future. Continue to live cautiously, but hold out hope that this is the first sign that Apple hasn't given up on us completely and keep looking at the details of each new update. My battered iPhone 4s and I are holding out hope. Sure, our devices have been discontinued by the manufacturer, but that doesn't mean we've stopped using them. Until then for iOS 8 using iPhone 4s owners iOS 8.1.1 is as good as it gets.
PSA: iOS 8 is going to make your iPhone 4s a good bit slower
When iOS 7 launched, those with an iPhone 4s took issue with the slower application launches and hampered battery life, and at least one of those issues is going to get even worse with an upgrade to iOS 8. Ars Technica put the stopwatch to an iPhone 4s running the gold master of iOS 8 (the version you'll be able to download today), and the numbers aren't pretty. Almost everything tested is significantly slower with the new update, but the Calendar, Mail, and Safari apps are hit the hardest. The iPhone 4s also won't be getting the benefits of the Metal API -- the new graphics framework designed to enhance iOS game performance -- which is going to be a bummer for anyone who uses their phone for gaming. This kind of thing isn't new, and with every new release of iOS 8 the oldest supported device regularly experiences some performance issues. The iPhone 4s is three years old at this point, and while iOS 8 is still a good upgrade for the aging phone (it adds both third party keyboard support and widgets, after all), the price you pay for sticking with old hardware will always be dwindling performance. [Chart via Ars Technica]
Doing the math: Apple device pixels on parade
The new "Baby Dolphin*" iPhone 6 Plus will ship with a 1920 x 1080 Retina HD pixel display on a 5.5" screen. Compared and contrasted to a 7" iPad mini with Retina display, with its 2048 x 1536 Retina pixels, the Baby Dolphin compares favorably. It offers approximately 66% of the screen space but in a form factor that enables you to send and receive phone calls as well as read books more comfortably. As a point of comparison, my 960 x 640 pixel iPhone 4S with Retina display offers just under 20% of screen space plus is noticeably thicker than the new unit. Here's a quick rundown of some basic specs, using the 7" Retina mini as a benchmark. Only pixels are compared, and the pixels per inch count varies between devices: Device Name: Screen size, dimensions in pixels, pixel count, and relative size to iPad mini with Retina display iPad Retina mini: 7" 2048 x 1536 3145728 100% iPhone 6 plus: 5.5" 1920 x 1080 2073600 65.9% iPhone 6: 4.7" 1334 x 750 850500 27% iPhone 5s: 4" 1136 x 640 727040 23.1% iPhone 4s: 3.5" 960 x 640 614400 19.5% * -- In case you're wondering where this nickname came from, TUAW editor Dave Caolo exclaimed that the iPhone 6 Plus was as "big as a baby dolphin!" when it first appeared during the keynote.
Apple has no shame in pushing back product deadlines
Former Apple User Experience designer and evangelist Mark Kawano recently penned an interesting piece for Inc. detailing some of the lessons he learned during his 6+ year stint at Apple. Given Apple's reputation for avoiding vaporware like the plague and only releasing finished and polished products, the following excerpt from Kawano's piece stands out. From the outside looking in, a lot of people assume that Apple doesn't have internal deadlines for its products. If Apple did set a ship date, for example, we'd all know when the Apple iWatch is going to hit store shelves and there would already be people camped out in front of Apple stores, cash in hand. But the theory that Apple doesn't have deadlines isn't just slightly inaccurate, it couldn't be further from the truth. Not only does the company set internal deadlines, it also creates deadlines for deadlines that have their own deadlines. Every aspect of the company's production cycle, from conception to ship date, is calculated. But--and this is a big "but"--what makes Apple different is that it is a company that is willing to move those deadlines. If a product in development isn't ready to be released, the deadline is pushed back. If an idea isn't perfect, or isn't considered truly magical and delightful internally, it's held back, revised, and the product given an entirely new launch date. Indeed, one of the reasons Apple stopped attending Macworld in an official capacity was because it grew weary of having to announce a grand new product on an artificial schedule set by conference organizers. Ironically, Apple with the success of the iPhone is now somewhat tied to announcing a next-gen device every 12 months or so. Nonetheless, Apple certainly has no problem in pushing back a product launch until things are just right. Recall that the iPhone 4s didn't launch until October of 2011, a good 16 months after the iPhone 4. Rumors at the time suggested that the delay was caused by issues with Siri, the device's flagship feature. You might also remember that the white iPhone 4 was delayed for 9 months. In that instance, rumor has it that the white paint on the device was too thin and subsequently allowed too much light to reach the camera sensor, resulting in less than stellar photos. A few years back, Apple's Phil Schiller addressed the delay in an interview with All Things D. It was challenging. It's not as simple as making something white. There's a lot more that goes into both the material science of it–how it holds up over time...but also in how it all works with the sensors. In taking the necessary time to ensure that the white iPhone 4 met Apple's high standards, Schiller added that Apple was able to deliver a device without compromises. Applying this framework to Apple's mythical iWatch, for example, one would be well advised to ignore the myriad of reports claiming to know when such a device might be announced and/or released. One day we stumble upon a report which claims that the iWatch will be announced in September and the next we see a report claiming that everything has been pushed back until 2015. Suffice it to say, Apple will launch this mythical wearable device when it's ready to ship and works as intended. This might seem like a no-brainer, but even a cursory glance at any number of tech-oriented product reviews reveals that many company's simply have no shame in releasing products that are far too often categorized as "beta products", Amazon's Fire phone being the most recent example. Now before the comments section goes up in vitriolic flames, there are, of course, counter examples. Allow me to beat you to the punch. Though overblown, there was the whole Antennagate saga. Also, critics might point to the less than stellar rollout of Apple's homegrown Maps app. But even there, people tend to overlook the fact that software as grandiose as a worldwide mapping app, complete with multiple imaging options, fleshed out geographic information, local landmarks, and driving directions can only be refined once released to the masses. On this note, Counternotions summed things up perfectly a few years ago: Mapping is indeed one of the hardest of mobile services, involving physical terrestrial and aerial surveying, data acquisition, correction, tile making and layer upon layer of contextual info married to underlying data, all optimized to serve often under trying network conditions. Unfortunately, like dialect recognition or speech synthesis (think Siri), mapping is one of those technologies that can't be fully incubated in a lab for a few years and unleashed on several hundred million users in more than a 100 countries in a "mature" state. Thousands of reports from individuals around the world, for example, have helped Google correct countless mapping failures over the last half decade. Without this public exposure and help in the field, a mobile mapping solution like Apple's stands no chance.
Flickr Find: Even an iPhone 4s can take stunning photos
There's a reason why the iPhone is often at the top of the most used cameras on Flickr -- it's capable of taking stunning pictures under the right conditions. Check out this photo above from Joseph Donnelly, taken with a few generations-old iPhone 4s.
How different is Modern Combat 5 on a iPhone 4s and a 5c?
Modern Combat 5 has finally hit the iTunes store, bringing fiery action to your iOS devices. There's just one question you may still be asking yourself: how will it run on my phone. The folks at AppSpy have put together a comparison video showing how the title plays on the iPhone 4s and the iPhone 5c, and the answer is remarkable. While the 5c version is noticeably sharper than the same title running on a 4s, the graphics on the 4s are still incredibly impressive considering the title is running on a device nearly three years old. You can watch the comparison video below.
iPhone 4s remains Apple's "little engine that could"
The iPhone 4s remains Apple's little engine that could. Released over two-and-a-half years ago, the iPhone that introduced Siri to the world remains, believe it or not, an important part of Apple's iPhone lineup. AppleInsider yesterday got ahold of a recent research report from analyst Charlie Wolf of Needham & Company which found that iPhone 4s sales are higher than one might initially assume. Note that Apple doesn't break down iPhone sales figures by model type, so the Wolf's conclusion is based entirely off of his company's own research. Wolf estimates that the iPhone 5s accounted for 71 percent of March quarter sales, while the iPhone 5c took just 4 percent. That means the iPhone 4S would have taken the remaining 25 percent of sales for the three-month span. Wolf's research is bolstered by remarks made by Tim Cook during Apple's most recent earnings conference call. In explaining why the average selling price of the iPhone dropped by $41 during the quarter gone by, Cook pointed to strong iPhone 4s sales, particularly in China. In some markets, Cook said that the iPhone 4s is responsible for upwards of 80% of new subscribers. "It gets them into the ecosystem," Cook added. "Our ability to keep customers is very good." Indeed, Apple's ability to limit subscriber churn is one of the reasons the company continues to command relatively high premiums for its products from carriers. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse even said so himself two years ago. Subsidises are heavy for the iPhone. This is the reason why a high percentage of new customers is important. But iPhone customers have a lower level of churn and they actually use less data on average than a high-end 4G Android device. So from a cost point of view and a customer lifetime value perspective. They're more profitable than the average smartphone customer. All in all, Apple's iPhone lineup has never been healthier. While the iPhone 5c may not have sold as well as Apple was initially projecting, stronger than expected sales of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 4s have more than picked up the slack. During Apple's most recent quarter, the company posted 43.7 million iPhone unit sales, far eclipsing Wall Street estimates. Of that figure, Wolf believes that the iPhone 4s accounted for 10 million units.
Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide: winter 2014 edition
You don't need to cast bones or read entrails to know that smartphones arrive in predictable cycles. February, home of Mobile World Congress, is likely to see the launch of new handsets from heavy hitters like HTC, Samsung and LG. Those new flagships will rule the mobile hill until the fall, when Apple and Google are likely to wheel out next-gen devices of their own. Sony, meanwhile, recently launched its latest handset, the Z1 Compact, which reverses the "bigger is better" trend to great effect. There may have only been one top-tier phone launching in January, but the phone industry has hardly been hibernating this winter. Two years after Google bought Motorola for $12.5 billion, it sold the rejuvenated handset maker to Lenovo. AT&T, meanwhile, has rejigged its mobile share plans to shrink your monthly data bill; T-Mobile will now pay you to leave your carrier; and we're inching ever closer to a Sprint/T-Mobile merger, the FCC permitting. If you're already on the hunt for a new smartphone, or your deal's only for a few more months left and you like to be prepared, this is your guide to the best handsets on the market.
The little-known iPhone 4sandal
I have no idea where these are from or if they are somehow an officially licensed product (I'm betting not), but either way, it's a mighty strange thing to put on some summer footwear. [Photo credit: Daniel Hoherd]
Communicate better with Symbolic App: speaking to the world
"Symbolic App: World visual kit" (US$0.99, and yes, that's its full name) offers a must-have app for anyone trying to communicate across language barriers. Whether you travel outside of your language zone or just visit restaurants with non-native speakers, this is the app for you. Symbolic App provides superb cross-culture visuals that simplify communication, whether you're hunting down a bike shop or ordering spicy food. Topics include travel, health, security, brands and more. You drill down from these general topics to specific icons using a simple tree-based swiping system. Basically you swipe left and right to move between topics, then up and down to go more specific or less specific. It is a lot easier to use than it sounds and was much faster to find items than I anticipated. Once you drill to a specific item, a pull-up overlay from the bottom of the screen shows localized versions of the concept in five languages. Most of the time, however, you can skip the words and use the pictures alone. They are clean and self-explanatory. A great value for one buck, the app is not without flaws. Despite its beautiful design, it ran fairly slowly on my iPhone 4s running iOS 7. I'm hoping that future updates will speed up responsiveness. Even as is, however, the app is more than worth its price. Recommended.
Engadget's smartphone buyer's guide: fall 2013
As the leaves turn to gold and flutter from the trees, the Engadget team digs out their scarves and mittens to get ready for the mad rush of phone launches that take place ahead of the holiday season. We've seen big devices (both large and high-profile ones) enter the world over the last few months, including new heavyweights from Apple and Google. Then there's Samsung, Nokia and HTC, which are all following the philosophy that bigger is better. But it's not just on the hardware side that things are getting exciting. T-Mobile's eliminated roaming charges and Verizon is doubling its LTE speeds to a whopping 80 Mbps. AT&T is offering customers a $5 daily pass for internet and is making mobile share plans the standard rather than the exception. Of course, if you'd prefer unlimited data, Sprint is promising that its Spark LTE will beat the field -- but it's currently only available in NYC, LA, Chicago, Tampa and Miami. Whether you're looking for a smartphone right now, or if your contract is about to expire, this is your guide to the best ones on the market.
Apple: The iPhone 5c is our 'mid-tier' model
Just in case Apple's pricing scheme didn't make things crystal clear, CEO Tim Cook set record straight during today's earnings call: The iPhone 4s is the company's entry level model. The 5c, which was rumored to be tailored for emerging markets and more price-sensitive consumers, is officially Apple's mid-tier model. In response to a question about iPhone pricing strategy, Cook was adamant that the 5c was never intended as an entry-level model. The 4s, he said, is the entry-level model, and is a "fantastic product," with access to the entire iOS ecosystem.
Microsoft wants you to buy their products, to start offering cash for iPhones
Earlier in the month, Microsoft -- which would love for you to pick up one of its new second-generation Surface 2 tablets -- began offering iPad owners a paltry US$200 or more for a trade-in in hopes that you'd actually fall for the ploy, grab the cash and buy one of their beleaguered tablets. Now Forbes is reporting that Microsoft will be offering you a minimum of $200 for your iPhone 4s or iPhone 5 at some of the US and Canadian Microsoft Stores. In this case, the trade-in promotion is part of the #timetoswitch campaign, and Microsoft is hoping that you'll ditch your nice and relatively new iPhone for a Windows Phone instead of an iPhone 5s or 5c. Not that Microsoft seems desperate or anything, but they also have an online campaign that started a few weeks ago where they'll take any Apple, Android or BlackBerry device in return for a Visa gift card. I wonder how much they'll give me for that third-generation iPod classic that's sitting on the shelf... Forbes' Kelly Clay said it best: "Apple's impressive sales figures of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c in the past few days mean millions of consumers are not only freshly tied into new contracts but overtly prefer the iOS platform over Windows as they waited to purchase the new line of iPhones -- and avoided purchasing a Windows Phone when they had the chance." It's beginning to look like Microsoft's business strategy for the near future is to become the leading vendor of used smartphones and tablets.
iOS 7: Camera changes make it better, but it still loves to crash
A very strange thing happened during the three months I tested the revamped Camera app in iOS 7. I started out relying, as usual, on Camera+. It's been a mainstay on my iPhone for several years. But as the weeks went by, I found myself using that popular app less and less until it's now sitting a bit lost on the home page of my iPhone. While the built-in Camera app isn't that far removed from its iOS 6 counterpart, there are a number of changes that make it better than what it was. Option buttons that were once on the picture itself now rest on a semi-transparent panel that overlays the image. In Square mode, these bars are black. You're presented with four camera modes that you swipe among: Video, Camera, Square and Pano for panorama. Those who get the iPhone 5s will get a fifth option: Slo-mo. iPad and iPhone 4 users do not have the Panorama option. In Photo and Square mode, you can apply a live filter to an image before you take it, a feature that Instagram fans are used to. When in landscape mode, most of the options flip to accommodate the new view -- except for the mode toggles. Those remain in portrait orientation, which is a bit odd. The iPad gains HDR mode, but it doesn't have the live filters. If you take a photo with a filter and don't like it, you can remove or change it after the picture is taken. Those who have an iPhone 5 or newer will be able to zoom in and out while shooting video. You can use burst mode on older models of the iPhone, and it works pretty well, but you don't get the speed nor the auto-selection mode that burst mode on the iPhone 5s has. As in earlier versions of the Camera app, you can do some limited editing. For the most part, unless you're planning to push your photo to social media right that second, you're better off doing post-processing through Snapseed, Camera+ or iPhoto. The main thing that keeps me from completely singing the praises of the new Camera app is that, at least for me, it's still very crash-happy. Not in burst mode, as I expected, but when toggling among filters and using Panorama. But, part of me wonders if it's because I'm using an iPhone 4S for this review and not a 5. Regardless, it shouldn't be crashing this much for a phone that's still being offered by Apple. Still, I find that I'm not relying on third-party camera options as often as I used to. There's some things that they still excel at, but I no longer feel that the built-in Camera is a poor alternative to these apps. Still, if you want decent post-processing, you're better off doing so in another app.
Crying wolf: when emergency alerts stop being effective
Yesterday, I switched off all AMBER and Emergency iPhone Alerts in Settings > Notification Center. This followed a day and a night of flash flood warnings that started at 1 AM and continued until just after noon. [Erica is in Colorado, where recent wet weather has contributed to disastrous flooding. –Ed.] In that time, I counted eight individual Emergency Alerts issued by the National Weather Service in my personal notification center. These included alerts in the middle of the night; alerts as I was in office buildings; and alerts while I was waiting for appointments or having meetings. Since AT&T pushed out its Emergency Alert upgrade to support my iPhone 4S, I have received alerts for a variety of weather situations plus that abduction one from California. I cannot point to a single alert in my history that I considered necessary to receive on a phone rather than seeing on the TV or by hearing the local tornado alarms. I cannot customize the alerts I hear. It's all on or all off for AMBER and/or emergency items. These alerts are loud, scary, intrusive and blunt. I think my alert burnout is pretty human. When people get tired of alerts that aren't relevant, they're going to shut them off. Emergency alerts by their very nature should be few, important and effective. As is, they've become the spam of disaster preparedness. And I've just sent mine to my virtual alert spam folder. We posted a how-to on turning off your emergency alerts in July. Please consider the risks and benefits before changing this setting on your phone. –Ed.
Apple September Event: iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c announced and more
Did you miss the announcement of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, or was everything going by too fast to absorb? Catch up with TUAW's coverage of today's Apple special event. General coverage September 2013 Apple event liveblog: the new iPhone party Apple kicks off September iPhone event with impressive facts and figures Video of Apple iPhone 5s and 5c event available TUAW TV Live: Special Apple Event Episode Subtexts in Apple's Sept. 10 iPhone event Apple adds new 'Space Gray' color option for iPod Touch, nano, and shuffle Tim Cook sends email to Apple employees detailing new iPhones, iOS 7 iPhone-related coverage Apple debuts the colorful iPhone 5c Apple's iPhone 5c cases are protective and obnoxiously colorful Apple debuts the iPhone 5s, shipping September 20 starting at $199 iPhone 5s features enhanced motion tracking thanks to CoreMotion API Apple reveals Touch ID, a fingerprint sensor built into the iPhone 5s Apple bumps up camera specs on new iPhone 5s and 5c NTT DoCoMo gets new iPhones on September 20 Apple lists model numbers, carriers for new iPhones Unlocked prices for iPhone 5c start at $549, iPhone 5s at $649 Apple's back in the dock business and now making cases Apple killed the iPhone 5, but the iPhone 4s lives to fight another day Competitors react (humorously) to Apple's new iPhones Apple still offering the iPhone 4 in China iOS-related coverage Apple announces iOS 7 will be released on September 18 Apple announces free iWork suite including iMovie and iPhoto for iOS Apple releases iOS 7 and Xcode Gold Master builds to developers Infinity Blade III to launch on September 18 Apple asking devs to submit iOS 7-compatible app updates before September 18 launch Apple quietly discontinues its Cards app
Apple killed the iPhone 5, but the iPhone 4s lives to fight another day
Steve Jobs loved the 3.5-inch screen size of the iPhone 4, and once famously claimed that "no one's going to buy" the larger smartphones that were competing with the iPhone back in 2010. Now here we are with 2014 fast approaching and a pair of new 4-inch iPhones on the horizon. But while the iPhone 5 has proved to be a success despite -- or perhaps thanks to -- its gorgeous 4-inch display, Jobs was undoubtedly right about one thing: A 3.5-inch smartphone is the sweet spot for many, many users. Today, Apple showed the world the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, while at the same time putting an axe in the original iPhone 5. If you want a 4-inch Apple smartphone you'll soon have to choose between a polycarbonate-bodied device in a wacky color (or white, I suppose) or the new top-of-the line 5s model. And yet when Apple showed off its new smartphone lineup today, the iPhone 4s remains. The iPhone 4s is free with a new two-year contract through many mobile carriers, and that has helped give new life to the years-old device while other similarly aged smartphones have the relevance of paperweights. When was the last time you heard about continued worldwide demand for the HTC Thunderbolt or Motorola Atrix? But the iPhone 4s remains one of the world's best-selling smartphones, and even managed to outlive its successor. That's quite an accomplishment. On top of that, the iPhone 4s continues to be supported with updates from Apple, and the much-anticipated iOS 7 update will still be supported on the aging device. Now, this isn't the first time we've seen an Apple device continue on even after its immediate heir has been usurped; Apple pulled the same trick with the iPad line in late 2012. When the fourth generation of the iPad was announced, the third-gen model (which had just been released eight months prior) was sent out to pasture, but production on the 16GB iPad 2 continues even today.
Gazelle wants to lock in a price on your old iPhone before September 10 (Updated)
Whenever it's time to roll over a used iPhone, iPad or Mac, I usually head over to Gazelle. They're perhaps the largest "recycler" of used devices, and I've always found their cash offering on the last-generation devices to be pretty good. With Apple expected to announce new iPhones on September 10 with rumored availability on September 20, Gazelle is now offering a price-lock guarantee. Anyone who locks in a price on selling an old iPhone to Gazelle between today and September 10 can wait until October 15 to send the old phone in to Gazelle. That hopefully gives buyers of the new iPhones some time to get the new model(s) before they have to send the devices off to their temporary homes at Gazelle. If you change your mind or if the wait for the new iPhone goes beyond October 15? Well, if you don't send in your old phone, you won't get the cash. The chart at the top of this post shows why it's so important to commit to selling your old device before an Apple announcement actually occurs. With the iPhone 4S in 2012, the maximum resale price was available between 30 and 15 days before the announcement. Based on previous trends, Gazelle expects the same thing to happen with the iPhone 5 when new devices are announced. In case you're wondering, Gazelle is offering US$325 today for a 32 GB iPhone 5... not that I was looking or anything... Update: Reader Marcial wrote to TUAW asking "Why does Apple and Gazelle offer more for an iPhone 4S on AT&T? I thought the iPhone 4S was exactly the same phone for all the carriers." We reached out to Gazelle for clarification, and got this response: The value varies because of the technologies in the phone (i.e. CDMA for Verizon and Sprint vs. GSM on T-Mobile and AT&T). A Verizon or Sprint phone is only able to roam on other CDMA networks, which don't exist (or are much more rare) globally. Basically, GSM devices have a much bigger global market compared to CDMA devices, which makes them easier to sell.
Gazelle survey shows two-thirds of respondents considering an upgrade to a new iPhone
With the impending release of the new iPhone(s) just around the corner, iOS users are facing that yearly conundrum of whether to upgrade or keep the model they're already working with. This question is especially important to Gazelle, the internet tech buy-back company that offers hard cash in exchange for your used devices. So Gazelle ran a consumer survey to see what consumers thought about upgrading to the latest model or models, whatever they end up being called. The results of the survey are interesting. Of the 881 respondents Gazelle spoke with, 66 percent stated they don't think technology improves enough year to year to justify buying the new iPhone annually. However, 85 percent of respondents reported that they were likely or very likely to buy the new iPhone when it is released. Considering the incredible popularity the iPhone 4S still enjoys, this data isn't shocking. For many users, the jump to the iPhone 5 from the 4S simply wasn't enough to warrant the extra expense of upgrading. This fall's upcoming release is different, if only because of the looming debut of iOS 7 and its new features. If 66 percent of respondents think technology doesn't move fast enough to warrant a yearly upgrade, the wave of upgrades that are coming with iOS 7 is sure to be the outlier update they've been expecting. There are a few other factors Gazelle noticed during their survey. Almost half of the people they surveyed stated that when their iPhone breaks, the first thing they do is try and get it repaired. Couple that information with 64.8 percent of the users surveyed saying they got their last device through trading in an older model, and it paints a trend of users who hold onto their phone for as long as they can -- or at least until their two-year carrier upgrade window opens up. Another factor is pricing; 85.2 percent of respondents said they were likely to buy the long-rumored low-cost version of the iPhone if it becomes available. Apple is widely expected to make an announcement about new iPhones on September 10.
