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Leak hints at iPhone 5c and 5s variants for Boost Mobile
Apple offers iPhones through both large and small US carriers these days, but it has so far given Boost Mobile the cold shoulder. That may soon change, however -- @evleaks has just leaked ads hinting that Boost will get the iPhone 5c and 5s in the near future. While the images don't reveal any launch dates or pricing, they suggest that both smartphones will be eligible for the provider's "shrinking" unlimited rates. The expansion isn't all that crucial given the upcoming 5c and 5s launches through Virgin Mobile, but it doesn't hurt to have another option for low-cost iPhone service.
In-store pickup option for the iPhone 5s returns
On account of limited supply, or perhaps unprecedented demand, Apple's flagship iPhone 5s has been tough to come by. Of course, Apple has likely shipped millions of iPhone 5s units at this point, but walking into an Apple Store and picking up the exact iPhone 5s model you want still requires some patience. As a quick example, while visiting an Apple Store in Chicago last Thursday, I was told that the only iPhone 5s model in stock was a 64 GB Space Gray model for AT&T. All that said, Apple today brought back its in-store pickup option for the iPhone 5s. In short, folks can now purchase an iPhone 5s online and walk into a nearby Apple retail store to pick it up -- assuming of course that the desired model is in stock. Apple had previously removed the in-store pickup option six days ago, noting that interested buyers would have complete purchases in-store. Keep in mind that many iPhone 5s models remain unavailable, but the return of in-store pickup may indicate that supply may soon be aligned with demand. An employee at the Apple Store I visited told me that they receive new iPhone 5s shipments every day, but they don't know which models they get until the package arrives. Point being, if you're still on the hunt for an iPhone 5s, keep a daily eye on Apple's online store.
This week on gdgt: Apple's new iPhones, Loewe's Speaker 2go and Steam Machines
Each week, our friends at gdgt go through the latest gadgets and score them to help you decide which ones to buy. Here are some of their most recent picks. Want more? Visit gdgt anytime to catch up on the latest, and subscribe to gdgt's newsletter to get a weekly roundup in your inbox.
Analysts, pundits try to downplay Apple's record iPhone launch weekend
Last weekend, Apple sold nine million new iPhones, blowing away analyst expectations and setting a launch weekend record in the process. In fact, the nine million tally nearly doubles Apple's previous iPhone launch record. Suffice it to say, the iPhone 5s and 5c are bonafide hits and, once again, Apple is struggling to manufacture iPhones fast enough to meet demand. Considering that many pundits and analysts recently expressed supreme confidence that Apple had peaked and was prepped for a decline, that's not too shabby. Now you would assume that even Apple's most vehement critics wouldn't be so bold as to turn a blind eye to nine million units sold in just three days, right? And yet, as sure as the sun rises in the east, pundits from two mainstream publications attempted to turn Apple's overwhelmingly successful iPhone 5s and 5c launch into cause for concern. First up, we have Sandy Cannold from ABC News whose article headline itself suffers from a dearth of logic; "Why Record iPhone Sales Might be Rotten for Apple", the headline reads. There's a pun in there, I guess that's gotta count for something, right? Cannold's article reads in part: To me though, all this over-the-top fanfare and even the record-breaking first weekend of sales could actually be cause for concern... I fully concede that Apple is going to make billions in profit from the sale of these new devices and the company is in no danger of becoming Blackberry or Nokia. But the reason I am voicing a bit of doubt is that it seems like Apple is now trying to squeeze every last bit of profit it can out of an aging, shall we call it, iStone. Let's face it this new iPhone is just an upgrade, a refresh, dare I say a sequel. I am sure that true tech devotees will tell me how wrong I am, that this new device is smarter, faster, revolutionary, etc. But to me and millions like me it seems a lot more evolutionary. It looks a whole lot like the last iPhone and the one before that and the one before that too. The "evolutionary but not revolutionary" theme is often trotted out by folks who fail to realize that revolution is often the amalgamation of many smaller evolutionary improvements. As for Apple attempting to squeeze "every last bit of profit out of an aging" device, Cannold has it backwards. Apple is impressively able to increase its profits, year after year, by putting out devices that continuously set a new bar for excellence while making the majority of existing devices seem woefully outdated. Cannold also writes that "this is no longer the Apple of Steve Jobs" insofar as Apple under Tim Cook hasn't upended an industry lately. "I firmly believe that Steve Jobs," Cannold continues, "wouldn't have been satisfied to only pocket billions upon billions on tweaked products alone." First, it might be instructive to look back at Apple's iPod years. On that note, Harry McCracken of TIME recently penned a piece highlighting "The Myth of Steve Jobs' Constant Breakthroughs." Second, to call the iPhone 5s, sporting iOS 7 along with a number of hardware enhancements a slight tweak misses a larger point -- namely that the device's 64-bit processor and Touch ID software could be setting the stage for something larger. Also downplaying Apple's impressive iPhone launch was Rolfe Winkler of The Wall Street Journal who wrote the following earlier this week. Investors should be careful, though, not to extrapolate opening-weekend sales strength to future growth rates. For starters, Apple is including two "new" iPhone models in its opening-weekend sales figures for the first time. Last year, customers who opted for a new iPhone 4S, a model first released the prior year, weren't counted in the company's opening-weekend tally. This is despite the fact that it was sold for similar terms as this year's 5c, which is included. This is true, but hardly cause for concern. The fact that Apple released two new iPhone models and was able to spur demand should be looked at as a positive. The iPhone 5c may be a repackaged iPhone 5, but it's effectively being touted and viewed as a new, fresh, and affordable alternative to the iPhone 5s. As for the iPhone 4s not being included in last year's iPhone 5 launch numbers, that's a valid point, but lets try and guesstimate how many iPhones Apple might otherwise sell on any given weekend. Now Apple doesn't release sales figures on a device-by-device basis, so let's start by taking look at sales figures from one of Apple's recent quarters, say, Apple's most recent holiday quarter covering a 13-week period ending on December 29, 2012. During that quarter, Apple sold a record 47.8 million iPhones. Dividing that by 91 days (13 weeks) yields approximately 525,000 iPhones sold per day, or 1.57 million units over a three-day period. That being the case, even if we look at Apple's most successful iPhone quarter in history and subtract an average three day iPhone haul from the nine million total, we're still left with an impressive 7.43 million units. And that's with tightened supply, no less. Returning back to the nine million unit figure, analyst Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray also tried to downplay the figure by assuming, with no evidence, that the figure included units shipped to stores but not yet sold to consumers. Munster's take on this may have to do with the fact that he anticipated weekend sales of 5-6 million units and his subsequent attempt to save face. The thing is, Apple has historically only counted sales to end users. To that end, Fortune's Philip Elmer-DeWitt relays that Goldman Sachs analyst Bill Shope pointed out that Apple this year "used the same sales recognition rules it has always used." What's more, some have scoffed at the increase in iPhone sales by pointing out the obvious -- namely that the iPhone was available in more countries at launch than in previous years. The thing is, that was hardly a secret and analysts presumably took that into account when tabulating their iPhone launch sales estimates. Elmer-DeWitt also relays an astute point from Matt Lew who writes that Apple's nine million figure doesn't take into account the number of iPhone devices ordered online and not yet delivered to consumers. And seeing as how iPhone shipment times were a few days at best, Apple's iPhone launch total sales -- incorporating the back-ordered phones where the customer clicked "buy" in the first three days -- may in fact be higher than the nine million figure. Elmer-DeWitt concludes with an astute point: No other smartphone manufacturer's sales figures are subjected to this kind of scrutiny. Take, for example, Samsung. You won't see analysts questioning Samsung's unit sales numbers for the Galaxy S3 or S4. Nobody writes notes to clients asking what percentage of those sales were sell-in or sell-through. Samsung doesn't get this kind of scrutiny because it doesn't tell anybody -- not analysts, not investors, not the SEC -- how many smartphones it sells. And that's what's wrong with this picture. Apple's iPhone sales aren't fluffed with "buy 1 get 1 free!" promotions, but are legit sales of two brand new devices that have received overwhelmingly positive reviews. The reality is that nine million iPhones is impressive no matter how you look at it.
Virgin Mobile teases iPhone 5s and 5c as 'coming soon,' prepaid pricing TBA
Just a few short months after Virgin Mobile's Sprint-fueled US arm listed the iPhone 5 for sale, the MVNO is teasing the smartphone's successors as "coming soon." According to the firm's homepage, both the iPhone 5s and 5c will debut for prepaid customers, though pricing and availability remain unknown. Judging by the previous-gen's starting price of $550, however, you might want to start saving up now. The iPhone 4S, meanwhile, remains on the ticket. That handset is currently listed for 15 percent off its $450 sticker price, available today for $382.49. [Thanks, Jay]
iPhone 5s and 5c shipping to regional carriers on October 1st, but not to US Cellular
When your name is on a Major League Baseball stadium, and you're a mobile operator, you carry the iPhone. Unless you're US Cellular, that is. For reasons that cannot be comprehended by mere mortals, one of the United States' largest regional carriers still isn't offering the iPhone in any variant, despite promising back in May to carry Apple products before the year's end. In fact, things have gotten so bad over at USCC that its Facebook page has gone dead silent since September 13th, with customers far and wide ranting in the comments section about the carrier's inability to get the one phone they all want. Making matters worse for USCC is the fact that Appalachian Wireless, C Spire, Bluegrass Cellular, Cellcom, GCI, MTA, Nex-Tech Wireless, Ntelos and Strata are all lined up to start selling both the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s on October 1st. We suppose even more could be added as time rolls on and the supply / demand balance rights itself, but it's probably high time for US Cellular holdouts to head on over to a rival. Patience only gets you so far, you know?
Strava Run fitness app is first app to use iPhone 5s' M7 motion coprocessor
The first app to take advantage of Apple's new M7 motion coprocessor has been released, and it's Strava Run. The app, like many other fitness running apps, allows you to track your distance, speed and numerous other variables of your run. What makes it unique for now, however, is the fact that it pulls data from the M7 in addition to GPS. From its version 3.5.3 release notes: We've taken advantage of the M7 coprocessor in the iPhone 5S to make some big improvements for runners: • Auto-pause: Get better accuracy in your pace and feedback. Your run will now automatically be paused when you stop moving. • Run longer: Reduced battery consumption means you can spend more time on the roads and trails. Updated for iOS 7. The M7 chip is a companion chip to the A7 found in the iPhone 5s. It allows much of the motion data work from the accelerometer, gyroscope and compass to be offloaded from the A7 to the M7, resulting in better battery performance. It's also much better adapted to measuring types of movement, such as whether you are walking, running, on a bicycle or in a car. Strava Run is a free download.
Photographer Dean Holland of Take Better Photos reviews the iPhone 5s camera
Over the past few years, Apple has devoted a lot of time and attention toward improving the camera on the iPhone. Indeed, one only needs to take a look at this great commercial to see the immense pride Apple takes in churning out iPhone cameras that consumers absolutely love to use. With the iPhone 5s, Apple has really upped the ante, introducing a number of new software enhancements and hardware improvements that, together, make the 5s a compelling device for mobile photography enthusiasts. As is often the case when any new camera-based phone hits the market, an frequently asked question is: How does the device perform from the vantage point of a photography professional? To help answer that question, Dean Holland of TakeBetterPhotos.com recently penned a detailed review of the iPhone 5s camera. Holland acknowledges that he began his review with a skeptical eye, but was soon won over by the iPhone 5s' snappy performance. Compared to the iPhone 5, the camera on the 5s flies. The new burst mode discreetly shoots 10 full-quality pictures per second for 100 seconds, and it works very well. Too well. If you pick up the phone the wrong way, you can take 999 photos before you know what's happened. I did. That's not to say the iPhone 5s is an adequate replacement for a standalone point-and-shoot. As part of his review, Holland compared iPhone 5s shots against photos taken with the iPhone 5, the Samsung Galaxy S 4 and a Panasonic LX5 point-and-shoot released in 2010. Holland found that the Panasonic still reigned supreme, if only by an arguably small margin. If you're a serious photography-head, the entire review is worth a read. While Holland, overall, likes many of the improvements on the iPhone 5s, he still believes there's room for improvement (i.e., focusing issues, no zoom, battery life). Holland adds: If getting the best technical quality and detail is important to you, none of the improvements in the iPhone 5s is likely to appeal. Picture quality in good light hasn't improved compared to the iPhone 5 -- arguably it's deteriorated a little. Picture quality in poor light has improved considerably, but is still far short of both the quality and usability of a dedicated camera for night photography. Holland's concluding remarks, however, help to illustrate why the iPhone camera is the most popular one around. It's just so darn fun and easy to use. Looked at from a technical perspective, the iPhone 5s camera is another casual step forward for iPhones. And with the exception of the clever flash system, most of the photographic improvements seem to come from its processor, rather than from revolutionary hardware. The biggest change lies in the extra speed and flexibility. But I'd argue that technical innovation is not what this phone is about. I've found the iPhone 5s to be the most fun iPhone camera to date. Instead of extra pixels, I'm enjoying the speed, performance and the new party tricks of burst shooting, slow-motion video and easier, better low-light shooting. It's the most 'invisible' of the phones, as it just gets out of your way, so you can enjoy what you're doing. If you like shooting on smartphones, I'd recommend that you give it a try. And speaking of slow-motion video, yesterday we highlighted how creative and funky slow-motion videos shot with an iPhone 5s are beginning to flood YouTube. I can only imagine that this trend will increase tremendously in the weeks and months to come. And while some videophiles might rightfully gripe that slo-mo on the iPhone 5s isn't slow enough to be to their liking, the easy-to-use software lets folks who would never otherwise even touch a video-editing program shoot slow-mo video with ease.
Strava Run fitness app taps iPhone 5s motion co-processor for longer battery life
If you were placing bets on when the first app using the iPhone 5S' M7 motion co-processor would arrive, it's time to cash in. Strava Run, the fitness application that lets you score your suffering (no, really), was recently updated to include auto-pause that relies on Apple's new silicon, allowing a time-out on your activity when it senses you aren't moving. The application also uses less juice now, which should make your iPhone a little more prepared for a marathon. You, on the other hand, may need to recharge somewhere during those 26.2 miles.
Some amazing slow-mo videos shot with the iPhone 5s
The camera software in iOS 7 coupled with the iPhone 5s hardware really goes a long ways toward making even the most amateur photographer / videographer seem like a pro. The slo-mo video feature available with the iPhone 5s is a perfect representation of this. CNET today put together a list of some of the best iPhone 5s slow-motion videos to hit the web. I've since augmented that list with some YouTube searching of my own and it's clear that people are going to be having a whole lot of fun with this feature. So without further ado, below are some of the more interesting, cute and funny iPhone 5s slo-mo clips to surface thus far. Now THIS is how you make a slow-mo video. Jumping on a trampoline has never seemed so easy. Here's a cool shot of a plane flying in for a landing. And some cool BMX trickery, similar to what Apple showed off during its iPhone media event. And some people? Well, some people just have skills. You can't get skills, however, without a whole lot of practice. This squirrel seems to be living the good life. And finally, this cat is the Dikembe Mutombo and Michael Jordan of the animal world all rolled up into one. If there are any slo-mo videos that we missed, please drop 'em in the comments below.
Chipworks analysis of iPhone 5s A7 and M7 chips highlights Apple's design evolution
iFixit tore down the iPhone 5s last week and gave us a peek at the innards of Apple's new phone. Chipworks has taken that analysis a step further with a detailed look at the chips that power the device. Starting with the A7, Chipworks has confirmed that the A7 is manufactured by Samsung using the same 28nm High-K Metal Gate (HKMG) process the Korean company uses for its new Exynos 5410 processor. It's slightly smaller than the A6 (77 percent the size), but provides the equivalent functionality of the previous-generation chip. The M7 turns out to be an interesting component with a three-axis accelerometer, a three-axis gyroscope and a three-axis electronic compass IC. It's manufactured by NXP and sports a Cortex-M3 microcontroller. The part number for the component (LPC18A1) didn't match any on NXP's website, which leads Chipworks to believe the M7 is likely a custom chip built by NXP to Apple's specifications. Other hardware includes a WiFi module with IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 + HS and an integrated FM radio receiver. Rather than go with a newer Broadcom chip that offers 802.11ac, Apple opted use a WiFi module that is similar to the one in the iPhone 5. There's also a Qualcomm 4G LTE modem with a Samsung LTE baseband processor and some Samsung DRAM to store the carrier information. The eight-megapixel camera module has been tentatively identified as a Sony Exmor-RS sensor, but the exact details are not yet known. [Via Electronista and MacRumors]
78% of new iPhones sold globally are iPhone 5s models
For all of the publicity that swirled around the less expensive and more colorful iPhone 5c, the reality is that the new iPhone 5s is the top dog in worldwide sales. That's the report from Localytics, a firm that analyzes mobile stats. In the data analysis that started Friday and ended yesterday, Localytics saw that despite some expectation that the iPhone 5c would fit perfectly with Chinese consumers, the fact is that 91 percent of iPhone sales there were for the more expensive iPhone 5s. Numbers were pretty similar around the world, with the UK having the lowest ratio of iPhone 5s to iPhone 5c sales, with "only" 69 percent of new iPhone sales being for the 5s. Here in the US, 76 percent of new iPhone sales were for the 5s. One possible explanation is the sale of the gold-colored iPhone 5s. The gold color has been a terrific seller in China and the rest of Asia, while black or white phones are less popular. Globally, the iPhone 5s accounted for 78 percent of new iPhones purchased. The US has the highest concentration of new iPhone sales, with 68 percent of iPhone 5s and 5c devices. Japan is next with 13 percent. Sales of both new iPhones were robust, to say the least, with Apple selling 9 million over the weekend.
These $14.5k gold earbuds will go great with your gold iPhone 5s
So you stood outside all night to be the first person in line at your local Apple Store just to get your hands on a gold iPhone 5s. Or maybe you dropped upwards of a thousand dollars on eBay because you couldn't track down a gilded Apple smartphone yourself. Either way, these 18-carat gold earbuds are the perfect accessory -- as long as you have a cool US$14,500 to spare. The earphones -- which go by the name of Happy Plugs -- are crafted in Sweden and feature a whopping 25 grams of gold per earbud. And hey, they even look like the original Apple earbuds you probably already have a few pairs of. Just make sure such an opulent purchase won't prevent you from paying the rent.
Daily Update for September 24, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Gazelle saw 210% more Samsung trade-ins during iPhone 5s launch weekend
Apple experienced a record sales weekend for the launch of the iPhone 5s and 5c, so this news probably isn't surprising. Consumer electronics recycler Gazelle saw a lot of action during the same time, with almost four times as many trade-ins on launch day compared to that same time frame during the iPhone 5 launch last year. It might be a number of Samsung smartphone owners jumping ship to the new iPhones, as Gazelle reported a 210 percent jump in trade-ins of Samsung phones during the launch weekend. During launch day on September 20, Gazelle made five offers per second between 10 and 11 AM ET. That's a whopping 18,000 people in that hour who decided to trade in their existing phone for cash to use on a new iPhone. The company also reported that the average value per trade-in is US$50 higher this year than last year. Gazelle also surveyed more than 3,000 consumers about the new iPhones, asking questions to determine why people considered an upgrade to the new Apple smartphones. It found that 36 percent of those who said they were upgrading to the iPhone 5s said they were getting it because they were due for an upgrade, and only 16 percent said they were upgrading for the Touch ID fingerprint scanner. Among iPhone 5c upgraders, 29 percent said they were going to the colorful phone for the better camera, with an equal number upgrading because of a better price.
IHS: iPhone 5s component tally reaches $199, iPhone 5c costs $173
Though it has a new camera module, faster processor and fingerprint sensor, the components in the new iPhone 5s are only slightly less expensive than those in the iPhone 5, says IHS. Not surprisingly, the iPhone 5c is cheaper than either the iPhone 5 or the iPhone 5s. According to AllThingsD, which got an advanced look at the IHS report, the iPhone 5s costs US$199 to build, as compared to $205 for last year's iPhone 5. Components for the 16 GB iPhone 5s cost Apple $191, with another $8 tacked on for assembly. The jump to 64 GB of storage in the 5s bumps up the price by $11, bringing the final cost to $218 for the model. By using a colorful polycarbonate shell instead of aluminum, Apple is able to trim the cost of the iPhone 5c to $173 for the 16 GB model and $183 for the 64 GB model. These prices include $7 for assembly. Echoing what was said by iFixit, IHS says the new iPhone models are very similar. "I would say that they're almost the same phone, except that the 5s has the fingerprint sensor, the A7 processor and some newer memory chips that consume less power. Beyond that, they're basically the same," said IHS analyst Andrew Rassweiler.
Apple disables in-store pickup option for the iPhone 5s
Apple recently enabled its reservation system for online customers looking to buy an iPhone 5s. Shortly after going live, the company removed this in-store pickup option. Apple's website now says that the iPhone 5s is not eligible for pickup and that all purchases must be made in the store. We don't know why Apple did this flip-flop, but it's possible that the reservation system went online earlier than planned. Apple typically has sold new iPhones in the store on a first-come, first-serve basis for the first few weeks after launch. Once demand and supply start to even out, the company then enables in-store pickup on its website. It's also possible Apple will turn on the option and turn it off as inventory ebbs and flows. If you are still on the hunt for an iPhone 5s, your best bet is to keep checking back with Apple, your wireless carrier and retailers like Best Buy, RadioShack and Walmart. It'll take time, but your persistence will pay off eventually. Hat tip to David for the tip.
Daily Update for September 23, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
The iPhone 5s is greatly outselling the iPhone 5c
OK, so we know that Apple sold a record 9 million iPhones over the weekend, but what you might find surprising is that data provided by analytics firm Localytics shows that in the US, the more expensive iPhone 5s is appearing a whopping 3.4 times more often than the iPhone 5c. The chart at the top of this post shows that in the US, the iPhone 5s makes up about 1.36 percent of all iPhones activated in the US market across all carriers. For the iPhone 5c, the number is only about 0.31 percent. To quote Localytics, "That means that the iPhone 5s outshines the 5c by a factor of 3.4x, a clear indicator that the early adopters are favoring the high-end 5s compared to 5c." It's not just Americans who are picking up the iPhone 5s in record numbers. Localytics also provided numbers for international carriers and iPhone 5s usage is outperforming the iPhone 5c by a factor of 3.7x. In Japan, the numbers are even more skewed, with a ratio of about 5x. Eric Slivka at MacRumors points out that this disparity in sales probably won't last in the long run, saying "the lower-cost iPhone 5c will likely improve its relative performance over time as the bulk of customers who are likely to be more budget-conscious purchase new phones as they become upgrade-eligible.
The TUAW iPhone 5s Review: Two writers, two phones, one review
For the first time since the original iPhone was replaced by the iPhone 3G, we have a new iPhone (or in this case, a pair of new iPhones) taking the place of the previous generation rather than just acting as an upgrade. So, because of this unique circumstance -- and because we had multiple TUAW writers picking up the iPhone 5s on launch day -- we decided to do a special combo review, featuring the opinions of both Megan Lavey-Heaton (whose last phone was the iPhone 4s) and me, Mike Wehner (who is switching over from the iPhone 5). Enjoy! Megan: I never felt like my iPhone 4S was a shabby phone, even when the iPhone 5 was introduced. For the first time since I purchased an original iPhone, I was satisfied to wait out my two-year contract. Even at the very end, just before I handed my 4S over to the Apple Store employee to recycle, I tweeted that it was a good phone. Mike: To be completely honest, I didn't need a new phone. I was perfectly happy with my iPhone 5 -- aside from the fact that I wanted a bit more storage than the measly 16GB model that was the last available at my local AT&T on launch day -- and picking up the 5s was done partly out of curiosity and partly because I'm admittedly a sucker for the most powerful smartphone on the market. As I was already satisfied with the iPhone 5, I assumed the 5s wouldn't actually change the way I used my phone, but it turns out I was mistaken. Immediate impressions Megan: Damn, this phone is light. I was terrified of dropping the thing or accidentally flinging it across the room. It took me about a day not to miss the solid heft of the iPhone 4S in my hand. Second impression: This phone is so fast that it catches you off-guard, especially if you're coming from a 4S or earlier. It's like the first time you used a SSD MacBook Air after using traditional MacBooks. John Gruber compares using the 5s to using the MacBook Pros of five years ago, and it's a great comparison. The performance is just that good. In the past, I'd call up the Mail client and wait a minute or for the 100 or so emails that pop in on a weekday morning -- at least long enough for me to have a sip of coffee. Now, I barely reach for my mug, and my email is waiting for me. Apps that tended to take own sweet their own time to load, such as Tumblr, now do so immediately. The iPhone 5s is also my first LTE phone, and I actually had to double-check to make sure that it was switching over to the WiFi network when I went to work. The phone speeds were so fast that I didn't realize I wasn't on WiFi for a bit. Mike: The AT&T rep handed me the iPhone 5s while I was already holding my iPhone 5, and it felt like I was being handed a doppleganger of my old device. That's a long-winded way of saying that they look almost identical. The only difference between the two is the slightly recessed Home button on the 5s, which now features chamfered edges and a flatter center surface. To someone who didn't touch the "old" home button a hundred times each day, that might not seem like a very big change, but for the iPhone faithful it's actually a noticeable tweak. The new Home button seems to click louder and with more authority than the old one, which is actually a welcome alteration. That said, iPhone 5 owners won't be able to tell a difference in weight or dimensions, because there is none. Almost immediately upon actually playing with the device I noticed how speedy it is, even compared to my year-old iPhone 5. The thing is blindingly quick with just about everything. Icons respond immediately to touch and in apps or games where you need to drag items around the screen, there is no latency whatsoever. I know you're thinking "But my current iPhone doesn't have latency to begin with!" And I understand, because that's what I thought as well, but as soon as I had a few minutes with the 5s I realized how wrong I was. Is this a game-changer? Of course not, but it's nice to be able to notice a measurable upgrade in power right from the very beginning. This hasn't just brought an occasional smile to my face when messing around with menus, but it has actually made certain iPhone tasks less burdensome, and even enjoyable. For example, using Safari to browse the web while on the go was always a hassle. It's always been too slow and too unresponsive to be truly useful when I'm in a hurry. With the iPhone 5s and iOS 7's Safari, it's practically a treat. Checking comments on a TUAW story (which is something I frequently do when I'm away from my desk) was a two-minute task on my iPhone 5, but I can now whip through several stories in as much time as it took me to navigate to a single article on my old phone. Touch ID Megan: The scanner works as advertised. I programmed my thumb and off I went. It's extremely convenient. The only time the scanner hasn't worked for me was when I accidentally tried to unlock it with the wrong finger or when I hit the home button with the side of my thumb (an area that wasn't originally mapped). There's no time delay when using the Touch ID. It worked just as fast, if not a bit faster, than swiping and keying in a passcode. If anything, it's better because I don't have to stop and key in said passcode. But, I do like having that backup and have used it. If anything was a hassle about Touch ID, it was my fault, not the software's. Thanks to muscle memory, I'd automatically swipe to unlock the phone instead of using Touch ID. Once the passcode screen appeared, I remembered to use my finger. It's getting better, but it'll take a few days to undo six years of muscle memory. Touch ID is also used when you receive a notification on your lock screen. Touch the home button, and once the phone is turned on, you're sent to the location of the last notification to address it. I really wish you could just swipe to dismiss a notification from the lock screen, but that's an issue with iOS more than Touch ID. Mike: You set up the Touch ID to recognize one or more of your prints, and then rest your finger on the home button in order to unlock your device without using a passcode. It's extremely fast, and you can almost always unlock your phone with your finger quicker than you would by typing in a code. Simply put, I was shocked by how well it worked. Touch ID isn't sexy. At least it's not sexy in the way that "fingerprint scanner" makes it sound, and that's perfectly fine. When you place your finger on the sensor it doesn't say "scanning fingerprint" or anything of that nature, it just unlocks the device and takes you to the home screen. In fact, even if you mess up (like use a finger that's not set up for Touch ID) it doesn't even explicitly state that the print is wrong, it just says "Try Again." It's not flashy, it just works. Camera Megan: I was expecting a better camera when I moved up from the 4S, but I was blown away by how great the camera is. One of the first pictures I took was of the fountain outside work. It was my first time using burst mode and using the digital zoom that wasn't available on the 4S. The results were outstanding. The iPhone automatically determined which of the eight shots I took was the best, but it gives you a chance to choose another. With that, and subsequent tests of burst mode, the software did choose the best of the images. Burst mode happens so fast though that you suddenly have 8-10 shots taken before you realize it. Word to the wise: Make sure to clear your iPhone camera roll frequently if this happens, otherwise you'll run out of space quickly. I'm not a fan of digital zoom, but I am impressed with the results from the 5s. As you can see in the photo above, the a lot of detail is captured in the water spray. It only has that soft focus-feel to a digital zoom shot along the edge of the building in the background, and the photo isn't pixelated as I've come to expect from most digital zooms. I might actually use it now, at least some of the time. Likewise, the True Tone flash also lives up to its name. As you can see from the image above, the left was taken without a flash and the right with the flash on. The True Tone flash makes the cat's fur and my socks come out at the right colors without having to do any post-processing. But the low-light shot without the flash is equally as good, and I'm happy with both. I'm not a fan of using the flash, but if I need a fill light, I'll be more comfortable using this flash. I tested the slo-mo video while my husband washed dishes, and it's incredibly easy to use. Shoot the video, and in post-processing, you can adjust the sliders to slow down certain segments of the video. I wish you could slow down more than one segment of the video. Engadget observed that the slo-mo doesn't stick when you transfer the video to your computer, but it does if you upload to YouTube. I tried editing the video in iMovie on the iPhone, and likewise, the slo-mo doesn't stick there either or when I tried uploading to Facebook through the app. However, if I uploaded to Facebook by sharing from Photos, it retained the slo-mo. So, if you want to share those videos to YouTube, Facebook or Vimeo, you'll have to do it through Photos, which is a bit annoying. Mike: I'm not a huge camera snob, so I've been reasonably satisfied with just about every iPhone camera since the 4s. I take photos of the most obnoxious things -- like my cats, for example -- so if I'm not at some sort of tech event, where I'd be taking my DSLR anyway, just about anything will satisfy me. Now, with that said, the iPhone 5s camera is quite a drastic upgrade from the iPhone 5 in ways I hadn't expected, even considering how much Apple talked them up. Firstly, the lens works much better in low light, which is a problem that plagues just about every smartphone camera on the market. The camera on the iPhone 5s isn't perfect in this regard, but it's definitely a step up. Along with the addition of a dual-tone LED flash, taking photos in sketchy lighting is now a much more pleasurable affair. But what really impressed me about the new camera is the slow-mo 120fps video mode. I've only used it on a handful of things so far, but I can already tell I'm going to have a lot of fun with this. I'm a huge sucker for slow-mo videos, and at 120fps, the videos the 5s can produce are actually pretty stellar. You can select the section of the video you want to slow to a crawl and save clips to YouTube (or Vimeo or Facebook), which I've already done enough to annoy some Facebook friends. Battery Life Megan: I charged the phone to 100% on Friday night and by Sunday afternoon, it had fallen to 20%. This included a couple hours of playing Chillingo's Order Up to Go, a game that normally chewed through my iPhone 4S battery. In the same amount of time it took for the 4S to go from fully charged to gasping for battery, the 5s only used 10% of its battery. So far, this matches TechCrunch's observation of battery use. But, to get the best gauge on it, though, I need to take the phone through a normal work week. Mike: I started to get the feeling that my iPhone 5's battery life was beginning to decline, as many of them tend to after 12 months of practically non-stop use (I'm really, really hard on my mobile batteries). But even if it was, I don't think my iPhone 5, when new, had a battery that matches the 5s. Under normal use, the phone loses less than half its charge in a day's time, but under my own torture test I was able to drain it in 12 hours of gaming, constant fiddling, downloading, AirDropping, and so on. If you've been satisfied with the battery life stats of iPhones in the past, you should be perfectly content with the iPhone 5s. Verdict Megan: If you're looking to upgrade from a 5, unless you're itching for the better camera or Touch ID, stick with the phone you have. While the new features are fantastic, it's not enough to prematurely upgrade your phone unless you have the cash to spare. If you have a 4S or earlier, then absolutely go for the 5s. Mike: As a former iPhone 5 owner, I'm happy I made the upgrade simply for the additional power the iPhone 5s affords me. However, unless you're an avid player of the latest iOS games or absolutely can't wait an extra few seconds for a web page or email to render, you should be satisfied where you currently are. Touch ID is fancy and the new camera has some pretty cool new tricks, but these alone won't be enough to sway most current iPhone owners on their own. If you have an iPhone 4s or later, I'd recommend an upgrade just for the sake of being able to use the latest apps (since the two-year mark is where some developers begin to ignore the older phones and focus only on the latest models). Overall, it's a fantastic phone, but when compared to the iPhone 5, it is indeed an incremental upgrade.