The new iPhone is here – but is Apple in danger of delivering too little with its latest upgrade?
The excitement of the
rumour mill, the titillation of every leaked photo led to higher than
ever levels of expectation for the iPhone 5, and while the announcement
was greeted with some derision at the lack of perceived headline
improvements, the record sales tell an entirely different story. Given the underwhelming changes to the iPhone 4S, the iPhone 5 really needs to re-energise customers to prove Apple can repeat the game-changing trick it managed with the iPhone 4. So is the Apple iPhone 5 the greatest smartphone ever, one that finally see Apple ascend to the top spot in our 20 best mobile phones chart? Or is it a case of too little, too late?
Design :
We'll
begin in the traditional manner: how the thing actually feels in the
hand. With the iPhone 5 there will be many types of prospective buyer:
the upgrader from the 4 (or more-money-than-sense iPhone 4S upgraders),
those tired of their Android handset and those taking their first steps
in the smartphone market and want to get one of them iThingies their
friend/child has.
Well,
all of those picking up the iPhone 5 will have the same reaction: this
thing is amazingly light. You've probably heard the numbers by now (20
per cent lighter than the predecessor, as well as beating most of the
opposition too at 112g.) It's an odd sensation, but it actually
detracts from the experience when you first pick it up. We've praised
the weighty feel of the iPhone in the past, lending it a premium feel in
the face of toy-like phones, and it's almost disappointing that Apple
decided to join that clan. However, through extended use this
problem quickly disappears, as the overall effect of the phone is still a
chassis designed for strength, it just sits more anonymously in the
pocket.
You'll
obviously see the change in height too – the iPhone 5 stands 123.8mm
tall to allow for the larger 4-inch screen. In truth, those not familiar
with the iPhone 4S probably wouldn't notice the difference, which is
why it's a good move from Apple to include the larger screen if it's not
going put people off that hate larger phones.
The
decision to stick at 4-inches is Apple's admission that while it
recognises people are all over the idea of having more screen real
estate to play with it doesn't want to move away from the thumb-friendly
nature of the device. Through a mixture of moving the centre of
gravity slightly as well as repositioning the screen within the bezel,
it's still possible to scroll your thumb mostly around the whole display
one-handed, which Apple is clearly keen to keep hold of.
However,
we're not convinced of that argument any more, and the power button was
still a little out of reach when using the phone normally, as was
anything in the top left-hand corner of the screen. This was no
issue in reality, as scooting the phone down a touch in the palm is a
natural action. But if that's the case, then why not offer a 4.3-inch
screen at least? There's more to a phone than a screen these days
(although increasingly less and less) and the general construction of
the iPhone 5 is excellent to say the least.
We've
tested both the ceramic white version and the anodised black, and the
two tone effect on the back of the phone is stunning, both visually and
under the finger. It doesn't beat the sheer beauty of the HTC One
S, with its micro-arc oxidised back and rounded lines, but it's
well-set in second place.
The
two sections of pigmented glass at the top and the bottom of the phone
add a pleasant effect, and the sapphire glass is meant to be thoroughly
durable, to complement the Gorilla Glass on the front. Apple
knows consumers get furious when they drop and iPhone, and is clearly
seeking to stop the smashes before they happen with a tougher exterior -
although it seems the anodised black version is more prone to
scratching, which means sadly you'll have to think about getting a cover
for that beautiful frame. The same industrial band around the
outside is in effect again as on the iPhone 4 and 4S, with small
sections removed where the antenna joins. Apple has gone for a
more advanced form of antenna here, meaning the days of lost signal are
gone, and generally increasing the power of your call connection and GPS
lock on too.
There
are other big design changes here too: the headphone jack has moved to
the bottom of the phone, and the iconic 30-pin connector has been
retired in favour of the new Lightning port, giving a headache to all
those that have invested in chargers, docks and other accessories over
their iPhone lives. You can buy an adaptor, but it's going to be
pricey: £25 or $30 when it lands in October. And unless you want to keep
it permanently attached to the bottom of the iPhone 5 you'll need to
buy a few, which is far from ideal. However, let's not harangue
Apple too much for this: a smaller connector is not only easier to use
(you can plug the smaller cable in either way round, and the connection
feels more solid), but you're rewarded with a thinner and more compact
phone to boot.
The
decision to move the 3.5mm headphone jack to the bottom is an odd one,
as while it allows you to slip the phone into the pocket head-first when
listening to music, which is a more natural action, it's a real pain in
the posterior for some apps that will only work in landscape a certain
way up. Using it this way means your headphones experience will be one of having to jiggle the jack around two fingers. It's
not the most comfortable way to hold a phone, and even when using the
phone in portrait mode, the jack gets in the way somewhat. There
are other smaller design changes to the iPhone 5 too, such as the iSight
front-facing camera moving to the middle and the home button being
noticeably more robust to help reduce instances of a broken portal to
your home screen.
But
enough about what the phone looks like - the killer question is how the
thing feels in hand. And we'll sum it up by saying: smooth. It's a
little slippery, and we were always worried we would drop the darned
thing. But that's the only negative thing about the design (apart
from the low weight initially) as it sits in the palm nicely and allows
you to do it all with one hand, including hitting the top-mounted
power/lock button with ease. That lock button is actually still
loose, as it was on the iPhone 4S, meaning when you shake the phone
around you can hear it clicking away, which undoes a lot of the premium
feel Apple is going for. Make no mistake, the iPhone 5 is one of
the most beautifully crafted phones out there - but when you're paying
£529 ($199) up front for the thing, we'd hope this would be the very
minimum Apple would be doing.
And
while it looks nice, from the front it doesn't really add much to the
design of the iPhone - it's certainly not the same as the jaw-dropping
design of the iPhone 4 compared to the 3GS... it's another evolution in
the iLine. It's not bad, but for those that hoped the iPhone 5 would be
another step change there's a good chance they'll be disappointed about
the look... until they feel the lovely back on offer. There was a
real chance here for Apple: remove the bezel and give the front of the
screen a look that's similar to the OLED TVs from the likes of Samsung
or LG… but instead we're treated to the same lines as before. You
always get the feeling that Apple saves what it can for the next
iteration of the iPhone, and while there's nothing wrong with the
current construction we can see the edge-to-edge screen becoming
something amazing on the iPhone 6. Display :
The technology on
offer from Apple with regards to the new 4-inch display is impressive –
but only on a scale that matches that seen with the launch of the Retina
Display in 2010. There's such a temptation with new technology to
bash it for not always innovating and pushing things further,
especially when Apple's announcements are so full of hyperbole that it's
often hard to tell what's actually exciting. However when Steve
Jobs took to the stage to announce the Retina Display, he said it was
sharper than the human eye could discern – and he was right, as despite
other far-reaching efforts to up the sharpness nothing has really made
us squint at a display in awe than that first shown on the iPhone 4.
So
we're not going to berate Apple for sticking with the same 326ppi
resolution, nor 'only' extending the iPhone 5 display to 1136 x 640
pixels - it's the look that matters, and overall effect of the screen is
very pleasing indeed. Apple has done away with layers of
technology below the screen to bring the display as close to the glass
as possible, something it says will bring increased brightness and
sharpness to the user's eye.
In practice, it's quite different
from the iPhone 4S in quality and brightness, although tilting the phone
to extreme angles lacks the impressive look we've seen on phones like
the HTC One X.
However, just because you can't see the colours as accurately at acute
angles isn't really something to criticise a phone for, unless you're in
the habit of letting your friends watch films from two seats away from
you.
But
enough of the comparisons: how does the screen look to the new user?
Well, the answer is crisp, clear and bright with no discernible
over-saturation when watching movies or browsing the web. We noticed no
obvious discolouration - some people say the iPhone 4S had a slight
greenish tint to it - so it's clear this is the best Apple display yet. It's
a lot better than the iPhone 4S in side by side comparisons, with the
new phone definitely looking brighter, crisper and more true to life
than its predecessor. However, for all the reality on offer, it's not got the snap and pop that still wows us on the Samsung Galaxy S3,
with its Super AMOLED HD display with superb contrast ratios. If asked
to choose which handset we'd like to watch movies on, browse the web or
go navigating in the car with, we know we'd pick the Galaxy S3 every
time. Both displays have the same 'painted on' effect when
looking at the home screen that makes you wonder if you're looking at a
dummy model with a sticker on, but those that say 4.8-inches of screen
is too big haven't played with the S3 very long - we predict at least
half would be enamoured by the larger size within a day.
That's
not to say the iPhone 5 display is too small, as for many it's the most
they'd accept in screen evolution. It's just that if 3.5-inches was the
perfect one-handed size, 4-inches is a little too big (try getting your
thumb up to the top-left corner to head back through apps) so if that's
the case, a little bit bigger wouldn't make much difference and would
give an improved experience to the apps so crucial to a smartphone user
today. Interface :
When it comes to the interface on the new iPhone 5, well, there's not a lot new about it at all. You can read our full iOS 6 review
to get a good flavour of the new treats on offer with Apple's latest
platform evolution, but let's talk about how they work within the phone
itself. For the uninitiated, Apple's iOS is designed to be all
about simplicity, which is why you're presented with a grid of apps that
can be easily sorted into folders by long pressing on any one and
dragging on top of another.
This
method will also uninstall apps too, making it a much simpler system
than anything you'd find on Android, where you have to jump through a
few more hoops generally to create folders and get rid of unwanted
software. However, the downside to this trick is the fact it's
been there so long. If this is your first smartphone (or first iPhone)
then you'll be impressed by the simplicity - but then again, you may
wish you had a bit more power under your fingertips. For instance,
where Android is so strong is in its customisation - meaning if you
want to have one home screen full of widgets and another full of icons
and a third with a massive widget for your music player, that's as easy
to do as just filling the whole thing with icons. With iOS 6
you've only got weather and stock widgets in the notifications bar,
which is accessed by pulling down from the top of the screen to give
information on apps or message that have come through. It's
similar to that seen on Android phones, but with Jelly Bean (Android
4.1) we're offered the chance to see larger message previews and
interact with important parts of apps without having to open them -
impressive and a much more intuitive way of doing things. Intuition
is the thing iOS 6 now lacks. Where Apple wowed the world with the
simple nature of the original iPhone, the current set up isn't really
that far removed from that first iteration, at least visually. Things
like all settings being locked down to one place, meaning you have to
jump in and out of the apps to simply do things like alter the amount of
days to sync in Mail, is ridiculous. Contextual menus have been absent
from the iPhone ecosystem for far too long.
Another
issue is the fact Apple isn't able to work out how to do live icons
effectively. While some show new information, such as the Calendar, the
likes of Weather still say the same 23 degrees with a sunny outlook. We
know you can do better than this Apple, and when you look at the
awesome Live Tiles on offer from Windows Phone, it beggars belief that
the Cupertino firm seems to think users wouldn't appreciate the chance
to take a glance at the screen and know who that missed call was from,
see what the temperature is outside or simply attach a contact as an
icon for quick access. It's also extremely frustrating to not at
least have the option to have the icons auto-arrange still. When you
delete an app all the others don't automatically line up to fill the
space, which hurts the OCD nature in many of us. We get that Apple knows some people want to keep icons in familiar places, but the auto-arrange option should be there. But
let's talk hardware here: the A6 chip on offer in the iPhone 5 may only
be dual core, but it's certainly ridiculously snappy. It's meant to be
much faster than the A5 chip powering the iPhone 4S, and in practice it
really is, with GeekBench telling us than the clock speed is 1.05GHz on
each core. It manages to nab a score of around 1450 on GeekBench,
which is over twice as fast as the iPhone 4S - impressive given they're
both dual core phones. And that's the beauty of Apple's iPhone
strategy, and one that pays dividends for users: it doesn't play the
numbers game, as it will only end in criticism. Sure, a quad core CPU
would have been a good marketing tool, but at the expense of battery
life and design Apple knows that consumers will get an equally great
experience with just the two cores.
We
didn't notice anything approaching lag during our time with the iPhone
5, with everything snapping back and forth with the kind of speeds we'd
hope to see. Holding down the home key to access Siri was instant every
time, and double tapping to bring up the list of apps running was
equally fast. This may all sound obvious, but some smartphones
will introduce some delay into oft-used tasks, where the iPhone was
happy to keep chugging along with no problems. There was one
issue we encountered during an iCloud backup to bring all the apps and
settings from our previous phone, and that was during the repopulation
some apps wouldn't delete, and would sit there installing forever until
the phone was forced into a restart. This was irritating as it
stopped other apps from downloading at the same time, meaning we had to
keep turning the blasted thing on and off again just to actually get all
the apps we wanted on it. There are those that have criticised
the 'multi-tasking' window in the iOS system, stating that it's not true
multi-tasking... which is true. But try keeping all those apps
running at once and using the phone for more than half a day, and you'll
realise that Apple's strategy of putting some apps in stasis or
shutting them down (but still showing them as recently used for easy
access) is a good move on the whole. We do wish more apps were
able to run in the background (Skype would be a great start, as would
many social networks) but on the whole we're fans of battery life, and
there's every chance Apple will refine the process in the future.
Calling and contacts :
There have been a few
criticisms levelled at the iPhone over the years, and one of the main
ones has been its slightly poor performance as an actual phone. Be it
dropped signal, failing calls or general battery-sucking from the act of
chatting wirelessly, Apple has had to deal with a lot. However, after the iPhone 4
it appears to have got its act together, and the calling experience is
an altogether improved experience again with the iPhone 5.
Contacts :
We'll
start in the usual place: how easy is it to keep an eye on all the
people you talk to on a regular basis? Well, Apple has always been
pretty poor in this area compared to the likes of Android and Windows
Phone, thanks to the total lack of social networking integration on
offer.
Before
we get into that, we'll mention the standard Contacts app view, and we
call it standard because it's not changed much at all over time. The
layout is neat, if uninspiring, but at least it's easy to find the
people you want thanks to the scrollable list of letters on the
right-hand side, which is one of most fluid around. However, with
the addition of Facebook into the ecosystem, the options on offer have
changed somewhat, allowing you to link your Facebook friends in with
your contact list. It's very much a sub-par experience though, with the
only positive thing we can say about it being that at least it's a step
in the right direction. For a start, it's not always clear how you
even get your Facebook contacts in the list, with users needing to
install the app and then activating the contacts in the settings menu. Once
that's done, you've got all your friends lumped into your Contacts
list, with no filter on offer between those with phone numbers and those
that are just people you've met on the street and decided to add as a
friend. You can switch it off in the groups, but then you can't
join contacts together, meaning you have to put up with reams of names
until you've gone through the highly laborious process of editing each
contact to link them together.
Compare
this to the psychic ability to help you with this from Android and
Windows Phone, and you can see why Apple falls so far short. Each
contact card doesn't add much more than a list of details you can tag to
help contact people - that's all well and good, but things like message
history or albums would be nice too. However, given most other
manufacturers are starting to eschew such functionality in favour of
pointing you to the specific apps, we can't say it's a terrible system. Adding
contacts is easy enough - either open the app and tap the plus sign, or
add a number directly from the dial pad. All easy, all very 2010,
nothing to really complain about.
Calling :
The call quality
on offer is much better though, with the three microphone system Apple
has put together (on on the bottom, one on the back and one invisible
one near the top) making call quality for the person you're phoning
amazing. We spoke to a few people on windy day next to a busy
road and were easily able to hold a conversation, thanks to Apple's
sound processing algorithms. Users don't want to know how it works, they
want to know that it just does, and for a company that's been
criticised in this area before, it's a strong refinement.
The
call connection quality is excellent as well, with not one case of
dropped calls being recorded during our trial (using a Vodafone SIM). In
fairness, we rarely see this from any smartphone any more, let alone
the premium models, but it's good to see there's no sign of history
repeating itself for Apple. And one other thing we feel duty-bound
to mention, despite the fact it makes us look like little girls: the
edge of the iPhone 5 is relatively sharp when pressed to the ear, so
pushing it in harder to the head in noisy environments was quite
unpleasant. But while the calling experience is good (in audio
terms), the actual method of finding the people to speak to isn't the
greatest. For instance, there's no smart dialling to call up
people via their name on the keypad, which is a really useful feature on
Android phones for instance. And this is another area where the Samsung Galaxy S3
really takes the medal, as once you've finished a call or found there's
no answer, the option to call again or send a message is quickly and
easily offered up at the bottom of the call. Essentially where it
takes around 20 taps on an iPhone to call, get no answer and send a
message, you can do the same thing on a Galaxy S3 in around a quarter of
the time - and that's without the clever 'slide to call/text' method
employed by the Korean brand. We can see Apple making big gains in
this unloved area in the future, but given the strength of the
competition at the moment it's not something users should have to put up
with right now.
FaceTime :
FaceTime is predictably back on
the iPhone 5, and it's better than ever. Whether it was Apple's
insistence on the video calling functionality or the fact it's now
available over 3G, 4G and Wi-Fi, which are all more prevalent these
days.
While
the UK is without 4G at the moment, it's a great option for those in
the US and other territories... although make sure you've got a data
plan that can handle carrying HD video over the airwaves. Yes,
that's right - it's HD now, thanks to the improved front-facing iSight
camera. In a side by side test with the iPhone 4S, the quality was
noticeably smoother and clearer on the iPhone 5, and the speaker is
enhanced too, making it very easy to hold a conversation with your
family when holed up in a hotel room in Seoul or New York. That's
where FaceTime is making the biggest gains - talking to your loved ones.
With the proliferation of latter-day iPhones, more people have access
to the service, and there's also the option to switch to the rear camera
and have a look at the world behind. It's all very easy to do,
doesn't cost anything (over Wi-Fi at least; a number of carriers are
charging for the privilege over their cellular networks) and, colour us
surprised, seems to be actually used these days.
Messaging :
While the iPhone may
not have been much use in the calling arena, when it comes to messaging
Apple has turned the wick up once again with the iPhone 5. Not
only does the larger screen give you more room to fire out missives, it
also allows more ways of letting people know what you're thinking.
Text messaging :
The
SMS is still the most popular way on the planet to keep in contact with
people, and while it's limited in functionality, it's still a simple
method to use.
Apple's
system is still the same as it always was here, with the messaging app
giving you the option to send a simple text or chuck a picture across
the airwaves to your friends. The interface is tidy, still works as
expected and you've got the ability to see 2-3 more messages on the
elongated screen. Apple's iMessage functionality is embedded too,
which is great for those people that are also using an iPhone. This
means free communication between friends, and is Apple's continued
efforts to entice teenagers on board. We can't see it being much
use at the iPhone 5 level, as it's basically a way to save money on text
messaging (and see when people are typing) - and given the sky high
cost of the flagship handset, this won't be something you can save up
your pocket money for. It's also good if you're the sort of person
that likes to communicate across iPad, Mac and iPod touch, as all are
included in the iMessage system... and it's free. Whoop.
Email :
Right from the outset Apple has had a strong focus on email, and that continues with the iPhone 5.
Where
the contacts menu is poor, the emailing system is only bested by a few
options (the HTC Sense method and the Windows Phone mail apps spring to
mind). But there's something excellent about the simplicity Apple
has employed for its system - there's an integrated inbox for all your
accounts, and this has been joined by the VIP option, giving you the
chance to select the people you really care about and have them easier
to see when they message you. The inbox itself is a simple and
efficient affair, with none of the fancy options available on other
larger phones, such as heading into landscape mode to see a list of
messages and previews. This option is available on the iPad, but Apple
has rightly seen that the 4-inch screen is too small for such a trick. Everything
from being able to bulk delete emails with a swift touch to swiping to
get rid of single messages oozes quality, and for those that use the
iPhone for business, the simple folder structure and server searching
are godsends. This is an area that doesn't need luxury, it needs presentable efficiency, and Apple has still got that in spades. One
cool addition we do like is the goo-like update icon that appears when
you go to refresh emails - another example of Apple's attention to UI
detail throughout the phone, and something we found ourselves playing
with every time we entered our inbox, just for the fun of it.
Social networking :
With
the announcement of the tie-in with Facebook for iOS 6, we had high
hopes for the integration of the service within the phone. And while
there's the option to download FB Messenger as a standalone app, you
can't see your friends' messages from your iPhone inbox, or on their
contact page. In fact, when it comes to this social networking
integration there's very little full stop, apart from being able to post
from Twitter or Facebook from the notification bar.
We're
sure those services are happy to have a constant link to users through
the Apple fan base, but it could be so much more with integrated inboxes
and being able to link a Twitter account to the Contacts app as well. We
know you can more easily post pictures and videos to Facebook thanks to
the new tie-in, but we hope to see more from this in the future.
Keyboard :
With
great size comes greater keyboard manipulation, but as Apple has only
pushed the size of the screen up, rather than outwards, there's no more
room on the portrait offering, so if you thought the iPhone 4S and back
was cramped, you're not going to be that impressed with the iPhone 5. It's not a bad keyboard; in fact, it's got a greater range of accuracy than many other phones of its size. But if you're moving here from something like an HTC Desire or Samsung Galaxy S2,
be prepared for a transition period where you wonder in the touchscreen
is slightly broken and you can't tap out all the letters in your name
easily. The autocorrect is pretty good, but not in the same league
as something like Swiftkey, which uses algorithms to predict your
typing style and likely next word - we were still able to knock out
messages up to 30% faster on the Galaxy S3 over the iPhone 5 thanks to the predictive option. In
landscape mode the iPhone 5 is better though, although the larger
screen makes it slightly harder to reach the middle letters at times.
It's
not bad at all, and with a degree of practice those that love talking
with both hands will appreciate the more spaced-out letters.
Internet :
Safari, the default
internet browser on offer with the iPhone 5, has long been held up as
one of the leaders in the mobile internet browsing game. It's slick,
fast and makes it simple to check out web pages on the go. The
competition has caught up in recent years, and some might say surpassed
it, but for those that are jacked into the Apple ecosystem it's an
excellent option, and with the iPhone 5 it's been improved again. The first thing you'll notice is the speed - it's much faster that the iPhone 4S
without doubt. In side by side tests TechRadar loaded at least 0.5s
faster over every connection, with the full page displaying in a very
impressive amount of loading time. We compared it to the 1GB of RAM, quad-cored Samsung Galaxy S3 and while the larger phone was a touch quicker at bringing up the words, the iPhone 5 was the quickest to finish loading. In
short, both of these phones can pretty much display the bits of
information as soon as your internet connection can pour them in, and
that's as much as we can ask from these handsets. We sadly can't check out the 4G speeds on offer in the UK, which is one of the big selling points of the iPhone 5. It's
worth noting that just because you've got the iPhone 5 doesn't mean
you'll be able to connect to the 4G networks being deployed over the
next 12 months by all the major networks, as they'll run on slightly
different frequencies... so check with your helpful shop assistant
before purchase. You can see our more detailed section on the 4G capabilities of the iPhone 5 later in the review too. The
Retina Display, with the extra space on offer from the larger screen,
is an excellent way to browse the internet and now gives more
information than ever before.
It's not got the sheer expanse of the HTC One X, Samsung Galaxy S3 and Nokia Lumia 920, but it doesn't feel cramped and text is sharp enough to be legible zoomed out, although you'll need to have good eyesight. The
iPhone 5's zoom system works in two ways: double tap to make the text
fit the screen or manually pinch the display to choose the level of
enlargement. This is also improved, speed-wise, with the addition
of Apple's new A6 chip, and brings the flagship iPhone up to the mark
set by the current quad-core brigade. So as you can tell,
generally navigating around the web with the iPhone is a very pleasant
experience indeed, being slick, fast and legible most of the time. And
we'll have to once again tip our hat to Apple when it comes to online
video: the company refused to bow to Flash video when the world (us
included) berated it for not going down the route. Now Flash on the
mobile is virtually dead, and the H.264 format championed by Apple is
becoming widespread, and is creating a better online video watching
experience. And for those that are still all about the words on
the net, there's the Reader mode from the Safari browser in full
effect, allowing you to scrap the ads and unwanted pictures in favour of
just the words, which makes longer articles (like this one) more
palatable on the go. New to the iPhone 5 (through iOS 6) is the
addition of the Read Later functionality - simply tag any page and you
can get your hands on it offline once it's been saved, and you can even
see it in Reader mode too. However, it takes a jolly long time to
actually stream some pages down, which is surprising given they're
already loaded when you tag them for offline use. Another new
feature is iCloud Tabs, which allows you to see web pages you've browsed
on your desktop or iPad through the Safari browser. It's similar
to the functionality offered by Chrome from Google, and works equally
as well, especially in terms of the URL bar guessing which website you
want to view. If we had a criticism (well, we have a couple) it's
the fact that the URL and search bars remain too small, making it hard
to activate them when you want to search or enter a new web address. And
the lack of text-reflow - where you can set the size of the letters
you're reading, prevalent through many Android phones - is still not
here. We're
generally fans of the Safari browser, but it's not the best out there,
as the Android stock browser is far more feature rich now it's moved to
Ice Cream Sandwich. Simple things like having a contextual menu
and the ability to switch to Desktop view are really useful when you
don't want to mess around with mobile optimised sites, and we'd hoped
Apple would have offered the same thing. However, there are other
browsers such as Chrome and Firefox on the App Store now which add even
greater functionality to proceedings, and we urge you to try them out
too as you might find a few features you hadn't seen before. Camera : The iPhone 5 camera might not look materially different to that found on the iPhone 4S, and in truth it is very similar. But
then again, when you're winning plaudits across the board for your
smartphone photography, stepping things up in terms of specs isn't
really a priority for Apple. Just because the specs are the same,
doesn't mean there aren't new features. The two biggest differences are
the fact the iPhone 5 can take photos 40% faster than its predecessor
and the new dynamic low-light mode reduces the pixel count but improves
darker images dramatically. On top of that we've got new elements
like a sapphire crystal lens to allow in more light and an improved
filter to increase the natural colours.
What
we don't have is a whole load of effects and settings to play with, and
this is both the strength and weakness of the iPhone 5. While some will
see the lack of burst mode, lighting levels and sharpness alteration as
a weakness, others will look at the options to add a grid or turn on
HDR and see all they need from a camera phone. And in truth, it's
the latter camp that makes the most sense, as the iPhone 5 will offer
great quality snaps on auto mode time and again. The low light mode
works very well, and while the pictures can look a little grainy the
general effect is very impressive. Some may question whether the cool features seen on the HTC One X and Samsung Galaxy S3
should have made it onto the iPhone – namely burst mode to capture
shots in quick succession. They probably should have, given the speeds
on offer from the camera, and given the processing power would have
looked pretty good too. And there's also a new feature in the
shape of Panorama mode – this is one of those times where Apple brings
out a new feature and some fans laud it as the greatest invention yet
when in truth it's been on other phones for years and years. And
yet, Apple has somehow worked out the kinks in the system. For one, you
take the panoramas in portrait mode which leads to a taller (if less
expansive) end image, which is stitched together with such accuracy
we're not sure that the dark arts aren't involved. It's a 28MP
image that comes out at the end and the iPhone 5 stitches it all
together as you go, which is incredibly effective and speedy, so you're
ready to snap as soon as the photography is done. Add to that the
fact the shutter button is larger, and you can see that the ease of use
has increased on this already simple interface. And don't forget you can
use the volume down key to take photos… although in practice this did
sometimes lead to camera jiggle with the force required to take the
photo if the phone is held the wrong way up. If you're in a hurry
you can activate the camera from the lock screen too, which is one of
the fastest ways on any smartphone to go from locked to snap, as long as
you know the motions needed to fire up the camera (a quick swipe up on
the camera icon, if you're wondering). There are other features
involved that help maintain photo quality too, as was seen on the iPhone
4S: long pressing the screen will lock the exposure, so while the
iPhone 5 will usually change the exposure levels depending on the scene,
if you want it to stay at a certain level this will achieve it. It's
also excellent at face tracking too, so should you want to focus in on
gurning friends then it'll pick them all up with no issue.
Media :
Apple has based its
whole iPhone ideal on the success of the iPod, deciding it wanted to
make inroads into that areas while combining it with the power of the
phone at the same time all the way back in 2007.
To
that end, music has always been at the heart of most iPhone design, and
it's still good these days. It's actually changed remarkably little in
terms of interface, and while that might be a criticism to some parts of
the platform, in this case it's actually rather good. There's
also a strong emphasis on video too, which is again relatively
unchanged... although we'd like to see that updated in all honestly to
incorporate some more advanced features.
Music "
Audio-wise,
the iPhone 5 is close to the best out there. Sound is rich and
balanced, and the overall effect is clean, easy to listen to and isn't
muddied by any emphasis on certain areas of the hearing spectrum. You
can access the player in a variety of ways, from the Music app on the
home screen (traditionally in the dock at the bottom) to double tapping
the home button and swiping right. And if you're on the lock screen, a double tap will also call up the music player, as well as showing album art on the screen. Navigation
through your tracks is pretty darn easy too - you've got very few
buttons to mess around with on the player, with the little slider
buttons coming with a very 'Apple-esque' reflection that moves as you
tilt the phone.
We
suggest you keep this trick hidden to those that mock iPhone owners as
it will be like gold dust to them. We can just hear it now: 'Look at the
shiny reflecting thing when I tilt my phone!' 'Yeah, but it can't make
PHONE CALLS, can it? Hur hur derp' 'You've always hated me Andy, haven't
you?' There's the familiar Cover Flow option too should you
decide to turn the phone sideways, but it's curiously got a slight
judder to it that we haven't seen before. That aside, it's a joy to jump
through tracks, and tapping on any album will show the track listing. We
do wish that you could long-press on tracks to add them to a playlist,
or were able to swipe on the song cover art in the main player to change
tracks - these are areas where iOS 6 is starting to show its age. There
are a number of extra services accessed through the Settings app (don't
get us started again) and these include shake to shuffle (turn it off
straight away if you ever walk and listen to music) and the more useful
EQ and Sound Check settings to improve the quality of your audio... and
it really works too. We also like the efforts made to protect you
hearing, with the option to limit you volume level to EU standards and
the fact the on screen volume control will start to turn red when it
gets too loud... after that, you're choosing to damage your ears. Overall
the iPhone 5 music player is a very, very good music player that
doesn't add any bells or whistles to a competent package.
iTunes Match :
Apple
is also chucking in iTunes Match to give you access to your library on
the go... well, we say chucking in, but you have to pay £21.99 for the
year to do so. It will take your existing library, scan it, and improve
the quality and make it available to stream wherever you are.
It's
not a new service, but it helps those limited to the 16GB version, and
don't want to fork out for the 32GB or 64GB versions. While we're on the subject, can someone explain why it costs £100 extra to get a larger capacity of flash drive on a iPhone 5? Given
a microSD card (which obviously can't be inserted into the iPhone 5) is
a fraction of that cost, how can Apple get away with charging that much
more to be able to store more apps and movies on a phone? We get that consumers don't always need expandable storage, but to charge such a premium is a little harsh.
Video :
With
greater size comes... wait, we've made that 'joke' already. There's a
larger screen on the iPhone 5, thus movies look better. That's that
covered.
We
jest again. The larger screen is a great thing for watching movies
compared to the iPhone 4S, as it allows you to see 16:9 videos the way
they were supposed to be viewed. It still puts black lines above
and below the 21:9 movies, but this is common across most smartphones,
and it's at least better than the ludicrously thin options seen on the
4S and older. MP4 and mkv files seem to be the order of the day
here, so if you want to watch something else you'll need to download an
app like Cine X Player to achieve that - and it's not easy to load them
on. Sure, many films are already encoded in that format, but it doesn't
stop the closed nature being irritating. Given most other
smartphones are capable of at least playing an AVI file still, if not
Xvid or DivX, it's a shame Apple hasn't followed suit. However, if
you have got something you can watch, the experience is good. Well,
apart from the relatively poor positioning of the 3.5mm headphone jack
that is. Holding the phone in landscape mode as you must for a
movie session can get tiring, because you'll need to wrap your little
finger around the wire to get a comfortable watching position... we wish
it was moved inwards a few millimetres to help out. The screen quality is very good though, and HD movies in particular look sharp and detailed.
There's
an argument here about the difference in colour saturation levels
between the Super AMOLED options and the Retina Display, but it really
comes down to preference, as one will be oversaturated to one person,
where the other will look washed out to another. One problem we
did note was that the screen had to be held at a more rigid viewing
angle than the Galaxy S3 else the brightness went slightly awry. Not
massively so, but enough to irritate at times. As we mentioned
above, the video app could do with a little overhaul, as the large
thumbnail list can be a bit cumbersome to use at times. The S3 manages
to play back the movies in the thumbnails, making it very easy to see
what you're watching, which is really useful if you're trying to work
out which episode of a series you're watching next.
Gallery and Photostream :
Apple has always been about simplicity when it comes to viewing your photos, and the iPhone 5 is no exception. It's
a simple trip into the photos section to view your snaps (and videos,
confusingly) where you can pinch to zoom or create albums of your
favourite cat with ease.
There's
also the option to see geotagged photos on a map, which can really help
take away the post holiday blues when you can see all the fun you had
in hot climates...as long as you didn't go holidaying in Luton. Photostream
is also on offer, meaning any photo taken with a device logged into the
same Apple account will popular here instantly. It's a neat touch, but
something many might not understand unless they get others to show them
how to set it up properly.
Gaming :
Gaming on the iPhone 5
is more of a priority than ever, thanks to an enhanced graphics chip
compared to both the iPhone 4S and the new iPad 3 (well, it would need
to be an upgrade from the predecessor to handle the increase in pixels
at least). In practice it's easy to see why the iPhone 5 is a real
competitor to the handheld console market, as gameplay on even the most
intensive titles is fluid and responsive. You've got access to the accelerometer and gyroscope as before, and while these aren't new features it was on the iPhone 4
that we got our first taste of being able to whirl around a room and
shoot bad guys, so it offers a pleasant trip down memory lane. There's
a wealth of gaming content that's mostly inexpensively available on the
App Store, so we recommend you check it out no matter if you're a
seasoned gamer looking for the latest version of NOVA or someone that
likes to play New Star Soccer on the train.
At
the time of writing, nearly every game we tested wasn't optimised for
the larger 4-inch screen, so black bars top and bottom were employed. However
we can see a really great level of use from the developers with that
extra real estate... just think how much further you'll be able to fling
those birds now.
New earphones :
Apple's new EarPods made
(some) headlines when launched with the new iPhone 5 - Apple is claiming
they're designed 'from the sound up'. In reality they're nothing
more than a justified upgrade from the pitiful white options that have
been hanging around with the iPod and iPhone for years now.
You can read all about our in-depth findings with these buds in our Apple EarPods review, but they may stop some people upgrading to a better set of ear buds at least. The
new headphones are rounded and while won't be noise isolating (clearly
Apple's employees don't take a lot of trains, else this would have been
the first feature designed in) they are more connected to the ear canal. The sound is a little muddy and bass heavy, but again is a big improvement on the previous models. The
fit feels like it's going to fall out of your ears at any time, and if
you've got more 'expansive' ears, they certainly will. We tried
out some RHA MA450's with the iPhone 5 and instantly the sound quality
was much improved, and they only cost a fraction more than the £25 you'd
have to pay for the Apple offerings should you break them. Battery and 4G :
Apple took the
curious step of not really increasing the battery life on the iPhone 5
despite the faster chipset with LTE connectivity... but it seems that
the decision to wait a little while before bringing the 4G technology to
the phone has allowed it to optimise the power pack.
However,
it's not the stellar performance we've seen from other smartphones of
late. It's not terrible but it won't be lasting beyond late evening on
most days. We don't see this as a real problem in reality, as the
modern smartphone user should be ready to charge each night if they want
to keep chugging along every day. That said, during our tests we
twice managed to run the battery down by mid afternoon through general
testing: running turn-by-turn directions for 15 mins, watching a video,
talking on the phone for 20 mins and messing about on the internet for a
good hour or two. In the more lackadaisical days, we found it was
only getting to dangerous levels around 10PM - but we'll await the
findings of our more scientific battery tests to see how well or poorly
the phone performs in the power stakes.
4G :
4G is the new trick on offer from the iPhone 5 - but sadly in the UK won't be available for the near future.
There's
also an issue with the fact certain networks will be forced to work on
certain frequencies for 4G, so if you buy an iPhone 5 on O2 or Vodafone
now there's a good chance you won't ever get to use 4G speeds on it over
here. However, if you go with Orange or T-Mobile now, you'll be
able to migrate to the new 4G service later this year on the new EE
network when it launches. This will offer speeds of around 20Mbps on the go, which will outstrip even the more powerful Wi-Fi in many homes. We've
yet to see what the data plans will offer to give you access to the
likes of streaming services you can get on your phone, but at the very
least being able to browse the web without waiting is a real option now. And
in the meantime you've got some really fast network speeds on offer:
DC-HSPA means you'll be able to access 4G-lite speeds on the go
providing your network is capable of this... however, most are rolling
out the functionality over the coming months in the build up to 4G, so
you won't be too heavily handicapped by the lack of LTE if you're on one
of the unlucky networks. Of course, Apple could release network
specific phones for the 2.6GHz spectrum that O2 and Vodafone will use
for 4G, but we won't hold our breath.
Connections :
PC Connectivity :
Many
people have taken umbrage at the way they're supposed to get media on
and off their iPhone, and with probably just cause, as the experience is
far from ideal. iTunes is much improved over the past few years,
but that doesn't stop most people having to wait a few seconds just to
place some music on their phone.
The
annoying thing is the amount of syncing that happens when you plug your
iPhone into the PC or Mac, so we recommend you turn off automatic
syncing when you plug in the phone else you'll be waiting a few extra
minutes just to plop a film on there. That said, the speed with
which items transfer over is impressive given it's only USB 2.0 on
offer, with songs and movies zipping across far more quickly than an
Android phone using Windows Explorer to drag and drop. But given
the fact that you're so locked down in media choices as well as not
being able to just quickly chuck files onto the iPhone 5 without having
to go through the syncing palaver, it's not a great system still. At
least you can back up the phone wirelessly, meaning if it's plugged in
and connected to Wi-Fi (and your computer is on) you'll be able to keep
all your important messages, contacts and app data safe each night.
Connectivity :
The
iPhone 5 is one of the best stocked phones around when it comes to
connections, thanks to plonking all manner of options in there. We've
already talked through the likes of 4G and the slower 3G connection
speeds on offer, but there's plenty more to be impressed with too.
For
instance, Bluetooth 4.0 is included, which might sound like a faster
version of the wireless tech you've entertained for decades but is
actually a decent upgrade, allowing you to connect to low power devices
with ease. This means things like heart monitors or pressure sensors in
your shoes can be used, without needing to charge them every seven
seconds. We're already seeing a number of new technologies
designed to make use of BT 4.0, and Apple is likely to be a big pusher
of the technology as apps are developed around the ecosystem too. In
terms of mapping, it may not be all rosy on that front (we'll get to
that in a minute) but at least the connection speeds are strong, with
both GLONASS and aGPS supported on the phone. For the uninitiated,
GLONASS is a Russian system that rivals GPS, offering connection to
reams of other satellites, and is necessary if you want to ship your
smartphone into the country without a tax. It doesn't matter to
the consumer though, as they get easy access to satellites that mean a
stronger connection and one that finds you in less than three seconds in
most cases, which makes it a very useful tracking method. Wi-Fi is also well represented on the iPhone 5, with 802.11a/b/g/n all supported, as well as both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies. You
don't need to worry about what all this means other than to know that
nearly all router technologies are covered, and the dual-band
frequencies mean your other household devices are less likely to
interfere with the Wi-Fi connection. The Wi-Fi signal strength is
one of the most impressive we've seen on a smartphone - using the zone
in the office that has just an inkling of connectivity is a great place
to test any phone, and while the iPhone 5 did drop out on occasion, it
held up better than most.
iCloud :
Apple's cunningly-named
online cloud storage system is becoming more mature these days, and as
such is turning into a worthy addition to the Apple ecosystem. Once
signed up to an iCloud address, you can view your email on the server,
see calendars saved through the service or store all your contacts on
the iCloud for safekeeping.
There's
also the incredibly handy way of finding your iOS device by tracking it
on a map and causing it to emit a loud squeak so you can find it, or
have the thing erased wirelessly should a connection be present. And
for a fee you can also buy Pages from the App Store, which allows you
to collaborate on documents over the cloud with any iOS device plugged
in, all shared and saved instantly. In truth, the whole set up is a
less powerful but more easy to use and attractive system compared to
Google's offering. You can do all the above on an Android phone and
more, but it's in the ease of use that Apple wins. However, the online set up can be a little bit shoddy when it comes to speed of use - it froze over and over on us during use.
Passbook and Reminders :
Another
new feature is Passbook, which allows you to store loyalty cards and
boarding passes and sporting tickets and more in one handy app. Anyone
that's been running for the Gatwick Express and needed to find the
sodding code in an email is going to see this as a godsend, although at
the time of writing there were only a handful of airlines (which we
weren't flying with) and Hotels.com that offered Passbook-compatible
boarding or booking confirmation.
However,
in the future it's going to be a great service that knows where you are
and will pop up with the relevant ticket on the lock screen for real
ease of use. For all those that are lamenting the lack of NFC on
the iPhone 5, we hear you. We were really hoping Apple would embrace the
technology in the same way as Google and Microsoft have done in order
to really push the possibilities of contactless payments and services. However,
there's a fairly good case for the iPhone 5 not to have NFC on board,
as it's still a nascent technology and, while Apple is noted as having
an interest in the area, clearly doesn't deem it ready to the mainstream
at the moment. It's a shame as we'd love to see Airplay
connections through tapping a speaker dock or paying for a Subway
sandwich by tapping an iPhone on and getting loyalty points... but keep a
close eye on the iPhone 5S, as we think that's when Apple will launch
it. We wanted to talk about Reminders as well, as while it's an
excellent idea - being able to remind you to do things when entering a
certain zone or leaving the office - it doesn't always work in practice. We set up a series of reminders to be triggered on the way to
work, and very few activated within a few hundred metres of where we
wanted, which isn't really good enough. Siri and Maps :
Siri makes his/her way back onto the iPhone 5, and comes imbued with ever-greater powers too.
It's
also massively improved in terms of speech recognition, even picking
out our mumbly tones in order to set reminders, find out what the
football scores are or let us know what movies are showing nearby. There was a lot that the iPhone 4S version of Siri couldn't do in the UK, and that's all been rectified here. You
still can't book a restaurant through the power of your voice, but you
can at least learn which ones are near you. Siri did think KFC was a
fish and chip shop though....LOL WRONG OMFG whatever.
For the full run down on what Siri can now do, head on over to the Apple site
- but the football scores, movies, app launching (and any app) are all
excellent features that make using the phone in a car a real treat. We'd
say that Siri is a well thought out upgrade that means we'll now use it
for around four things once in a while rather than just setting a timer
to remind us when to stir the pasta.
Maps :
Ah, now... here
we go. We're sure a number of you have headed straight to this section
in order to find out what Apple has been up to with iOS Maps. Well,
in a nutshell, Apple and Google decided that Google Maps wasn't going
to be the main way of getting around on the iPhone, so Apple bought its
own little company and teamed with TomTom to allow turn by turn
directions, 3D flyover modes and the ability to see more attractions
near you at any time.
At least, that was the theory. In
practice, the internet sport of spotting mistakes on the new Maps app
has grown in an amazingly quick time, simply because there are so many
glitches in the software.
You'll
have probably heard about the publicised ones (spelling Doncaster
wrong, refusing to show Torquay, deciding when a user types in 'Luton'
they want the small village in Devon rather than the big city) but there
are more serious issues we have to deal with. For instance,
there's not public transport on offer here, meaning you'll have to
download a separate app to get on board a train at the right time or
work out whether taking the bus is faster from where you are. That's
something Google Maps on Android does very well indeed, and means we
want to berate Apple already for not having perfected its app before
launch. But we found a real time fault when using the iPhone 5 to
navigate around town. We asked for directions to Paddington Station, and
were told to go to Australia while standing in the middle of London. It's
not hard to type in 'London Paddington' instead, but what it did was
remove trust in the app to take us to the right places when asked. This
is a major failing for such a service, and Apple has asked for
'patience' as it perfects the art of mapping, with crowd-sourcing
helping to iron out these glitches. It's not as big a deal as some news
outlets are making out, but if you're a company that lives and dies by
consumer hype, then you need to aim for near-perfection before launch if
you want to avoid this kind of thing.
We've
no doubt that the problems will quickly and quietly get solved on the
server side of things – in the same way iPhone 4's suddenly stopped
having antenna issues – but it's not the greatest way to launch a new
pivotal app. But let's not be all about the problems - the navigational side of things is actually very good. Siri's
voice is clear, there are always a number of routes suggested, and it
will even run on the lock screen with the phone lighting up when you're
coming close to your next turn. The app is bright, colourful and
has loads of shops and restaurants listed throughout the world - it's
just a shame many of those shops are now shut down or in the wrong
place, so Apple needs to update its database pronto if it's to make Maps
into the awesome app it could be. Hands on gallery :
Hands On : Apple iPhone 5
Verdict :
Is the iPhone 5 a good phone? Of course it is… a smart evolution of a decent handset is always going to be a quality device. But is it enough to warrant the fervour of the claims of record sales and 'the best thing to happen to iPhone since iPhone'? To
some people it may seem like it's just the iPhone 4S with a longer
screen and some fancier earbuds… but to others it's more like the tweaks
they've been waiting for to finally warrant upgrading or moving to the
iSide.
So with the 4-inch screen, faster processor and all new design, is this the iPhone you've been searching for?
We liked :
It's
quite hard to dislike an iPhone, no matter whether you love or disdain
Apple's ethos. It's just so simple, with a quality screen and a real
effort made into the design. And it's fair to say, rather
obviously, that this is the best iPhone ever made. That doesn't mean
it's the best phone we've seen, but it's a jolly good effort. The
screen improvement is a real step forward, and the overall speed of the
device has been increased to a blistering speed that matches the best
the opposition has to offer. We love the two tone back, and the pigmented glass effect, although the chassis is a little sharp at the edges. The
web browser is as fast as anything we've seen too, as well as the audio
performance – and the larger screen makes video viewing better. There's
also the very good camera on offer, with speedy pics and great quality
of snaps… in short, there's not a lot we can fault on the specs, as
we're fine not having a quad core chip just for the sake of it.
We disliked :
The
iPhone 5 isn't without its faults though – it's a handset that suffers
from an ageing OS that doesn't look overly different from when it was
launched five and a half years ago. There are so many tweaks Apple
could make to its OS to turn it into more of a powerhouse – icons that
update with information, or extending the widgets in the notification
bar beyond weather and stocks. If only developers could add that
functionality to apps so you could see updates in the notifications bar
(seeing as it won't add anything to the home screen) – but Apple is
taking things very slowly on this front. The closed garden nature
of iOS is also irritating, as it means you can't share items to Dropbox
without connecting up to iTunes or send files to your mates via
Bluetooth. And then there's the lack of NFC, although we do see
Apple's reasons for omitting the technology. It's not quite there yet in
terms of market penetration for payments, but the world's largest
network of accessories could definitely have made use of it for making
ever cooler docks and cases. Finally, there's the everlasting
issue of the iPhone price. We simply cannot see how a 16GB model can
cost £529 / $199, but to double the memory will cost an extra £70/ $100
with not other changes to the design.
And
then your look at the contract price – it's far and away the most
expensive in the shop, and most of the time you don't even get unlimited
data. There are plenty of other models on the market that are the
equivalent of the iPhone 5, such as the Samsung Galaxy S3, HTC One X or
the forthcoming Nokia Lumia 920, and none approach the price of Apple's
flagship.
Verdict :
Is the iPhone 5 the best smartphone
ever? If you're an iPhone lover and won't ever leave, without question.
It's got a larger screen, a superb new design and generally all the
moves required to make it into a worthy evolution. But as ever we
can't get over the price of the iPhone 5, with very little reason to
prove that spending all that extra cash brings a tangible benefit. That
larger screen is a little too large to operate properly with one thumb,
so we think there was room to make the screen even bigger. If you've
played with a 4.5-inch or above phone, you'll get used to the greater
space very quickly, so we don't think the iPhone 5 has the optimum
screen. Ultimately, this is an iPhone that underwhelms in terms of
specs, but packages it all together in a way that works. The most
annoyance has come in the way that Apple hasn't re-invented anything,
even though we're struggling to think how it could. But that's
Apple's job, not ours. This is a company built on enchantment and magic
and excitement over raw spec lists - something like a Liquidmetal body
or separate screen on the back would have wowed over 'it's a bit
thinner'. In terms of our rating, we were torn between 4 and 4.5
stars, as the mixture of poor Maps, sky high price and aged OS is quite a
long way from five stars. If we could, we would award the new iPhone
4.25 stars out of five. The iPhone 5 is the phone that's the
minimum users would want in terms of an upgrade, and finding the balance
there is something Apple is more adept at than ever. It's a very, very
good phone, but there are plenty of other equivalent devices out there
that will suck much less cash from your bank account each month that we
think you should check out too.
