The iPhone 3GS was first unleashed onto the mobile world in June 2009 and while it was only a marginal improvement over the iPhone 3G that it replaced, it was noticeably faster and more responsive. Even so, it’s a little funny looking back at those specs today. A single core 600MHz processor? Just a 3MP camera? A mere 320×480 pixel resolution? Yeah, that just won’t cut it these days.

When the iPhone 4S entered the fray last year, the 3GS became the free entry-level option and the iPhone 4 became the mid-tier option. With the iPhone 5 prepped and ready to headline the show starting next week, the iPhone 4S gets bumped to the mid-tier and the iPhone 4 is now the free-with-contract entry-level smartphone from Apple. The interesting thing is I hear iOS6 will be supported by the 3GS, so it’s not like the team in Cupertino has completely abandoned you.

Goodbye, iPhone 3GS. You had a pretty good run there. Now Apple can continue coasting as we await the inevitable arrival of the iPhone 5S next year.

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The Apple iPhone 5 is finally here, and yes, that’s the official name for the sixth-generation iPhone. Many of the rumors, such as larger screen, have now proved to be quite accurate it seems. The new phone is taller, has a new connector, a faster processor and LTE abilities. It looks rather impressive and is a major jump up from the existing iPhone 4S.

Here’s a quick run-down of the specs and new features, at least as far as we currently know:

• New A6 Processor: 2x faster CPU and 2x graphics from A5
• 18 percent thinner than 4S
• 112 grams and 7.6mm
• 20 percent lighter
• 1136×640 resolution
• 16:9 aspect ratio
• 44 percent more color saturation
• HSPA+, DC-HSDPA
• LTE
• Wi-Fi (2.4ghz and 5ghz on 802.11n)
• 44% better color saturation, full sRGB rendering
• new battery allows 8 hours of 3G or LTE talk, 10 hours wifi browsing
• Camera: 8MP sensor, 5-element lens and f/2.4 aperture
• new dynamic light mode
• New Shared Photo Streams- allows you to share photos with family/friends
• Panorama is official, creates 28 MP resulting image or so it claims
• Front camera is backside illuminated and does 720p
• FaceTime now allowed over cellular networks
• Three microphones in the iPhone 5, allows better voice recognition and noise reduction.
• New dock connector called “Lightning”, reversible and 80% smaller
• Adapters for older accessories will exist.
• The new iPhone 5 will be powered by iOS 6
• Older apps that don’t support new rez will use black boxes to center them.

There it is folks, the new brand new iPhone 5. Is it everything you’d hope it would be, as far as upgraded power is concerned? It might not be the ‘most powerful’ smartphone on the market, but it is a considerable upgrade from the 4S.

Where there any features you were hoping for that seem left out? The iPhone 5 will launch on September 21st in the US, Canada, UK, Germany, France, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

As for pricing? The iPhone 5 will cost $199 for the 16GB version, $299 for 32 and $399 for 64GB. For those looking for a bargain priced iPhone, the 4S will now cost just $99 with a two year contract. Want an even better price? The iPhone 4 can be yours for free with a two year contract.

The post Official Announcement: Introducing the iPhone 5 appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

There has been a lot of leaked information and there’s a good chance that most of it is bang-on. In fact, some people are saying that this is one of Apple’s worst-kept secrets of all-time.

For starters, it’s pretty well for certain that the iPhone 5 will have a larger display and it will most likely be the 3.9-incher that has everyone talking. It’ll be about the same width as the current 3.5-inch display, but it’ll be a little taller. This makes for a different aspect ratio, so app developers will have something new to contend with, but it also means that you’ll likely be able to fit another row of apps on your home screen.

Going through the rest of the specs, we’re expecting the smaller 9-pin dock connector, a thinner profile thanks to new display technology, better battery life, and finally the inclusion of 4G LTE like the newest iPad.

The new iPhone 5 will also come with the new iOS6 out of the box. There are improvements to Siri, heavier Facebook integration, Safari tweaks, an alternative to YouTube for video watching, a redesigned App Store, and more on the Passport e-wallet application.

[Source]

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The new iPhone is coming soon, or so we hope. One question you have to wonder though, will they be able to handle demand? A new report coming from Reuters gives us potentially bad news.

Sharp’s screen production is supposedly running behind schedule. This is just one of three display makers, but if one is behind- that could put everything behind. Sharp is struggling with low production yields, so says sources.

What we don’t know is how severe the supply limitations are, and whether this could truly affect launch of the new iPhone or not. Apple has struggled some in the past with getting enough product out into the hands of consumers, is a repeat move coming?

What do you think, if Sharp is behind could it mean limited initial supplies of the iPhone at launch? Of course it’s possible that the other two partners, Japan Display and LG Display Co, have been asked to step up their game to make up for Sharp falling behind. We’ll know soon enough.

[ source ]

The post New iPhone Screen Production Running Behind, History Repeating Itself? appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

While a September 12th iPhone event is supposedly in the works, Apple has remained quiet about anything possibly related to a new iPhone. That being said, actions often speak louder than words.

Apple has recently started offering users an option to recycle their iPhone 4S devices for up to $345 back in the form of an Apple Gift Card. Seems pretty odd of a move considering there is no Apple product above the 4S to upgrade to, right?

This is clearly a subtle hint that the iPhone 4S era is coming to a halt. So how do you get “up to” $345? That’s for the premium 74GB White iPhone 4S, with lower models like the Black 16GB fetching just $285.

While offering a recycling program is always considered a good idea, and an environmentally responsible one at that, the fact that the offer is for the iPhone 4S indicates that Apple is planning a replacement very soon. We know it, Apple knows we know it, now we just have to wait patiently for the official reveal.

Do you plan on trading in your iPhone 4S for the new iPhone?

[ source ]

The post Apple Adds iPhone 4S to its Recycling Program, Another Sign that New iPhone is Coming Soon appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

When it comes to upcoming products, few have more excitement or speculation surrounding them then the iPhone does. We’ve seen batteries, faceplates and just about everything imaginable for the new iPhone so far- yet here comes yet another leak, this time including what might be an NFC chip.

The photo above is from the same Photobucket account that originally leaked out the front casing pictures of the new iPhone, so if you believed that leak, this leak seems to be more than possible as well.

Apple is known to keep there upcoming products under pretty tight wraps until the very day of their announcement, but no matter how hard you try, there is always someone out there willing to break non-disclosure agreements to leak information about your goods to your eager fans, it seems.

How likely is it that NFC is coming? Considering iOS6 has a new feature called Passbook, I’d say it’s fairly likely. For those that don’t know, Passbook is designed to put all your passes in one place, such as tickets, coupons, boarding passes, and many more. The idea of NFC working with Passbook seems logical enough.

Is NFC one of the features you’ve been waiting for with the new iPhone? If not, what are the killer features you are really hoping to see in the next iPhone?

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The post New Photos Suggest NFC is On Its Way to the New iPhone appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

We figured that the next iPhone would be released some time in the fall, and then it looked like we narrowed it down to September. Now, there is further evidence that the iPhone 5 release date will be September, thanks to an employee announcement from Verizon Wireless. You see, they blacked out vacation requests for the period covering September 21 to September 30.

Normally, the reason why they would black out vacation requests is that they expect that period of time to be particularly busy. It’s not out of the ordinary to see blackout periods for Black Friday or for during the Christmas shopping season. So, why would they black out a little over a week toward the end of September? It has to be the new iPhone, right?

All staff at all of Verizon’s retail stores have been banned from taking vacation from September 21 to September 30, calling for “all hands on deck” during that time. Naturally, Verizon wants to make sure that their stores are suitably staffed for the onslaught of iFans wanting to get their hands on the newest iPhone. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if AT&T has launched similar efforts for the same time.

[Source]

The post Verizon Blackout Points Towards a Sept. 21 iPhone 5 Release Date appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

Want to preorder the new iPhone? You can! – if the idea of preordering something from a Chinese e-commerce site a month over more before its reveal doesn’t bother you. The site is called Taobao and has no real information offered on the new iPhone, instead taking preorders completely out of faith it seems. You can reserve your new iPhone (aka iPhone 5) for a deposit of 1,00 yaun, or $160, or you can flat out purchase the unit for 6,999 yuan, or $1,100. The sellers can’t promise a specific delivery time though, so yah, sounds extremely legit huh?

While I personally think it’s not a great idea to preorder something that has no real information or clear launch date, we do have a pretty good idea that the iPhone is coming in September. Amid all the dramatics of the upcoming launch, FBR Capital analyst Craig Berger predicts this next-gen iPhone will be the best-selling iPhone yet, with as many as 250 million units predicted to sell over its lifetime.

Considering the belief that China’s huge “China Mobile” network is rumored to finally be getting the iPhone when the new model launches, this large sales figure is actually quite believable. There is certainly a market for iPhones in China, as evidenced by this preorder offering and by the fact that “China Mobile” has about 1 million unofficial last-gen iPhones already running on its network.

Sources: ComputerWorld, AllThingsD

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This is completely in line with current rumors that point toward a September launch and it’s not uncommon for Apple to release a product within a couple of weeks of officially unveiling it to the world. What we’re hearing is that pre-orders on the so-called iPhone 5 (even if it’s technically the sixth-generation iPhone) will start on reveal day, September 12. Among the countries that are expected to be in the first wave of shipments are Canada, the United States, Japan and Germany, though none of that has been technically confirmed jsut yet.

In case you’ve been living under a rock, a lot of specs and features for the new iPhone have already been leaked. We’re expecting to see a display in the 4-inch range with a 640×1136 pixel resolution, a smaller 9-pin dock connector, a centered FaceTime camera, 4G LTE support, a thinner profile, and a two-toned unibody design. There’s probably a quad core Apple A6 processor in there too, possibly based on the Samsung Exynos chipset.

Of course, these are all just rumored specs for the time being and Tim Cook might have a few surprise tricks up his iSleeve.

[Source]

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We’ve seen quite a few ‘leaks’ of new iPhone parts lately, ranging from a unibody case to the new iPhone battery. This isn’t surprising, with an iPhone release event planned for September. Now we get another part leak, this time the new iPhone’s logicboard. Is it legit? It may be, but considering there is little labeling on the board, this is probably a prototype. The new motherboard/logicboard leak comes for a form poster who also posted pictures of the iPhone 4S back in August of 2011, months before the 4S. Considering this, there is a good chance that we are truly getting the first glimpse of the internal board of the new iPhone.

What can we learn from looking at the board? It seems the board points to a few things, such a 5-pin battery connector, versus the 4-pin model in the iPhone 4S. Other noticeable changes include more antenna connections, which alludes the fact that this may very well have LTE capabilities. Other changes in this board, versus previous iPhone devices, include what looks to possible be a smaller SIM card slot, likely for the nano-SIM format. The bad news is that the new iPhone processor doesn’t show up in the pictures, so we really can’t say anything about that.

From its LTE support to its new port connector and larger screen, there is plenty to get excited about in the new iPhone. What do you think of the rumored features coming to the iPhone?

[ source ]

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