Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

thenextweb.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 268 posts

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#61

Post by szx »

bornhuetter wrote: post #6
ollysb wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never understand why people use cases. What's the point in preserving something in mint condition if you never see it without the case?

Particularly the iPhone 4(s). It's got probably the best form factor of any phone ever made, but people put those massive black rubber things on them with a circle cut in the back to show the Apple logo. Absolute abomination.

Am I the only one who prefers the older (3GS) designs over the new ones (4+) in terms of ergonomics?

Sure, my 4S is beautiful, but it just doesn't feel right in my hand. Something about the aluminum/glass seam bothers me, and so I got a slim case and never looked back.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#62

Post by jdechko »

Alex3917 wrote: post #40

It's now been over three years since the 3GS was released, and there's essentially zero difference between the 3GS and the iPhone 5. I honestly don't see any point in upgrading unless I drop my current one, which isn't likely.

I don't see how you can say that there's no difference between the 3GS and the 5. As you said, there may be no compelling reason for you to upgrade, but to say that they are "the same" is simply untrue.

As a 4S user (having also owned the 3G and the 3GS), I'll admit that I wasn't blown away at all by the announcement, but I'll still pressure my wife into giving me her upgrade so I can get one. It's simply not possible for a company to completely revolutionize a market with every single device, especially on an annual release cycle. We were blown away by the iPhone in 2007 because the market was so different. But the market landscape has changed so much in the past 5 years that the kind of change we expect is just not possible.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#63

Post by JoelSutherland »

Alex3917 wrote: post #53
bornhuetter wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> there's essentially zero difference between the 3GS and the iPhone 5. Are you kidding? I'm no iOS fan, but I think that statement is a bit ridiculous.

The battery life is almost exactly the same. All of the most popular apps still run on the 3GS, and run well, with the exception of a half dozen or so. The internet browsing speed is effectively identical, regardless of whatever the specs claim. The new cameras are supposedly slightly better, but probably not enough to be noticeable unless you've got a highly trained eye. The only features that the new iPhones have a…

Here is a video comparing the 3gs to the 4s for internet browsing speed. The complicated sites are much different the simple sites are basically the same:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuSYkdyfuTA

I expected it to be more of a blowout on ALL sites. I can't tell if this proves you right or wrong.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#64

Post by freehunter »

Alex3917 wrote: post #53
bornhuetter wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> there's essentially zero difference between the 3GS and the iPhone 5. Are you kidding? I'm no iOS fan, but I think that statement is a bit ridiculous.

The battery life is almost exactly the same. All of the most popular apps still run on the 3GS, and run well, with the exception of a half dozen or so. The internet browsing speed is effectively identical, regardless of whatever the specs claim. The new cameras are supposedly slightly better, but probably not enough to be noticeable unless you've got a highly trained eye. The only features that the new iPhones have a…

The battery life is the same but the processor speeds are much different. That's huge! A faster processor and a bigger screen will draw more power, so the fact that the battery life is the same is impressive on it's own.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#65

Post by chc »

runjake wrote: post #48
benihana wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For most Americans, that is full cost for an iPhone. Even though it's technically the cost with a contract, I'd wager that 98% of all people who purchase iPhones purchase them subsidized by carriers with contracts.

So? What's your point? The alternative is you buy a Samsung android phone or whatever and break it and end up paying the actual cost, which is normally $499 on the low end to $649 for the latest flagship phones. A $199 replacement cost for a mistake I made sounds like a heck of a deal.

No, the alternative is you buy a $20 case so your phone doesn't get damaged by a four-foot drop. If you look four posts up, that was the topic of this thread.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#66

Post by gonzo »

ollysb wrote: post #3
raldi wrote: post #2

It seems like the people who say the "new" one is thinner, lighter, more elegant, etc, all have cases on their phones. So in essence, the case sets your phone back a generation or two.

I never understand why people use cases. What's the point in preserving something in mint condition if you never see it without the case?

My case lets me attach LEGO, and glows in the dark.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#67

Post by tobylane »

benihana wrote: post #24
TillE wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> at full cost Apple will actually send you a new/refurbished iPhone 4S for just $199, much much less than the cost of a new unlocked no-contract phone. You just mail in the broken one. http://support.apple.com/kb/index?page=servicefaq&geo=Un... I recently broke my iPad's screen (dropped it, completely smashed) and got a new one for about half the original price.

For most Americans, that is full cost for an iPhone. Even though it's technically the cost with a contract, I'd wager that 98% of all people who purchase iPhones purchase them subsidized by carriers with contracts.

That's annoying blindness.

I'm considering a contract that (for the 4S as the latest) is £900 in total, I'd happily go without a case and be prepared to pay £200 for a break.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#68

Post by Alex3917 »

rdl wrote: post #55
Alex3917 wrote: post #40

It's now been over three years since the 3GS was released, and there's essentially zero difference between the 3GS and the iPhone 5. I honestly don't see any point in upgrading unless I drop my current one, which isn't likely.

Absolutely true for the core "phone" functionality. 4S/5 are easy to justify from a security perspective, and the retina display on 4/4S/5 really is a huge improvement over the 3GS. LTE in the 5 also is a big win -- I'm going to try doing VoIP over LTE (G.722) so I don't have to play with Google Voice anymore. I am amazed that the 3GS supports iOS 6, though -- I wonder if it will support the next big iOS now that it'…

"LTE in the 5 also is a big win"

At least on AT&T it's only supported in a handful of random town in the middle of nowhere. Not only does it not work in NYC, there aren't even plans to get it working any time soon. By the time it's actually up and running with a reasonable amount of coverage the iPhone 6 will be out.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#70

Post by fendale »

ollysb wrote: post #56
josefresco wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The point in "preserving" your iPhone is so you don't have to purchase another one, at full cost if you accidentally drop it and it breaks. My slim case while more simple than most, has saved my iPhone countless times. I could care less if my phone gets dinged, or scratched a bit, but complete failure is an expensive fix.

I'll spare you the details but the only mishap I've had with an iphone ended, rather amusingly, with it swimming in the bottom of a toilet. After fishing it out (yes, it was a clean bowl) I vainly attempted to dry it in the Italian sun outside the villa I was staying in at the time. As you might have guessed the iphone did not make a full recovery, it was bricked. When I got back to London I took it into my local app…

I've heard a few stories (usually on the Macbreak weekly podcast, never from anyone I know) of people going into the Apple store with a broken screen while under warranty having the phone replaced for free. It seems they have some license to do a good dead or two for customers, but there isn't an official policy. I guess with such a high margin product, they can be flexible sometimes.
Post reply on HN