Tuesday, September 10, 2013

iPhone 5C, the C stands for China?

The news that everyone has been waiting for is out. Apple has put the iPhone 4 in the coffin while introducing a cheaper 5C into the fold. For nomadic road warriors, what does this all mean?

Apparently the term 'cheap' is subjective. Think for a moment about the price difference and you'd know what I mean. The 5C is priced at US$550 off contract while the 5S is priced at US$650 off contract. That is a meagre US$100 bucks off, which at that pricing is still a premium over in China.

Let's be clear on one thing, there are plenty of nice apps on the iPhone and Appstore but the iPhone's puny 4 inch screen is best used for entertainment, social networking, IM, and gaming. There is no real advantage over the previous model besides the high spec processor.

D'uh What are the Camera Specifications?

This is what we are waiting for. Now the 5S has a new camera sensor, which is 15 percent larger that the one found on the 5C even though it is rated at the same 8 megapixel. In my experience, BI sensors are good for noise reduction but does not offer greater dynamic range. This means that there will be a marginal upgrade of low light performance on the 5S. The 5C uses the same sensor as the iPhone 5.



I don't use flash often, nor do I care about BURST mode, which allows you take multiple frames in a burst. It is not a game changer for most photographers unless you're capturing baby photos. The highly anticipated 4K video capture did not materialize. Bummer!

  • iPhone 5S

  • 8 megapixels with 1.5µ pixels
  • Æ’/2.2 aperture
  • Sapphire crystal lens cover
  • True Tone flash
  • Backside illumination sensor
  • Five-element lens
  • Hybrid IR filter
  • Autofocus
  • Tap to focus
  • Face detection
  • Panorama
  • Burst mode
  • Photo geotagging
  • iPhone 5C

  • 8 megapixels
  • Æ’/2.4 aperture
  • Sapphire crystal lens cover
  • LED flash
  • Backside illumination sensor
  • Five-element lens
  • Hybrid IR filter
  • Autofocus
  • Tap to focus
  • Face detection
  • Panorama
  • -
  • Photo geotagging

Look What's Under the Hood, man!

A bigger battery. Now, I know this sounds silly but if you read the the spec from Apple, the battery life is exactly the SAME! 



I think what they meant is probably they manage to squeeze a few more minutes in the capacity so here are my doubts. 

A faster 64-bit A7 processor Dual Core processor for the 5S on the other hand is like owning a sports car, any thing that goes that fast is bound to guzzle more gas. The new battery isn't going to cut it unless you have virtually no other apps running in the background. So it can't be in the same league as the 5C. 

The screen size and density hasn't changed, so this is one bit of good news. I say this because a bigger high density displays drains battery power like an alcoholic at a booze convention. 

I think the 5C is way too expensive for it to be classified as a 'consumer' version. But I have always suspected that Apple would never compromise on the hardware price as they make the most money from it. Instead, the 5C is tailored for Chinese consumers, where China based carriers are more price sensitive. Right now, China is still a massive market while in the US, the demand has tapered off.

As a mobile tool, the iPhone is destined for social media stardom. Productivity wise, it's not going to be a great difference with the last model, so the new iPhone 5C could just be a 'C'am Whore's dream come true. 




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