Our First Look at the iPhone 4S

by  Adam Turner  |  Friday 14 October 2011
First Look
Our First Look at the iPhone 4S
Rating
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With extra grunt, a spruced up camera and the ability to talk back, is the iPhone 4S a worthy heir to the iPhone throne? Read our first impressions.

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HTC One X (A-List Product)
Average time taken 7s
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HTC One X (A-List Product)
Average time taken 2203ms
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HTC One X (A-List Product)
21% remaining after 24 hours
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4868
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Comments: 9
Nato
14 October 2011
 Much better camera pictures. Great phone just like the 3gs but my concern now due to owning a 3gs is how is the battery going to go powering that new A5 chip but old 45nm manufacturing process (2008). Cause i loved the extra speed in the 3gs ban man, those 65nm chips before it became a soc in the A4 was and still is a power munching feind. Why they did not use 32nm tech i will never know since you could fit so many more chips on a single wafer by comparison. I like apple products but im not going down that road again, quite happy to wait and use iOS5 on my 3gs until a more power effecient chip presents itself. Like i said though, still a great phone.


Comment made about the PC & Tech Authority article:
Our First Look at the iPhone 4S?
With extra grunt, a spruced up camera and the ability to talk back, is the iPhone 4S a worthy heir to the iPhone throne? Read our first impressions.

What do you think? Join the discussion.
911TS
14 October 2011
 iOS5 is a huge disappointment.
Despite all the hype, the lock screen remains an utterly useless picture.
It looks like its back to alternative methods to make the device useful again.
My next phone will be either Android or Windows Phone 7.5.
This iPhone is the most infuriating piece of tech I have ever owned as has put me off Apple for life. Can't wait for my contract to expire.
photohounds
17 October 2011
 Image processing is clearly better and a better lebs is always too.

It uses a variation of shadow enhancement technology. You can do this with bibble gimp photoshop etc.,

It saves work if the camera does it, for the more serious, unprocessed files are the best to have so if it can be turned off you might consider that. Better yet get a real point and shoot if you know you need the extra IQ.
amcmo
17 October 2011
 911TS,

Strange, your experience seems to be at odds with every customer survey published.

Satisfaction levels above those of Andorid phones. More customers swapping from Android to iPhone than the other way round by a factor of 50%.

But then what would they know?

When I see supposed customers who go on about 'biggest piece of crap, toy compared to.., infuriating' I tend to see someone who either has an agenda (fanboy for the other side) or is incompetent with tech.

Every review thus far rates the phone as on par with the Galaxy 2S, screen size apart. I intend to try them both side by side now that we have a staff member with a 4S purchased Friday, and the accountant with a G2S. Will be interesting to see if your 'unbiased' assessment is anywhere near the mark.

Nato,

The reason for the 45Nm is that is the process Samsung run for Apple. I believe at the time they didn't have a smaller one for ARM processors. Reviews give it slightly longer talk time than the old 4, at over a full day.

TSMC will be making the A6 next year on a much smaller process which will make the 4 core a lower power device than the current A5 2 core.

Edit - took a while to find it. TSMC should be a 28Nm 3D process. Much smaller die and greater power efficiency.


Edited by amcmo: 17/10/2011 03:58:53 PM
photohounds
23 October 2011
 It seems nice, but still encumbered with the locked down "ecosystem". You know, the one where apps are supposedly "security tested".

Really?
http://blogs.computerworld.com/19139/iphone_app_spyware_shocking_enterprise_risks

Summary:
Enterprises using iPhones and iPads need to be concerned about the possibilities of data leakage and regulatory non-compliance ...

Australian software architect Troy Hunt is the latest blogger to point out that apparently-legitimate iOS apps are spying on us.
Of course, these are apps that are downloaded from Apple's supposedly-secure and carefully-curated App Store.
They're sending back detailed information about actions in applications, including the unique device ID and often the location.


That's malware just as it exists in the "unsafe" ecosystem ... want YOUR corporate data given away by iphones and ipads?

That's easy! Just blindly and fanboyishly trust that the apps are "secure"?
The post and research it points to seem to indicate that no matter WHAT you buy, you need to carefully vet what may be installed on these devices.

Android facilitates writing and installation of software that regularly sweep for known offenders and deletes them from the device.
To guard against users deleting your app because it "interferes", you'd need to get your corporate network to scan for the existence of the app and run it before connecting.
Better yet (slower, more secure) turn on wifi when in range, reinstall from the corporate repository and run it before allowing it to connect to the company network.

No compliance, no connect - it's YOUR data after all.

With all this spying going on, it's little wonder that phones sometimes unexplainedly eat batteries and slow down (all brands).
amcmo
23 October 2011
 This same code is present in some Android and Blackberry programs according to the article, so this is an issue that effects all smartphones, not just IOS.

That the data is collected is worrying to say the least, and will be the subject of discussion, however it is a whole different work from the criminal malware becoming more prevalent in the Android eco. That, to date HAS been blocked from the Apple App store.
photohounds
5 December 2011
 Just had another look at my Sammy phone and tried sich a shot ( similar flowers, sunlight and shade). To my surprise, the result looks a lot closer to the 4S than to the 4. Quite good for a phone - also means it was way ahead of the 'old' iphone in late 2009.

Nice surprise.

I know, I know, in three to five years time these things will all be as good as a real camera - maybe.
photohounds
5 December 2011
 The evil empire (that's anything non-apple) has copied apple's er... 'lead'.

Not in OZ, luckily - I hope the storm keeps it away - permanently!
ronju1
24 December 2011
 VirtualWorkforceAsia aims to bring together skilled and talented virtual workers from Asia, and employers from Australia and New Zealand, for the benefit of all parties.

Most virtual workers look to the USA and Canada for opportunities – often at great cost to their social and family life because they become night workers. Australia, and to a lesser extent, New Zealand are geographically AND chronologically Asian. This gives Asian virtual workers the option of working during their day so that they have time for family and friends!

Add to that the strength of the Australian economy – complete with a well documented skills shortage, and it is obvious that both workers and employers stand to gain by forging ties.
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