REVIEW: iPhone 5

review-iphone-5

I know this is a little bit late, but I am sure there are still people out there trying to decide which is better the iPhone 5 or the Samsung Galaxy S3. Well, we have both and over the next three days we will review each of them and then see how they stack up against each other with our iPhone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S3 Blog.

Today we are going to review the iPhone 5

Ever since the iPhone 3 I have had every iPhone except the 4S, and with every update there has been a slew of changes, this time it was no different. When I first took it out of the box I noticed immediately how light the thing was. Weighing in at 112g it’s one of the lightest phones on the market today. It’s weight combined with its super thin design (7.6 mm); you tend to forget it’s in your pocket a lot. It also fits very nicely in your hand.

The 5 is also Taller and less Wide, the screen size is an increase from 3.5 to 4 inches of display size.  Which visibly is the most noticeable change, the front camera is now centered instead of to the left too.

Next thing I noticed was the speed; after booting it up I got to experience that. The 5 has been upgraded to the A6 chip, Apple touts that this chip is twice as fast as its predecessor.  Apps boot up way faster and everything just seems a lot smoother.

 With the introduction of LTE technology, the 5 pushes up to 100 Mbps of download speeds.

Music has always been one of the core features of the iPhone, besides changing up the interface of the Music Player App; the biggest difference this time around is the earphones or “EarPods”. Here is how Apple describes them on their website:

“Apple EarPods are just the beginning of the improved audio experience on iPhone 5. It’s designed with three microphones: one on the front, one on the back and one on the bottom. The front and back mics work together to achieve beamforming — a technique that helps iPhone focus on sound from the desired location for clearer audio. New noise-cancelling technology reduces background noise. So when you hold iPhone up to your ear in a loud room, you hear what matters most: the voice on the other end.”

Putting them on feels pretty comfortable, and the sound is clear. Speaking through them is less problematic. Before I had to hold the mic up to my mouth with the previous headphones, but now I don’t have to at all. Although, I don’t talk on them that often, so you might want to form your own opinion on that.  I should also note that the headphone jack is now at the bottom of the phone instead of the top. Which takes a little bit of getting used to.

There is also the much talked about new connector. I really like it, it’s much easier to plug in and you can now plug it in both ways too; upside down or right side up.  So you can’t ever plug it in wrong. But yes very annoying that I have to get adapters now for all my docking stations and car…..luckily  I have my iPhone 3.

The Cons

The one major thing that bothers me is that the Battery Dies WAY too fast when it is linked to Bluetooth. With all the Driving and Talking on the phone laws being introduced, Bluetooth is going to be really important in the future. When the iPhone 5 is linked to the Bluetooth Hands free in my car, the battery takes a serious beating. What used to last me all day with my iPhone 4 I barely get half a days worth of Battery life this time around, being in sales this is really important to me, and I am sure a lot of business professionals will agree. Hopefully they will fix this sooner than later.

I read reports that the paint chips really fast (actually the first guy that told me this was a gas station attendant), I actually just dropped it today and I would have to say I concur. So all you clumsy people out there you might want to get a case for it. After a couple of weeks with the phone, I can see some scratches on the side of my phone and little chips.

Maps are terrible too but everyone should know that by now and not just a problem for the 5 but instead with iOS 6

Overall, I would say that the iPhone 5 is really well built.  I wouldn’t recommend the upgrade if you have a 4S or to some extent a 4, unless you want Siri. But if you’re due for an upgrade you are in for a real treat!

Did anybody else get the iPhone 5 upon release? If so what did you think? Feel free to comment below. Be sure to look out tomorrow for our review on the Samsung Galaxy S3.