Apple iPhone 5 - Say Hello to the Big 5

The New iPhone 5 Touches Down

It's almost become a ritual to see queues snaking out of certain stores at least once a year, a few weeks after Apple makes a big announcement about some newfangled iDevice. There's good reason for the hype (or rather, craziness of course) - the iPhones are certainly no pushovers in an increasingly Android-filled landscape, especially with their signature robust ecosystem, user-friendly and yet-lovely-to-look-at iOS operating system with a close eye on design details.

The new iPhone 5 is no exception to the rule and in fact, brings some more to the plate while retaining Apple's core experience - the latest OS version, iOS 6, LTE connectivity, larger screen with higher resolution, lighter and thinner body and a familiar, but still vastly appealing, industrial design. There's no question of a doubt, the current iPhone iteration is the crown jewel of all the existing versions so far but how does it stand in an ever-changing sea of technological advanced and frequent updates made by its competition? We'll get to those points soon enough.

The Feeling of Familiarity

When we first picked up the iPhone 5 without giving much thought, it was surprising for us to actually feel how light the iPhone 5 is as opposed to how much heavier it looks. Just moments prior to that, we were toying with an iPhone 4S and the magnitude of a shaved-off 28 grams was instantaneously felt. That's not the only upgrade of course. At first glance, the iPhone 5 comes across as merely an upsized iPhone 4/4S. But once you turn it on its sides or back, you can clearly see the visible changes.

That's not to say that the iPhone 5 comes with an entirely revamped design; in fact, Apple retained many things we liked on the iPhone 4/4S. The iPhone 5 still comes with classically-rounded edges and an aluminium/glass construct. The difference lays in the fact that the iPhone 5 comes with glass capping the top and bottom of a brushed aluminium back with both screen and back flushed (previously, both jutted out of the aluminium band on the iPhone 4/4S). The soft feel of the iPhone 5's back and its contoured edges makes for a comfortable grip; so on the handling end of things, we were pretty satisfied.

The new 19-pin "Lightning" connector gets a place at the bottom beside the newly-positioned 3.5mm audio jack. To be frank, apart from its extremely slim connection, it brings nothing new in terms of functionality at the moment and plenty of short-term anguish for those who have acquired a big pool of iPhone accessories over the years. To address the latter point, a Lightning to 30-pin adapter is sold separately, but whether your accessories have the leeway to accommodate the converter and phone successfully is a different question. On the positive side, you can insert the new Lightning plug either way and it will fit and work regardless.

On the onset, the iPhone 5 looks set to impress with its improved stats, premium finish and minimalist chic design - until the numerous accounts of chipping despite careful handling started appearing all over the internet. And these claims are not unfounded - the set we have at hand is brand-new and barely man-handled and yet, it already showed signs of wear and tear. Like everyone else, we're currently waiting for an official statement from Apple but this doesn't bode too well for the flagship device for now.

Same Old, Same iOS

Like iOS 5, Apple's major iOS 6 supposedly came with more than 200 new features, though as we all now know, not all features will be fully compatible with all supported devices. The number "200" might be misleading - not so much that it's untrue but rather, the impression that it will present to users of a radically different user experience, one that's possibly far off from iOS 5. Unfortunately, that's not the case.

Here's a quick list of the notable features to expect:

• Enhanced Siri features
• Facebook Integration
• Shared Photo Streams
• Chinese service integration
• VIP inbox
• Apple Maps app (3D mode called Flyover, turn-by-turn navigation)
• Passbook

In all honesty, the differences between iOS 6 and its predecessor aren't that obvious to most users. It is not a reinvented experience, but more like one that's constantly going through some tweaks and edits. Case in point: on the iOS 5, Apple had one standout feature that could change the iOS experience in a big way - Siri. On the iOS 6? It's a toss between Facebook integration and the new Maps app, which unfortunately seem trivial in this day and age with vast advancements made in the Android ecosystem. For Apple users, these features couldn't have come sooner to give iOS an improved standing.

Other small things users who have updated to iOS 6 should note is the removal of the native YouTube app. A good alternative would be to download Google's YouTube app from the App Store. Unfortunately, the app is currently available only for iPhone and iPod Touch devices. YouTube is still working on optimizing the app for iPad, which should be available in the coming months.

The Google Maps also has been replaced by Apple's own Maps app with a 3D mode called Flyover and a turn-by-turn navigation. A majority of users and online reviewers have decried the new app as a "downgrade". It's not entirely bad, but much work is required to make it more functional, say, Flyover doesn't show in Singapore; many transit and building details are nowhere to be seen. It might not the perfect substitute but in the meantime, users can rely on the Google Maps app (available from 13th Dec 2012 onwards) for their mapping needs. In the meantime, stay tuned to HardwareZone for a breakdown of the Apple Maps app once we've given it a more thorough run over the coming days.



For a good breakdown on what iOS 6 offers, check out our coverage here and here.

Performance

Apple hasn't always been one to harp about specs but for starters, it runs on a new A6 processor which the company described as being "twice as fast" as the last-gen A5 found in the 4S. Thankfully, Geekbench, a cross-platform processor benchmark available for Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, iOS, and Android, has helped solved the the mystery, identifying the device as a dual-core 1.0GHz processor paired with 1GB of RAM.

In comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S III comes with an in-house Exynos 4212 Quad quad-core processor clocked at 1.4GHz with 1GB of RAM; the HTC One XL with a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8960 dual-core 1.5GHz processor with 1GB of RAM and the Apple iPhone 4S with an A5 dual-core 1GHz processor with 512MB of RAM. Despite the vast differences in hardware platforms, we've yet to encounter applications that really appreciate the improved hardware and as such, we will be using the Geekbench results as a rough comparison of performance between the four devices. Note that this is just theoretical test of the hardware's capability and it won't matter to most users for some time to come.

GeekBench results do show that the iPhone 5 (with a score of 1649) performs more than twice as fast as the Apple iPhone 4S (with a score of 621). From our real-time observations, the iPhone 5 does feel faster than the iPhone 4S on the whole but not by a wide margin as suggested by the benchmark. We would like to remind you that that the iPhone 4S is already pretty snappy as it is, but we reckon the iPhone 5's A6 chip and 1GB of RAM would be put to better use as the quality of graphics in games gets better.



Results also indicate that the iPhone 5 scored slightly higher than the quad-core Galaxy S III and dual-core HTC One XL. We would like to point out that the differences in scores are marginal and fast performance has been ensured on across all three devices, regardless of their processors.



Benchmarking results aside, the Apple iPhone 5 ran extremely smoothly and had absolutely no problems rendering pages or running graphic-intensive apps, thanks to the powerful Apple A6 chip and 1GB RAM. The phone's lag-free performance, brisk day-to-day user experience and blazing fast web loading pretty much sealed the deal for us. Of course, do remember that Flash support is still forbidden territory on the iPhone 5.

Multimedia & Imaging Performance

It's common for a top-tier smartphone device to come with an 8-megapixel backside-illuminated (BSI) CMOS sensor these days, and it's the same with the iPhone 5. To further help users take better photos under low-light conditions, Apple has also outfitted the device with a f/2.4, 3mm lens. The new front-facing camera isn't a slouch either, allowing users to take 720p videos for quality FaceTiming.

Of course, aside from the improved iSight camera on the iPhone 5, Apple has also included the Panorama feature in iOS 6. Unfortunately, not all iOS devices will be granted the feature upon upgrade (check out our feature article here for app recommendations).

The iPhone 5 performed superbly in the camera department, producing photos of minimal noise, has high clarity and details, and true-to-life color reproduction. While the front-facing camera isn't as highly-equipped as the rear iSight camera, it is also capable of decent self-portraits (again better than the predecessor). The iPhone 5 is a fast shooter on both accounts, so there's definitely less chances of one missing a crucial shot.

 iPhone 5 vs iPhone 4S

Zooming into finer details of our test shot showed that details were still sharp and visible. The upgrade in camera performance between the iPhone 4S and 5 is not entirely significant, but we did notice a slight bump in clarity (photos were taken under the same lighting conditions). Otherwise, both devices are still very good point-and-shoot substitutes.

Of course, as one of the best camera-equipped smartphones in town, it is imperative that we compare it against other high-end smartphones in the market today. Below, we take a close look at the iPhone 5's performance alongside the Nokia 808 PureView, Samsung Galaxy S III and HTC One X/XL:

Nokia 808 PureView 41-megapixel camera
Samsung Galaxy S III 8-megapixel camera
HTC One X/XL 8-megapixel camera

The Nokia 808 PureView is the clear winner here, with the iPhone 5 coming at a close second in terms of noise control and details preservation. Colors are warmer on the photo taken by the iPhone 5, while we would say that the 808 PureView is closer to the Samsung Galaxy S III in terms of color production with a few exceptions: the former's colors are more saturated and contrasted than both the Galaxy S III and the iPhone 5. The HTC One X follows right after, exhibiting good detail and noise control even when cropped. The only downfall is in its over-greenish and cool color reproduction. On the other hand, the Galaxy S III is almost on par with the HTC One X, losing out in its detail and noise preservation.

As we all know, the biggest, or rather most obvious, upgrade on the iPhone 5 is undoubtedly its larger 4.0-inch screen with higher resolution (1136 x 640 pixels to be exact). iPhones have traditionally come with 3.5-inch screens and as you expect, this shakes things up a little especially considering the fact that phones are getting bigger by the day. Despite the "upsize", nothing much has changed in terms of usage really, well, other than the fact that users can now fit five rows of icons on each page and can now view more on a single screen, such as webpages. Otherwise, the iOS experience is pretty much left unchanged. Nonetheless, this is a welcome change on the whole of course - with the extra real estate, some apps do look and play easier.

While all Apple software and apps have been updated for the new screen size and resolution, more time will be required for third-party developers to update their apps accordingly.

Otherwise, the Retina Display on the iPhone 5 is a beauty to behold especially at the highest level of brightness. Text, icons and images on the iPhone 5 are crisp and sharp, with images exhibiting optimal levels of saturation and deep blacks. Apple has claimed that the iPhone 5's screen is not only thinner but also produces brighter colors and deeper blacks than the iPhone 4S, and it shows - in a subtle way. 

Battery Mileage

Using the same 480 x 800-pixel resolution video that we use across all our mobile device battery tests, we set the same test parameters which includes having the video looped under the following conditions:

• Brightness and volume at 100%
  
   
• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity turned on
  
   
• Constant data streaming through email and Twitter

As you can see from above, the iPhone 5 takes a slight dive in battery performance compared to its predecessor, the iPhone 4S. Otherwise, it still managed to get a decent up-time of 399 minutes, which translates to about seven hours of battery life in our strenuous test. This is more than likely due to the new phone's bigger 4.0-inch screen and its higher resolution at 1136 x 640 pixels. Still, we are willing to bet most would forgo an extra 22 minutes of battery time for a bigger screen.

The clear winner here is the Android 4.0 Samsung Galaxy S III with its 581 minutes of up-time. However, it is imperative to note that the device comes with a bigger 2100mAh battery capacity, the highest battery charge in this comparison, and is equipped with an AMOLED display. These displays are known to be more energy-optimized, which explains why it did so well using the latest iteration despite its huge 4.8-inch, 1280 x 720p screen. To add on, the Galaxy S III automatically conserves energy by disabling full brightness at about 20% to 15% of its remaining battery life. However, the other Android device included in the test, the HTC One XL (1800mAh), did not fare as well, trailing at the back with a short up-time of 322 minutes.

The portability ratio index (battery life divided by [weight x volume]) is where the iPhone 5 triumphs. Given its extremely lightweight 112g body, svelte dimensions (76.mm thinness) and above average battery up-time of 399 minutes, it ranked the highest in this comparison, with the Galaxy S III trailing just behind.



Overall, the iPhone 5 did well on a day-to-day basis even while running on LTE. The phone will be good to last for an entire day with a daily charge at night. If you would like to extend its battery life, you can switch on Auto-Brightness, or turn off LTE when you don't need speedy connectivity.

Conclusion

The iPhone 5 is, without a question, a popular phone with the mass market. And its popularity is not without good reasons - the sixth-gen device has quite a fair bit to offer, even with the Android juggernauts (you know what we are talking about) and Windows Phone 8 players thrown in as comparison. Of course, it is not one without flaws (is there EVER a flawless product?) but admittedly, it does come close to meeting a lot of people's expectations.



We'll start with its slick industrial design - not much to complain about in that area since the iPhone 5 does look the part of a very modern and fashionable phone. It is very thin and light plus it has a premium look - all of which are factors that play an integral part in customer buying decisions. The chipping issue is a small dent in its design but there's not much we can do about it till Apple issues an official statement. Most users would be pairing the device with a protective cover, so all the critical arguments of its build quality isn't that big of an issue - unless of course you've a habit of not donning your device with a protective case. Admittedly, the iPhone 5 does look too much like the iPhone 4/4S for our liking but why fumble with a design that has worked for Apple? We will come round to answering that question in a tiny bit. 

On the software side of things, iOS 6 might not be everyone's cup of tea but it does its job well enough. The iOS 6 doesn't change the iOS experience in a radical way but pushes a few refinements and tweaks that the iOS 5 very much needed - Facebook integration, FaceTime over Cellular, Siri upgrades, VIP inbox and so forth. There are also some additions that we find unnecessary and might very possibly be underutilized (Shared Photo Streams AND Passbook, anyone?). Otherwise, improvements are very incremental and chances are, you are looking at a very similar experience that was first presented on iOS 5. The Maps issue looks set to be a point of contention for some but there are ways to maneuver (no pun intended) around the problem for the time being until Apple gets around to fix it. We can bet this won't be ignored since it's a critical part of the usage experience and it's just a matter of time before it's resolved.

The iPhone is not all bark and no bite of course - the general speed and responsiveness of the iPhone 5 is extremely good. Apple's A6 processor and 1GB of RAM definitely delivers the goods on the iPhone 5, with the phone performing extremely snappy in our testing period. Apple has mentioned that the A6 chip performs twice as fast as the A5 chip in the iPhone 4S and benchmark results support their statement. We can certainly see that the Apple iPhone 5 is indeed snappier than the Apple 4S but not by a wide margin. Battery life wise, users are able to get at least a full day’s use of the phone even with heavy-to-moderate LTE usage and gaming.

Of course, there's also the bigger 4-inch screen. It is one of the best in the market, exhibiting crisp details, true blacks and superb viewing angles under sunlight. Last but not least, the icing on top of the cherry would be in its excellent and snappy 8-megapixel camera with a BIS CMOS sensor and f/2.4 lens.

So what's the question again - oh yes, why fumble with a design that has worked for Apple? That's probably the crux to why most users still stick to the iOS platform and why some are moving away from the classic but rather 'stale' operating system. While competitors like Android and Windows Phone 8 and their manufacturers are constantly evolving and changing the way people use their phones (Live Tiles? Pull-down actionable notifications? NFC photo sharing and payment?), Apple has somewhat reached a comfortable stalemate at this juncture - it's frankly quite unnerving to see the same or hardly-differentiating devices rehashed over and over every year. Yes, they might still be stellar products but it's certainly time for some much-needed innovation or perhaps, even a design revamp. Hopefully next year, we will see more of that in Apple's next iPhone iteration.

So who's the likely iPhone 5 buyer? In our opinion, anyone who wants a top notch cameraphone, ease of use and especially those holding on to iPhone 3GS or older devices. It's also comfortably sized to suit many users across a wide audience with varying hand/palm sizes, so the 4-inch screen might hit just the right sweet spot. The iPhone 5 is going at a suggested retail price of S$948 (16GB), S$1088 (32GB) and S$1,238 (64GB) - yes, it is on the pricier side of things, but when paired with the selected telco plans, the iPhone 5 becomes pretty affordable. 

• If you are looking to get an iPhone 5, do check out our price plan comparisons .
  
   
• For alternatives to the iPhone 5, check out our detailed article here. 
  
   
• Want more photos of the iPhone 5? Check out our previous hands-on article here and Facebook album here. 

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