# iphone 4S just announced **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 4, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595 "2011-10-04T19:31:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/1 "2011-10-04T19:31:21Z")
A bit underwhelming for me. I’ll probably end up buying a regular iphone 4 (which is now available at $549, down from something like $749 (unlocked). The most interesting thing to me was the Siri voice assistant. It actually seems to understand not just your words, but the meaning behind them. [Some pics I grabbed at the press conference.](http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2486865417771.244887.1436742603&l=2fd3c5fa24&type=1) I suspect camera nerds will be impressed as well, but I’m not sure exactly why since I’m not one 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/2 "2011-10-04T19:36:18Z")
For some reason, I feel like I would be more impressed if it was exactly the same thing, only called the iPhone 5. I recognize how irrational that is, but it’s still true. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/3 "2011-10-04T19:45:16Z")
Steve Jobs and Apple are masters at managing secrecy, but I think it backfired this time. Everyone was expecting the iPhone 5 and even if the new phone has all of the same features, people are still going to be disappointed. Patty, do you know the unlocked price for the iPhone 4s? I’m thinking about whether I should buy the new phone with a new two-year contract, or buy it unlocked. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/4 "2011-10-04T19:47:50Z")
They didn’t mention anything about an unlocked 4S, but it’s available on three carriers now - AT&T, Verizon and now Sprint. Oh, and IOS-5 had a lot of neat new features but I don’t think you need to upgrade the device to get them ('cept for the camera stuff of course). ---
**Author:** ![The\_Evil\_Prince\_Zorte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@The\_Evil\_Prince\_Zorte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Evil_Prince_Zorte)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/5 "2011-10-04T20:00:29Z")
I think it gets a little confusing about what are new features of iOS-5 and what is a feature of the new phone. Siri is apparently only available on the 4s, though there doesn’t seem to be a hardware based reason for that. It seems like they needed to find something that would be a feature improvement and not just a performance improvement. I would be tempted to upgrade for the quality of the camera. I use the phone to take photos and videos of the family more than the point and shoot since it is always there in my pocket, so I welcome any improvement there. The shortest possible time from OFF to first picture can be pretty important at times. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/6 "2011-10-04T20:04:53Z")
> [@The\_Evil\_Prince\_Zorte](#): > > The shortest possible time from OFF to first picture can be pretty important at times. Fat-fingering the passcode is what gets me every time. But I think I recall from the conference that camera is now available without having to enter the device unlock code now. There’s a camera icon just to the right of the unlock slider in IOS-5 now, so you can go straight to the camera. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/7 "2011-10-04T20:08:55Z")
> [@The\_Evil\_Prince\_Zorte](#): > > I would be tempted to upgrade for the quality of the camera. Thing is, will it actually be an improvement or is it just a “more megapixels” thing? If the lens is the same tiny little thing, packing more pixels onto the sensor is just going to create more noise. The iPhone 4 camera already has plenty of resolution for most purposes - the pixels aren’t the limiting factor in image quality. Hmm, OK on looking into it, Apple claim the sensor will gather 73% more light and has an f2.4 aperture. That’s a good thing that should help cut down on noise in low light. But everyone just jumps on the pixel count, as usual. Five megapixels is enough for anybody, unless you’re blowing up your prints to cover whole walls. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/8 "2011-10-04T20:18:15Z")
Yeah isn’t that great when somebody sends you an email with a 9.5 MB attachment that turns out to be a photograph of a bug taken from 12 feet away? :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/9 "2011-10-04T20:27:17Z")
BTW. why were you at the press conference? Do you work for Apple? Do you work for a media organization? ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/10 "2011-10-04T20:28:46Z")
Siri is cool but overall a pretty disappointing iPhone update. In terms of hardware the 4S is decent but still not quite as good as the Samsung Galaxy S2 which has been out for several months. And Samsung, HTC and others will probably take Android phones to a whole new level in the next few months starting with the Nexus Prime. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/11 "2011-10-04T20:31:30Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > BTW. why were you at the press conference? Do you work for Apple? Do you work for a media organization? I didn’t mean to imply that I was there. Those pics were screen shots from the streaming video feed. I guess that link should have said “some pics I grabbed [del]at[/del] _from_ the press conference”. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/12 "2011-10-04T20:35:39Z")
> [@JSexton](#): > > For some reason, I feel like I would be more impressed if it was exactly the same thing, only called the iPhone 5. I recognize how irrational that is, but it’s still true. My feelings exactly. I was looking forward to buying the 5. The 4S I’ll probably pass on. Illogical, but there it is. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/13 "2011-10-04T20:45:28Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > My feelings exactly. I was looking forward to buying the 5. The 4S I’ll probably pass on. Illogical, but there it is. But… but… 64 gigs! And a better camera! Plus, 64 gigs! ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/14 "2011-10-04T21:46:25Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > But… but… 64 gigs! And a better camera! Plus, 64 gigs! I’d be happier with 128, if we have to have powers of 2. My iTunes library is over 40GB, and it would be nice to have that much again for videos etc. Being able to carry _all your music_ with you everywhere without worrying that you’re using up all the storage would be good. But I suppose, with the cloud and stuff, that could become less of an issue soon - you won’t need to have your music stored on the device, because you can stream it directly over the ethertubes. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/15 "2011-10-04T21:50:11Z")
I’m pretty disappointed that they kept the “old” case. I still have my 3g, and I like the smooth edges better than the 4. Maybe next year. Why only one camera? Or did I miss something? IP2 has two. To tell the truth, I might might buy this one after all. I do like that Siri feature. I’ll check how much time is left on my contract. Freakin’ Apple. Reminds me of my ex-wife. :mad: Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/16 "2011-10-04T21:55:38Z")
As a klid who used to drool over Dick Tracy’s wrist phone in my teens, I’m still pretty amazed at what we have now. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![sparky\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/77aa72/32.png) [@sparky\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sparky_1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/17 "2011-10-04T22:22:20Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > I’m pretty disappointed that they kept the “old” case. I still have my 3g, and I like the smooth edges better than the 4. Maybe next year. > Why only one camera? Or did I miss something? IP2 has two. > To tell the truth, I might might buy this one after all. I do like that Siri feature. I’ll check how much time is left on my contract. > Freakin’ Apple. Reminds me of my ex-wife. :mad: > Peace, > mangeorge I agree about the case. I had a 3GS (until it fell in the toilet ☹ ) and the 4 case is nowhere near as nice. Also, I find the antenna issue to still be annoying. I miss my 3GS. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/18 "2011-10-04T22:34:03Z")
My wife is looking at getting a new iPhone, so I was keeping an eye on the new phone. (Her 3G is locking up and generally crapping out after three years of use, and I’m looking to leave AT&T, so it’s win-win.) I’m surprised they’re calling it a 4S rather than a 5, but that’s marketing for you. The processor gets a huge upgrade, making it competitive with the current top-of-the-line Android processors (note: not better or even tied with the best, but competitive). Camera gets a major upgrade, but in pixels and ISO. The OS gets a major upgrade, including the personal assistant. It appears that the PA will only work on the 4S and not the 4, which is disappointing to anybody not looking to get the top of the line model. This seems to be a much bigger upgrade than the 3G to 3Gs. The only reason to keep the old number seems to be the form factor. I don’t see anything that’s going to draw me back to iOS from Android, but Apple raised the bar. Maybe (just maybe) NFC would have tipped the scales, but I think my next phone will end up being a Galaxy S II on Sprint (I’m pissed off at AT&T, so the NFC on their version isn’t an option). My wife will want the iPhone 4S. My father (also on my family plan) only wants something that can do what his current phone can. I had to explain that his hand-me-down iPhone did practically anything a phone can do. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/19 "2011-10-04T22:39:15Z")
> [@sparky\_1](#): > > I agree about the case. I had a 3GS (until it fell in the toilet ☹ ) and the 4 case is nowhere near as nice. Also, I find the antenna issue to still be annoying. > > I miss my 3GS. Oops, I forgot the “S”. My 3GS is still a nice phone. I’m waffling. I also like the stablization feature on the new one. that’s a pretty cool feature for us shaky oldsters. I’m waiting till next time and see what they come up with. They still need to ease Steve out, I think. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595/20 "2011-10-04T22:45:50Z")
> [@mangeorge](#): > > Why only one camera? Or did I miss something? IP2 has two. I don’t think people are spending much time on the front-facing camera, but I believe the iPhone 4S will have a front-facing camera. The iPhone 4 does already, and it’s hard to imagine that back sliding. I don’t think Apple intends to do away with Face Time. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iphone-4s-just-announced/598595.md?page=2)