Wednesday, September 11, 2013

iPhones 5C and 5S (updated more than once)

At first look, the new iPhones did not impress. It seemed like the 5C only had a plastic case, colors, and a slightly cheaper price to show. And that the 5S only had fingerprint lock.

But I am now watching the keynote, and I have to admit that while most changes are evolutionary, there are many of them, and many sound really nice. A lot of good refinements. For instance the camera on the 5S seems better in low light and has other interesting features. And the quality is really nice, see images here. If one is super-critical, there's a slight graininess in the sky, but see especially the pool picture, that is perfect colors and skin tones, and of course all the pics are sharp.

The flash on the 5S changes its own color temperature (mixes two small LCDs, one daylight, one warm, to taste) to match the background, that’s damn impressive. Why has nobody done this before?
The processor on the 5S is also much faster, though since I'm no gamer, I don't really know how I need that?... :)

iPhone 5 left me pretty cold, but I may warm up to this one. (Though that may just be the gold color. :)
... Actually I'm kind of sick of the White on my last phone, so I may go for the grey version, that's nice also.

Of course if it had only been a 5-inch phone like I want, then five wild bulls could not keep me from it. (Hello Apple: a 5-inch screen is much better than a 4-incher for reading, web, and video. Wake up!)


Yes, I like gold. And while full gold color would be crass on a phone, I think the "champagne" gold they chose for the iPhone is just a nice, warm metal color. 

In contrast, like has happened before with iPods, sadly I don't like any of the colors of the 5C! This is sad, because otherwise I quite like it. And I knew Apple could make something good of plastic if they returned to it. And it's strong, coated plastic, almost impossible to scratch it. 

(Maaaaybe the green one. Not sure.)

When will they learn that good colors are deep and rich? They did it right in one generation of iPods, I think it was gen5, the one with video camera. Look how cheap the colors above look compared to those below. 


See also here. Those are a good selection of colors! Nice, rich colors. Compare the wonderful deep red with the odd, washed-out "red" on the iPhone. The iPhone is more "salmon" than red. I know some cartoon characters who would call "gaaaaay!". (But those are just cartoon characters, what do they know?)


(By the way, I like the EarSkinz. The earpod (or earbud) sits better.)

11 comments:

TC [Girl] said...

(Maaaaybe the green one. Not sure.)

Funny: I woulda guessed the yeller one!! :-D

Eolake Stobblehouse said...

But it is strange, I really don't like *any* of them. The same happened with an early generation of iPods. Whereas with the generation I show here, and the one before it, I liked *all* of them!

Dosti said...

I have had the iPhone 3Gs, Galaxy S2, and the iPhone 5. During the 2 years I had the Android phone I hated almost every single minute of it. How annoying it was when an update would download and I'd have to go and reset my keyboard specs again! The scrolling was also not as smooth as on the iPhone, and in general I just wasn't happy with it.

Now, some people like the Androids, a lot do, so that's cool. But in my opinion (and apparently a lot of people) the iPhone is still the best smartphone out there.

TC [Girl] said...

But it is strange, I really don't like *any* of them.

I don't either... And I have to agree; what's w/the "salmon"-color?! That's just...YUCK!! :-P

The same happened with an early generation of iPods. Whereas with the generation I show here, and the one before it, I liked *all* of them!

It is odd that they don't understand their clients better; I mean, it's not like they just rolled off their first rev of colors!!!!! :-/

And I didn't know that you had a white one; that's what I chose, as well... I get sick of seeing everything in high-gloss black...w/fingerprints everywhere!!

And, yeah...the "brushed" gold looks cool...

--

Dosti: I'm hearing, from a phone repair dude, that his wife preferred the Galaxy to her iPhone and this was very recently, as well... The Galaxy S2 looks like it's a couple of years old; that is quite old, in phone technology, is it not?

TC [Girl] said...

:-D

Eolake Stobblehouse said...

Good for them.
I hear the golden iPhone is so popular, or scarce, that they sell on eBay for thousands!

I almost wanted one, but after seeing it on video, I thought it after all was a bit much. So I'm getting a "Space Grey".
I was much in doubt. But I skipped version 5. So I think all in all I'll enjoy it. And it does seem it's much better in low light, which is a HUGE weakness with the 4s.

Eolake Stobblehouse said...

... I notice I talk about the phone as if it were synonymous with its camera. Sigh, tells you too much about me.

TC [Girl] said...

ROFL! I didn't really notice that, until you pointed it out! (it's early, here; that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! lol! ;-)

I didn't realize/remember that you had skipped the 5; I have the 4S, as well... For one, I am disappointed that I have, already, run out of memory on it, so have to go through my music, and camera shots... I am really tempted to just switch over to the Galaxy Note, because, like you, I like the bigger screens and have it on good authority that that is a good phone...

Eolake Stobblehouse said...

The hardware is great. I'm sad that I just can't get along with Android. There's always *something* that won't install, or whatever.
But like I've said 500 times: what I'd really like is a 5.3 inch iPhone.
If they persist in not making one, they'll end up shooting that foot completely off.

TC [Girl] said...

Yes...I am a little "afraid" to go back to Android but, unlike you, I never had any issues w/the apps; hence why I am curious to try that darn "phone" (lol! ;-)... I am wondering about the responsiveness of the touch screen, on the Note, vs. the iPhones 'cuz I can't deny...the iPhones rock in that department!!

I agree re: Apple needing a bigger screen... They'll probably just come out w/it, whenever, and have lost a few thousand (million??) users who couldn't wait around for them to commit to what others understood about the market!!

Eolake Stobblehouse said...

You can get very cheap Chinese Android phones, with big high-res screens and everything. A third of the price of normal big brands. Try look at that.
I wouldn't be surprised if the quality is just fine, and reviews I've seen mostly support that.

Admittedly it looks better on UK though, see:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=phablet