A thinner body, LTE, a 4-inch Retina display and a brand new A6 chip – the iPhone 5 is finally here. And while we going to suspend the fact that this is technically the sixth-generation of the iPhone, the new iPhone is coming to Australia on September 21, with preorders starting at September 14. But what else is inside?
The iPhone 5 features a 7.6-mm andoized aluminium body that makes it 20 percent lighter and 18 percent thinner; and has diamond cut chamfered edges and glass inlays to make this an incredible fit and finish. Instead of making it wider, Apple has opted to make it taller to fit the 4-inch Retina display; meaning that you can still tap, type and scroll with one hand. Apps that don’t take advantage of the new 4-inch screensize will be letterboxed.
Hardware-wise, other than the A6 chip, there is a new 8-megapixel iSight camera that has been completely redesigned and despite being 25 percent smaller is able to take high-quality photos. It has a sapphire crystal lens cover that is durable and thinner than the previous glass lens; and can take panoramas up to 28 megapxiels by simply moving the camera in one swift motion. A FaceTime HD front-facing camera is included.
There is a new Lightning connector and ditches the 30-pin connector that we’ve come to know with every Apple product. There will be an adapter to let you connect the iPhone 5 to all legacy products that use the 30-pin connector. Apple touts that the Lightning connector to being smaller, smarter and more durable.
There will be three models – two GSM models, one for North America and one for the rest of the world; and another CDMA model for Verizon. All, however, have LTE – which was sort of expected anyway, after the iPad already included LTE. According to Apple, it has crated a single-radio solution that features faster speeds for the design. Unlike the iPad, the iPhone 5 will be supporting LTE in Australia and has been confirmed to be supported on Telstra’s and Optus’ LTE networks (as it does support the 1800MHz band)
Pricing for the carriers have not been revealed as of yet; but the unsubsidised Australian pricing is $799 for 16GB, $899 for 32GB and $999 for 64GB. The iPhone 4S drops down to $679 with 16GB; and the iPhone 4 drops down to $449. The iPhone 3GS, however, is no longer available.
Gallery can be found below.
