The iPhone 5s is launching today in the US, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Singapore and the UK.
The device can be bough from Apple's own retail stores in the US with a plan for Sprint, Verizon or AT&T or from T-Mobile (although T-Mo iPhones are expected to ship between 7 and 10 business days).
The cost in the US is the usual - 16GB for $199, 32 GB for $299 or 64GB for $399 with a contract. We seriously urge you to get at least the 32GB option as the available user storage on the 16GB version is less than 14GB with no option to expand that later.
As for European prices you can get the iPhone 5s in Germany SIM-free for €699, €799 and €899 for either 16/32/64GB and £549, £629 and £709 for the 16/32/64GB in the UK.
The iPhone 5s numbers are reportedly low so unless you're first in line you may not be able to grab one off the shelf today. The same goes for the Apple's online stores, where the device has already been back-ordered.
You saw the fancy videos, but how does the iPhone 5S stand up in the real world? Is it the best phone ever, or just the best iPhone ever? There's only one name to call, and that name begins with "G" and ends with "areth Beavis". Our smartphone supremo is all over the 5S like a finger on a Touch ID sensor.
As he rightly points out, a minor price hike means that the iPhone 5S is "one of the most expensive smartphones out there, even on 3G price plans." The smartphone world is very different these days, and the iPhone has some very credible rivals. Is it still worth the extra cost?
The 5S looks the luxe part, but we're not sure if it's insides seal the deal
The short answer is "hmmm". It's a 'tweener model - the S iPhones are always relatively minor improvements, with the big changes happening when the phones get a brand new number - but nevertheless it's "one of the most cutting-edge smartphones around, imbued with a top-end camera and a really innovative feature with Touch ID." Touch ID is going to be a very big deal, we suspect, and that M7 motion processor is interesting too.
That's the good. The bad? Price, the relatively small screen, price and price. It's a lovely thing, but "we can't see what lives in the iPhone 5S to justify being the most expensive phone on the market." That said, if you like this sort of thing then this is the sort of thing you will like.
Plastic surgery
The 5C marks Apples first bid for the budget market
That doesn't bode well for the iPhone 5C, which is essentially a plastic iPhone 5. It wasn't as cheap as many hoped, so is this a cheap iPhone or just a cheaper iPhone? It's an important distinction. Over to Mr Beavis, who favours "cheaper" over "cheap": the iPhone 5C is "slightly more affordable. Slightly being the key word."
The whole thing leaves Beavis rather puzzled. As a device it's nice enough, but "its price tag, overall design and lack of glass-based, premium feel leaves a slightly unpleasant taste." Apple hasn't gone downmarket to slug it out with no-name cheapies, but the price isn't that much lower for a device that "lacks that premium feeling we've become accustomed to from iPhones... does it feel like it's worth the money you're paying? In all honesty, no."
The iPhone 5C may be cheaper than the iPhone 5S, but it's more expensive than the HTC One, Samsung Galaxy S4 and Nokia Lumia 925. We can't help thinking that where previous iPhones were all about the devices, the 5C is all about the marketing.
Operational issues
Both the iPhone 5S and 5C run iOS 7, the latest and possibly greatest version of Apple's mobile operating system. So if you're thinking of upgrading, just how different is it really? We've put together a quick list of the major differences between iOS 7 and iOS 6, so you can see whether your favourite features have been affected. Not all of its goodies are immediately obvious, though, so we've also provided you with a list of our favourite iOS 7 tips and tricks too.
As you'd expect, we've also looked at it in great detail and posted our thoughts online. "While previous iOS updates were largely a case of install-and-get-on-with-it, iOS 7 takes a bit more getting used to" - but "Apple isn't hurling babies out with the bathwater here. The iOS we know and largely love is still there, but it's been given one hell of a makeover."
The visual changes are largely effective - although the Music app is pretty hideous and the new look is sometimes just too bright: "using Safari on an iPad in a dark room after a long day is really quite unpleasant." But the most important changes are functional.
iOS 7 has learned a lot of tricks from elsewhere, but what matters is how it works
The new Control Center makes it much easier to access key features such as Bluetooth and Airplane Mode, the new Notification Center is handy, Safari and Mail are much better and the whole thing feels much more modern and efficient. Many of the changes owe obvious debts to Android, WebOS and - yikes! - even Windows Vista, but the important issue isn't who thought of them first but whether they make your life happier, and in iOS 7 they do.
It's not all good, though. Maps is good but not great and definitely not as good as Google, Siri alternates between being absolutely wonderful and utterly infuriating, and as with iOS 6 you shouldn't expect all-day battery life if you actually plan to use your device for anything other than the odd email check.
If you're a die-hard Android fan there's nothing here that's going to make you reconsider your life choices and jump aboard the Apple train. If you're already an iOS user, though, it "will make your device feel brand new all over again. We think you'll like it a lot." Are we right? Let us know in the comments.
The Nokia Lumia 1020 has been available in the US for some time now, and has even had its on-contract price slashed already. In China, the phone has been available for over a month now with a price of $980 for an unlocked device.
In Europe, however, Nokia fans haven't been so lucky with the availability of the Lumia 1020. Thankfully, these last couple of days we've been getting reports about its availability from all over the place, including the UK, Poland, Italy and Bulgaria. Nokia's latest Windows Phones is already in stock at those places and possibly, elsewhere too.
In the UK, the phone has been up for pre-order for more than a week already. It's still not available everywhere, but there are some online stores that have it in stock for a price tag of £599.99. This pretty much matches the price of the phone in China, so it's not really overpriced. The phone is available in yellow or black, but a recent report pointed at a red version hitting Italy soon.
Disclaimer: We are not affiliated with any of these stores and we do not endorse purchasing through any of them. We are merely researching the most popular options and these are not necessarily the best deals available. By all means, shop around before you commit to buying your Nokia Lumia 1020.
Windows RT tablets haven't exactly set the world alight, and with the full Windows 8 slates faring better in the market it's left Microsoft with a little bit of a problem.
All is not lost however, as Microsoft's Terry Myerson explains the merging of smartphones and tablets will mean the ARM-based Windows RT software will raise its head again, and hopefully provide users with a better app experience.
Speaking at a Microsoft financial analysts meeting Myerson said: "The ARM devices in particular in phones have incredible share given their battery life and the connectivity options available with the system-on-a-chip ecosystem.
"Windows RT was our first ARM tablet. And as phones extend into tablets, expect us to see many more ARM tablets, and Windows ARM tablets in the future."
APPetite for success
Microsoft is also looking to unify its application offering across devices, with the aim of having one app which is available on smartphones, tablets and computers.
"We should have one set of developer APIs on all of our devices. And all of the apps we bring to end users should be available on all of our devices," Myerson explained.
One of the strong selling points of Apple's ecosystem is its library of applications that work seamlessly on both iPhone and iPod as well as the bigger screened iPad - and it's clearly something Microsoft is attempting to mimic.
With applications which play nicely with both the Windows Phone 8 based smartphones as well as the new tablets, it may spark interest in the Windows RT brand after all - and about time too.
What's all the fuss about RT? Take a peek at our in depth Windows RT review and find out.
Just two days after the launch of the new iPhones, Apple CEO Tim Cook sat down with Bloomberg Businessweek for a frank discussion regarding the new product launches, company strategy and talking about rival companies. He was also joined by the Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, Craig Federighi and Senior Vice President of Design, Jony Ive.
In the interview, Cook address a key topics, starting with the pricing of the iPhone 5c. Everyone expected Apple to come up with a cheap iPhone but Apple instead went for a slightly lower priced model while maintaining all the key features of last year’s iPhone 5.
On this, Cook had to say, “There’s always a large junk part of the market. We’re not in the junk business” talking about the low-end devices. He went on to say “We never had an objective to sell a low-cost phone. Our primary objective is to sell a great phone and provide a great experience, and we figured out a way to do it at a lower cost.”
Apple has always maintained the strategy of going after high price, high profit markets. We have seen them do this with the Mac range before, where Apple never really made a cheap MacBook as such, even when people expected them to. The low-end is not a market where Apple prefers to play and they made this clear once again with the iPhone 5c.
Meanwhile, Federighi and Ive, have worked closely in the past to come up with the new iPhones. regarding this, Ive said “I don’t think we ever talked about our roles. We talked about how can we most effectively extend the collaboration that always existed.”
Speaking of features and claims of Apple not innovating enough, Ive said “We didn’t start opportunistically with 10 bits of technology that we could try to find a use for to add to our features list.” hinting at rivals such as Samsung who have often loaded up their devices with features that most people never actually use.
Federighi says it much simply: “New? New is easy. Right is hard.”
Speaking of the Android dominance in the market, Cook said “Does a unit of market share matter if it’s not being used? For us, it matters that people use our products. We really want to enrich people’s lives, and you can’t enrich somebody’s life if the product is in the drawer.” Cook pointed out that more people actually use Apple’s devices daily and that they have a higher customer satisfaction compared to their rivals.
As for Android fragmentation and claims of it being a non-issue anymore, Cook said “It will show up in developers. It will show up for people that no longer have access to certain apps. It will show up in security issues because if you’re not moving your customer base to the latest version, then you have to go back and plug holes in all of this old stuff, and people don’t really do that to a great degree.”
Cook also had things to say about Microsoft and their acquisition of Nokia. Regarding Microsoft, Cook feels that they are copying Apple’s strategy of vertical integration by now starting to make their own hardware. Cook said “Everybody is trying to adopt Apple’s strategy. We’re not looking for external validation of our strategy, but I think it does suggest that there’s a lot of copying, kind of, on the strategy and that people have recognized that importance.”
Lastly, regarding Nokia, Cook said that the lack of innovation is what lead to their death as a company. “I think [Nokia] is a reminder to everyone in business that you have to keep innovating and that to not innovate is to die.”
You can read the interview in its entirety in the link below.
In a rare interview, Apple's Jony Ive has spoken to USA Today about his thoughts behind iOS 7 and has revealed that it was a liberating experience to rid the operating system of skeuomorphism.
Speaking alongside Apple's senior vice president of software engineering, Craig Federighi, Ive explained his thought processes behind iOS 7 and how there was no need to refer back to the real world in its OS as consumers have finally become accustomed to touchscreen phones.
"When we sat down last November [to work on iOS 7], we understood that people had already become comfortable with touching glass, they didn't need physical buttons, they understood the benefits," said Ive.
"So there was an incredible liberty in not having to reference the physical world so literally. We were trying to create an environment that was less specific. It got design out of the way."
Ive been speaking a lot
Explaining a bit more about how he came up with the design for iOS 7, it seems that Ive distilled what what was needed on the system to just the essentials.
"I think a lot of people see simplicity as the lack of clutter. And that's not the case at all," said Ive.
"True simplicity is, well, you just keep on going and going until you get to the point where you go, 'Yeah, well, of course.' Where there's no rational alternative."
Although Ive gave nothing away about what Apple was working on next – he even went as far to say "I'd lose my job" if he did – he did note that the addition of something such as Touch ID to the iPhone 5S was perfect Apple behavior as it showed how the company can integrate complicated technology into its products in a seamless way.
"This right here is what I love about Apple, this incredibly sophisticated powerful technology that you're almost not aware of, it absolutely blows me away," said Ive.
"You can't get this without working cross-functionally."
He also reveals the non-tech product he would like to redesign the most. And it is... the humble cup.
Read the full and fascinating interview at USA Today.
Want to know more about iOS 7? Check out or in depth iOS 7 review.
The iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C have officially touched down in the UK, and you can expect droves of people to descend on Apple Stores, high street retailers and networks as they clamour for the latest goodies from the Cupertino firm.
If you're looking for the latest, premium offering from Apple then you'll want to check out the iPhone 5S with an upgraded A7 processor, enhanced camera and nifty fingerprint scanner hidden under the iconic home button.
For those of you who fancy a bit more colour in your life then you'll want to check out the 5C, which arrives in five different shades - although be warned there's no metal on display here with a distinctly plastic body and the same specs as last year's iPhone 5.
Both handsets do arrive running iOS 7, arguably the biggest overhaul Apple has given its mobile platform since its inception in 2007 with a whole new colour palette, redesigned icons and a raft of new features.
A word of warning if you're planning to swing by O2 at some point to pick up a shiny new iPhone 5S though - the bubbly network doesn't actually have any in stock yet.
The announcement was made via the carrier's Twitter account yesterday and read: "Nearly #O2iPhone Friday! Get 5C in store & order 5S online & on phone. No 5S in stores but they'll order for you and say when it's in."
Of course if all this is a bit too fruity for your likely then there are plenty of other top end smartphones for you to choose from including the Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One and Nokia Lumia 925.
Want to know more about the phones before you part with your cash? Then check out our in-depth iPhone 5S review and iPhone 5C review
