Apple iPhone 5 launch: what to expect

The iPhone 5 is coming. This is no rumour, no guesswork, no fuzzy photo taken by someone allegedly holding an iPhone 5 prototype. Apple has set the date and the place for a real product launch.

Okay, I am getting ahead of myself a bit. The invite does not explicitly mention an iPhone 5. It just promises we’ll talk about the iPhone. Yes, a nice little chat with me, Apple CEO Tim Cook and a few hundred of our closest friends at Apple’s Cupertino campus. There’ll be coffee and Danish. It’ll be cozy.

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What else can we expect on October 4? Here’s the shortlist:

A major redesign

Shortly after Apple unveiled iOS 5, the cloud-friendly operating system that will soon reside inside current and future iPhones, there was speculation that the iPhone 5 would look almost exactly like the iPhone 4. The innards would be different, but most people could simply swath iPhone 5s in the same cases as their previously adored iPhone 4s.

But soon enough, some eagle-eyed folks spotted new iPhone cases that would in no way house current iPhones or the doppelganger iPhone 5. Answer? The iPhone 5 will be radical design departure. Some believe it will be thinner, or perhaps tapered. Others insist it will be wider.

Personally, I love the current design. I know, antenna attenuation nearly ruined the initial iPhone 4 launch, but my model moved the antenna bar breaks around and I rarely, if ever, lose signal. Plus, I don’t want a wider phone (read “bigger”) phone.

A faster phone

Duh! Even if we didn’t know about the A5 chip, Apple’s custom dual-core CPU, why would Apple do a major product launch without raising the performance bar? We rely on our smartphones to do more every day; they simply have to get more powerful — as any good computer should, under Moore’s Law. Apple will also likely increase the amount and quality of RAM—which always has a big impact on performance. These changes will be necessary if Apple does some of the other things we’ve been speculating about.

Better screen and cameras

Apple’s Android competitors outshine the iPhone in the camera resolution and screen size department. On the latter, Apple’s retina display is smaller than many slab Android phones but often approaches or beats them in resolution. If Apple goes with a larger screen, 8-megapixel camera and full 1080p video recording, it’ll need more horsepower to support all of them. The bigger screen, in particular, will also demand more battery power. Apple’s been very careful about battery life (it’s why it fought so long and hard against multi-tasking) and it may have to increase battery size and capacity to support a larger retina screen.

Voice recognition

I’ve used Google’s voice-enabled search app on the iPhone and it is quite good. Some pundits believe the iPhone 5 will come with native voice recognition, which means other iPhone apps can tap into this capability for a variety of nifty interactions. Apple did acquire voice-based personal assistant service Siri last year and hasn’t done much with it yet, at least not publicly. Talking into your phone is natural, so what’s not to like about native voice recognition?

4G or Not 4G?

I guess I’m alone in this, but I don’t give a rat’s behind about 4G on my phone. My iPhone does just fine with its 3G data connection. However, I don’t think Apple can ignore the consumer clarion call forever. These people want 4G. I can’t say their battery life is worth much, but at least they have a good time surfing YouTube videos while the charge lasts. Apple could do LTE 4G, the premier option, but only if it’s convinced there’senough quality 4G out there. I’d say there is and the phone will ably dumb down to 3G anyway.

If Apple does go 4G, however, it’s a good bet the iPhone 5 will be larger than the eminently pocketable iPhone 4. 4G needs an ample battery for a full day’s use. Big batteries make for bigger phones.

No shopping

Back when Google introduced Google Wallet, a technology for turning one NFC-enabled phone (the Nexus S 4G) into a wallet/credit card, there was a speculation that companies that weren’t included in the deal — such as Visa — might hook up with Apple. All Apple had to do was put an NFC (Near Field Communication) chip inside the iPhone 5 and the rest would be easy. Now, however, Google has managed to sign up Visa for Google Wallet as well. I’m not certain Apple will see any value in the added cost of an NFC chip when there are no clear partners, and even less certainty that consumers are ready to start paying with their phones.

These are merely my predictions. The only thing I can guarantee is that Apple will have an event next week on October 4 at 10am. There will be coffee. There will be Danish. There will be an iPhone 5.

mashable.com

 

Telstra 4G ’25x faster’, first handset early 2012

Telstra’s new mobile broadband network is now ready for use, but limited to a five kilometer radius around central business districts and airports.

Telstra this morning announced it will start selling mobile broadband modems for its new 4G network, also known as long-term evolution technology or LTE.

The modems, which are also known as dongles, will work at faster speeds inside the 4G network and revert to the 3G network in other areas.

The network has been under construction since May and is now available in the centre of capital cities, airports and some regional areas.

Australia’s three mobile network operators have announced plans to build 4G networks but Telstra’s is the first to launch commercial services. Optus and Vodafone Hutchison Australia expect to launch their networks next year.

So far Telstra has released a modem for wireless broadband and this morning announced plans to sell a HTC 4G-enabled Smartphone in the first half of 2012.

“We know there is a huge appetite for 4G-powered smart phones and tablets and Telstra is working with some of the world’s leading manufacturers to bring some of these devices to customers in the first half of 2012,” Telstra’s chief executive David Thodey said in a statement yesterday.

‘‘Telstra’s 4G network delivers mobile speeds scarcely imagined a decade ago, making it easier for people to connect with the things they need and love when on the move,’’ he said.

Download speeds on the new network range from 2 megabits per second (Mbps) up to 40 Mbps, which Telstra says is 25 times faster than the speeds available on the 3G network when it first launched. The upload speeds range from 1Mbps to 10 Mbps.

The 4G network has been rolled out in capital cities and expects up to 80 regional centers will have 4G services by Christmas. The networks are limited to a 5km radius from the general post office in cities. Modems will revert to the 3G network when users leave 4G areas.

Telstra claims the new network’s latency, the time it takes for data to travel, is half that of the 3G network.

The modems are manufactured by Sierra Wireless and are available for BigPond customers on 24-month plans for $60 plan with an 8 gigabyte monthly download allowance. The modem is available to business customers on a $40 plan with 4 gigabytes of data included every month.

 

Telstra 4G '25x faster', first handset early 2012

Telstra’s new mobile broadband network is now ready for use, but limited to a five kilometer radius around central business districts and airports.

Telstra this morning announced it will start selling mobile broadband modems for its new 4G network, also known as long-term evolution technology or LTE.

The modems, which are also known as dongles, will work at faster speeds inside the 4G network and revert to the 3G network in other areas.

The network has been under construction since May and is now available in the centre of capital cities, airports and some regional areas.

Australia’s three mobile network operators have announced plans to build 4G networks but Telstra’s is the first to launch commercial services. Optus and Vodafone Hutchison Australia expect to launch their networks next year.

So far Telstra has released a modem for wireless broadband and this morning announced plans to sell a HTC 4G-enabled Smartphone in the first half of 2012.

“We know there is a huge appetite for 4G-powered smart phones and tablets and Telstra is working with some of the world’s leading manufacturers to bring some of these devices to customers in the first half of 2012,” Telstra’s chief executive David Thodey said in a statement yesterday.

‘‘Telstra’s 4G network delivers mobile speeds scarcely imagined a decade ago, making it easier for people to connect with the things they need and love when on the move,’’ he said.

Download speeds on the new network range from 2 megabits per second (Mbps) up to 40 Mbps, which Telstra says is 25 times faster than the speeds available on the 3G network when it first launched. The upload speeds range from 1Mbps to 10 Mbps.

The 4G network has been rolled out in capital cities and expects up to 80 regional centers will have 4G services by Christmas. The networks are limited to a 5km radius from the general post office in cities. Modems will revert to the 3G network when users leave 4G areas.

Telstra claims the new network’s latency, the time it takes for data to travel, is half that of the 3G network.

The modems are manufactured by Sierra Wireless and are available for BigPond customers on 24-month plans for $60 plan with an 8 gigabyte monthly download allowance. The modem is available to business customers on a $40 plan with 4 gigabytes of data included every month.