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wait for iPhone 5 (2013?) or go with 4S?

I was an iPhone 2G then 3G owner but moved to HTC EVO 4G with Sprint because I live in cities that have 4G LTe (in addition to the iOS4 rendering my iPhone 3G useless and AT&T's really poor coverage). I was hoping the next iPhone would have 4G LTe support espeically now that Sprint are on the iPhone 4S list ... but sadly the 4S doesn't have 4G LTe which seems odd given the Verizon has 4G as does Sprint??


On my HTC EVO 4G the speed difference between 3G and 4G LTe is pretty significant ... when running speed tests, on average 4G LTe provides real world 6.5 Mbps down and 1.3 Mbps up ... run the same speed test in 3G and I'm right around 0.51 Mbps down and 0.49 Mbps up.


So I'm debating whether to wait for the iPhone 5 (which I have to assume must be 4G LTe capable) ... assume 16-18 months away or go with the 4S?


Other than a better camera and voice recognition (Siri), what other cool new features can the 4S do?


The sample pictures from the iPhone 4S appear to be pretty good (assume they haven't been touched up) ... the camera in my HTC EVO 4G is pretty bad, espeically in low light. But voice recognition in my HTC EVO 4G is pretty good and can do everything Siri appears to be able to do, so that's not a big selling point for me ... need something more 🙂


Is iMessage limited to just iPhone, iPad, and iPod? Or will it work with other services like Windows Messenger and other instant chat services?


Will iOS5 for 4S finally support plug-ins like Flash, Silverlight so that all the web sites I use will work correctly on the 4S?


I like the idea of iCloud, but being limited to a 3G connection I would think that might not work so well with large picture files and video files? Or is iCloud restricted to just a wireless connection and disabled when 3G only is available?


Also, will the 4S work as an access point for a MacBook or a iPad that doesn't have 3G?


I know, a lot of question, but I'm wondering if it's time to dump my HTC EVO 4G and return to iPhone or if it's best to wait some more for the iPhone 5.


Thanks, Rob.

Posted on Oct 4, 2011 11:32 PM

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48 replies

Oct 5, 2011 1:34 AM in response to Rob A.

Some answers:

1) iOS5 has lots of cool features, although they are available to iPhone 4 users too. Look at http://www.apple.com/ios/

2) iMessage just works with other iOS5 devices

3) no, there will NEVER be 'support' for Flash, partly because Adobe has given up trying to produce a version that'll work on iOS devices

4) iCloud Photostream only syncs over wi-fi

5) tethering is possible, but you'll have to check with your particular carrier for details.

Oct 5, 2011 2:02 AM in response to igmackenzie

igmackenzie wrote:


Some answers:

1) iOS5 has lots of cool features, although they are available to iPhone 4 users too. Look at http://www.apple.com/ios/

2) iMessage just works with other iOS5 devices

3) no, there will NEVER be 'support' for Flash, partly because Adobe has given up trying to produce a version that'll work on iOS devices

4) iCloud Photostream only syncs over wi-fi

5) tethering is possible, but you'll have to check with your particular carrier for details.

I think you're correct in all but use of that word 'Never'.

Oct 5, 2011 2:16 AM in response to igmackenzie

Is it inconceivabe that Apple (sitting on mountains of cash, as they are) would not buy Adobe? I think from a purely capatalist view that not only is it possible, it makes sense. Once in the Apple stable, would Flash remain a pariah? Of course it wouldn't.


It's the Never that I object to, and that kind of timescale really negates the option of a bet, don't you think?

Oct 5, 2011 2:40 AM in response to Vossing

Been a happy iPhone 3G user for some time and coming to end of contract with O2 next month and am eligible for an upgrade.


Recently played with a friends Galaxy II S and was totally blown away. It's now a toss up between the 4S and the Samsung both of which O2 will offer me as an upgrade.


I'll reserve judgement until I get some hands on time with a 4S but at the moment the Samsung looks promising. I have a 3G iPad2 for the IOS5/iCloud stuff.


Fortunately I have an Apple store and an O2 store in the same mall 15 minutes drive away so it will be an easy decision.

Oct 5, 2011 6:10 AM in response to Rob A.

Keep in mind that Sprint does not currently have an LTE network or any LTE devices. The EVO is definitely not an LTE device, it is Wi-Max. No other carrier in the US is using Wi-Max.


AT&T only has 5 cities live with LTE.

Verizon has much more coverage on LTE, but to the best of my knowledge all voice traffic is still going over their CDMA network.


LTE simply is not far enough in it's life cycle for Apple to bet on it. They did the same thing with the original iPhone making it an EDGE only device and it sold like hotcakes. Lack of "4G" LTE is going to have minimal if any affect on sales.

Oct 5, 2011 8:38 AM in response to diesel vdub

Hmmm ... thanks for the input all, not what I wanted to hear so it's unlikely I'll be moving to the 4S and it sounds like I'll "NEVER" be moving to any iOS device without flash or silverlight support -- two VERY important features for me.


I could live without 4G LTe or WiMax for a "short" period, but it sounds like it's unlikely Apple with use either technology any time soon which is a shame as being limited to 3G speeds would make the A5 processor look slow. Sorta like having a Ferrari engine in a Smart car, lots of power but no way to put that power to the ground thru tiny tires (aka 3G) 🙂


Although Apple certainly have improved market share for 2011, they are still not the major player. Nokia 29.2%, Samsung 18.8%, LG 6.6%, Apple 5.0%, and ATE 4.1%, others 36.3% ... IMHO, I think being stuck at 3G and lack of support for plug-ins like Flash, Silverlight and more (which 95% of the market share does support) is really gonna hurt Apple's ultimate market penetration.


I was hoping to see some "must have" responses, but it seems like a No to most of my questions. 😟


Oh well, it is what it is I guess. Thanks for the input all.

Oct 5, 2011 9:50 AM in response to igmackenzie

Have to disagree with you there 25.5% for Apple, but more importantly the top three OEMs are using Android and that's 70%.


http://www.zdnet.com/blog/mobile-news/latest-smartphone-market-share-numbers-app le-is-flat-google-going-strong/2387


It doesn't make a lot of business sense to exclude 4G (variants) and Flash/Silverlight. Makes even less sense to suggest that those companies (Adobe/Microsoft) need to make their products compatible with iOS when that's only 25% of the market?


When a company is down on market share (like Apple) their objective is to usually increase features/compatibility to gain market share. 4G, Flash, Silverlight are some key features that would increase their penetration into market. Which means Apple would need to make iOS work with Flash/Silverlight and NOT the other way around. Given that there have been endless debates about inclusion of Flash support is probably a good indicator of what people want ... those people are the market. Also means Apple need to include 4G variants even if they are NOT going to be the long term solution.


Apple might be hoping they get majority marketshare (>50%), but that seems unlikely to me given that iOS growth for 2011 was only 0.5 percent.


It's possible Apple are happy to stay at 25%? But that can get risky when the rest of the market continues to progress providing more features and better network performance.


Anyway, it's unfortunate, I was hoping for a little more from Apple than what's in the 4S.

Oct 5, 2011 10:14 AM in response to Rudegar

Rudegar wrote:


so far apple have released a new iphone version each year so not sure what you get the whole 2013 from


So they have less then 14.6 months to release the next iPhone within the 2012 calendar year?


Given the most recent release history, this may or may not be feasible. Only time will tell.


Jan/Feb of 2013 would be my decidedly uneducated guess.


Best of Luck

Oct 5, 2011 10:26 AM in response to Rudegar

End or 2012 or early 2013 -- not really that important ... close enough. My esitmate was based on 16 month cycle to go from a 4 to 4S. Assuming a 5 would be a more significant jump than going from 4 to 4S hence my sometime 2013.


Sounds like I'll pass on the 4S and wait and see what happens ... I'd be giving up a lot of my existing HTC EVO 4G function/features/performance if I went with 4S -- just not prepared to downgrade those features that are important to me.

wait for iPhone 5 (2013?) or go with 4S?

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