iPhone 5: Who cares?

The iPhone 5 is finally here. But after all the speculation, and then the analysis of its features, how much do we really care? Is the shine wearing off Apple’s launches?

Apple events always generate enormous amounts of press attention beforehand, yet the buzz around the most recent announcement seemed to die down quickly once the iPhone 5 was confirmed. Perhaps it was due to high expectations. After rumours about new iPad Minis and iMacs, ‘merely’ seeing a new shiny phone with updated features didn’t do a lot for some people.

Nevertheless, it will sell. Apple’s shares went up immediately after the conference yesterday. It will fly out of shops. Retailers will be able to sell a ton of accessories for the new device.

Mike Shaw, editor of trade mobile content site Mobile Entertainment, commented: "As ever, the iPhone 5 will sell spectacularly well. In fact, there have already been forecasts that it will help shift 149m iPhones this year alone; that’s 60 per cent more than last year."

Indeed, Daniel Gleeson, mobile analyst, IHS, said: ""The addition of a new, larger screen is a fundamental change in product design. Furthermore, the iPhone 5 is the first member of Apple’s smartphone line to feature 4G long term evolution (LTE) connectivity, accelerating data speeds dramatically compared to previous models. These major improvements will drive strong sales for the iPhone 5."

However, not everyone was convinced that the improvements were enough to warrant existing iPhone customers upgrading.

Mobile Entertainment’s Shaw went on to say: "The device itself is slightly underwhelming. It’s by no means a bad phone, but some features we expect from a true next-gen smartphone are missing, including NFC. Ultimately, it simply matches competitors, rather than offering anything innovative."

You can read Shaw’s analysis of the iPhone 5 release here.

Craig Hume of IT retailer Utopia Computers said: "It’s a desirable device, but I feel it fell short on innovative features that I would expect from a new Apple product."

Even the new upgrades could potentially put off customers. We’re thinking of the new 9-pin connector in particular. If you come from a household with a few i-devices, that perhaps share a handful of 30-pin leads and docks, it may be expensive to replace or upgrade to a 9-pin device.

Apple has released a Lightning adaptor, which you can find here, but it’s a somewhat eye-watering £25. Not much on top of the price of a phone perhaps, but it seems a steep cost for a mere adaptor.

The Apple iPhone 5 will no doubt succeed, but it’s left many commentors feeling a little bored. Hmmmm.

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