iPhone 5 vs iPhone 4

 

We compare the iPhone 4 to the rumoured specs we think will be appearing on the iPhone 5 to see what's different

With the grand reveal for Apple's iPhone 5 expected to be a short while away, we compare the rumour with the reality and look into what's on the agenda for the biggest device launch of the year and how it stacks up against the iPhone 4. It's safe to assume that the iPhone 5 will raise the bar in each category, but by how much?

Display
The iPhone 4's 'Retina Display' is still regarded as the benchmark by which other companies judge their devices and the 3.5-inch LED-backlit IPS screen has earned each and every one of those plaudits. It offers peerless clarity, vivid colours and ranks among the most responsive displays we've ever used.
With that in mind we think it's safe to assume that the iPhone 5 will be packing something breathtaking, which knocks the iPhone 4 into a cocked hat. What we know so far (or think we know) is that it will come with a curved display à la the Samsung Nexus S (could this be what the recent patent kerfuffle was all about?) and the size may be boosted from 3.5-inches to somewhere around 4-inches.

Camera
Another feature that has won the iPhone 4 plenty of fans is the camera, and although it's only a 5-megapixel offering the quality is quite superb. The inclusion of an LED-flash was a must-have addition after the slew of complaints levelled at Apple about older iPhones, and to up the ante further Apple provisioned the iPhone 4 to capture video at 720p too!
The iPhone 5 is rumoured to feature an 8-megapixel snapper which will undoubtedly come with an LED-flash, and it's likely that the video capturing facility will see an upgrade to 1080p, to allow the device to fall into line with the market leading Android devices on offer.

Power
The iPhone 4 jogs along at a pretty brisk pace thanks to the 1GHz Apple A4 CPU and proceedings are helped along nicely by the 512MB RAM installed, but let's not forget the iPhone 4 doesn't truly multi-task, so the power is dispersed nicely among the OS and other features without really being taxed.
What we're expecting to see on the iPhone 5 is a dual-core 1GHz CPU and around 768MB RAM , but this extra oomph may be placed under strain if the device finally offers users what they've been crying out for: true multi-tasking!


Form
iPhone 4 - 115.2 x 58.6 x 9.3 mm, 137g
The iPhone 4 cuts a pretty impressive figure and we wouldn't expect the iPhone 5 to deviate too much from Apple's master-plan. The same thin, light physique is on the cards for the next device, though the iPhone 5 may offer something for users to get hold of, rather than being a sleek but slippery metal and glass affair.
Over the years the one thing people have come to expect from Apple is style and design quality, and that isn't about to change all of a sudden with its biggest device to date.

Software
There has been much speculation regarding whether or not the iPhone 5 will launch with iOS 5.0, and it still remains unclear whether or not this will be the case.

It would be an odd product launch for Apple (especially seeing as the device may actually be called '5') without the next generation of software being used to launch the smartphone though, so we're hopeful.
Supposedly the next iteration of iOS has been scheduled for a September release (which could tally with a delayed iPhone 5 release of course) and we know that it will feature an overhauled notifications system, to provide users with actual information rather than the current cryptic clue system that is currently in effect in the iPhone 4 (and other iOS devices).

You can also look forward to a cloud-based music service, which will likely integrate with iTunes and use the company's MobileMe service (which may be offered free-of-charge when the changes rollout!).
Another firm bet for iOS 5.0 is advanced voice recognition, as it transpired recently that Apple was working closely with the voice recognition gurus at Nuance to make vocal-control a real selling point for the next generation of iOS devices.

So things are looking rosy for Apple devotees around the globe! Not only is the iPhone 5 finally nearing release, but the iPhone 4 has just dropped in price too! So you can either treat yourself to a slice of Apple goodness for free, or wait and splash the cash on what will be an impressive (but expensive) new gadget! An interesting summer lies ahead.

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HTC Omega vs Nokia Sea Ray

We take a look at a couple of Windows Phone 7 toting up-and-comers this time around, the Nokia Sea Ray and the HTC Omega

HTC is supposedly readying a next-gen Windows Phone 7 handset and if the leaked specs are to be believed, the Mango powered HTC Omega looks set for good, if not great, things.
But the Omega isn't alone as there are other Windows Phone devices on the horizon that look capable of pushing the platform to the next level, and foremost among them is Nokia's 'Sea Ray'.
So let's see which of these up and comers has the most to shout about. But before we continue lets remind ourselves that we're talking rumour here, people. Don't make your minds up quite yet - specs may well change before either of the two handsets reach the shops.

Display
Nokia's 'Sea Ray' is rumoured to feature an AMOLED display which will likely be protected by some of Corning's magic Gorilla Glass.
There's no indication yet of what screen size the device will offer, but if we were to place a bet it would be on a display of around 3.9-inches, allowing it to rival bigger screened Android's and the new iPhone 5.
The rumour mill has been kinder to us with the HTC Omega though. We're hearing that the device will feature a qHD display measuring 3.8-inches and we're pretty excited about the prospect. It's practical when you can pocket a device.
Winner - HTC Omega

Power
HTC's Omega looks to be a powerful device and the apparent offering of a 1.5GHz single-core CPU raises the bar nicely.
We aren't as convinced that the reported 512MB RAM is quite enough to push Windows Phone 7 into competition with the slew of Android devices on the market that offer twice that amount though, even though it's a more efficient operating system.
We aren't sure what power-plant Nokia has chosen for the 'Sea Ray', as no details have been leaked, but we can expect a CPU of at least 1GHz. Whether the company will make it a dual-core is anyone's guess.
If we were making a bet it would be that we'll see a 1.4GHz single-core CPU in effect in the device though.
If Microsoft is looking to maintain uniformity as it did with the first generation of WP7 devices we can also expect a paltry 512MB RAM from the 'Sea Ray' too.
Though we hope we're proved wrong in this respect.
Winner - HTC Omega

Form
As we reported a few days back, the HTC Omega looks similar to HTC's Flyer tablet, only in miniature.
The device is fairly minimalist but easy on the eye nonetheless.
Being HTC we're hoping to see some premium materials on show too. Anything but grey would be a bonus.
Nokia has chosen to do away with physical buttons for the 'Sea Ray', instead giving the device a completely clear fascia akin to the upcoming N9. It's also likely colour will be more prominent, which we'll leave to you to decide whether that's good or bad.
In addition to this similarity we're expecting the device to resemble the N9 in terms of measurements too; something along the lines of 116x 61x 12mm and 130-140g.
Winner - Draw

Software
Both the 'Sea Ray' and Omega run on Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 platform, specifically the new Mango update that's due soon.
Expect to see deeper social network integration, a unified inbox, built-in text-to-voice and voice-to-text support and a whole lot more to boot (Microsoft boasts over 500 new features).
Considering Microsoft's level of control freakery into account, don't expect a Sense UI skin from HTC.
Winner - Draw

Optics
If you're a mobile snapper then both of these device's should give you plenty to get excited about.
The Nokia 'Sea Ray' is rumoured to include an 8-megapixel primary camera, with autofocus, LED flash and 720p video capture, as well as a forward facing secondary camera too.
There's no word yet on whether Nokia will be continuing its long and bountiful partnership with Carl Zeiss for the 'Sea Ray'.
Similarly the HTC Omega is expected to offer an 8-megapixel primary camera, with LED flash and autofocus. We aren't sure whether we'll see 720p or 1080p video capture, though, we wouldn't bet against the latter.
The Omega also offers a front-facing camera for video-calling, which could tie-in nicely with Microsoft's acquisition of Skype, making it a unique handset.
How the photographic hardware is implemented will be key in this round, but judging on past victories (and defeats) we'd have to give the early nod to Nokia, as it just seems to know how to put together a smartphone camera package.

Winner - Nokia 'Sea Ray'
So it's a narrow victory for HTC's Omega.
The device looks to be a very interesting addition to the Windows Phone 7 ecosystem, and we're looking forward to seeing what the platform can do with all these great new hardware additions.
The 'Sea Ray' represents a great leap forward for Nokia, and we're eager to see what the Finnish giant do when allied with a company as large and experienced in its field as Microsoft.
Could this be the start of a beautiful friendship? Time will tell.

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Specs for New 4.7-inch HTC Runnymede Revealed – How Big Is Too Big?

If you thought HTC was being a bit “overly ambitious” with the 4.5-inch HTC Holiday (Raider) you ain’t seen nothing yet. Looks like HTC is working on a monster device they’re calling the Runnymede. Apparently, this device showed up like so many devices do, in some EXIF data on a photo site but that didn’t provide any more info than a name. Well, now they boys at Pocketnow have gotten the low down on a more complete list of specs and exactly what to expect from the HTC Runnymede.

• Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread


• 4.7-inch, 480×800 display


• 1.5GHz single-core MSM8255


• 768MB of RAM / 16GB of storage


• 8MP/720p rear-camera with dual LED


• 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera


• Under 10 millimeters thick


• Sense 3.5


• DLNA


• Bundled Beats headphones (not earphones)

I know most of you see single-core processor and you’re ready to write this device off but there are some other winning specs like that make this device stand out. Like the backlit sensored camera that features a 28mm wide-angle lens and focal ratio of f/2.2. Besides snapping amazing pics, the camera is capable of capturing 60 frames-per-second HD video.
You can expect the HTC Runnymede in time for the holidays but still no word on which carrier will pick this up. What do you guys think? I hear 4.7-inches is the new 4.5.
[Via Pocketnow]

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One last batch of TouchPads on the way, HP says

HP’s public relations manager Mark Budgell wrote a blog post Tuesday afternoon confirming a report from Reuters earlier in the day in which HP vice president Todd Bradley suggested the company would resurrect its TouchPad tablet. “Despite announcing an end to manufacturing webOS hardware, we have decided to produce one last run of TouchPads to meet unfulfilled demand,” Budgell wrote. “We don’t know exactly when these units will be available or how many we’ll get, and we can’t promise we’ll have enough for everyone. We do know that it will be at least a few weeks before you can purchase.” HP says it will manufacture the tablets during the fourth fiscal quarter of this year, which ends on October 31st. It is unclear if the new batch will be priced from $99, which had previously resulted in a quick fire sale of the tablet.
[Via AllThingsD]
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AT&T to finally launch LG Thrill 4G on September 4th, $99.99

AT&T is finally set to launch its first 3D smartphone, the LG Thrill 4G. No, that 4G doesn’t mean users will be able to take advantage of AT&T’s soft launched 4G LTE network, but the Thrill will begin burning up AT&T’s previous-generation fourth-generation network when it becomes available for purchase this Sunday, September 4th. We reviewed the LG Thrill 4G last month and we were a little surprised by the fact that we really did enjoy recording and viewing 3D content on the device. Overall, however, we found the Thrill 4G to be a mediocre phone that’s bulky, heavy and not overly competitive with modern Android offerings from the likes of HTC and Samsung. At $99.99 however, those looking to play around with the 3D features shouldn’t be disappointed.
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Motorola announces PRO+ Android phone; likely headed to AT&T, T-Mobile [video]

Motorola on Tuesday unveiled a new Android smartphone that is likely soon headed to both AT&T and T-Mobile here in the U.S. The Motorola PRO+ runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread and features a candy bar form factor with a full QWERTY keypad. The BlackBerry-like QWERTY sits beneath a 3.1-inch VGA touchscreen display, and spec highlights include a 1GHz processor, a 5-megapixel camera, 4GB of internal storage, microSDHC support, 512MB of RAM and a 1,600 mAh battery. “The Motorola PRO+ is built for people who want to take the pressure off and consolidate their work and personal lives with an efficient smartphone that acts like your personal assistant,” said Alain Mutricy, Motorola’s senior vice president, portfolio and device product management, in a statement. “Today, with our demanding 24/7 lifestyles your smartphone should make your complex life easier and give you an edge at work and at play.” Pricing and availability have not yet been announced for AT&T or T-Mobile. Motorola’s full press release follows below along with a video.

Motorola Mobility Delivers the Smartphone that Works and Plays as Hard as You Do: Motorola PRO+
A powerful smartphone optimized for business but fun enough to use for your personal life – Motorola PRO+ is your personal assistant and best friend
LIBERTYVILLE, Ill. – Aug. 30, 2011 – Life is full of demands, and we all could use a little extra help. With the sleek and sophisticated Motorola PRO+, brought to you by Motorola Mobility Inc., you can have your own personal assistant that fits right in your pocket. Motorola PRO+ gives you the power to edit important documents on the go, multitask when every second counts, and encrypt sensitive work information so your IT manager can sleep at night. This supreme blend of touch screen, full QWERTY keyboard and Android™ 2.3 (Gingerbread) makes this smartphone ready for anything. The Motorola PRO+ will be available in Asia and Europe starting in October.
Motorola PRO+ has a super quick 1GHz processor and physical QWERTY keyboard for more efficient typing and texting when you need to update a client on the fly, for browsing for really important information, or multitasking as necessity demands. The device is also packed with productivity features to make your life easier and to help you impress your boss or your friends, including the pre-loaded Quickoffice Connect for accessing, creating and editing documents on-the-go. We know that in a fast paced world, going in and out of apps wastes precious time, so now key apps such as your calendar and email are scrollable direct from your home screen.
Motorola PRO+ merges all of your personal and business information for you in a convenient system designed to make your life easier. Take the pressure off knowing Motorola PRO+ syncs services from multiple sources, so all your contacts are viewable the way you want them, calendar options are available to arrange, edit, and respond to meeting invites, there are direct dial conference options, and intuitive email solutions that can anticipate who you may be sending an email to before you do. Its 3G Mobile HotSpot capabilities enables you to connect multiple devices, such as a laptop or tablet, for quick access to the Web, corporate email and calendar syncing. Plus, it features scratch resistant Corning^® Gorilla^® Glass so tossing your phone in your bag or pocket doesn’t have to be a disaster.
“The Motorola PRO+ is built for people who want to take the pressure off and consolidate their work and personal lives with an efficient smartphone that acts like your personal assistant,” said Alain Mutricy, senior vice president, portfolio and device product management, Motorola Mobility. “Today, with our demanding 24/7 lifestyles your smartphone should make your complex life easier and give you an edge at work and at play.”
Motorola PRO+ knows how to have fun too – it is ready for full customization to bring you the games and applications most important to you. With Music, Motorola’s unique music player you have a dashboard for music discovery. You have easy access to all your favorite artists and song lyrics. Plus, you receive live, personalized recommendations for songs and videos as well as news and event updates from the world of music. With Gallery, you can aggregate all your photos from social networking and photo sharing sites like Facebook and Picasa for easy viewing. Plus, with Adobe^® Flash^® Player 10.3, you’ll be able to access the online content you love. Motorola PRO+ is also preloaded with the latest *Google mobile services including Google Maps™ 5.0, Google Talk™ and more than 250,000 apps from Android Market^™.
Motorola PRO+ is a smartphone that you and your IT department can agree upon. Nothing says business ready better than the leading security features; whether it’s remote wipe of your device and SD card, password expiration and history, or full encryption, your IT manager will breathe a sigh of relief. Motorola PRO+ comes loaded with 25 Exchange ActiveSync security policies – including PIN lock, auto-discovery of Exchange Servers, Extended Device Management API’s and 3LM integration. Your sensitive information – your career – is guarded in this virtual vault with Motorola PRO+. It’s fully loaded with support for Exchange and Gmail for business, including corporate directory options. With these leading features your IT manager just might give you a smile.
Smart Accessories
A suite of smart accessories ensures users get the most from the Motorola Pro+. Available accessories include a Bluetooth® headset, Bluetooth car kit, portable power, and car charger.

Motorola PRO+ Features and Specifications
Form Factor	Touch Screen, QWERTY
OS	Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
Size	62 x 119.50 x 11.65mm
Display	3.1” VGA, 640 x 480 pixels, scratch resistant Corning® Gorilla® Glass
Weight	113g
Processor	1GHz
Battery	1600mAh
Talk and Standby Time1	Up to 8 hours of talktime and 13 days in standby
Bands/Modes	Dual-band WCDMA 850/1900/2100, 850/1700/2100, 900/2100 Quadband GSM 850/900/1800/1900, HSDPA 14.4 Mbps, HSUPA 2Mbps, EDGE Class 12, GPRS Class 12
Connectivity	3.5mm headset jack, USB 2.0 HS, BOTA, PC Sync 3G Mobile HotSpot capabilities – Allows customers to connect up to five other Wi-Fi®-enabled devices and laptops
Messaging/Web/Apps	MMS, SMS, Email, IM (Dwnld Java, Embedded)
Camera	5MP auto focus with LED flash
Audio	FM Radio Receive, AAC, AAC+, AAC+ Enhanced, AMR NB, MIDI, MP3, RA, WAV, WMA
Video	Capture/Playback/Streaming, H.264, MPEG4
Storage & Memory	4G internal storage, expandable up to 32GB 512 RAM
Location Services	aGPS (assisted)
Pre-loaded Applications	Access to Google Maps™ with Navigation, Google Talk™and Web browsing
Sensors	eCompass, Accelerometer, Light and Proximity Sensor

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AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II Hands-on

AT&T also has their own Galaxy S II to show off today and we were able to snatch a few photos and a quick video before they threw it back under the glass. I’ve wrote Galaxy S II so much today I think I’ll just say SGSII from here on out. So, AT&T will be launching the SGSII come September 18th and be just a few days behind the others, but don’t worry it will be yours with a new 2-year contract for only $199.

Just like the rest of the carrier today, AT&T announced the Galaxy S II and you can read all about that here. Since AT&T already offers the Samsung Infuse 4G with a large 4.5″ display they must have decided against that large size for the SGSII because they are the only carrier in the US offering it with a 4.3″ display rather than the 4.52″ that was announced today. Either way here are the official specs.
– 4.3″ Super AMOLED Plus Display
– 1.2GHz dual-core Samsung Exynos processor
– Ultra-thin (8.89mm) and thinner than on other carriers
– 8MP rear and 2MP front cameras
– 1080p HD video recording
– Wifi calling
– NOVA 2 HD pre-loaded
– Swype pre-loaded
– Bluetooth 3.0
– Hotspot controls up to eight devices
– Android 2.3 Gingerbread
– Optional USB Host kit for connection keyboards, cameras, printers and thumb drives
– Optional HDMI adapter
– Multimedia and Car docks will be available soon

Now for our hands-on we actually brought along the little/big brother the Samsung Infuse 4G. While it has a 4.5″ display it only offers a single-core CPU so that is clearly where the SGSII has the advantage as it’s 1.2 Ghz and has an extra core for when you need it most. The smaller of the two pictured below is the new Samsung Galaxy S II headed for AT&T come September 18th.
AT&T Galaxy S II Hands-on Video



Again performance was excellent and no one will really have any issues there. Everything was extremely fluid and performed great and we experienced little to no lag at all. Touch Wiz was fast and stable too. The AT&T Model looks closest to the version launched in Europe because it features the same size display and you will all be just as pleased with it as those Europeans are. We plan on fully reviewing the phone come launch time but for now here are some pictures for you to enjoy.
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Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch Hands-On

In case anyone missed it, today was Samsung day and they’ve officially announced the Samsung Galaxy S II Smartphone is headed to all three major US carriers with the exception of Verizon (they have bigger plans so I’m told). We were live at the NYC Samsung event getting all the juicy details. For the official announcement of the Epic 4G Touch click here. The WiMAX version will be available starting September 16th for the low price of just $199. We have pictures and videos below.

After Samsung leaked the details earlier this morning we can now officially confirm those details were all accurate. The Galaxy S II offered by the Now Network will be the Epic 4G Touch and will come with some awesome specs and those include:
– 4.52″ Super AMOLED Plus Display
– 1.2GHz dual-core Samsung Exynos processor
– Ultra-thin (9.59mm) design
– Wimax 4G Connectivity
– 8MP rear and 2MP front cameras
– 1080p HD video recording
– Wifi calling
– NOVA 2 HD pre-loaded
– Swype pre-loaded
– Bluetooth 3.0
– Hotspot controls up to eight devices
– Android 2.3 Gingerbread
– Optional USB Host kit for connection keyboards, cameras, printers and thumb drives
– Optional HDMI adapter
– Multimedia and Car docks will be available soon

[VIDEO PROCESSING]
Pretty impressive right? Basically it is everything that made the original SGSII popular but with a bigger screen, I love it. Obviously with the 1.2 Ghz dual-core CPU performance was top notch and everything was extremely quick, speedy, and very fluid. We experienced zero issues or lag with our very limited time with the phone. You all know plenty about the SGSII so I’ll just skip down to the pictures. Video is coming shortly.
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Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch Coming September 16th for $199

Samsung and the Now Network have also confirmed that they will also be launching the Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch (long name I know) with 4G WiMAX coming this September. Prior to the event in NYC going on as we speak Samsung accidentally unveiled the details on the SGSIIE4GT — yes that is what I’m calling it.

The Galaxy S II with 4G WiMAX will be available from the team in Yellow first, they get exclusive rights as the first Galaxy S II to the US. It will be rocking that awesome 4.52″ Super AMOLED Plus display, a 1.2 Ghz dual-core Samsung Exnyos processor, 16GB internal storage with 1GB Ram. a Powerful 8 MP rear camera with LED flash capable of 1080p video capture, 2MP front facing camera and more.
Galaxy S II Unveiling Video



As expected these will all be running on the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread as well as an updated Samsung Touch Wiz UX. The video above is the quick unveiling live from the NYC event just for fun, call it a bonus. Samsung will also offer an HDTV adapter and dock for those looking to get HD content from the phone to their HDTV’s and should have those available soon. We are also hearing since they are the first carrier they’ll also be offering pre-orders so stay tuned for full details.
We are just getting some hands-on time now and will be sure to update with plenty of pictures and videos shortly, but you already knew that right?
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