i heard today that sprint was getting the 4s in a non exclusive deal. either way i am sticking with my droid.

 

Apple fan boys will run out and grab this phone like its the greatest thing to hit the shelves. While Android has had phones with these capablities for months on the market. Apples marketing is just true genuis.

 

Siri is not "little." That's a huge feature. It's conceivable that someone could interact entirely by voice with their phone, which is a MAJOR change in usability.

You either read a bad report or are misremembering a rumor. Sprint paid $20 billion for 30.5 million iPhone 4Ses, not exclusivity for the iPhone 5. This rumor was a last-second pop-up, when people weren't sure if the iPhone was called the 4S or the 5. They paid money to carry the iPhone, not to carry it exclusively.

Don't expect an iPhone 5 for at least a year, if not another year and a half (June 2013). Adding LTE/WiMAX, making the screen larger, and upgrading the processing power aren't possible right now. LTE/WiMAX chipsets are in their infancy and are battery-devouring beasts, as anyone with an EVO 4G will tell you. Making a physically larger screen means more LCD sucking more battery. And Apple doesn't make the A6 yet, though they just entered into a foundry deal with TSMC to manufacture the A6 CPU for the iPad 3 (~Q1 2012).

Yep, Android has had equivalents to Siri and iCloud for months now. Just marketing. Nothing to see here. :sidelol:

 

siri is supposed to be pretty dope, but personal assistants is nothing new. They basically just released a better version.

 

HUGE! I mean, I can press two buttons and interact with my almost two year old Android completely by voice as well. Albeit The iPhone 4S is going to be quicker and simpler. But I can voice search, dial, add appointments and access anywhere in my phone through voice....Lets be real, how often are you going to use that? Most likely when you are alone or driving or something. Which is nice. But not something out of this something Androids havent been able to do. Not as seamless, but not ground breaking.

Yea exactly.

Really, cause apple users were swearing to god it was the iphone 5 coming with a bigger screen...now its not possible? lol

Umm...It does. Like I said previously, My Incredible which is almost 2 years old, can voice search, voice dial, voice text, access apps through voice, set appointments. Siri is a nice feature and is going to be more seamless and easy. However, to say that's huge or ground breaking is ridiculous. iCloud is also another nice feature, not saying they arent. However ground breaking is ridiculous. I have Google Music which I can wirelessly download everything in my iTunes. The main difference in iCloud is that its streaming, which is good and bad. Streaming is always accessing Data, and we know if you dont already have the unlimited Data plan, you can not get it anymore. So it will use your data. The nice thing about iCloud is the fact that its not going to take up your memory in your phone. So while I my phones memory is taken up because I wirelessly download my iTunes on my phone through google music. However, with Android you have an expandable memory. So If I have lets say a 8 GB android and have 8 GBs of iTunes I want to download on my phone, I can go out and purchase a 32 GB card to go with it. Problem no longer.

Look I am not here saying the iPhone 4S is a bad device by ANY means. While people like Seth who has the 3Gs this is going to be a great and upgrade in technology. The Samsung Infuse has been available for Months and is going to continued to be available for $100 less. So the major advantage to the iPhone 4s over the Infuse is speed. The processor in the iPhone4s is pretty dope, I am not going to lie about that. However, the Infuse is very fast in its self. So the bigger screen, same camera, and pretty much does the same thing with the IMO better Android software....Once again, not ground breaking.

And again, I am not bashing the iPhone, as its a great phone, hell I love the iPhone 4. I just think two things: 1. They released this phone as it was going to be ground breaking and they are going to market as such. And it doesnt do anything that phones out already cant do in someway or another. 2. People are going to blindly lineup for this phone because of Apples marketing skills. And you cant tell me difference because I have worked for At&t for 3 years, and I continue to work for them today....75% of the people that walk in my store(and not exaggerating those numbers), have NO clue why they want the iPhone. Someone walks in and says, do you have the iphone or I want an iphone. First question I ask them is, WHY? 75% of the people have no response.

 

Its understandable. Don't take my post the wrong way, the iPhone is a great device, just not as ground breaking anymore as they lead people to believe. However, if you have a crack in your phone and you have the 3Gs, I would tell you for sure to go out and get the iPhone 4S. Unless you simply arent going to use Siri, which I am going to assume most wont after the initial usings, your fine with a 5 MP camera rather then 8, and the speed doesnt bother you. You would save some money, not sure if that is something your looking for or not.

Either way youll be fine. I actually agree with Desides. I cant see them coming out with another version for about a year. However, the iPhone 5 is going to be far ahead of the iPhone 4 and 4s. Just like the 4 was far ahead of the 3g and 3gs.

 

Yeah, but will it make my ***** any bigger?

 

100% certain. The stuff they're most likely to add isn't technologically ready for prime time. Buy now without regrets. Besides, resell value of Apple stuff is so high that you'll be out a few dollars at the most if you sell your 4S for a 5 before your 2 year deal is up.

I think you don't quite understand what the technology is here. No, voice input—which iOS has had forever—is not the same as Siri. They are miles apart. Don't confuse the two just because they're both voice-activated.

Which mythical "[A]pple users were swearing to [G]od"? Further, where did I say that a larger screen isn't possible? Come on, let's not invent straw men and twist others' words here. What I said was that Apple would prefer not to release an iPhone with a larger display if it's going to negatively impact battery life. Battery life is their #1 priority in all of their mobile devices. If a feature disproportionately drains battery life, like LTE chipsets do right now, they aren't going to implement that feature until they can mitigate that impact. Notice that the 4S got a faster CPU and new CPU-intensive features (Siri), yet its battery life either remained the same as the iPhone 4's, or improved.

Right now, the three biggest drains on mobile battery life are LCD displays, GSM/CDMA/LTE radio chipsets, and WiFi chipsets. Thus why the iPhone 4S doesn't have LTE or a larger display; the benefits don't outweigh the drawbacks right now. Again, look at the EVO 4G to see why Apple does this.

Again, not the same thing.

Of course not. You're just here to haul out the exact same talking points that Android fans levy against iOS no matter what. "Android had that earlier", "My phone can do that, no big deal", "I can do X or Y that the iPhone can't", and so on. You even went on to attribute the iPhone's success and hype to marketing.

Yeah, Apple is pretty good at marketing. No, the device's success is not due to brainwashing messages embedded into their commercials. It's because they implement a given feature or set of features in a better, more usable way than their competitors.

I could go into the main forum right now and ask "Why are you a fan of the Dolphins?" 75% won't have a good answer. Likewise, I could go onto an Android forum and ask "Why do you use Android phones?" The majority response will probably be something along the lines of "It's not Apple/iOS."

This is an utterly meaningless standard of measure. Stop crapping on people's choices just because you don't like the product they selected. If enjoyment of your phone is derived from mocking or challenging others' choices, then what does that say about you?

 

There's an app for that!

 

I don't think Android advocates should ever accuse iOS of copying features found in Android. Totally hypocritical. Ultimately, you buy the phone based upon the user experience. Should someone buy the iPhone 4S...I don't know. I'm really happy with my iPhone 4 running the iOS 5 GM, so I think everyone can get away with that. If you're really into creating media on your phone (taking pics, vids, that type of stuff), then absolutely get the 4S. Right now, there's no better CAMERA phone than the iPhone 4S.

FWIW iOS 5 is really snappy even as a GM release.

 

Golden Master releases are final unless there's really some major, last-second show-stopper bug. So we don't need to put the "even as a GM release" qualifier there. :lol:

 

By the way, Sprint is offering unlimited data for iPhone customers.

 

please explain it to me then.

I didnt say you did I? I have no clue what your view on any phone in the wireless industry was, why would I claim you said that? I work for at&t, so I continually research upcoming phones. It was all over the internet of the different features it would all have. I have GENERAL users come in and try to tell me or ask me about those features too. I continually told them it was all speculation, some didnt believe me. One of my coworkers is a huge apple guy and was super pissed because it didnt have any outside changes.

I didnt say it was did I?

They changed the world in reality and were the ones that started this whole thing, I certainly am not here trying to claim Android did anything first. Once again putting words in my mouth. All I was saying or asking even...Are people suppose to be excited about an 8 MP camera that phones had out on it years ago? I said iCloud and Siri were great. my god you are an angry iPhone fan. Remind me of a Henne fan, cant take ANY criticism at all? lol

Whose to say what a "good answer" is?!?! I am not talking about people giving me some lame excuse, I am talking about them telling me they DIDN'T KNOW!

 

= more lolcats.

 

Okay. When you say that your Android phone does voice commands, I'm assuming you refer to this. This is Google's implementation of basic features in the original Siri app for Android and iOS (which functioned after Apple bought Siri, but is now disabled as of yesterday). Google's voice commands are pretty standard and straightforward: you have to say a predefined phrase, or something close to it, because the phone is expecting to hear something along those lines. The Sync system in my car works the same way: you have to say specific commands for the system to operate.

Siri deviates in two ways from this.

1. There are no voice commands, just the use of your voice. You don't have to recite a specific phrase or command. You just say a phrase and Siri figures out what you meant. This is a huge usability difference and advancement right away: people don't have to learn a list of predefined voice commands, they can just say what they want.

2. The amount of control you have over iOS through Siri is greater than what you have over Android through those voice commands. If you need to find the answer to a question, Google's voice commands are basically a front end for Google search: Siri will use system apps (Weather, Stocks, etc) or knowledge bases (Wolfram Alpha, etc) to give you the answer immediately. It's a better, more convenient presentation of a wider array of information.

The new iOS 5 apps and abilities (like Reminders and its geofencing) also give Siri a boost, but that's secondary to this specific discussion.

You replied to my mention about whether or why Apple would put a larger screen on the iPhone with "now its not possible? lol" So yeah, you were directing that at me. You also twisted what I said, because I never claimed it wasn't possible.

So what? Seriously, what the hell does this have to do with Sethdaddy8?

Yeah, actually, that's exactly what you were saying. You dismissed Siri by saying that your Android phone already has voice commands.

But you did, when you said that your Android already does voice commands. The point was to say that Android did something first. You even listed how long you've owned your Android phone which allows you to give voice commands. This is what your words mean.

If people care about photo quality on their phones, they should be excited about an 8MP camera that's better-engineered, absolutely. Even if they don't buy an iPhone 4S, they should hope that the technology makes it into their next phone.

What criticism? You made fun of customers who came to buy iPhones from you; you made fun of imaginary, unnamed Apple fans on the Internet over larger screen rumors; you've shown a superficial and incorrect understanding of Siri and the iPhone 4S' camera. Mockery isn't criticism, it's just mockery.

Criticism looks like this: "Apple's strategy of discount pricing previous generation iPhones seems like a stopgap. They should find a way to make a current-generation iPhone available for less than $199, rather than just continue to sell their previous models at lower prices. This way everyone can use every feature in iOS 5, rather than miss out on Siri for the sake of saving $100 at retail."

See what I did there?

And they wouldn't know why they'd want to buy an Android phone instead. The issue here is that you think your story proves something about iPhone owners in general, and it doesn't.

 

FWIW, theres a free app called "Vlingo" that will write out texts, emails, map searches, google searches and social media updates by voice. Its pretty accurate and I have it on my Ipad now.

 

I got to find a way to get this phone and then unlock it. Sucks, but I have T-Mobile.

 

Using voice as an input method isn't new. Phones and computers have had it for years. The point is that Siri goes beyond just a set of predefined, restricted voice commands.

 

Your pumping this Siri up pretty hard, I'm going to ease off my thoughts a lil until I try the 4s and just how much better this siri is...

 

Being able to control what's basically a portable computer entirely by voice is a Big Deal™. We're in Star Trek territory here.

It's conceivable that someone could use their iPhone entirely through Siri on a day to day basis.

 

How many Android phones are dual antenna, dual core processor, shoot 1080p HD video at 30 FPS, take pictures faster than any phone on the market, have a built in ipod touch, and have Siri? My guess would be zero.

 

:rollseyes:

Androids haven't had antenna issues like the iPhone so it hasn't needed a dual antenna..


How many apple products have a built in touch music player, 8 MP came with a 1080p video with 30 FPS, a9 1.2 ghz dual processor, expandable memory, 4.3 inch screen , 2 MP front camera and the ability to run flash...oh yea. None.

 

You really don't know what you're talking about here.

1. Every cell phone with an internal antenna design has a spot where, when covered or pressed, reduces reception. This is what happens when the fleshy bags of salt water we call our bodies makes contact with a radio antenna: attenuation. This became an issue when cell phones moved their antennas inside their cases (remember when phones had external antennas?) and had to keep comparable wireless performance. Most manufacturers even go so far as to put a sticker on the exact spot where the antenna meets the casing so the user doesn't touch them. HTC calls this inevitable:

This includes Android phones. Google can't code around the laws of physics, nor can HTC or Samsung or Motorola engineer around them. Android phones experience attenuation too. "Droid Incredible has signal attenuation on contact" just isn't as good a linkbait/clickbait headline on a news site as "Antennagate: Apple iPhone has death grip!!!!!!!!!11234"

2. The dual antenna design wasn't created to fix signal attenuation. The way to fix that is to make an external antenna ala cell phones 10 years ago. The CDMA iPhone 4 debuted the dual antenna design because Verizon's network required it. Since the 4S is both a GSM and CDMA phone, it needed the CDMA iPhone 4's dual antenna design. So Apple took it a step further and moved the WiFi/GPS antenna back inside and made the entire steel band into a cell phone antenna. Here, listen to someone who knows what he's talking about:

Since you work for AT&T, I can understand not knowing about the receive design for Verizon phones. But not knowing about signal attenuation? Claiming Android phones don't experience that? Really? Come on, man.

 

i know about it, believe me. Simple fact it, it doesnt effect most phones like the iPhone. Every phone can be effected, however just like what you posted, the signal would be effected a little, in some instances the iPhone 4 was damn near unusable, it was the worse instance of this, which is why apple was giving cases away at the start because of it. Apple HAD to fix to issue, android does not. Although I do have to applaud the way they are fixing it, it seems like a great and new idea. I am sure phones will follow suit.

 

This is not simple, nor is it a fact. Every modern phone has some form of signal attenuation.

 

Where did I say different? I said the effect was different. Which is a fact.

 

The one thing that bothers me about this is that Siri was available on IP4 but now theyre pulling it off any existing IP4 and making it exclusive to IP5 as of the 15th and the app is no longer usable or downloadable for existing IP4 customers. Its smart monetarily as people who really want that feature will run out for the IP4S but come on, thats a money grab if ever there was one.

The fact that it will change signal strength based on how youre holding your phone should be a good thing as iPhones have had notoriously weaker signals. When its been constant through the first few versions of the phone you should probably try something different.

 

You're saying the antenna was changed because of the death grip, and that the iPhone is the only phone that does this. Both statements are false.

I think Apple was pretty generous to allow Siri to keep working after they acquired the company. They didn't have to keep those servers up. Nor is it particularly heinous for them to make Siri exclusive to the 4S and beyond, particularly if Siri happens to require some sort of hardware difference (namely, more RAM).

Not really. iPhones have just had more high-profile complaints given the amount of devices sold and the types of people using them. Most of the complaints are centered in New York and San Francisco, cities with difficult terrain for cell signals. AT&T et al are trying to build out capacity, but city councils will usually vote against the addition of new cell towers. NIMBY effect.

 

I swear, this may be the most annoying conversation ive ever been apart of. Every time I post something, you come back and say I said something else. Its in black and white smart guy, I did not say that....I'm done with you, your reading comprehension is awful

 

Yes, it is in black and white. You said what you said. Trying to retroactively claim you never said something that you obviously did doesn't fly. I'm pretty sure those reading the thread can see that.

 

whether it was an issue or not. the iPhone4S has 2 antennae which means it can download faster, and it can balance between the two during simultaneous incoming/outgoing data (phone calls). If one loses signal, the other picks up the slack. Your phone cant do that.

 

I was simply referring to the fact that independent researchers such as consumer reports test the phones and routinely publish that reception quality on iPhones is less then it is on other phones on the same network. They test phones nationally for stuff like this.

As for Siri, no they don't have to keep servers up after they acquired Siri. They also didnt have to eliminate existing users from continuing using Siri on their IP4. That they did and then use it as a headline feature when its not really a new thing (though there are some improvements on it) definitely gives the appearance of a money grab.

 

Consumer Reports seems to have a thing against the iPhone 4 in general. Their articles made it sound as if it was the only phone to suffer from signal attenuation, and when Apple did what they said it should do—give out free cases—they still refused to recommend the phone.

A money grab is when a carrier or manufacturer doesn't push out the latest (free!) OS update to better persuade (read: force) you to buy a new phone.

 

I wish I had read this thread before buying my latest smartphone because I think I've learned more here than in any of the research I did.

Oh and who wants to do a "webOS v. Windows Phone 7" debate? :shifty:

 

Re: the antenna issues, the perceived problem is worse than the actual problem. I've never had a problem with the "death grip" phenomenon. I've never lost a call I was in the middle of, nor have I been waiting for a long period of time to send a text or email. In the field, it's a non-issue.

There's three reasons not to buy the iPhone; AT&T network is garbage, the native apps are mediocre (looking at you Calendar.app), and the screen is now puny compare to the large EVO and the like. If AT&T network is a problem in your area, you're welcome to get the Verizon model. I have a hate-hate relationship with the native calendar app, so I purchased Week Calendar and haven't looked back. The screen issue is a personal one, not much luck there.

I wouldn't buy an Android phone for the same reason I wouldn't by a Windows machine, both lack the quality found in Apple products. You'd have to really slurping the Android kool aid to think that OS is in the same league as iOS. It has flash...and for that you get horrible developer support. The 2nd party apps no where near the quality of those in iOS. The iPhone-iTunes interface is intuitive, responsive, and unmatched by any other manufacturer. IPhone is the industry standard in the phone marketplace.

Android is the Ironman Timex watch. It tells time, has multiple alarms, etc, etc., and everyone still wants iOS because it is the Rolex Submariner; precise, classic, versatile, and will get you laid. The hardware isn't the reason to buy the iPhone, it's the software.


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