Comment by robomartin | Hacker News Reader

Comment by robomartin | Hacker News Reader

iPhone 5: The biggest thing to ever happen to iPhone since iPhone.

No, the biggest thing would have been stuff like swappable RF modules so I can keep the computer portion of the phone and get the RF module my carrier requires.

The biggest thing would have been support for external memory cards (microSD would have been great).

The biggest thing would have been ditching the 30 pin connector for a mini/micro USB connector.

The biggest thing would have been allowing some access to the file system.

The biggest thing would have been adding "guest" mode to the OS so you don't have to worry about access to your stuff when you hand the phone to someone else.

There are a lot of "biggest things" that would have made iPhone 5 truly a revolutionary step in the history of iPhone. Longer, thinner and blah, blah, blah doesn't, in my not-so-humble opinion qualify. Most people I talk to have said "not interested". As a developer I'll have to buy one. No real choice there. We'll see what the average consumer does.

The real question: Is the iPhone 5 enough of an improvement for the average person to ditch their 4S? I don't know. My rather limited sample came out on the side of "no".

Historically, the answer will be yes. Apple launches a new model ever year the conversion rates from last years model holders to the new model are really high. This is even higher then conversions from consumers who bought two models ago to the new model. It's ridiculous (not that I think it is dumb, just that they have a consumer base/behavior like that).

Additionally, I don't know if the general population would be on board with your feature list.

For example, why would my mom, sister, wife, or grandma want a sd card? They all by the 64 gig device and that is more than enough. They access their photos on their iPad through photo stream, email, etc. I'm not even sure if they know what an SD card is.

I hear you on the pin connector. But again, people will fork over the money to buy an adapter if need be. Most people aren't going to throw their phone out the window of a moving car because they have to buy an adapter .... Most.

No idea why I need access to the file system. I can store any type of file I want and access it without any problems. It takes an app, but even my grandma knows how to do this. SO maybe if you elaborate on the problem the context of an average consumer might have regarding the file system, I would better understand.

Who the hell are you share your phone with? Additionally, how often is that happening? Even if I had this I would never use it. So much damn work. Additionally, I'm usually standing right there when someone borrows my phone. I never hand it to a stranger and then wander off.

Anywho. I can't argue that the changes are as revolutionary as the iPhone 1. However, the device got thinner, screen got bigger, physical design looks sweet, camera got better, software is getting better, and the device got faster. It's not curing cancer, but that is a damn good phone.

I'm upgrading my 4S tonight. Given how much I use my phone I find it worth the couple hundred bucks. Especially since I can sell my 4S and drastically bring down my net out of pocket.

I think what he wants is a handheld general purpose computer. That's not an unreasonable thing to want given what's possible these days. There is a general purpose computer inside the iPhone and it's running a decent UNIX-like OS. But Apple has crippled it. Sure you can use a computer as phone or a camera. You can also use it for other things.

So-called average consumers will never want a handheld general purpose computer, unless advertising tells them to want it. They will only want what advertising tells them to want.

This does not mean that no one should want a handheld general purpose computer. Nor does it mean the average consumer could not benefit from one, if they were shown how to use it. I am perplexed by those who would argue against anyone who asks for a more than what Apple is giving; some people want more than just a phone/camera. Are we all supposed to play dumb like this is not possible or not worthwhile to produce?

> I am perplexed by those who would argue against anyone who asks for a more than what Apple is giving

I am perplexed by people who criticize a great product because it is not the particular great product that they want. Other companies can and do make those products. Support the products that you like, rather than trying to tear down the ones that don't match your personal preferences.

> They will only want what advertising tells them to want.

Utter nonsense.

I'm a pretty big fan of my iPhone, but I would never think of shelling out the extra dough required to do an early upgrade. For people like me, the market for the iPhone 5 is not for someone who already owns an iPhone 4S, but rather for someone who owns an iPhone 4.

As an upgrade to the iPhone 4, the iPhone 5 looks pretty sweet. At this point, I don't really need any extra features, other than improved specs, which are always nice, and I don't need any of the things that you seem to want. Personally, I think that this feature race with Android is harmful. I'd actually prefer an iPhone that went back to the iPhone basics: a phone that is as small, light, and thin as possible, has a very long battery life, has zero lag for any typical use, and is utterly reliable and stable.

In my mind, the feature race with Android has been in a number of regards detrimental to the iPhone. Although the iPhone fares much better in terms of stability than the Android phones my friends have bought, all the extra features have come with a bit of a decrease in battery life and in responsiveness.

No one who bought a 4S since launch day is eligible for an upgrade on most plans at this point. They are not the target market. It's the 3GS/4 owners. They are in for a huge upgrade going to the iPhone 5.

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