We finally got the cheap iPhone everyone's been talking about for so long last year with the iPhone 5c. The iPhone 5 "cheap," and it saw so many units sold in such a short . . . Okay, so, none of that happened. Not really. Apple did indeed launch the iPhone 5c, but it was certainly not their cheap device. It was a super colorful iPhone 5, looking more like Apple's iPod Touch lineup than the traditional iPhone family. It wasn't, and still isn't, cheap, and if the rumors are true the iPhone 5c will see a relatively short lifespan.
That's because this year's going to be a bit different, too. While last year saw Apple deciding against their normal methodology for launching a new iPhone and dropping the price of the previous model, this year's apparently going to be the same way. Most people think the iPhone 5c is going to disappear off store shelves, and be replaced by the iPhone 5s as it sees a price drop, and reduction of available storage models.
At the top of the heap, then? Two new models: the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhone 6.
We've been hearing about a large iPhone for a long time now, and the only reason this year might be the year is how consistent the speculation has been. The 4.7-inch iPhone 6, what many people consider the "main" device, will see a launch alongside the 5.5-inch iPhone 6, which is definitely a change of pace for the Cupertino-based company.
Every year, when Apple launches a new handset, there is always something about the new device that's supposed to make you want to upgrade. Generally that's the upgrades in hardware, but it's also features. Something that the older device won't get, so if you want it you need to buy a new phone. Nothing too surprising there, but this year could very well upset quite a few people.
As I said, the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 is viewed by many as the main handset this year, the one that Apple's always been gearing up to launch in 2014. The 5.5-inch model, though, is a late addition and one that's obviously designed to attract all those people who keep buying devices with huge touchscreen panels. And in the months prior, many people believed that the only difference between the two devices would be the most obvious: differences in screen size. Otherwise, considering they're both brand new iPhones, they'd have the same features and hardware.
That's rumored to not be the case, though. New reports have been swirling for the last few weeks that paint the 5.5-inch iPhone 6, if it is indeed real, as the handset that's going to get quite a few bonus features packed inside. One of those things is going to be, reportedly, 128GB of storage. Apparently that won't even be an option for the smaller iPhone 6.
For many, though, it's the optical image stabilization that's rumored to be only in the 5.5-inch that could grind some teeth. While Apple will undoubtedly make some improvements to their camera systems in both devices, if the 5.5-inch handset is the only one to offer OIS out of the box, I'd understand wholeheartedly why people would be upset about this.
I'd be upset about it, that's for sure, but that's only because I don't want to see these devices have varying features, hardware or software related. The biggest difference, and the only one that I hope Apple uses as a selling point, is the screen size, and I hope that's the way it stays if the devices come to life later this year.
More than that, though, I want the 4.7-inch device to have these features, because I don't want to buy a device with a 5.5-inch screen. So yes, in this case it's all about personal preference, and I'd rather buy the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 (which I think is the perfect screen size), rather than the larger one. But, based on so many people buying huge phones these days, it seems to me that a lot of people are going to be chomping at the bit to get their hands around the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 if it does indeed exist.
Which iPhone 6 model do you think you'll pick up, if any? If you were considering the 4.7-inch model before, would you think about switching to the larger 5.5-inch model if it does indeed have more features? Let me know!
- Log in to post comments