Anand Reviews the Iphone4S.

Anand makes a good case for the next iPhone not having a larger screen. He is probably right. FTA: Apple probably thinks the current screen size is perfect, thus no change is needed. That does sound like Apple thinking.
 
Anandtech always has the most in-depth reviews, its a pleasure reading them.
 
My wife got one of these yesterday. I played with it for a while and think it's pretty cool. Very well built and the touchscreen's precision is surgical. I like my Thunderbolt better but its perfect for the wife who just wants something cool she can play with and hang out on Facebook and check emails and such.
 
Thanks - nice review.

I'll be purchasing this phone unless the Nexus can knock it off the throne.

I was hoping to switch from AT&T to Verizon but this review suggests AT&T is much faster for downloading.
 
KENNYB said:
Anand makes a good case for the next iPhone not having a larger screen. He is probably right. FTA: Apple probably thinks the current screen size is perfect, thus no change is needed. That does sound like Apple thinking.
Click to expand...

With Steve dead get ready to see some changes.
 
I don't know why Apple makes small screens. Look at Galaxy S2. After working on massive 4.3 inch screen who would look at low resolution small 3.5 inch screen?
 
maverick786us said:
I don't know why Apple makes small screens. Look at Galaxy S2. After working on massive 4.3 inch screen who would look at low resolution small 3.5 inch screen?
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I have decent size hands and i rather use the iphone sized screen matter fact i went back to the iphone 4s from a tbolt and charge, both phones while i can use it without any problems i always find myself overstretching my thumb to reach across the screen.

The iphone is also easier to carry and fits in any pocket while the tbolt or charge where just bricks. Battery life also takes hit when having a bigger screen.

Who would want a smaller phone? i don't know but there are many valid reasons for sticking with the 3.5" size i'm not saying is perfect because i would love to have a 4" screen but as daily driver 4.3" is just too wide if they have that retarded 4:3 ratio that the tbolt or charge have, OTH the 16:9 ratio is bearable, but still 4.0 16:9 is where my personal preference lies.

3.5" may seem small for some but not everyone wants a +4.3" either so don't just rule everyone out because you like the 4.3" size.

P.S save the "thats what she said" jokes
 
Greenstuffs said:
I have decent size hands and i rather use the iphone sized screen matter fact i went back to the iphone 4s from a tbolt and charge, both phones while i can use it without any problems i always find myself overstretching my thumb to reach across the screen.

The iphone is also easier to carry and fits in any pocket while the tbolt or charge where just bricks. Battery life also takes hit when having a bigger screen.

Who would want a smaller phone? i don't know but there are many valid reasons for sticking with the 3.5" size i'm not saying is perfect because i would love to have a 4" screen but as daily driver 4.3" is just too wide if they have that retarded 4:3 ratio that the tbolt or charge have, OTH the 16:9 ratio is bearable, but still 4.0 16:9 is where my personal preference lies.

3.5" may seem small for some but not everyone wants a +4.3" either so don't just rule everyone out because you like the 4.3" size.

P.S save the "thats what she said" jokes
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Don't you find the Onscreen keyboard hard to use on small 3.5 inch screen, specially if your fingers are broad
 
maverick786us said:
Don't you find the Onscreen keyboard hard to use on small 3.5 inch screen, specially if your fingers are broad
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It's quite good, and I'm to the point where I'm just as fast with it then a physical keyboard
 
Greenstuffs said:
Who would want a smaller phone?
Click to expand...

I'm one who prefers the size of the iPhone over the larger competitors. The size of the phone fits better into my jeans pocket and I'm not nearly as concerned with it being snapped in half while there. Putting a larger phone into my pocket just makes me feel like I'm walking around with a book there, and it is uncomfortable. Obviously this is simply personal taste, and I have no issue with those who choose to carry larger phones/devices.
 
maverick786us said:
OK thanks. How much screen area does the onscreen keyboard covers?
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I'd say 2/3? But it works well enough to where you can hide it and scroll up or down seamlessly, I'm typing right now and see about 5 lines of text above the keyboard
 
My girlfriend, whom I brought an iPad 2 and an iPhone 4 for because she begged me for them, had to use my ASUS Transformer and my HTC Evo last weekend as part of my challenge. She complained to me yesterday about how she hates her iPad and iPhone and asked me why did I brought or why didn't get her something else instead. She found that SwiftKey on the tablet and the Evo is way easier to type than on the iPad and the iPhone. She found that the Transformer's touchscreen is more responsive (but I'm not so sure about that). She also said, "OMG, I need flash on my tablet!" So I'll be getting her an ASUS Transformer with Tegra 3 and I dunno about phone, frigging AT&T.

Another win for Android.
 
That was a good read. I like Anand review because they are not bias like others on apple's payroll and they give credit when credit is due. I'm waiting for Galaxy nexus review and SGS 2 HD as well. But I'm looking forward more and more with SGS 2 since I'm on att:( I currently have 4s and it's good, but it's not the greatest or groundbreaking phone.
 
maverick786us said:
Don't you find the Onscreen keyboard hard to use on small 3.5 inch screen, specially if your fingers are broad
Click to expand...
Physical keyboard snob and touchscreen keyboard hater here.

In my not so humble opinion, in terms of soft keyboards mostly on a 3.7" OG Droid screen, I'd rank them: Android pre-2.3 < Android 2.3 < iPhone 3GS < Swype < Swiftkey X

Swype finally made soft keyboards on that 3.7" screen acceptable, Swiftkey X made it to the point I could live without a physical keyboard without being too annoyed. Here's to hoping Android 4.0/Swiftkey X on a 4.65" screen is wonderful. Because otherwise I'll probably need to wait for the Droid 4. :(

Maybe I have sausage fingers (size medium gloves fit me well), but I've never found the iPhone 3GS soft keyboard particularly pleasant to use. It is the number one iPhone dealbreaker for me. I haven't logged enough time on an iPhone 4 (zero time on a 4S) to comment too accurately, but my initial impression didn't change anything.
 
I enjoy swiftkey x moreso than the stock android keyboard as well.

On screen size, i find my Evo 3D fine and fits nicely in my hand/pocket though i do have issues reaching the far top left corner with my right thumb w/o readjusting my hand. I think something at the 4" mark like the Evo Design would be the sweet spot for me, or a 4.3 phone w/o capacitive touch buttons. The iphone is a solid phone for 3.5" but i don't see how they expect everyone to want a screen that size, whereas android manufacturers seem to make phone of all shapes and sizes
 
onedestinazn2 said:
I enjoy swiftkey x moreso than the stock android keyboard as well.

On screen size, i find my Evo 3D fine and fits nicely in my hand/pocket though i do have issues reaching the far top left corner with my right thumb w/o readjusting my hand. I think something at the 4" mark like the Evo Design would be the sweet spot for me, or a 4.3 phone w/o capacitive touch buttons. The iphone is a solid phone for 3.5" but i don't see how they expect everyone to want a screen that size, whereas android manufacturers seem to make phone of all shapes and sizes
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Swiftkey X is my keyboard of choice nowadays. Absolutely love it and it's prediction abilities.

As for iPhone with larger screens...I believe there are three simple reasons Apple is keeping it at 3.5".

1. Retina Display - Probably too costly to manufacture in larger sizes at this time.
2. Developer Relations - No larger screens means all those apps on the App Store won't need updates for new screen sizes and resolutions.
3. Battery Life - Larger screen means battery drain.
 
I understand those points but they could still make a 4" phone with the same resolution and most people wouldn't even notice. I dont mean they should discontinue the 3.5" line but add more than just 1 phone. If the current growth of android phones is showing anything it's people like choices. They should just make a iphone XL or Super4S or something.
 
I made the jump from an iPhone to the 4" screen of the Galaxy S and the difference in usability was huge. I could never go back to a 3.5" screen again.

Apple did get their keyboard right though. I have never used a pecking style keyboard on a touchscreen phone that comes close to performing as well. Third party programs is another story though....Swype, Swiftkey, etc put Apple's keyboard to shame.
 
maverick786us said:
Don't you find the Onscreen keyboard hard to use on small 3.5 inch screen, specially if your fingers are broad
Click to expand...

You probably haven't used the apple touch keyboard, i can say is the most accurate, i have used HTC keyboard, Moto keyboard, Samsung Keyboard, SwiftXkey, Swype, Gingerbread keyboard and none of them comes close to accuracy or prediction. I have no problems whatsoever and i have thick fingers.
 
I have used them all and nothing beats a tracing keyboard like Swype/FlexT9. It's not even close.
 
Greenstuffs said:
You probably haven't used the apple touch keyboard, i can say is the most accurate, i have used HTC keyboard, Moto keyboard, Samsung Keyboard, SwiftXkey, Swype, Gingerbread keyboard and none of them comes close to accuracy or prediction. I have no problems whatsoever and i have thick fingers.
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I have used my sister's iPhone 3G and find it hard to type using its on screen keyboard. With my wife's Galaxy S2 its easy and fast type because of big screen
 
maverick786us said:
I have used my sister's iPhone 3G and find it hard to type using its on screen keyboard. With my wife's Galaxy S2 its easy and fast type because of big screen
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I upgraded from my 3G last week and there is a big difference in responsiveness between 3G (running 3.1.3) and the 4S. Not just in raw horsepower, they definitely have done some tweaks/improvements to the screen controller in the past three years. My typing speed and accuracy went way up on the 4S even though it's the exact same screen size and software layout.

If you have trouble typing on an iPhone remember to use landscape mode, it makes the keyboard quite a bit bigger.
 
There's nothing wrong with Steve bashing. Its nothing compared to the Steve worship in every blog, paper, and media on the planet.
 
mattchapman said:
Thanks - nice review.

I'll be purchasing this phone unless the Nexus can knock it off the throne.

I was hoping to switch from AT&T to Verizon but this review suggests AT&T is much faster for downloading.
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AT&T 3G will always be faster than CDMA 3G. It's just the architecture of the network.
 
NIZMOZ said:
AT&T 3G will always be faster than CDMA 3G. It's just the architecture of the network.
Click to expand...

OK. It seems AT&T offers the best download speeds and yet their voice network is worse than Verizon (in my neighborhood at least).
 
NIZMOZ said:
AT&T 3G will always be faster than CDMA 3G. It's just the architecture of the network.
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Ummm... if we are talking about equal-to-equal as in same number of radio tower from the same distance, CDMA is better than GSM.

CDMA has higher downstream and upstream rates to nearly double than of GSM's W-CDMA. GSM is also more susceptible to interference.

So I have no clue what you are talking about.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-difference-between-gsm-and-cdma.htm
 
Wrong. Read up on how CDMA has limitations in their 3G speeds vs how AT&T doesn't with HSPA+. Right because you have no clue on this topic and I suggest you stay out of it.

That is why 90%+ of all tests in the same area on dslreports, howardforums, etc show AT&T slaughter Verizon in speeds.
 
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