iPhone 5: The good, the bad and the ugly

What would one expect of the iPhone 5? What new feature would it offer? What would be its weaknesses? Will Apple keep up with the advances in technology over the last year and a half? Would it be offering something that’s not already there?  

Those are some of the questions that come to mind when I think about the iPhone 5.

Firstly, let me introduce myself and my Apple connection. I have been interested in Apple ever since I laid my hands on their first iPod. Over the years, I have been following their products. I have sometimes been pleasantly surprised with their products and sometimes their products have left me thinking – WTH!

But, overall, I have been satisfied with Apple as a company and most Apple products. Coming to the iPhone. Lets rewind a bit. When the iPhone 4 was released, a smartphone was more like a luxury car. Today, everyone owns, uses and knows a smartphone. We are even getting smartphones such as the HTC Explorer even in the sub-15K range. 

 Moreover, ever since the launch of the last iPhone, the mobile phone industry has moved with speed of light. We have seen the launch of budget smartphones, 3G phones, 3D phones, projector phones and what not.

We are waiting to see how Apple would respond to the changing mobile market.

Let me give you a sum-up of what I think the iPhone 5 would include, what it would not, the things you would like and the things you really wouldn’t. In short let me give you my very own good, bad and ugly of the iPhone.

The Good

Firstly, the biggest change for the iPhone 5 would be the change in its operating system. The iPhone 5 is expected to debut with Apple’s new operating system – the iOS 5.

Apple has already posted an iOS video on its website, which indicates that the OS would be a major revamp from the previous one. Well, in the age of Android Gingerbread OS and Windows 7 OS, Apple needs to come out with something that is unique and innovative to maintain its position as the world leader in mobile phones.

Besides the iOS 5, the next iPhone is expected to come with A5 processor chip, which might be expectedly dual-core and might also roll out its iCloud service.

But the most important announcement that I have been waiting for is the launch of the iPhone 4S. Is the launch to be or not to be? I hope we get to know within a few hours.

The Bad

Apple might maintain its form factor from the previous iPhone. Although a rumor about an Aluminum unibody is floating around, I am not expecting much of a change in the design of the iPhone.

Today, we even have phones with screen size that is bigger than the iPhone. Phones like the LG Optimus 3D have got me excited. I would be hoping against hope if I said that the iPhone might come with a 4.5-5 inch touchscreen.

The iPhone UI used to be exciting in the good old days of the iPhone 4. Now it has become a bore. While I am surely expecting a revamp, it might not be as exciting as the Windows 7 UI.

Apple might just launch an iPhone, which would seem like a fart after the anticipation that the iPhone 5 has gathered.

The Ugly

What can be the ugliest part of the iPhone launch? Of course, its price. Well, if the iPhone 5 is launched the same way as the iPhone 4, it would end up costing me around Rs.50,000 making it more like a dream than an aspiration for average Joes like me.