Buy 4S or 5S?

1) The forthcoming iPhone 5S will, like all new products of its kind, have bugs and glitches that will have to be worked out.

2) The current iPhone 4S is near the end of its production run and has had most, if not all, of its bugs addressed.

Are these statements accurate?


I need to make a new phone purchase at some point, but I don't necessarily need the latest and greatest new features. It might be better for me to buy the best of what was than take a chance on the best of what might be . . . ?

Your thoughts, gentlemen.

Answered your own question.

You can probably pick up an "old" 4-series iPhone for cheaper as well if you poke around a bit.

My sister bough a 3GS when the 4 came out as the price of the 3GS dropped considerably. If I were you, I would wait for the 5 (next gen) iPhone to come out first and then buy the 4S at a third of its price less.

Marrk said:

Your thoughts, gentlemen.

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I'll say just one thing...Apple is VERY good about "orphaning" older Apple technology.

Food for thought,

- Nick

The "glitches" tend to be more with a new iOS version than the hardware itself. Every model has had its fair share of lemons, so avoiding the next iPhone is no more a guarantee you'll avoid issues by buying one now. There are millions of early adopters have no regrets being first in line for a new model. If you "can" wait, then you may as well future-proof your purchase a little. Bear in mind that if the rumors pan out, then the dock connector will be re-designed and incompatible with any accessories you may have now, and that are available now. It will take several months for the 3rd party ecosystem to catch up.

You don't mention which carrier you want to go with, but Sprint just lowered 4S prices to $50. I mean you have to sign up for 2 yr "contract" but it's the cheapest you'll find that phone in that condition. Lots of iPhone 4 and 4S on CraigsList.

MYmacROX said:

You don't mention which carrier you want to go with, but Sprint just lowered 4S prices to $50. I mean you have to sign up for 2 yr "contract" but it's the cheapest you'll find that phone in that condition. Lots of iPhone 4 and 4S on CraigsList.

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For the record, Apple will price match and beat it by one cent... Just saying. Usual things apply, customer has to show the discounted price yada yada.

doug

Thanks, guys! All good advice so far!

I have made no choice with regard to carriers. I have heard horrible things about all of them, the most egregious things being about ATT.

I would wait for the 5

Agree!

savannahchild said:

My sister bough a 3GS when the 4 came out as the price of the 3GS dropped considerably. If I were you, I would wait for the 5 (next gen) iPhone to come out first and then buy the 4S at a third of its price less.

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I have been an apple nut for about 5 years. iPad 3, Macbook pro, iMac, iPod, apple TV, but I had never had the iphone.

Got a new job and decided 1 month ago to just get a white 4s 32 gig Verizon.

I could have waited but there is no 4g in my rural area, I have watched rollouts of new products to know that just because something is released doesn't mean that you are actually going to lay your hands on something, I live far enough away from both a Verizon store and apple specialist that I don't have time to stand in line, and frankly, i don't need the drama.

The only way I would be able to get an iphone 5 with any speed would be to just order one from the website. I just don't want it that bad.

So I got the 4s and love it.

If the 5 is all that, I will let my wife have the 4s when I get the 5 and get the number switched over. I don't think it is going to be worth the hassle. The only thing I would want is 4g speeds like my iPad 3 64 gig Verizon but like I said, I could never use it here anyway. No 4 g out here in the boonies and no expectation of getting it anytime soon.

Patrick

There's no such thing as a 5S.

Do you need a phone? Get one. Don't need one? Wait.

I think it's kind of silly (given that the iPhone refreshes faster than ANY contract) to play this game with the iPhone. Just get one when you need one and stop worrying about it, the iPhone 6 or 7 will be just coming out when your contract is up.

The next generation of iPhone will be the 6th.

iPhone (1)
iPhone 3G (2)
iPhone 3GS (3)
iPhone 4 (4)
iPhone 4S (5!!!!!)

pendlewitch said:

The next generation of iPhone will be the 6th.

iPhone (1)
iPhone 3G (2)
iPhone 3GS (3)
iPhone 4 (4)
iPhone 4S (5!!!!!)

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I agree that's how it should be. This naming convention is really awkward. However... it looks like it will be called the iPhone 5 anyway. There's a teaser graphic for the upcoming event that alludes to it. Look at the shadow.

Apple announces September 12th press event | iPodNN

Alternatively get a Galaxy S3. Lots of people I know are going for that instead of Apple. For me, I wouldn't give any smartphone house room.

peterbj7 said:

Alternatively get a Galaxy S3. Lots of people I know are going for that instead of Apple. For me, I wouldn't give any smartphone house room.

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Now that's not really in the spirit of things

peterbj7 said:

Alternatively get a Galaxy S3. Lots of people I know are going for that instead of Apple. For me, I wouldn't give any smartphone house room.

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Almost everyone I work with now has an iPhone... except this one guy who isn't very sharp when it comes to computers and tech in general. He got a Samsung S2 (I think it was the S2) against our advice to stick with the iPhone because he wanted a bigger screen and was more comfortable with the brand. I supported him in his decision, and even before he made it I laid out the case for his choices and said there was no wrong answer. I tried to show him a few things when he got it... he was very confused about how to use the web browser. I couldn't even figure out how to save a bookmark to the home screen that he wanted there. I literally tried for 5 minutes trying to figure it out. You can't. Your home page bookmark is on the home screen, and of course the app itself, but that's it. I even asked another guy who used Android, and he said I should have been able to do it, but we couldn't figure it out.

My general impression of the device was it was a piece of garbage. The build quality was really lousy and I really... really... hated the UI. He ended up taking it back and is waiting for the new iPhone to drop. He had constant signal and stability issues and finally was too frustrated to continue bothering with it. Even the sales rep said "Oh yeah... we've had a lot of those problems with these." I don't know how the S3 compares... hopefully it's much better than that piece of junk, but I wouldn't recommend taking a chance on a company that doesn't put their best efforts into every single product they make.

lifeisabeach said:

I agree that's how it should be. This naming convention is really awkward. However... it looks like it will be called the iPhone 5 anyway. There's a teaser graphic for the upcoming event that alludes to it. Look at the shadow.

Apple announces September 12th press event | iPodNN

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Lol..not exactly discreet is it! I guess it's a 5 (6) then

My brother has smartphones for around 40 staff, and they have always been iPhones. But when the S3 came out he tried it and is now buying that instead. I've not been hands on with either, so I can't comment.