The iPhone 5 is one of the most advanced smartphones money can buy. It’s crammed with cutting-edge features, excellent software and an industry-leading design that Apple is so famed for.
Let’s take a look at some of the best features and specs on board:
iPhone 5 Camera
The iPhone 5 features an eight-megapixel camera with an f/2.4 aperture, backside illuminated CMOS sensor with sapphire crystal glass for improved protection and clarity and a dynamic low-light mode that enables even better snapping in dimly-lit settings. Also, it records videos in full high-definition at 1080p.
The camera app itself has been improved, too, with a Panorama mode that lets you capture widescreen vistas more easily in up to 28-megapixel resolutions. The front-facing camera, on the other hand, is capable of recording and making video calls in 720p HD.
iPhone 5 Processor
At the heart of the iPhone 5 sits the new, faster, snappier A6 processor that brings twice the CPU performance of the A5 chip that featured on the iPhone 4S, and twice the graphics processing brawn, too.
This means the iPhone 5 is now able to run even more sophisticated applications and immersive 3D titles that weren’t possible before. Web pages render much quicker as well and there is no lag or slowdown when loading apps and navigating menus.
iPhone 5 Screen
For the first time in the iPhone’s illustrious history, the iPhone 5 is home to a larger, four-inch Retina €integrated touch’ display that’s easily the handset’s crown jewel. Along with a 16:9 widescreen ratio that’s ideal for movie playback, this has 44 per cent more colour saturation, an eye-popping 1136 x 640 resolution and a 326ppi pixel density.
As far as displays go, the iPhone 5 has inarguably the best smartphone screen out there.
iPhone 5 Design – what does it look like?
Fashioned from sturdy Gorilla Glass and anodised aluminium, the iPhone 5 is billed as the €world’s thinnest smartphone, measuring a staggering 7.6mm thin and weighing just 112 grams – making it 18 per cent slimmer and 20 per cent lighter than the iPhone 4S.
Boasting a similar slab-like form factor, rounded corners and a metallic bezel as the iPhone 4S, teamed with the minimalist aesthetics and build quality that have become the hallmark of Apple products, the iPhone 5 is truly a piece of tech heaven.
iPhone 5 connectivity
New €Lightning’ Dock Connector
The iPhone 5 features a new, smaller dock connector dubbed Lightning that’s 80 per cent narrower than the old 30-pin port that featured on its predecessors. This is an eight-signal, reversible connector that’s capable of transferring data and charging the handset even quicker than before.
4G Long Term Evolution (LTE)
The iPhone 5 is the first Apple smartphone to introduce the super-fast 4G LTE. This is the latest generation mobile network standard that enables faster data speeds than before – up to 5 to 6 times more than 3G is capable of.
Better still, 4G LTE brings a new feature called HD Voice, which provides even clearer, crisper call quality.
Apple has implemented a single radio chip that handles all of this with ease. So even if you pick up your iPhone 5 on a 3G network initially, you’ll be able to switch to a 4G operator easily as long as handset is unlocked.
iOS 6 and improved Siri voice assistant
The iPhone 5 comes with the latest iOS 6 operating system out of the box, which adds hundreds of new features and improvements to the platform, among them Facebook integration now baked into the software, an enhanced notifications bar and updated versions of numerous native applications.
Siri, Apple’s personal voice-guided assistant, has also been enhanced with local search capabilities for the UK, enabling you to look up restaurants along with reviews, cinema times and up-to-the-minute results of your favourite sports teams by just using your voice.
iOS 6 also adds Apple’s own Maps application, which comes with a nifty €3D Flyover’ feature that give you an eagle-view of locations and free, turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation powered by TomTom.
iPhone 5 memory and colors
The iPhone 5 comes in black and white in three storage variants: the entry-level 16GB model, the mid-range 32GB version and the high-end 64GB edition.
Admittedly paying full price for a handset is not possible for many. Fortunately, a wide range of iPhone deals are available to substantially lower this outlay. That is why we strongly recommend picking a plan that saves you money both in the short and long term. Use our comparison tables to find the best deal that works for you.