With the iPhone 5, Apple fulfilled most of the hopes and dreams of fans of the company by most any standard. It is at the same time larger, lighter and thinner, and that’s the sort of contradiction that required careful attention to the design details to achieve. It is also predictably faster, and has most of the features most anyone might care about, such as support for LTE networks, faster performance, speedier Wi-Fi, better quality photos and movies and, perhaps, the hope for better cellular audio.

Despite the unfortunate fact that most of the other LTE smartphones out there are heavier, and have shorter battery life, Apple used the most advanced chips on the market to achieve greater power efficiencies. There are surely complicated manufacturing processes involved, even if you don’t take Apple’s claims about diamond-like precision seriously.

Some innovative technological solutions made the iPhone 5 thinner and lighter, such as an in-cell display, which combines the touch screen with the LCD display. In a move that was typically controversial, Apple ditched the 30-pin dock connector and went with a smaller and more resilient Lightning port, which is yet another proprietary connector.

Continue Reading…

If you just look at the changes and improvements in the new iPhone, it’s fair to conclude that Apple did a lot of work to make things a lot better. And that’s before you consider the elaborate construction processes and the usual high level of fit and finish. All told, it’s faster, looks better, has a nicer display and runs faster. And that’s before we get to the 200 or more improvements in iOS 6.

How can Apple miss?

Certainly, Apple’s stock price has been soaring, despite the silly claims of one online publication that implied otherwise. But facts never get in the way for those who have an agenda to push. Besides, attacking Apple may be good business as far as hit counts are concerned.

But that claim is part of the meme that Apple, under Tim Cook, is incapable of innovation, that all the new products are simply minor upgrades of previous products. Sure, maybe all or most of the raw components are different, even if only later versions of existing parts, but that’s not enough.

One criticism, for example, is that Apple is late to the game with LTE wireless networking support. Apple should have added that feature last year, since makers of Android OS phones have been there already. Of course, they forget that Apple isn’t going to add a feature just because it’s new, something other companies haven’t grasped. Early LTE chips used more power, and hence had lower battery life. In fact, Motorola has one smartphone with a much larger battery to compensate, making for a thicker, heavier smartphone.

Do you recall when the first iPhone came out? It supported the 2G or Edge network, and not the fledgling and much faster 3G technology. Apple waited until the rollout had expanded to more cities, and the chips were perfected,before coming out with a 3G iPhone. So not adding LTE to the iPhone 4s is par for the course for Apple.

When it came to a larger display, Apple clearly considered the downsides, particularly if the handset is made too large. Make the unit thicker and one-handed use becomes more difficult except for basketball players. If too tall, it won’t fit so comfortably in your pocket. Apple’s solution was to make the unit taller, but not that much taller (about four tenths of an inch), using a 16:9 aspect ratio for seamless playback of widescreen content. Apple took pains to make sure the resolution increased in proportion, keeping the same pixel density. Apple also claims 44% better color saturation, helping images to almost pop off the screen.

Yes, there was a singular compromise with the larger display. Apps that aren’t updated using the iOS 6 developer tools will be letterboxed. Once updated, they will inherit the changes. No silly scaling or other clumsy image manipulations. Again, Apple didn’t make changes just to make changes. They wanted the improvements to make sense. But that still won’t stop people who claim Apple has opened the door to platform fragmentation, which remains a serious problem with Android.

The rest of the changes, such as the A6 processor with the promise of twice the performance, a better speaker, superior camera, dual-band Wi-Fi and all the rest, are natural changes one would expect as a product matures. And, despite the seemingly higher current demands, total battery life has, according to Apple’s estimates — which tend to be realistic — improved.

Prices are unchanged, but there are three iPhone 5 configurations that depend on your chosen wireless provider. There are too many variations of 4G and LTE around the world to allow for a single product lineup.

I suppose some might quibble over the Lightning connection port, since it makes existing iPhone accessories obsolete without a $29 adapter. Even then, Video and iPod Out aren’t supported. At the very least, Apple should have considered including the adapter in the box, or offering it free to customers who need one. Maybe that situation will change by the time the iPhone 5 ships at the end of next week, assuming enough customers complain.

Now I have to admit I am doing nothing more than window shopping. I’m evaluating the improvements in the iPhone 5 based on Apple’s media event, published reports, and stories describing brief hands-on encounters. It’s also true that not all features some might have hoped for turned up. There is no wireless charging, for example, although you’d still have to plug the main unit in the wall, so it’s not necessarily the best choice. That’s something that can be left to third parties to deal with.

Obviously the changes are evolutionary. The actual revolution came with the first iPhone in 2007, and everything from Apple since then simply refined the product. You can say the same thing about the iPod, an iPad, or even a Mac. The originals set the standard, and the upgrades, well usually at any rate, were designed to make everything better.

That doesn’t mean Apple can’t take their mobile initiative in a new direction. I suppose there are product concepts out there, and Apple might have a few of them under development, that render the iPhone, iPad, iPod, and Mac totally obsolete. Yes, I suppose you might regard an iPad as a potential Mac successor.

But expecting Apple to somehow revolutionize a tried and tested product every single year is downright absurd. The reviews aren’t in yet, but it appears to me that Apple did what they had to do to make the iPhone excel against growing competitive pressures. What’s wrong with that?

As I suggested in yesterday’s column, Tim Cook clearly has to meet a higher standard as he moves Apple forward into uncharted waters. In introducing the glass and aluminum-clad iPhone 5, Apple tried to raise the bar again in a hugely crowded market. A whole lot was changed, but most of the essentials were telegraphed in advance in rumor sites and the mainstream media as the result of various leaks.

So I’ll just cover the essentials. The new model is said to be 18% thinner and 20% lighter than its predecessor, despite having a larger Retina display, four inches, with a 1136×640 resolution.

Predictably, apps will have to be updated to be optimized for a larger screen. Existing apps won’t just scale up. If they haven’t been updated for the iPhone and iOS 6, they will be letterboxed. All of Apple’s own apps will support the new display size, and you can expect thousands of others to join the list within days of the iPhone 5’s release.

There are two key reasons for the iPhone 5’s thinner form factor. First is in-cell technology that combines touch and display components into a single part. The second is a new compact reversible connector, called Lightning, which will also be featured on the new iPods announced during Apple’s media event. For existing devices, there will be a 30-pin to Lightning adapter, selling for $29, so you may not have to throw your old accessories away. At the same time, I’m already reading some really dumb complaints from tech pundits about the new proprietary port (are you listening CNET?).

The iPhone 5 is considered a world phone, with support for GSM, CDMA, plus a bunch of related wireless technologies including LTE. Everything is accomplished with a single chip, but there will be three versions of the iPhone 5 to accommodate different frequencies and technologies. The world’s carriers are that fragmented.

In promising that they updated “every aspect” of the iPhone 5, Apple also introduced the A6 chip that’s said to be 22% smaller than the A5 and capable of twice the performance. Battery life is advertised at 8 hours for LTE networking, 10 hours for Wi-Fi. Compare that with many Android LTE phones that can barely do half that.

The eight megapixel camera, with sapphire crystal lens, is said to deliver better optical quality at the same resolution as the iPhone 4s. With spatial noise reduction and superior low-light performance, there’s the promise of even better photos and movies. You can also create extreme widescreen images using the Panorama feature, a part of iOS 6. With a resolution of 720p, the front camera can now be called HD, for better FaceTime and Skype connections.

Other enhancements include a better speaker, an improved noise canceling earpiece accomplished with a third mic, and even wideband audio, assuming the carriers cooperate. Once the technology spreads, it will mean a level of audio quality that far exceeds what you usually get on a highly compressed wireless connection.

After listening to Jonathan Ive describe the iPhone 5’s advanced manufacturing process, Macworld’s Dan Moren, who covered the event, remarked, “Apparently they cut things with diamonds. I feel like if we go any further, the next iPhone will have to be designed by a supervillain.”

The price for all this joy? As expected, it’s the same as last year: $199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB, and $399 for 64GB, along with the standard two-year carrier contract. An 8GB version of the iPhone 4s will be available for $99, and a similarly configured iPhone 4 will be free with carrier contracts. The iPhone 3GS, circa 2009, is history, although it can be upgraded to iOS 6, with some resource heavy features, such as the new mapping capabilities, missing in action.

As predicted, iPhone 5 preorders begin Friday, September 14, and the units will ship beginning September 21 in nine countries. Some 21 more countries will get the iPhone 5 the following week, and other carriers around the world will get theirs before the end of the year. The iOS 6 update, sporting some 200 new features, will arrive on September 19, which may be sufficient time to keep Apple’s servers from being overloaded during initial activations on the iPhone 5.

Next on the agenda was a presentation by Apple VP Jeffrey Robbin, a long-time Mac developer whom I knew in the 1990s, who demonstrated a major iTunes update. Available in late October, the new iTunes will sport improved playlist handling, a niftier MiniPlayer and loads of other goodies. The iTunes Store is heavily redesigned, closely resembling the iPad version, and there’s full integration with iCloud. I also hope Jeff and his crew have been hard at work to address some of the performance issues of iTunes in developing this update.

Meantime, iTunes 10.7, designed mostly to support iOS 6, was released after the media event.

The final product introduction consisted of a vastly improved iPod lineup. The 7th generation iPod nano looks for all the world like a miniature iPod touch, with 2.5-inch LCD display that supports multitouch. The new nano also includes an FM tuner with a live pause feature. Long-time iPod users will also be pleased to learn that video playback has been restored, and there’s even support for Bluetooth. In addition, the iPod nano will have access to 175,000 iOS game and entertainment apps. Yes, it really is a miniature version of the iPod touch.

The new iPod touch is, to a fair extent, similar to the iPhone 5 with a four-inch screen and front and rear cameras. Apple also introduced EarPods, a new generation of earphones with the promise of a better fit in your ear, and superior sound. You’ll get one standard issue with the upgraded iPod nano, iPod touch and the iPhone 5. EarPods are also be available separately for $49.

The fourth generation iPod touch will cost $299 for the 32GB version and $399 for the 64GB version. The iPod nano, with 16GB of storage, will cost $149; the 2GB iPod shuffle remains $49. The refreshed iPods will be available in October. For now, at least, the 160GB iPod classic remains in the lineup for $249. It was first introduced in 2009, and you wonder how long the last remaining iPod with a mechanical hard drive will survive once the new models ship.

In old-school Apple event tradition, the meeting ended with three songs from the Foo Fighters.

As I said, no surprises there, but Apple clearly hit all the marks. Was it the biggest product launch in history, as some tech pundits suggested? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Indeed, a few tech pundits said it lacked “sizzle,” but it’s quite clear that customers will be buying this gear in record numbers.

And, as you no doubt heard, nothing was said about an iPad mini. However, published reports indicate that product intro is on tap for next month, so we’ll see.

From the day he took over as CEO of Apple, Tim Cook had to work overtime to prove his mettle. He was operating in the shadow of Steve Jobs, and maybe nobody could carve out a distinctive place in the sun after that opening act. But it’s also time to be realistic.

Consider that Jobs took three extended sick leaves in his final years, as he battled pancreatic cancer and other illnesses. On each occasion, Cook became the acting CEO and handled the day-to-day management chores at Apple. Sure, Jobs was available and no doubt made the hard decisions about new products and services, but those decisions had to be executed by Apple’s design, engineering and operations team. Cook is a genius and bringing products to market, keeping production costs as low as possible, not to mention efficient inventory controls.

Knowing that the end was near, Jobs clearly took measures to ensure a smooth succession, and also likely green lit new products perhaps for several years. But Apple can’t just rely on the decisions made by someone who is no longer around. Market forces and new inventions by Apple will force the company to alter products or keep them off the market.

However, as the Disney company learned years back in the years after Walt Disney’s death, they couldn’t succeed wondering what Walt would have done. That’s the spirit of the advice Jobs gave his team, and it may be wrong to assume every new product in the near-term was based on a concept that he approved.

It’s quite likely that the iPhone 5, regardless of the looks and feature set, will be looked upon as not innovative enough. Also, it’s very possible that the supposed leaks about it will be regarded as a lapse in Apple’s security. Jobs would never have allowed that to happen, forgetting that leaks or alleged leaks have occurred before. Don’t forget one notable episode where the prototype for the iPhone 4 was left or stolen at a restaurant, and ended up being written about by an online tech publication.

That happened under Steve Jobs’ watch, but how can you expect perfection? There are many ways details about a new product can be mistakenly disclosed, even if it doesn’t involve a prototype that is allowed to leave the Apple corporate campus. Individuals who are part of Apple’s Asian supply chain may feed photos and other details about components to the media, or perhaps to accessory makers to get a leg up on new designs.

While I’m sure Apple wants to tighten security at every level, there are far too many eyes to blindfold to make the system perfect. Even if Apple built everything at their own factories, third-party component makers could provide information about critical design changes. A careless executive may say something to the wrong party, and the poorly chosen words may reach someone’s blog or a mainstream media outlet.

Apple may warn their suppliers to shut up, and penalize those who are responsible for too many product leaks. But it’s not as if Apple can just cancel a multimillion dollar component contract and move elsewhere. It may be too late in the product development cycle to pick a different contractor, or maybe there’s only one source for a critical part.

I’ve also been inclined to believe that some of these leaks are deliberate. Apple’s own marketing people strategically feed a few tidbits about a new product in order to keep us talking about it. Such information, particularly when it appears to come from responsible and informed sources, makes it doubly certain that someone higher up in Apple knows what’s going on. This is the kind of publicity you cannot buy.

Regardless of how things turn out for Apple over the next few years, Cook will almost always be judged by a higher standard. He’s not a product guy, and is more concerned with marketing and production. That approach will supposedly blunt Apple’s edge, make it function more like other tech companies. Apple’s days in the sun must be short-lived, since there is no single person with a unique sense of design and customer needs to approve a unique design and make history. Would Tim Cook, for example, have approved the concept for the iPod? Does he really lack the proper instinct — or is that something he can develop over the years working with Apple’s brilliant design team?

No doubt, Cook has to listen more to his colleagues when he makes product decisions, but that doesn’t mean Apple won’t continue to execute with the same touch of greatness.

For the next few weeks, it’ll be all about the sales prospects for the iPhone 5 and the other products Apple plans to introduce this year. Even if Apple sells record numbers of everything, some will say it wasn’t Cook but the ghost of Jobs that kept Apple afloat. Isn’t that going just a little too far.