Connect with us

Mobile

Hands on with the iPhone 5 on Eve of Release Date

Published

on

Earlier this evening I was very lucky to go hands on with the new iPhone 5. With the official release date being tomorrow I am camped outside of my carrier’s retail store waiting for 8am to roll around. I didn’t expect to get my hands on the iPhone 5 until then, but I got a nice treat.

There is no doubt that the new iPhone is much lighter than its predecessors. I held my iPhone 4 (without a case) in one hand and the iPhone 5 in the other and the difference is very noticeable. The iPhone 5 might feel like a feather, but its still feels solid thanks to its excellent build quality.

iphone-5-hands-on

Apple’s iPhone 5 in Black and White

In terms of color all I can say is wow. I was lucky enough to see and hold both the white and black models. The new backplate provides a great contrast in color compared to the glass backing of the iPhone 4 and 4S. My preference is the black iPhone 5 because the glass and metal contrasts nicely. The white iPhone 5 looks nice as well, but it doesn’t have enough contrast for my taste, with the materials blending into each other.

The aluminum backing makes the iPhone 5 feel sturdier and it doesn’t feel slippery like the iPhone 4/4S. The redesigned edges make it more comfortable to hold.

iphone-5-hands-on-2-back

iPhone 5 on Display

The new iPhone 5 is feels surprisingly thin, much more so than its spec sheet would lead you to believe. Neither of the devices were turned on, but the new 4″ screen size looks a solid choice. When I first heard of the larger display size I thought that the stretched screen might look awkward compared to the smaller iPhone 4/4S display, but thankfully that’s not the case.

One last area that I looked over was the bottom of the phone. The newly designed speakers along the bottom serve a nice design purpose. The new lightning connector is a nice change compared to the 30-pin adapter as it looks cleaner and it allows enough room to place the headphone jack on the bottom of the phone. This is a smart design choice as the headphone wire doesn’t get in the way of the display,which happens from time to time with older iPhones.

The iPhone 5 is the first iPhone with 4G LTE and a 4″ display, both of which I’m looking forward to trying out first thing in the morning. Stay tuned for our full iPhone 5 review.

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. JonW

    09/21/2012 at 5:26 am

    You know, from that review I would never have guessed that use all Apple gear! What happened to objectivity in reviews?

  2. Chase

    09/22/2012 at 12:17 pm

    hey dude, this is the guy that was number 3 in line with you. You guys all got out of the store way faster than i did. Did you end up getting the 64 gig one?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.