GeekWire: iPhone 5 preview

With the announcement of Apple’s new iPhone 5, GeekWire’s Todd Bishop and John Cook discussed the new features of the recently announced phone, which will be released in stores next week.

The announcement for many was underwhelming, since tech news had reported on developing iPhone 5 features all summer and many found few surprises in the new release.

The first and most apparent difference from the iPhone 4 is the screen size. While the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S measure three-and-a-half inches across diagonally, the new models are slightly taller, at four inches.

“I’ll be interested to see how this will fit in the pocket,” said Todd.

Despite the size increase, the iPhone 5 is still one of the smaller smartphones on the market and is lighter and thinner than its predecessor – and has increased the screen size and aspect substantially.

Although the new iPhone has been in the news for weeks, it seems that the most controversial new announcement has been that the new model will change to a new connector.

“The existing iPhone connectors actually date back to some of the early iPods. It’s a 30-pin connector that you’re plugging in to either sync or charge your device these days,” said Todd. “So it’s going to shrink a lot with this new connector that they call ‘lightning.'”

Apple is making an adapter so that the new iPhones can still be used with existing accessories that are compatible with the old connection. Todd estimates that the adapter, which can be used for car chargers, FM radio connectors, and possibly docking stations, will be available sometime around the release of the iPhone 5 for about $20-$30.

While there are new features that are getting people excited, the iPhone 5 is leaving out some features that have disappointed the tech press.

As expected, the iPhone 5 will use iOS 6. The phones will also be the first Apple phones to run on faster LTE data networks.

However, the new iPhones will not carry the YouTube app or Google Maps, which is replaced by Apple’s own mapping application.

Although many speculated that the new phones would offer Near Field Communication technology, the new iPhones won’t carry the NFC technology, which allows users to swipe phones through bar-code scanners like a credit card.

The iPhone 5 was available for pre-orders starting September 14, and costs $199 for a 16 GB model, $299 for 32 GB, and $399 for a 64 GB phone.

With the release of the new models, Apple is dropping the prices of the iPhone 4 S to $99, while the iPhone 4 will be free with a two-year contract.

Listen to the full conversation on GeekWire:

GeekWire can be heard on 97.3 KIRO FM on Saturdays at 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Sunday at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. Available anytime ON DEMAND at MyNorthwest.com.

By Jillian Raftery