Apple iPhone 4S Announcement Round-Up

Well that was a lot of information thrown at us today, we got introduced to the iPhone 4S, iCloud and iOS 5. We also got a more intimate look at Apple’s newest addition, Siri.

We managed to live blog the whole event and brought you a second by second review on what was happening and our reactions. I’d like to say first that Apple not releasing the iPhone 5 was a sad day for me, but the iPhone 4S will do just fine with its many improvements that were much needed and great to have.

Starting with iCloud, Apple will be releasing October 12th with the iPhone 4S. iCloud features a ton of features including storing all of your documents in the cloud and being able to edit them directly from what ever your device you are on and sync them straight up into the cloud. iCloud will be free to everyone and include 5GB free storage with 10GB, 20GB and 50GB plans for the users who need more space.

Next we saw iTunes Match which promises to be a great success of putting all of your music into the cloud and letting you to be able to access it anywhere and at any time fron your phone. It will scan your iTunes library and sync any songs it finds with their preexisting database and any songs that it doesn’t know of, you’re able to upload to the cloud. All songs stored already will be high quality AAC stored files that are DRM-free.

Now we can talk about iOS 5 which will be launching later this month. Since we already know a lot about iOS 5 already Apple didn’t bore us too much. They briefly went over the features of it including the redesigned notification center, iMessages, reminders, Twitter integration, newsstand and the camera application bypass. We do have an official release date for you, October 12th is when you’ll be able to update your device to the lates Apple iOS version.

Before we get into what you want to hear, Apple redesigned the iPod nano which will be easier to use and help track your running and exercises without needing of any extra equipment. Apple has also taken the initiative and integrated into a watch which you can now get to wear it on your wrist.

Let’s get into the meat of the matter and talk about the iPhone 4S, there is so much to talk about and so little time. We can start with the design, it is staying relatively the same on the outside but on the inside is where everything counts. It now features an A5 dual-core chip with 7 times better graphics and all around better performance. It’s camera is greatly improved and bumped up to take on point-and-shoot models. It will be 8 megapixels with a better image sensor and more lens elements to create a sharper image. It has a whole host of other minor improvements that you can find out about below where you can find a transcript of all the events that took place at the event.

One last thing before Apple went was their newest feature to iOS 5, Siri. This is their assistant application that you can use to do almost anything without even talking to it. It’s simple really, when you activate it, you just speak what you want, maybe the weather or searching for a restaurant. It will find it for you and tell you what you want to know. The best features are will making appointments and replying to text messages where you can do all of that without typing anything into your calendar. Unfortunately it will only work with the iPhone 4S, so iPhone 4 users you’re out of luck.

Many applications have been released from Apple which will be of some help to everyone. Their first application is iMessages which will be available on every device from the iPod touch to the iPhone, it will be free and unlimited over Wi-Fi and lets you keep in constant contact with you’re friends. Also with the announcement is ‘Find My Friends’ an application to do just that and find your friends where ever they may be and help you locate them, say on a beach or in an amusement park. Check the live blog transcripts below for more details.

That’s so much information to consume, so go ahead and take a quick breather and look below you can see the shortened transcript version.

10:10
craighton: Alright here we go. Starting up.

10:11
craighton: Tim Cook on stage

10:12
craighton: Starting to talk about OS X Lion with six million copies downloaded.

10:30
craighton: New cards application announced for making greeting cards.

10:30
craighton: iOS is number 1 mobile OS

10:30
craighton: iPad holds a 75% market share

10:31
craighton: Cards will be free on October 12th and cars can be purchased from the app for $2.99

10:31
craighton: Send cards wordwide for $4.99

10:33
craighton: iOS 5 recap, Notification center, iMessages, reminders, Twitter integration, news stand, camera app with lock screen bypass.

10:34
craighton: “We download new issues in the background.” for your newspapers.

10:34
craighton: You can edit your photos right on your device as well.

10:34
craighton: Tabbed browsing in mobile Safari!

10:37
craighton: With the iPad tabbed browsing will be a breeze and be a life saver.

10:37
craighton: Game center has 67 million users

10:38
craighton: iOS will be PC Free and everything will be done from the phone.

10:38
craighton: Recapping WWDC and everything that’s happened.

10:38
craighton: Eddy Cue comes on to talk about iCloud now.

10:38
craighton: iOS launches October 12th!!!!

10:39
craighton: **Excuse me, iOS 5 will be launching October 12th

10:41
Craighton: iCloud features: iTunes in the Cloud, Photo Stream and Documents all held in the cloud.

10:41
Craighton: You’ll be able to redownload purchased tracks at any time.

10:42
Craighton: Edit documents on iCloud and they are synced across all devices and saved to the cloud.

10:42
Craighton: New application called ‘Find my friends’ to locate friends near you (Stalkerish?)

10:43
Craighton: It uses geolocation to easily locate friends and family, and has MANY privacy controls.

10:43
Craighton: Storage upgrades for iCloud, free 5GB

10:44
Craighton: 10GB is $20/year, 20GB is $40/year, 50GB is $100/year

10:44
Craighton: iTunes Match is up next and boasting the largest music library in the world.

10:45
Craighton: “Let’s say you’ve got an iPad with no music on it. I turn on iTunes and I see all my music in the cloud.”

10:45
Craighton: Music comes with you on any iDevice.

10:45
Craighton: Scan and match your library

10:45
Craighton: upload songs it can’t match

10:45
Craighton: Stream immediately

10:46
Craighton: stored “intelligently” on device

10:46
Craighton: songs are AAC high quality DRM-free

10:47
Craighton: OCTOBER 12th – iOS 5 coming to a device near you

10:47
Craighton: iTunes Match coming at the end of October.

10:47
Craighton: Video promo playing for iOS 5.

10:48
Craighton: Our old friend Phil Schiller taking the stage.

10:48
Craighton: Talking hardware it looks like.

10:48
Craighton: iPod Nano up first, talking about it’s design and display. Going over all features.

10:49
Craighton: iPod nano released last year was the ‘fun version’

10:49
Craighton: New iPod nano this year with more features, easier to use.

10:49
Craighton: Navigation is easier

10:49
Craighton: Track walks and runs with Nike

10:50
Craighton: Walk and run with no extra equipment to track

10:50
Craighton: THEY’VE MADE A WATCH OUT OF IT!!!

10:50
Craighton: Different watch faces to choose from.

10:51
Craighton: Watches will be cool again.

10:51
Craighton: 8GB for $129 and 16GB for $149

10:51
Craighton: iPod touch up now

10:52
Craighton: It’s the most popular music player, and the #1 portable game player.

10:52
Craighton: It will have iOS 5!

10:52
Craighton: It will have IMessage and it will be free and unlimited over wi-fi

10:53
Craighton: iCloud and iOS 5 going to be on iPod touch

10:53
Craighton: New iPod touches

10:53
Craighton: 64GB, $399. 32GB $299. $199 8GB

10:54
Craighton: there’s a shuddle, nano and touch but no classic

10:54
Craighton: New iPod touch coming October 12th

10:54
Craighton: Here comes iPhone

10:55
Craighton: iPhone 4s

10:55
Craighton: Design is the same for iPhone 4s

10:55
Craighton: It will have the A5 inside

10:56
Craighton: dual-core graphics means 7 times faster

10:56
Craighton: Mike Capps up next

10:57
Craighton: amazing graphics on an iPhone!

10:57
Craighton: Infinity Blade 2 coming out

10:57
Craighton: This will be the best graphics you can find on an iPhone.

10:57
Craighton: Nothing is pre-rendered. The phone does it in real time.

10:58
Craighton: nothing is left out, there is even fish in the virtual pond

10:58
Craighton: Looks like you’re gaming on an Xbox

10:59
Craighton: This is nothing ever seen before on a mobile device

10:59
Craighton: cheers all around as the video ends.

11:00
Craighton: Infinity Blade 2 available December 1st.

11:00
Craighton: The A5 is a dual core processor and up to 2X faster than before, with dual core graphics that deliver 7x faster graphics.

11:01
Craighton: If you think battery life will be horrible, it won’t. 8 hours of talk time, 14 hours of 2g talk time, 6 hours of 3g browsing, 9 hours of Wi-Fi browsing

11:01
Craighton: Apple has addressed and fixed the antenna problem.

11:02
Craighton: They fixed the antenna and get an overall better downlink performance from 7.2 to 14.4. Upload being the same.

11:02
Craighton: 14.4Mbps down for the iPhone 4s.

11:03
Craighton: Apple confirms it’s not 4g

11:03
Craighton: They call it up to performance of 4g

11:03
Craighton: iPhone 4S has both GSM and CDMA.

11:04
Craighton: They call it the ‘world phone’

11:04
Craighton: “iPhone has surpassed all cameras on Flickr.”

11:04
Craighton: Apple making a camera better than point and shoot.

11:05
Craighton: iPhone 4s camera will have 8 megapixel sensor that shoots 3264×2448 images

11:05
Craighton: 60% more pixels than in the iPhone 4 camera.

11:05
Craighton: Better camera light/flash

11:05
Craighton: illumination will have 73% more light

11:06
Craighton: Will also contain a Hybrid IR filter
11:07
Craighton: 26% better white balance
11:07
Craighton: 5 lens elements.
11:08
Craighton: Better olor accuracy
11:08
Craighton: More color uniformity
11:08
Craighton: 30% more sharpness and f/2.4 aperture

11:08
Craighton: Face detection
11:09
Craighton: Super fast photos. in less than 2 seconds.
11:09
Craighton: iPhone 4S takes just 1.1 seconds to the first photo.

11:09
Craighton: You can also take macro photos.

11:10
Craighton: iPhone 4S has dedicated squirrel mode.

11:11
Craighton: 1080p video recording.

11:11
Craighton: Video image stabilization

11:12
Craighton: Noise reduction while recording for clear images.

11:13
Craighton: Still waiting for the iPhone 5……….

11:13
Craighton: AirPlay mirroring is wireless.

11:14
Craighton: Recapping specs, I don’t think this is over yet.

11:15
Craighton: Talking about voice. Assistant coming up.

11:16
Craighton:
You’re going to be able to ask your iPhone a question, a real question in real language, and get answers.

11:16
Craighton: They call it, Siri?

11:16
Craighton: Siri is the name of this feature.
11:18
Craighton: Phil just asked Sire what they weather was like and it responded the forecast.

11:19
Craighton: We’ll have to see how far all voice speaking works and what it’ll respond to but if it works, hot damn!

11:20
Craighton: You can ask Siri anything and it’ll respond

11:20
Craighton: Now showing off notifications on the lock screen and how you can slide to reply

11:20
Craighton: Siri will be your commander and tell you what to do and where to eat.

11:21
Craighton: You can ask Siri to find a restaurant and it’ll come back with a list sorted by rating. All without typing on it.
11:22
Craighton: It looks like you can tell it to do anything related with the iPhone too like setting a timer.

11:23
Craighton: You can voice control text messages and reply with your voice messages, set calendar appointments.

11:23
Craighton: Maybe it could even make me a sammach?

11:23
Craighton: I should mention that the interface look very clean.

11:24
Comment From Kat
Only Lamarr makes the sammiches – not Siri

11:25
Craighton: Siri can be used with geofences to remind you to do something when you leave a defined area.

11:25
Craighton: Example, remind you to go to the store when you leave from work.

11:25
Craighton: Siri will only work with iPhone 4s.

11:26
Craighton: Anyone with a iPhone 4 won’t be able to use the feature, so go upgrade!

11:27
Comment From Mustapha
the designer of Siri said it will also be available for android

11:28
Craighton: Siri integrates with everything, web searches, appointments, reminders, messaging and more.

11:29
Craighton: Siri will understand you in English, French and German

11:29
Craighton: Siri will still be considered in beta when released.

11:29
Craighton: Video time…

11:30
Craighton: Having a conversation with your phone? Right….

11:31
Craighton: Siri will be available from the tapping of the home button.

11:32
Craighton: Siri is so smart that is you have an appointment where you wanted to make one it’ll let you know and ask if you want to move it.

11:32
Craighton: It’s reported that you have to speak to Siri “like you would to a child or a foreign language speaker.”

11:33
Craighton: I’m still not convinced that the iPhone will replace my camera.

11:34
Craighton: Kind of sad that nothing is really changing with this iPhone, well we still have time I guess for the iPhone 5.

11:35
Comment From Gary
Why so much talk about SIRI… the app has been out for awhile, and Apple ruined it… now they are promoting it?

11:35
Craighton: iPhone 4S will be available in black and white, hopefully on time.

11:36
Craighton: 16GB, $199; 32GB $299, 64GB $399

11:36
Craighton: iPhone 3GS will be FREE now.

11:37
Craighton: October 7th preorders with it rolling out on the 14th

11:37
Craighton: And for the first time… iPhone on Sprint.

11:38
Craighton: Will roll out in over 70 countries and 100 carriers and will be their fastest rollout yet.

11:38
Craighton: “Pretty incredible isn’t it?”

11:38
Craighton: Going into review for iCloud and iOS 5

11:38
Comment From Gary
If that is cheap I am afraid to see Iphone 5 prices…

11:38
Craighton: “Only Apple could bring these together in such a powerful and integrated way. I am so proud of this team. I want to thank you for joining us.”

11:39
Craighton: It’s over? I want the iPhone 5!!!!

11:39
Comment From ashy
oh apple,they just loveee to keep us hanging

11:40
Craighton: Well that looks like a wrap folks. Check http://logiclounge.com later today for a whole run down and other news stories.