“Apple Inc’s newest iPhone left Wall Street and fans wishing for more than a faster version of last year’s device, drawing a rare outburst of criticism and disappointment on the Internet,” Poornima Gupta and Alexei Oreskovic report for Reuters. “Newly minted CEO Tim Cook ably helmed his first major product launch without former boss Steve Jobs, but failed to ignite the sort of excitement and buzz that the Apple co-founder once did. Investors and fans, looking to be blown away by some amazing surprise, sent the shares down as much as 4 percent.”
“Jobs did not show up as some expected. Cook, who took the reins from the Silicon Valley icon in August, and his executive team instead showed off a souped-up device that comes with voice recognition and a better camera, but it looked identical to the last phone and did little to lift the bar for smartphones,” Gupta and Oreskovic report. “‘It’s been 16 months and all you’ve got is an A5 processor in the existing iPhone 4,’ said BGC Partners’ analyst Colin Gillis. ‘It’s a mild disappointment, but they’re still going to be selling millions of units.’ WP Stewart portfolio manager Michael Walker said, ‘It’s kind of funny — if they have gone and called it the 5, the stock would have been fine, but they’re calling it the 4S, which is a disappointment to some. It’s a faster chip. The form factor is the same as the prior one, which might be a disappointment also to some people.'”
Gupta and Oreskovic report, The iPhone event took place at Apple Central — the same venue where the iPod first was introduced years ago — versus the larger, splashier venues of more recent choice such as downtown San Francisco’s Moscone center. The restricted attendance may have triggered a surge in online viewership, which slowed or crashed live blogs run by websites such as Engadget, Wired and Gizmodo.”
“Interest was high with Google emerging as a formidable competitor, but many fans came away disappointed,” Gupta and Oreskovic report. “‘Please note I will be selling some ‘S’ stickers for $0.99 so iPhone 4 owners have a cheaper upgrade option,’ wrote HAL9000 on Twitter. Tomlinsonr tweeted, ‘I’ll have a double helping of ‘meh’ with a side of ‘whatever.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Debacle. You either leak “no iPhone 5” to a credible outlet in order to tamp down anticipation beforehand or you name the damn thing “iPhone 5,” even if you don’t think it worthy, and be done with it. The former is far preferrable to the latter for integrity’s sake, but doing neither signals a worrying degree of tone deafness. Managing the media, not to mention peoples’ expectations, is part of your job now, too, Tim.
BTW, we are Day One iPhone buyers for every model and we will be buying iPhone 4S units on Day One, too. But we understand why iPhone 4S is different from iPhone 4 and that the 4S is simply the best damn smartphone ever made. We’re not just sure the general public is going to get it. Maybe Siri, if properly and widely demonstrated, will help sell it. Hopefully, Apple has some really good TV commercials ready to explain to the average Joe and Jane why they want an iPhone 4S. Otherwise we don’t expect to encounter any problems pre-ordering online or with in-store lines.
Related articles:
Apple underwhelms with iPhone 4S – October 4, 2011
Apple unveils new iPhone 4S with dual-core A5 and Siri intelligent assistant; launches iOS 5 and iCloud – October 4, 2011
Apple to launch iCloud on October 12 – October 4, 2011
Apple brings new features, more affordable pricing to iPod touch and iPod nano – October 4, 2011
Well the stock sure has recovered. Only down about 1%.
I guess when it all comes down to it, the Apple train is still moving full steam ahead.
Market moved up. Apple was just along for the ride. But every little bit helps. Pray for a market run up on good news from Europe because Apple stock isn’t going up anytime soon on it’s own merit. As much as it pisses me off to admit that. MDN is so right, what a debacle!
I am very happy with the design of the iPhone 4s, because I am an investor and an apple fan for decades. The iPhone 4s is the “perfected” iPhone 4, which is the most popular phone already.
Apple needs to be able to reliably build 10s of millions of these phones quickly, and without problems and bottlenecks. Remember, the manufacturer says these are very complicated and difficult devices to make, and the market for the device is now projected at over 100 million per year. An iPhone 4(s), with the kinks worked out and a huge spec boost is the “Perfected” iPhone, with a production line set up, experienced, and ready to hum.
Now, many would like to see a new form factor every few months, and some android will no doubt copy the rumored iPhone 5 design, but they will only need to build a few hundred thousand, or maybe a few million units and then be off to the next Apple copy. They will not come close to producing the total hardware/software/ecosystem package that is the iPhone 4s/4/3Gs line.
And next year, there will be a super fast LTE iPhone with expanded capabilities………. and a new form factor will come along.
For now, I am a happy fan and a very happy investor.
The nutjob fanatics were going to be disappointed no matter what was announced or who was there to announce it.
Talk about a pointless rant.
And the fanboys won’t ever take off the rose colored glasses! Haha
Bullshit. If Apple announced a liquidmetal unibody iPhone 5 with the 4S’ innards behind a 4-4.3″ screen, I’d be shouting from the rooftops and deciding which credit card to put the pre-order on. It wouldn’t have taken much more to excite the fan base. We weren’t even asking for 4G.
real talk
R2, i couldn’t agree more.
I am far more fan boy than troll, but i am disappointed that no newly-industrially-designed iPhone was released today.
I was hoping for no more than the 4S specs, but in a CURVED BACK design, with a bit more screen real estate (Happy for it to be wider) possibly gesture based home button and maybe a nicer material then the current glass back.
If it weren’t for the media, i wouldn’t probably have been expecting this, but there were some compelling evidence in favour with those cases hitting the shelves!
I had hoped at least that iOS 5 would be out today, i’m not really sure why they picked today, wouldn’t it have made more sense to do the media event to tie in with iCloud and iOS 5?
Not a nutjob fanatic, or an anti-Apple troll, just an admirer of Apple and owner of many of their products.
I was ready to buy an iPhone 5 (New exterior design) and so will be waiting for one.
i agree whole heartily. I will be sitting this one out. I think the 5 will be available early next year and I will buy that one. Three other die hard Apple friends of mine are planning to sit this out as well. Shame too, because I have some extra money burning a hole I’m my pocket.
Me too Keith. Im sure many others would agree upgrading from 4 to 4s just isnt worth it for most of us. Sure the isheep will go out and get it to impress their virtual friends (would they class siri as their friend?) but like yourself i will wait and see what the iphone 5 has to offer
So basically, you’re admitting you’re so shallow that a different metal composition in the body and a slightly larger screen is all it takes to get you excited. Go buy an Android if all you crave is different hardware specs.
That is the most retarded response I’ve read in a long time. Is that all you’ve got? Go buy an Android? If you have a disagreement with your girlfriend would you ask a stranger to f*** her? Dumb & stupid.
When you invest in rumors, prepare for disappointment dipshit.
This whole thing has been stupid, Apple is following their well established device rollout strategy for iPhones. Phil Schiller even introduced the 3GS to the same reactions. It’s now the second best selling smart phone.
Maybe there’s a PowerBook G5 support group you can join?
This whole iPhone ‘5’ thing was a fantasy from the start. The rest of us want/need a real phone, rather than the limited trivial imagination of online retards. Maybe you little bitches can all stay home next week and make my iPhone upgrade/Apple Store experience smoother? Until then I’ll be savoring your idiot tears.
Apple has always prided itself on ‘Think Different.’ Its product releases were always a joy to behold, a symphony of technology, design and software; cutting edge, always different, not following the crowd.
This release is the opposite of ‘Think Different.’ It’s more like ‘Think the same,’ or ‘Don’t think at all.’ Actually ‘Don’t think at all’ fits you rather well because you’ve obviously lost your critical mental faculties.
Actually if that’s all he’s got so have I. Go buy an Android, you can play keeping up with the Joneses every second day if that keeps you excited.
Wideopenvista, you’re the kind of jerk that gives fan boys a bad name. I too wanted a new design with larger screen and non- glass back. This 4 does what I need but I always thought it was crazy they did away with the curved design. You’re post doesn’t make even make sense since the processor and camera on the 4s ARE different hardware specs!!!!!!
So asking for a slimmer body and a wider screen on a phone you hold and whose screen you use constantly is shallow? These are not MINOR things, they’re everything.
Apple’s success is based on great design that always moves forward. Today they presented a model that’s over a year old with some marginally improved specs. Nobody’s excited about this, sorry. Nobody hates it, we all just have met today’s update with a shrug.
R2 is totally right.
I agree. Not much was really asked, but a new form factor would’ve kept things fresh….along with what they already gave us. It does feel as if they took a small step back. They needed to give up a little more for Tim Cook’s first true go, at CEO announcements.
14, 15 months later… this is all they got? Yeah, that’s a massive disappointment…
And Cards feels like a slap in the face. haha.
I think people were misled by the so-called “analysts” and the hype. Apple never indicated an iPhone 5. I mean, if that happened, would we then be contemplating the iPhone 6 already?
For what it is, the iPhone 4S should be taken just like the 3GS when it was significantly improved from the 3G.
MDN dissing Apple? Yeaow
All the time if you read closely. MDN are apple fans, not Apple apologists.
Despite what some will have you believe, there’s little blind faith here.
All the time? Puleez……….You’re an MDN apologist.
Even though MDN’s take on this one is CORRECT,
I wanna repeat what I have commented to the two articles before:
I am really disappointed of all who are disappointed!
I call LAME LAME LAME.
Not Apple, all of you who wanna complain on a day and at times like this, and Wall Street people.
LAME.
LAAAAAAAAAME.
(repeat ad infinitum )
OK I said it.
I bet you wish you would have saved that money you spent getting your Grade Twelve Equivalency now.
It wouldn’t be a drop in the bucket compared to what you’ve spent on gay porn, ya dipshit.
MAc95, I agree.
Again, peeps manipulated by rumors and analysts. Get over it already!
I’m getting an iPhone 4GS and you can keep money in your wallet or go for an Android but I’ll be showing off and fully utilizing an iPhone 4GS and when an iPhone 5 comes out, I’ll likely get that too.
What’s better than an iPhone 4GS ?????
Exactly!
“Exactly!”
Sounds like someone at MDN is a day trader. If you are long on Apple there’s nothing to worry about here. The 4S will do very well and it’s out well before the Christmas season.
Bad take MDN, I expected better from you. Once these things start selling like wildfire on the 14th (which trust me, they will), everyone that has poo-pooed today’s announcement will look like a shortsighted fool.
Uh-oh, Rob. MDN doesn’t have any bad takes. Just ask them. Your post and my reply will have a very short life here today.
iPhone 4 gallery has photos which are upside-down when you download them. Steven would hate that.
That said, Cook probably would hate that, too, but he can not check everything.
Correction: actually, I meant iPhone 4S’ camera photo gallery.
You’re fired! From : Steve Jobs
-Sent from my iPhone 5
I understand tech pundits that wanted new hardware, but investors should realize that, even though iCould and iOS5 were already announced and Siri was expected, these are features that will drive iPhone and iPod touch purchases this holiday season.
That’s just it. There *is* new hardware. It’s just that the phone looks the same externally. The internals have been upgraded significantly. I guess if they had just rounded off the edges everyone would have thought it was great.
But out here in China, where Apple considered a very profitable and large market, people mostly cannot take advantage of the new Siri and icloud,
There is no way to out sell those android phones like the samsung ones, they definitely have catches up in the game and Apple this time has been sitting on it’s laurel, by slightly updating the iPhone. Please don’t use the phrase “Talk about amazing.” in those ads, it really is not. And Tim, don’t perform like a COO, you are a CEO.
Between Siri, iOS 5, iMessage, the 1080p video, excellent still camera, much, much better cpu/gpu and the dual GSM/CDMA chip, this is an excellent and significant upgrade. They could have given us a somewhat bigger screen, but I couldn’t care less about the form factor.
I would like more details on how easy (or not) it will be to switch from one carrier to another.
Now about that “new” iPod touch? That was a waste of time. It is supposed to be the “gaming” machine but it can’t play the new Infinity Blade. It should have been given a better camera, at least on the more expensive models.
Apple’s strategy has become crystal clear: iPhone 4S – same body as 4, greatly enhanced insides = collect the proceeds from new sales galore. iPhone 5 in a few months – new body, same insides as 4S = collect the proceeds from new sales galore. It’s the planned obselence that has worked so well for so long for GM. Now we see if this strategy under the group of new, uninspiring Apple Inc. leaders, will work. I think not.
It’s going to work fine; not only do they have the current crop of ATT and Verizon customers, they added in Sprint. If ATT doesn’t buy out T-Mobile, Apple can work on adding them for the iPhone 5 launch. Soon iPhones will be available on every major carrier, and we might even see a low cost stripped down model available for the pay-as-you-go crowd.
Your lack of understanding is what’s crystal clear. Apple vastly improved the hardware and software of the iPhone with the 4S. It’s a new phone – just because it looks the same doesn’t make it any less of an upgrade. There will not be an “iPhone 5” in a few months. There will be an iPhone 5/6 next summer or fall. That’s 9-12 months.
Vastly improved hardware and software? Vastly? Really? Actually, no. Incremental changes, like an 8mbp camera that should have come out with the 4 originally way back in June 2010, are not VAST. Sorry.
The 4S will be around for 12 months, meaning the iPhone 4 design, from early summer 2010, will still be in our hands in the early fall of 2012. How old will the iPhone look and feel a year from now? It was already looking a little stale this summer.
And the 3GS is still around, too. It is still a great phone – a smartphone at the price (“free” with a 2-year contract) of a dumb phone.
Apple actually changed the guts of the 4S quite a bit – much better CPU and graphics performance, larger storage option, GSM/CMDA, dynamic switching antennas, etc.
It sounds to me as if you would be much happier with the 4S if Apple had included a few cosmetic changes to make it “seem” more different and tagged it with the next generation “5.” Well, they didn’t. But that doesn’t mean that it is not a great phone.
Android phones are hitting the market like cow patties from a large herd of cattle. Does that make them any better? The Droid or Galaxy flavor of the month does not seem all that much different than the one from last quarter or last year. The main change in recent history is that many Android phones are sporting battery-sucking “4G” connectivity that is also geographically limited.
I can understand striving for better in the future. But that does not mean that you have to be dissatisfied with the present.
” the group of new, uninspiring Apple Inc. leaders”
Huh? Who’s new in the group? SJ stepped down, Cook stepped up, but this group of leaders is far from new. And they’re all suddenly uninspiring now that Jobs has stepped down? Really?
Would this product announcement really have been THAT much better if Steve Jobs had done the show rather than Tim Cook?
The only problem with the “Wow” factor is that there really wasn’t any “Wow” to announce. Everyone knows pretty well what’s in iOS 5 and iCloud, and simply because there was no change in exterior form, the new iPhone is deemed a dud.
Maybe Apple should have glued foldable wings on it and called it iPhone 5? Would that have made that much difference?
People need to get a grip. It’s a great in-between step while the mobile providers get their act together and move to the next technology (LTE) in sufficient amount and coverage that it is useful to people. The fact is LTE is pretty sparse already, and current chips drain batteries like a rowboat with a screen door in the bottom.
This follows the pattern set by original iPhone; 3/3G/3GS, then 4 which was brand new design. The big news is the dual-antenna feature; retailers no longer have to keep two different models in stock, and 3rd party affiliates no longer have to make two versions of the same case. Sure, it doesn’t show on outside, but it’s a major difference.
Apple’s already got a decent reputation for accessibility, but if Siri lives up to the hype it could be a game-changer for the disabled. I’d like to see many of the features rolled into future iPads.
Instead of appreciating the features we got, everyone’s mad that Apple didn’t live up to THEIR expectations.
The dual-antenna feature improves reception, and doesn’t have anything to do with support for three cellular radios. That’s done by the baseband chipset (GSM, UMTS, and CDMA2000). The dual antenna design helps the phone better deal with multi-path interference, which is a leading cause of “WTF? Why is my reception bad here, but works fine two feet away?” kind of problems.
Really? Call it what you want, its still a really great phone. Its faster, has a better camera, more memory, Siri, plus all the iOS5 goodness baked in… what’s not to like?
Apple stock hasn’t been playing according to “normal” rules for a long time so who knows, but I think it will recover when they see how fast they sell.
Oh, and did you see that they now have a $0 option for all those who said they needed a “nano” iPhone. 3GS is a way better option than some stripped down 1/2 iPhone.
So, yeah, I can’t figure out how this is such a disappointment.
Picked up an extra 150 shares @ $357.00, with the stock ending at $372.99. The glass is half full as far as I am concerned, and I am not complaining.
Nice move.
Wish I’d had the cash to do the same. Good call!
Perfect timing! Drinks on the house?
people are just crying.
It’s not an iPhone 5…. World ends tonight!
I’ll probably pick up the new 4s in nov/dec now when I can upgrade, but I will not get the 2 year contract price. I’ll pay full price so I won’t have any problems getting a 5 next year.
Many think that the 5 will be next year with 4g/lte and apple didn’t announce it yet due to the battery drain issues with 4g/lte.
I wasn’t impressed with the iPod side today, nano still no Bluetooth… But yet clock faces!!!!! And still that wire coming out of your fancy watch to catch on everything while you run… Like I said earlier, I’ll stay with iPhone for music, iPod will collect dust.
WTF do you people want? A5 processor, 64Gb, better antenna, faster connection speeds, superb camera and proper HD video, Siri, iOS 5. So what’s the frickin’ problem? (Whiney voice) ‘oooooo, it’s the same shape, it hasn’t got an aluminium back, it hasn’t got a humungus screen…’
Shit, what a bunch of whiney little girls.
4S or 5, it does everything I could possibly want a smartphone to do, I can’t see anything not to like about it; Apple haven’t screwed up up an already superb device, and everyone, (read: media), is pissed about that.
Perfectly said!
Go f*** yourself trollope.
Fsck you,asshole!
Rorschach–well put!
Point very well made, Rorschach!
All I wanted was 4G LTE since I live in an area where coverage for it is good. I’ll wait for the next iPhone that comes with it.
No.
Apple just keeps on doing what they do best. Ignore the Internet whining. It’s mostly what the Internet is good at.
It has been said before, Apple could have released an iPhone 5 with a 8″ foldable screen with no visible crease, built in telaporter, microwave oven and a holographic display….
and there would still be bitching.
Apple did not hint at an iPhone 5. That was rumors.
Apple does not have to come out with a new phone every 12 months. That is one of the nice things I like about Apple. Good god the other carriers have how many new phones per month??
Apple does not have to change the form factor. The current shape was just introduced last year. The previous shape lasted 3 years. The only reason to make a change is IF there is a compelling benefit to do that. Apparently Apple has not come across one. I believe they have a fairly good R&D department that covers that.
I’ll leave you with this last note.
The iPhone 4 has been the best selling phone so far. Apple could have just done nothing and continued to sell ridiculous amounts of them.
Sometimes change is not good.
Many of the people complaining today remind me of the old story, “The Goose That Laid the Golden Egg”.
or of 3 year olds, “waaa, waaa, waa”.
Will Siri work on the iPad with iOS5?
From what I gather, it’s iPhone 4S only. Incorporating some of the features in future iPads would seem to be a no brainer from an accessibility standpoint.
““‘Please note I will be selling some ‘S’ stickers for $0.99 so iPhone 4 owners have a cheaper upgrade option,’ wrote HAL9000 on Twitter. Tomlinsonr tweeted, ‘I’ll have a double helping of ‘meh’ with a side of ‘whatever.’””
Great idea. I’ll sell ‘5’ stickers for $0.99, so people can have the best phone on the planet AND feel good about it!
Pathetic.
If Apple puts out this same phone with the same specs but just looked different than the iPhone 4 you would have seen people raving about it. The same thing happened when the 3GS came out and it sold just fine.
What has been exciting and bold of Apple has been their willingness, unlike more staid tech companies, of killing successful products and replacing them with wholly new, exciting designs. That is part of what makes Apple different from also-rans.
That did not happen this evening and for many, displays an uncharacteristic timidity and lack of pace.
This is going to be like the iPad debut.
stage 1 – everyone is soooo disappointed – “I’m not getting one”
stage 2 – Well I goes that Siri thing is kind of cool.
stage 3 – It does have a faster process and better camera and I can get it with 64Gb
stage 4 – Well, I am eligible for an upgrade . . . may as well get one
stage 5 – (Day of pre-order) Geez, Apple, why can’t your server handle the traffic? I couldn’t get in on the preorder.
stage 6 – How come Apple can’t make enough of these to meet demand.
stage 7 – what? they are going for $2000 on eBay?
stage 8 – better get out my sleeping bag to wait in line.
You know its true.
not this time.
Most definitely this time. He just described the release of almost every Apple product to date. People bitch and complain cause they don’t know what they’re talking about. The actual product comes out and it’s insanely great (as this one will be) and people can’t get them fast enough.
This phone is great, just because the outside doesn’t look different then the old model doesn’t mean dick.
SPOT ON!!!
Thanks, that’s the funniest thing I have read today. It’s ironic to me because I never “liked” the iPhone 4 design, but I understood that it was born of an interesting concept, that of the antenna on the outside of the phone. Hmmmmm. It WAS NOT designed just to look different like a new purse! When Apple finds another compelling reason to change the form factor, they will.
I liked the presentation:
•new processor
•new camera
•new software
the Siri stuff has potential.
4S sounds just about right. This is a seriously good upgrade. The mythical 5 phone next year will build on the 4S and, hopefully, will add 4G capability. I’ll wait. But I always planned on waiting for the next refresh cycle to replace my ATT iPhone4.
I’ll likely wait as well — I could trade in my iPhone 4 for $200 which would lower cost to $99, but I want to see if Siri lives up to the hype and if 3rd party developers can/will take advantage of the technology.
I sold my extra iPhone 4 for 400$ in 30 minutes on craiglist. 32gig that is. You should get more then 200$ unless it’s beat the hell up.
MDN Take : it couldn’t be put any better. Beautiful.
I have purchased then original iPhone, the 3Gs, and the 4. All very good and worth the money. I like what I have heard about the 4S. Excellent functionality improvements. At this point, the exterior is almost perfect. I don’t need a new shell. Or a bigger phone. At this point internal hardware improvements and new software functionality is exactly what I as a user would like to see. Apple is blowing away the competition with the current iPhone 4. The 4S raises the bar higher, with things like SIRI which I think could be very big. So, thank you Apple. I am glad you don’t get distracted by the idiot winds blowing through the blogosphere.
amen, GM
you know what? maybe if everyone stopped trying to guess and speculate what’s coming out, you’d all be a lot happier with final outcome. OOOH it’s the iphone 5 (they never said that) OOOOH it’s thinner and has a bigger screen (they never said that) This happens every time they release something. Why don’t you all close your mouths, sit back and watch with the rest of us. Do you get a prize for predicting correctly? Hell no you don’t!
16 Months and we get a speed bump and improved camera? U have GOT to be kidding!!! Huge flop!!! Huge!! MDN TAKE IS SPOT ON!!!
Also got the dual antennas; that will make a huge difference to overseas travelers who worry whether their phone will work. Plus a new model with 64GB; will increase acceptance of iPhone as a media player, at least till music in The Cloud is fully operational.
It’s not gonna be a flop, but it is a slap in the face. Apple should have handled expectations better, and promised SOMETHING to bring down the house at end of the events.
Cards was not it. 🙁
Apple can’t be expected to stop all the idiot children out there from getting their hopes up and imagining what’s going to come.
Apple did what Apple always does, release great products. If you let your imagination get away with you, then it’s your own fault.
1. Double speed,
2. better graphics,
3. better camera,
4. way better imaging,
5. dual antenna
All running on iOS 5
Is a great improvement. Speed bumps are for the dozens of Android phonies out there.
Amen