Double Feature iPhone 5 Posits A5, LTE, NFC As iPhone 4S Lingers

Double feature: iPhone 5 posits A5, LTE, NFC as iPhone 4S lingers.Apple prepares to leave its users staring at a double feature as the iPhone 5 takes the high perch with a boatload of new features as the iPhone 4S lingers in the bargain bin with a limited feature set. How the company ultimately differentiates the two models sets the tone for iPhone sales growth over the next twelve months. iPhone 5 gets first dibs for every new feature in the smartphone bag of tricks: Apple's fast new dual core A5 processor.
Verizon and AT&T's burgeoning 4G LTE networking. VIrtual wallet NFC technology, which rivals like Android and financiers like PayPal are already pushing.

More screen real estate, which few existing iPhone users are asking for but potential switchers have already grown used to. More storage capacity to accommodate iCloud automatic downloads. The list goes on, and no matter how many of these features make their way into the iPhone 5, only a fraction will make their way into the iPhone 4S…Heading into the iPhone 5 era, Apple is putting an iPhone 4S into play for at least two reasons. One is that it wants to offer a sub-$100 bargain iPhone model but doesn't want to have to sell the iPhone 5 at a loss. The other is that it wants to erase the perception that its low-end model is "last year's iPhone" which would be the case if it merely kept the iPhone 4 around in that role.

Additional reasons for rolling the iPhone 4 into a 4S include eliminating the carrier-segregated Verizon and AT&T versions of the iPhone 4 in favor of a single unified iPhone 4S hybrid-compatible model, and erasing the apocryphal perception that the iPhone 4 has an "antenna problem" by replacing it with the 4S. From there, Apple must decide just how much iPhone 5 goodness it wants to share with the lowly 4S…The A5 processor alone will have a major impact on whether the iPhone 4S is a good value, even as many consumers will overlook the feature for lack of understanding or awareness. With the iPhone 5 sporting the new A5 processor (already employed by the iPad 2), iPhone game and app developers will code their new versions under the assumption that the user will have a faster A5. If the iPhone 4S sticks with the same slower A4 processor currently found in the iPhone 4, it'll devalue the 4S by limiting the number of years it'll stay relevant.

If the 4S goes with the same A5 as the iPhone 5, both models have the potential to stay relevant for the same timeframe, making the 4S a good long term investment. Other features also come into play, however…It's still not clear how Apple plans to handle iPhone screen sizes with the next generation. One gameplan has the iPhone 5 expanding its screen to the entire width of the front face of the device but keeping the same overall width as the 4; this would leave the iPhone 4S sporting the exact same screen as the 4. Another strategy has the iPhone 4S keeping the same width as the 4 while stretching to the far edges of the front face, and the iPhone 5 being a physically wier device with an even larger screen.

Amongst the other potential features on the table, Apple will designate one as its new "ultra marketable feature" (a la FaceTime for the iPhone 4 and 3G networking for the iPhone 3G) around which it'll base its iPhone 5 marketing campaign. Whatever that feature is, whether it be 4G LTE or NFC or some other feature not yet considered, expect it to be lacking from the iPhone 4S so Apple and retailers can use the touted feature as a reason to upsell consumers to the iPhone 5 even if they initially come into the store looking for the bargain priced iPhone 4S. Here's more on the iPhone 5.