"A staggeringly fast processor, excellent build quality and a great operating system, what's not to like?"
While the Android world was going big-screen, Apple has steadfastly stuck to its more pocket-friendly design with the iPhone 5S. In fact, on a first glance, there's very little to tell this smartphone from the iPhone 5. With larger-and-larger phones coming out, the question is whether or not Apple has lost the plot.
The good news is that Apple seems to know exactly what it's doing and the iPhone 5S remains a beautifully made and desirable smartphone. While it may look like its predecessor, this phone is an improvement in practically every way.
It's not just the materials, but the attention to detail that catches the eye. Its precision-cut aluminium rear sits absolutely flush with glass panels that sit at the top and bottom. The smartphone's neat bevelled edges are perfectly formed and the 7.3mm thick phone feels incredibly comfortable in the hand. Weighing just 112g, which still feels almost impossibly light when you pick up the smartphone for the first time, the iPhone 5S is incredible to look at and hold.
The iPhone 5S is hard-wearing, too, thanks to its tough
aluminium body. We've been carrying our one around since launch and,
aside from the odd minor scratch (mostly around the bezel), it looks as
good as the day it was taken out of its box. We keep the phone in a
sleeve case to protect the sides and screen, but the quality is still
impressive to behold. After all, this is a device that will be thrown
into pockets and bags, and carried everywhere, so that fact it still
looks good after that kind of punishment is testement to its quality.
If you're coming from a large-screen Android phone, the iPhone 5S
does look a little small, but for all practical purposes it's still a
great size. It fits easily in one hand, letting you use it with just
your thumb, while you can put it comfortably in any pocket.
For this year's models, the white model is the same as last
year's, but there are also two new colours. Space Gray replaces the
'black' model of last year and is subtly different, with the case a
purer grey than last year's blue-grey model. It's the Gold edition
that's really different. Pictures don't do it justice, as it tends to
look quite garish, but in the flesh the champagne gold finish is
altogether more subtle and classier.
Gold model aside, the biggest issue of the iPhone 5S's looks is that to the untrained eye it doesn't look as though you've bought a new phone, although Apple has at least eased the burden by taking the iPhone 5 off sale, replacing it with the plastic iPhone 5C instead.
There is one big clue that the phone you've got is the iPhone
5S: the metal-rimmed home button, which no longer has the
familiar-looking square icon in it. As you're no doubt aware, this is
the brand-new fingerprint reader, Touch ID. With Touch ID, rather than
having to tap in a PIN to unlock your phone, you can simply hold your
finger over the sensor. If that sounds like a gimmick, it's not: it's
actually a brilliant time saver and something that helps enforce
security.
Apple had some complaints when the phone first came out that
Touch ID wasn't particularly reliable. However, an iOS update has fixed
that and made the fingerprint reader faster and much more reliable.
Plus, you can help things along by registering the same finger twice,
dramatically increasing the recognition levels.
We have to say that it works pretty much flawlessly, at any angle and, impressively, any rotation, so you can even tap Touch ID with your phone upside down to get it to work. We found that other people's fingers couldn't unlock the phone either. What's particularly brilliant is how you can unlock the phone in one go: just click the home button to switch on the iPhone 5S, then release and hold to unlock it in one smooth move. The only times we have suffered any problems are with a wet finger, such as after washing our hands; for the most part, the sensor works brilliantly.
This ease of use shouldn’t overshadow the technological effort that has gone into creating Touch ID. It's massively impressive that Apple has managed to fit the best fingerprint reader we've used underneath a button. Even better, you only have to touch the reader for it to work; with the Samsung Galaxy S5, you have to swipe your finger over the button, which isn't quite as easy or as user friendly.
Perhaps more importantly, setting up Touch ID requires you to set a PIN for your phone, which is required after a reboot and to access key settings, such as adding new fingerprints. So, in adding easier-to-use security, Apple is also pushing people to be more secure in general.
Then, there's the future of the technology. At the moment Touch
ID can be used to unlock your phone and to buy from iTunes and the App
Store, rather than having to enter your password. It makes sense that
Apple will open this system up at some point in the future, at least to
certain developers, so you could use your fingerprint to access your
bank, for example. Nothing has been announced, but we'd be surprised if
Touch ID isn't used for more over the coming year.
Fingerprints are stored in the phone's A7 chip's Secure Enclave, where they're not shared or uploaded to iCloud. This helps boost security and should stop the fingerprint reader being hacked. Of course, the system is not entirely fool-proof, but Apple quotes a 50,000-in-1 chance of someone being able to unlock the phone, which is still better than the 10,000-in-1 chance of someone guessing a four-digit PIN.
For starters, there's plenty of resolution for web browsing and
apps, with the interface disappearing off-screen when you're reading
pages, giving the full screen over to the current task. Next, the 326ppi
pixel density is what Apple calls a Retina display. This means that
when you view the screen at a normal distance, you can't view individual
pixels. In other words, everything looks pin-sharp and more resolution
wouldn't achieve anything, bar making icons and text too small to read
without scaling.
Image quality is excellent, too. Apple has used a high-quality IPS panel and it's still one of the best smartphone displays. It's evenly lit, bright, produces excellent whites and vibrant colours, and the excellent viewing angles mean that you can see what's on screen clearly from anywhere.
While the Android world was going big-screen, Apple has steadfastly stuck to its more pocket-friendly design with the iPhone 5S. In fact, on a first glance, there's very little to tell this smartphone from the iPhone 5. With larger-and-larger phones coming out, the question is whether or not Apple has lost the plot.
The good news is that Apple seems to know exactly what it's doing and the iPhone 5S remains a beautifully made and desirable smartphone. While it may look like its predecessor, this phone is an improvement in practically every way.
Specifications
Processor: Dual-core 1.3GHz Apple A7, Screen size: 4in, Screen resolution: 1,136x640, Rear camera: 8 megapixels, Storage: 16/32/64GB, Wireless data: 4G, Size: 123.8x58.6x7.6mm, Weight: 112g, Operating system: iOS 7.1
Apple
Build quality
The one area where Apple hasn't managed to better itself is with build quality, and that's only because the iPhone 5 was such a great phone. Apple doesn't skimp on premium materials and the metal body and Gorilla Glass covered screen still look and feel fantastic.It's not just the materials, but the attention to detail that catches the eye. Its precision-cut aluminium rear sits absolutely flush with glass panels that sit at the top and bottom. The smartphone's neat bevelled edges are perfectly formed and the 7.3mm thick phone feels incredibly comfortable in the hand. Weighing just 112g, which still feels almost impossibly light when you pick up the smartphone for the first time, the iPhone 5S is incredible to look at and hold.
Gold model aside, the biggest issue of the iPhone 5S's looks is that to the untrained eye it doesn't look as though you've bought a new phone, although Apple has at least eased the burden by taking the iPhone 5 off sale, replacing it with the plastic iPhone 5C instead.
Touch ID
Touch ID can be programmed to recognise up to five fingers (they can be just yours or yours and trusted other people). All you have to do is hold your finger to the sensor repeatedly, while the iPhone 5S builds up an image of what your print looks like. You're prompted to move your finger around, to get full coverage, and even to use the side of your finger so that you can use Touch ID from pretty much any angle. With that done, you're ready to go.
We have to say that it works pretty much flawlessly, at any angle and, impressively, any rotation, so you can even tap Touch ID with your phone upside down to get it to work. We found that other people's fingers couldn't unlock the phone either. What's particularly brilliant is how you can unlock the phone in one go: just click the home button to switch on the iPhone 5S, then release and hold to unlock it in one smooth move. The only times we have suffered any problems are with a wet finger, such as after washing our hands; for the most part, the sensor works brilliantly.
This ease of use shouldn’t overshadow the technological effort that has gone into creating Touch ID. It's massively impressive that Apple has managed to fit the best fingerprint reader we've used underneath a button. Even better, you only have to touch the reader for it to work; with the Samsung Galaxy S5, you have to swipe your finger over the button, which isn't quite as easy or as user friendly.
Perhaps more importantly, setting up Touch ID requires you to set a PIN for your phone, which is required after a reboot and to access key settings, such as adding new fingerprints. So, in adding easier-to-use security, Apple is also pushing people to be more secure in general.
Fingerprints are stored in the phone's A7 chip's Secure Enclave, where they're not shared or uploaded to iCloud. This helps boost security and should stop the fingerprint reader being hacked. Of course, the system is not entirely fool-proof, but Apple quotes a 50,000-in-1 chance of someone being able to unlock the phone, which is still better than the 10,000-in-1 chance of someone guessing a four-digit PIN.
Screen
Given that the phone size hasn't changed, Apple hasn't changed the screen, so you get the same 4in 1,136x640 screen that was used in the iPhone 5. Again, you can get higher resolution, bigger screens moving to Android, but we don't see the iPhone 5S's size as a problem.
Image quality is excellent, too. Apple has used a high-quality IPS panel and it's still one of the best smartphone displays. It's evenly lit, bright, produces excellent whites and vibrant colours, and the excellent viewing angles mean that you can see what's on screen clearly from anywhere.
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