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Business News/ Mint-lounge / Features/  Gizmo Guru | Attention to detail
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Gizmo Guru | Attention to detail

Apple's iPhone 5S is one of the few phones that feels like it's worth the premium price, but that doesn't mean it's flawless either

The one new addition to the iPhone 5S, which is missing on even the iPhone 5C, is the fingerprint scannerPremium
The one new addition to the iPhone 5S, which is missing on even the iPhone 5C, is the fingerprint scanner

Apple’s iPhone has long been seen as the smartphone to get, and the iPhone 5S continues in that tradition. Tradition is actually the ideal word to describe this phone, because it’s not going to change anyone’s perceptions about the brand. If you liked the iPhone you will love this particular model, and all the problems people have raised about the earlier models still ring true.

At its core, the iPhone 5S is a heavily beefed up version of the iPhone 5, and includes a new chip for motion sensors, which hasn’t really been used in a very interesting manner as yet, but could, over time. Over time is a bit of a theme with the iPhone 5S actually, as it is also notable for being built around 64-bit chip architecture, something that could theoretically be a huge factor in the years to come, but isn’t much more than a bullet point as of now.

In terms of performance and number crunching, the details have been done to death, but what about real world usage? It should come as no surprise that this is possibly the smoothest interface we’ve ever seen, and running various different apps offered an excellent experience.

The little touches to the animation, the zoom effect, and parallax scrolling are things that come with iOS 7 but they continue to add to the experience without overwhelming you. That’s not to suggest that Apple is the first company to think of these clever touches to make the experience of using the device feel natural. It’s just that credit deserves to be given for knowing how to fine tune these experiences, and put together something that feels great to use.

The one new addition to the 5S, which is missing on even the 5C, is the fingerprint scanner. TouchID works 99% of the time, and while there are reports that it can be fooled, in our time with the phone at least, there were no problems.

It’s a very comfortable system for logging in and out, more secure than a typical 4-digit password and more convenient than a strong password; hopefully this will make its way to more devices soon.

There are definitely some downsides though. Battery life remains an issue; it seems unfair to complain about the battery life of a supercomputer you can carry in your pocket, but the fact is that LG and Samsung have managed to give us devices which will go a lot longer between charges, and the convenience of never worrying about battery life cannot be overstated.

Screen size is another concern; the iPhone 5S screen is the same size as the iPhone 5; it’s bigger than earlier models, but frankly tiny compared to most high end phones today. It’s a lot easier to use with one hand and to use as a phone than the competition, but frankly, for us, the ideal size was something like the BlackBerry Z10, which, while only marginally bigger on paper, felt a lot nicer.

The real issue is the price of course; Rs53,500 is not a small number. Personally, I think that Apple goes a long way towards justifying it though.

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Published: 29 Nov 2013, 11:05 PM IST
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