iPhone 5 vs. iPhone 4S: Up close and personal

One of the biggest questions to a lot of iPhone 4S users right now is if its worth to consider upgrading to the new iPhone 5. We placed the old iPhone 4S beside the iPhone 5 and weighed them in. See the list below to see the big difference.

We got the white models of the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 4S to compare and check the physical differences.

Obviously, the iPhone 5 is much taller than the iPhone 4S. The width is just the same at 58.6mm, but the height increased from is 115.2mm to 123.8mm. The additional height made some more room for another row of icons on the 4-inch screen.

The bottom end of the iPhone features the other more prominent change — the charging port is smaller and less exposed, the speaker grills are more prominent and the 3.5mm audio jack is now found at the bottom.

Also notice that the Home button is now tightly positioned at the lower corner of the screen’s bezel.

The metal stripe along the sides of the iPhone was re-engineered. What used to be like a polished stainless-steel strip of metal with a dark tint is now a soft matte aluminum-like strip with a lighter tint. The edge of the metal strip is tapered and polished which shines with even the slightest amount of light.

On the side, you will the reduced thickness of the iPhone 5. What used to be two sheets of thick glass that sandwiches the chassis of the iPhone 4S is now just a single piece of glass on the front and really thin sheet of metal at the back.

Notice the slot for the nano-SIM is smaller on the right side. The gap on the strip of metal is also filled by what seems to be the same plastic material rather than some soft rubber.

We could not really see any speed difference when using the iPhone 4S and the iPhone 5. The extra height of the iPhone 5 makes the aspect ratio close to 16:9 compared to the close to 4:3 (it’s 1.5:1 actually) on the older iPhones. This gives the screen that cinematic perspective.

What still puzzles us that despite the size of the iPhone 5, its weight is noticeably lighter than you will definitely notice it once you held one in your hands.

Check back with us later this week for the full review of the iPhone 5.

Abe Olandres

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines. He is also a technology consultant, a tech columnist with several national publications, resource speaker and mentor/advisor to several start-up companies.

https://www.yugatech.com

26 Comments

Marcelino says:

12 years ago

I have two concerns:

1. Madali bang marumihan and/or magasgas yung white? I own a black iPhone 4S now, and I want to try a white one.

2. Is it really possible to cut the micro-sim to fit the nano-sim slot?
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reader says:

12 years ago

So it’s lighter, has a cinematic aspect ratio, LTE support…. but has no perceivable speed improvements and now, you have to change all your accessories to make it work with the new port. And everyone will still be happy to buy it for 40 – 50k. From a tech perspective, Apple has not brought anything new to the table. I was an iPhone4 user. Got fed up by all the things I could NOT do on my phone. Switched to Android thereafter. Android isn’t perfect but it allows me to do things that I want.

That being said, Apple really has a good marketing department. I would love to learn from them so I can sell mediocre technology widgets at an obscene price and make myself filthy rich.
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Danica says:

12 years ago

Obviously, the iPhone 5 is much taller than the iPhone 5. -ano daw???.LOL.
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chinitoguy says:

12 years ago

I personally didn’t like the iPhone or any gadget Apple offers. But I must say its definitely worth the upgrade if you are an iPhone 4 or 4s owner. A bigger screen is a big welcome. I guess its going to be really expensive. But for those who can’t afford it let’s not forget that the Apple iPhone 3Gs was re-introduced to the market last August to capture the lower market. Its still a good phone and its upgradable to thr latest iOS 6 software.
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JohnP says:

12 years ago

si yuga talaga oh, minsan bilib ako, minsan hindi.

haha. its lighter because it is now using an aluminum na di hamak na mas magaan.

speed difference? wala talagang makikita ko nag swaswipe ka lang, try mo magopen ng mga apps na matagal mag bukas, dun mo makikita.

tanong ko lang, dami kasing kumakalat na madali daw magasgas yung anodized aluminum ng iphone 5, gas gas na ba yang sayo? thanks!
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Jefie says:

12 years ago

Iphone 5 is lighter because it has an aluminum back instead of the glass that the Iphone 4s has.
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Les says:

12 years ago

don’t buy the black iphone5, it has an iScratch feature lol

http://www.gsmarena.com/newscomm-4844.php
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Gino says:

12 years ago

The reason why the iPhone 4 and 4s are heavier is because of the 2nd layer of glass in the back. In short, it’s the glass that made the previous iPhone heavy. What a clever idea for apple to make the iPhone 4 & 4s heavy so that they can have some room to make this iPhone version lighter :)
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none sense says:

12 years ago

check out this site:
http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPhone-5-Teardown/10525
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meh says:

12 years ago

The iphone 4S makes more sense for the cost/value . Since a majority of people don’t have or use LTE in the philippines. And only very few LTE covered areas. I just dont see the new phone as worth it. I would take a much cheaper/cost reduced 4S once everyone wants the iphone5
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habilyonar says:

12 years ago

ganda ng shirt o! lol
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Monty says:

12 years ago

Bigger screen, faster processor, new OS and LTE- it seems the pace of innovation will get slower and slower with each new generation of smartphones. What would be a big deal to me is if they could lessen the time it takes for the battery to charge. It’s a rather mundane feature, but the Koreans claim they have invented a way to charge batteries in less than a minute.
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slabster says:

12 years ago

which is which? is it better than my S3 or not? i’ll wait for the big bosses to get us iphone5 then test it myself…we have iphone4S but i never go anywhere near it because the screen is just small
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