Last week I got my iPhone 5s and it was a timely upgrade for my trusty iPhone 4 which was getting a bit long in the tooth with a dodgy home button which had already been replaced once.
The gold colored phone was actually an unexpected gift (I actually had placed an online order but cancelled the next day) which arrived last Monday. It was already 70% charged and quickly topped up to 100% in a short time. I had already synced the iPhone 4 to iTunes the day before and everything was backed up and ready for the migration to the new device.
The first order of the day was to get a nano sim card and I had a nano sim cutter sourced from Ebay – I must say I was a little worried as it was my first sim cutting job but the little device did it’s duty and downsized the micro sim to nano sim without any flaws. I then synced to iTunes and restored apps, synced contacts and services etc. which took some time and the iPhone felt hot during the initial usage, probably because the processor must have been working overtime with all the background syncing (including my 7500 contacts!).
I have already updated my iPad mini to iOS 7 so the interface was not new but as I tweeted :
Really wish there were common gestures for mobile devices
— MobileDoc (@palmdoc) November 9, 2013
Yup even in the same ecosystem gestures are different! I know the device is smaller but I would think there is still room for harmonising gestures and I would prefer for instance a multi-finger swipe up to call up the multi-tasking switcher for all iOS devices rather than on the iPad only. Multi-finger pinch to close an app would be good too as well as swipe to switch apps. Add this to the fact that I also use an Android device (currently a Samsung Galaxy Mega) and that really can get one confused as far as gestures are concerned.
Having had a bad experience with the hardware home button, I activated the “floating” software home button. This obviates the need for some of the gestures e.g. calling up the multi-tasking view, at the expense of a couple of extra screen taps (at least one doesn’t have to click on the Home button so much).
TouchID is surprisingly useful. Unlocking the device with one’s finger or thumb is really time-saving and I appreciate all the effort Apple has gone through to make this a great user experience. Locking the phone is a must, especially for medical users, so a quick efficient way to unlock the phone is most welcome.
Speed-wise, the 5s runs rings around the iPhone 4 but then there is no comparison given the much faster quadcore A7 processor the 5s uses. There is absolutely no lag and scrolls are smooth, and yes even more buttery smooth than what Android can offer at the moment.
Battery life is decent and definitely can take one through the average work day. I decided however to splurge on a Mophie juice pack which functions both as a protective case as well as an external battery charger. The Mophie added a little weight and bulk but it is not too bad a compromise if one wants the security of knowing you’ll always have that extra juice in case of heavy usage e.g. when one is on call and stuck in hospital. I also turned off Background app refresh in the settings which should help with battery life.
I have to say the device is very stable. I have not had a crash unlike the occasional one in my iPhone 4 but then the latter could be because it is jailbroken. Speaking of JB, I do really miss some of my JB apps, in particular iBlacklist, a powerful call blocker – for the time being I have to make do with iOS’ Do Not Disturb function – and BiteSMS which adds much more function to the messaging app e.g. the ability to schedule a message.
I think one of the strongest points of the 5s is the terrific camera and I shall be having fun playing around with the features such as slow motion capture etc. Apps all run well and most have been re-designed for iOS7 so I am pretty pleased. Here’s a screenshot of my home page:
In iOS7 you can put more than 16 apps in a folder so that is handy and keeps your apps down to 1-2 screenfuls. I hate to see apps spilling across multiple screens! Here’s my main medical app folder:
One strange thing is that Spotlight no longer searches the web in iOS7. I hope Apple reinstates this as having it makes it close to the universal Just Type feature of webOS that I dearly miss. (fixed in iOS 7.0.3)
Overall though I’m a happy camper. iOS7 in an iPhone 5s simply rocks! The only downside about the 5s is the price. I was lucky to get the phone as a gift but I was actually prepared to fork out hard earned cash to pay for one anyway. The premium price is worth the upgrade if you are coming from an iPhone 4 or 4s. I doubt if it is worth it if you are already an iPhone 5 user.
