The Apple iPhone 4S will cost £499 in the UK.
The latest iteration of Apple’s smartphone was unveiled yesterday (October 4) at an event in California, which was hosted by CEO Tim Cook and also saw a new iPod Touch launced. according to Apple’s website, the 16GB version of the device will be available to pre-order from October 7 (this friday), and will be shipped the following week on October 14.
The pricing is the same as that give to the iPhone on launch last year and reflects the US pricing, which was issued by Apple yesterday during the launch of the iPhone 4S. In the US the handset will cost $199 for the 16GB version, $299 for the 32GB model and $399 for the 64GB capacity device, also the same as the iPhone on launch.
There’s currently no UK pricing for the iPhone 4S in 32GB and 64GB capacities, although its likely the 32GB model will cost £599, the same cost of the iPhone 4 32GB on launch last year.
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How much mobile networks will be charging for the device on a monthly contract remains to be seen. At present, O2 is the only operator to confirm it will stock the device, although it is likely the other four biggest networks; Orange, T-Mobile, Vodafone and three, which started offering the iPhone for the first-time last year, are likely to follow suit.
Last year, the major UK networks were offering the Apple iPhone 4 for free on two year contracts with a monthly charge of between £60 and £65 per month. the smartphone was also available on tariffs starting from £30 but Brits were being asked to cough up around £200 (and in some cases more) for the handset. So once again, its likely that the iPhone 4S will be available free on £60 per month tariffs that are tied in for two years.
The iPhone 4S retains the same thin glass and stainless steel design of the iPhone 4, but benefits from a dual-core A5 chip which according to Apple delivers twice the processing power and up to seven times faster graphics than the previous iPhone.
The handset also benefits from a dual-antenna that will intelligently switch between two antennas to send and receive, along with Siri, an intelligent assistant that helps you get things done just by asking. for example if you say will I need an umbrella this weekend, it understand you want a weather report. other new features include an 8Mp camera with a custom lens, grid lines on screen and the ability to capture video in full 1080p HD.
The smartphone will run iOS 5, the latest iteration of Apple’s mobile platform, which benefits from 200 new features including iMessage that allows users to send messages, photos, videos and contact information to other users of the app for free over Wi-Fi and a new Photos app that ensures images can be cropped, rotate and enhanced on the device.
The iPhone 4S also features iCloud, Apple’s new online storage service that automatically syncs music, apps, games and photos taken on the device, in the cloud so they can be accessed from other devices that support the service.
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