Apple recently unveiled two new iPhones for the first time ever, creating a stir worldwide in smartphone markets. While the iPhone 5s is mostly well-received and is enjoying much fanfare already, the iPhone 5c
is a bit controversial. It brings a new design and is supposedly aimed
towards new markets, in short, the cheaper version. Despite this, it
comes with a hard-to-swallow price tag.
But regardless of anything, iPhone 5C is cheaper than the iPhone 5s.
Which one should you be buying? Your decision should depend on the
following factors:
Design
The iPhone 5s looks better than the previous iPhone 5 and also better
than the 5c (despite the fact that it’s actually 5c which is replacing
the 5). It is quite sleek, weighing in at just 112g and being 7.6mm
thick. Compared to that, the 5c is a bit chubby at 132g heavy and 9mm
thick.
Also, while the 5s is made of premium materials (high-grade
aluminium), the 5c is made of polycarbonate plastic. But don’t let that
fool you. We haven’t handled it ourselves yet but since it uses a
reinforced steel structure within, it’s one of the sturdiest plastic
phones yet. (At least according to journalists who’ve used it.) It still
won’t be beating aluminium though.
The 5c comes in a wide range of colours (five to be precise) while
the 5s comes in three colour combinations, which come with more serious
looks.
As for the screen, both have 4 inch Retina Displays with Gorilla Glass.
One huge addition on the 5s is Touch ID, which is a great substitute
for passwords. The fingerprint scanner can memorize multiple
fingerprints, is made of sapphire and has 500 pixels per inch. That is
something not found on the 5c.
Internals
This is probably where the 5s has taken the biggest strides. The new
A7 is the first 64-bit processor in a smartphone which is twice as fast
as the A6 found in the 5c. Graphics are twice as fast too. Also making
an entry is the M7 motion co-processor.
Now, of course, the A6 is not too bad either and will get the job
done if you plan on playing casual games but to really believe in the
A7, you have to see the Infinity Blade III demo. If that doesn’t impress
you, nothing will.
Software
On the software side, both the 5s and 5c are almost similar, with the
former getting an edge due to the Touch ID. The technology has been
incorporated cleverly in several aspects of the user interface such as
software and music purchases in App Store and iTunes.
The iWork suite and iMovie & iPhoto are free too which should really boost productivity from your iOS device.
Camera
The cameras on both the 5s and 5c are of 8 megapixels. But again, the
camera on the 5s is better, with a larger sensor, larger pixel size and
a True Tone dual-led Flash. It also does 720p videos at 120fps, slow
motion videos and of course, 1080p videos at 30fps. The 5c can only
stand its ground in that last instance.
Pricing
The iPhone 5c is considerably cheaper, at $549 for the starting
model. The 5s however, will be starting at around $700 for the starting
model. That’s a difference of around 20,000 PKR when the phones will hit
the Pakistani market initially.
Conclusion
The difference of 20,000 PKR is quite a lot but spending that extra
money gets justified easily in the case of 5s. The upper-end model
easily outclasses its younger brother in virtually every category.
Or you may as well get the iPhone 5 which can be found for even
cheaper. It won’t be supported by its manufacturer as much though. One
last choice is the 4S which is the cheapest right now but its aging
hardware makes it a less than ideal choice.
And lastly, here’s the recap:
Why should I choose iPhone 5S
- More serious design
- Thinner, Lighter
- Touch ID, Better home button
- Apple A7, M7 processor
- Better 8 megapixel camera, True Tone, Slow-motion videos
Why should I choose iPhone 5C
- Cheaper
- More colorful, youthful and glossy
- Plastic can take more hits on the ground
- Basically a redesigned iPhone 5 (if that’s a plus point for you)