Apple iPhone 4S White (64 GB) Smartphone

*As someone who is new to Apple products, I'm learning about my iPhone 4S as I go, and I'm pretty sure I haven't unlocked a fraction of its potential yet. As such, I'd like to extend an open invitation to other reviewers to challenge me. What else would you like to know about the iPhone 4S? I hope to learn more, gain more hands-on time with the phone, and add to my review. Thanks!

Well, I fell for the hype and, for the first time ever, preordered something: the iPhone 4S White 64GB. It's my first iPhone. The best way to decide if this heavily-hyped item is worth every penny is to comb through the specifications and share my observations now that the little bugger has become, for all intents and purposes, a new limb.

I've owned Android smartphones for years. They were fun, and they gave me an idea of what smartphones can do. Since they could do so much, I just put up with the constant app crashes and general platform instability. I prefer DIY/customizable system structures, so it was a leap of faith for me to surrender to Apple's take it or leave it philosophy hoping to access functionality and OS stability for once. I'm uncomfortable with just how deeply brands infiltrate human personality, but I'll admit it: I was never really an Apple person. This is mostly because when Apple products malfunction, Apple people take their devices to the Apple store and go on with their lives. Enter: a simpler way of being for someone inclined to pore over lines of code while concocting a spell in a cauldron to debug a device.

So, 64GB is quite a bit of space for a mobile device. My rationale was along the lines of wanting to use my iPhone 4S in place of my iPod Classic for music. Then I started thinking about the other stuff I wanted it to hold. Then I got the phone and it occurred to me that nearly all hard storage is moving in the direction of the cloud. Furthermore, why do I need 12 gigs of Nine Inch Nails albums and an annoying selection of Tori Amos rarities in my phone just because they happen to be stored in my iTunes? Free and inexpensive music options such as Slacker Radio are aplenty in the iTunes store, and every productivity file I've ever created can be stored and grabbed through the Dropbox app (also free). It's nice to have the 64GB option, but if you start to think about all the ways in which you might not really need the space, the 32GB or even the 16GB iPhone 4S begins to look like the smarter smartphone.

(Caveat: Since it irks me when people post cellular phone reviews then go on to discuss their cellular phone provider, this sole mention of my provider will be specific to Verizon-issued iPhone quirks: supports iOS Personal hotspots, supports tethering up to 5 devices, does not support simultaneous voice and data due to Verizon's CMDA network).
 
Physical and tactile highlights: Some have complained that the device and screen are too small, but I love how it fits ever-so-nicely in my hand and slides perfectly into a front blue jeans pocket (height: 4.5 inches; width: 2.31 inches; depth: 0.37 inch. If you want an iPhone with a larger screen, buy an iPad. As for weight, the iPhone is notorious for that solid heavy feeling we associate with quality electronics (often fallaciously, but that's another story) (weight: 4.9 ounces). In this case, it's heavy because it's not just a piece of plastic. The iPhone 4S is made of chrome and glass and doesn't cost 10 cents to manufacture. It feels like a powerful piece of quality machinery.   
 
Display
Apple has accomplished virtual reality decriers' worst nightmare: People would rather stare at an Apple screen than at real life. Retina display features high pixel density for a crisp, sharp picture at any size. (The pixels are only 78 micrometers wide; 960-by-640-pixel resolution at 326 ppi). The display truly is gorgeous. The 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display offers a wide viewing angle. Display offers 500 cd/m2 max brightness and 800:1 contrast ratio (which accounts for the "blackest blacks" and "whitest whites" stuff). The Retina display includes LED backlighting and an ambient light sensor to adjust brightness for best viewing and battery life. Display has fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating on front and back of phone. Even though you'd be nuts not to invest in a decent protective case for an iPhone 4S, this is a pretty neat feature for those times when the phone is lying around in the nude.  Support for simultaneous display of multiple languages is available. The iPhone 4S has some glass screen advancements as well. The display glass is chemically strengthened for hardness, scratch resistance, and durability. Finally, Apple describes the interface as "intuitive and elegant," and it most certainly is. It's almost mesmerizing and renders my Android interface akin to the experience of playing Atari in comparison. This makes texting, application-using, and everything else all the more fun. I can't speak to the experience of gaming on the iPhone 4S, but I do love to read books on my phone and am quite obsessed with the iBooks (free) app at the moment.

iOS
The operating system is based on "the world's most advanced" operating system, OS X. iOS is supposed to be a desktop-class operating system for mobile devices and second-to-none in terms of stability, performance, and multitasking. iOS 5 offers over 200 new features, including a notification center, iMessaging, FaceTime, Newsstand, Reminders, Twitter, new photo enhancements, improved Safari performance, functionality without access to a computer, new mail and calendar formats, WiFi sync, and new accessibility options for people with disabilities. These and other new features are accessible through the many built-in apps in the iPhone 4S.

Performance: Dual-core A5 chip delivers 2 times more power and up to seven times faster graphics compared to the iPhone 4. Response time is quick for launching apps, browsing the web, gaming, texting, etc. iPhone 4S boasts outstanding battery life. However, after a barrage of complaints, Apple publicly acknowledged a battery drain problem and is reportedly working on a fix.

Cell, wireless, and GPS: World phone, UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA (850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz, GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), CDMA EV-DO Rev. A (800, 1900 MHz), 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi (802.11n 2.4GHz only), Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology, Assisted GPS and GLONASS, Digital compass, Wi-Fi, Cellular

Camera, photo, and video
The 8-megapixel camera (60% more pixels than iPhone 4) is fast, fun, and versatile. Its custom lens has 5 elements that shape incoming light for a sharper image. The larger f/2.4 aperture allows for brighter images while the hybrid infrared filter keeps out IR light for more accurate color. The camera handles high light, low light, and action images intelligently. HDR captures 3 photos in one shot and blends them combining range of light for a more accurate image. Other features include autofocus, tap to focus, face detection in still images, and LED flash. Videos can be recorded in HD (1080p) up to 30 frames per second with audio. The camcorder allows video stabilization and video up to 30 frames per second. Gestures exist for capturing a moment in a split second. Editing software is built in, and photo streaming and geotagging are available. No offense to the fancy precision components, but it's really the improved speed of the iPhone 4S that accounts for improved photo quality.

Sensors: Three-axis gyro, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor (turns off the display to save battery when the phone is lifted to the ear), Ambient light sensor (less saturated scene brightness for more detail

Device controls and buttons: On/off (top right), Ring/silent (top left side), Volume up/down (2 buttons on left side), Home (only button on face of device)

Connectors: microphone, built-in speaker, 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack, 30-pin dock connector

Power/battery: Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery, Charging via USB to computer system or power adapter, Talk time: Up to 8 hours on 3G, up to 14 hours on 2G (GSM), Standby time: Up to 200 hours. Internet use: Up to 6 hours on 3G, up to 9 hours on Wi-Fi, Video playback: Up to 10 hours, Audio playback: Up to 40 hours

Audio playback: Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz, Audio formats supported: AAC (8 to 320 Kbps), Protected AAC (from iTunes Store), HE-AAC, MP3 (8 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3, 4, Audible Enhanced Audio, AAX, and AAX+), Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV User-configurable maximum volume limit

(TV and video out are supported up to 720p, and technical specifications are available on Apple's website.)

Apple earbuds: Apple Earphones with Remote and Mic, Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz, Impedance: 32 ohms

Supported mail attachments/viewable document types: .jpg, .tiff, .gif (images); .doc and .docx (Microsoft Word); .htm and .html (web pages); .key (Keynote); .numbers (Numbers); .pages (Pages); .pdf (Preview and Adobe Acrobat); .ppt and .pptx (Microsoft PowerPoint); .txt (text); .rtf (rich text format); .vcf (contact information); .xls and .xlsx (Microsoft Excel)

System requirements: Apple ID (required for some features), Internet access, Syncing with iTunes on a Mac or PC requires: Mac: OS X v10.5.8 or later/PC: Windows 7; Windows Vista; or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 3 or later, iTunes 10.5 or later. You'll want to suck it up and set up an Apple ID because it's needed to download apps from the online Apple store. (There are over 500,000 apps available, and many of them are free.)

Environmental requirements: Operating temperature: 32° to 95° F, Nonoperating temperature: -4° to 113° F, Relative humidity: 5% to 95% noncondensing, Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m).

(Details regarding language, dictionary, keyboard, and Siri languages are available on Apple's website.)

Box contents: iPhone 4S, Apple earphones with remote and mic, dock connector to USB cable, USB power adapter

Siri: This feature allows users to talk to the phone as if it were a person. Siri analyzes voice commands to decide which app to use to accomplish a task, such as making a phone call, sending a message, scheduling a meeting, etc. I haven't played around extensively with this new feature, but the few times I did, it recognized my commands. That's saying a lot for a still-in-beta feature with such sophisticated voice recognition integration. (It should be noted that early problems with Siri include connection-to-task problems and difficulty recognizing certain accents.) This feature has a lot of potential (and it's a Saturday Night Live skit waiting to happen). It will be interesting to see its progression as Apple works out the kinks.
 
iCloud: Stores content in the cloud and wirelessly pushes it to other devices. iCloud isn't specific to the iPhone 4S, and more information is available on Apple's website.
 
Support: Sure enough, I *thought* I received the one defective iPhone 4S. My problem wasn't something that has been documented or discussed among other 4S users, so I had to resort to an Apple technical support call, which led to a referral to the Apple store for in-person technical support. (Apple offers a send-in with overnight phone replacement option, but the user has to pay for shipping.) The person with whom I spoke on the phone was friendly, to-the-point, and didn't try to sell me anything. The call resulted in a trip to the Apple store for technical support. To my embarrassment, the "glitch" was nothing more than an odd setting I'd unknowingly selected, which was causing my phone to freeze. Ms. Technology was wrong, humbled, and went home happy with a perfectly operational iPhone. 

The iPhone 4S comes with one-year hardware coverage and 90 days of technical support. The AppleCare+ plan extends the coverage and is available for purchase.