Apple iPhone – iPhone Models, History and Plan Comparison

Posted June 18th, 2012 and last modified January 22nd, 2013

iPhone: Overview

It's hard to remember now because it feels as if the iPhone has been with us forever, but it was really only a short five years ago that Steve Jobs announced to the world that Apple had produced a mobile phone that would change the whole concept of mobile phones, and what they could achieve, forever. It was an innovation that was welcomed with open arms around the world but when it came down to it the biggest revelation of all was the touch screen interface. Now we have the latest and greatest model; the iPhone 5

iPhone Models

		Apple iPhone 5 Plans and Deals 8MP/ 4''/ iOS 6	Apple iPhone 4S Plans and Deals 8MP/ 3.5''/ iOS v5.1	Apple iPhone 4 Plans and Deals 5MP/ 3.5''/ iOS v5.1
		Learn more	Learn more	Learn more

Snapshot of Features

The iPhone for all intents and purposes is basically a mobile phone but that's only where it all begins. It's also much more than a mobile phone:

Your personal assistant, Siri
It's a top quality camera phone
Your backup storage, with iCloud
It's a media player that is very portable
It allows you to send and receive emails
It'll connect you to the internet using 3G or 4G or via Wi-Fi hot spots and it can download and upload data
A high quality video camera (introduced with the iPhone 3GS)
It has a multi-touch screen and a virtual keyboard that takes the place of a real one.

Best iPhone Model

There's little argument that each generation of the iPhone has been a marked improvement on its predecessor. Although it's only five years since its inception the latest iPhone 5 has some quite amazing features and it is Apple's first 4G smartphone. It now has two cameras to facilitate face to face calls with other iPhone 5 users or for when you're on Skype. It gives you your own personal assistant with Siri, an app that can practically think of what you want before you get around to it yourself. It is the lightest and slimmest iPhone, and has the longest battery life.

History of the iPhone

The Concept

Although the iPhone didn't appear until 2007 it began being developed as far back as 2005. The CEO at that time, the late Steve Jobs, insisted the company engineers look at developing an acceptable touch screen for a mobile phone. His intense focus on this development probably slowed down the development of the iPad to a degree, as he put a lot of time and effort into developing the touch-screen for the developing iPhone.

A lot of this early development was done with the help of the large American carrier AT&T at a reputed cost of $150 million spent over a 30 month period. Apple was given a free hand to progress the developments software and hardware in exchange for AT&T receiving exclusive US sales of the device until 2011. Perhaps a main reason for Apple missing the 4G boat that year as the AT&T network at that time was confined to the 3G UMTS/HSPA network at 850/1900MHz.

Advertising/Promotion

Apple have successfully developed one of the best marketing programs the world has ever seen. It doesn't sell the product to its untold millions of excited fans it sells what the product can do. People clamour for the latest model, that appearance wise has basically remained unchanged, to experience something they have never experienced before. Apple sells them what they imagine they can do with each generation of iPhone's new or improved features.

When Apple first launched the iPhone in 2007 it sold over six million units over a five quarter period. By the end of 2010 it had sold over 73 million and in the 2010/2011 financial year it had secured 4 percent of the total world market and turned over a profit of more than 50 percent of the world smartphone industry total. By mid 2012 it had sold over 100 million devices worldwide. It is now the world's third largest smartphone manufacturer with only Nokia and Samsung selling more products. The iPhone was fast becoming an important contributor to Apple's overall business structure.

iPhone Release Dates by Region:

The initial launching of the iPhone in 2007 was so successful that many commentators started referring to it as the 'Jesus phone'. It was released outside the USA later the same year in Britain, Germany and France. Austria and Ireland followed the next year. People had been waiting for many months and during this time Apple had been busy selling what this new device would do to make your life easier and more interesting.
Development was coming along so fast that by July 2008 an updated version, the iPhone 3G, was launched in 22 countries around the world, eventually selling in more than 80 countries. By the following year, 2009, the iPhone 3GS was well on the way for world wide release.

The iPhone Hardware

The first iPhone launched by Apple had a casing made of aluminium with black plastic accent. The 3G and the 3GS dropped the aluminium casing in favour of stiffened black plastic as a means of improving the signal strength. You were given a choice with the 3G 16GB model on whether you preferred a black or a white plastic case. The white model was later discontinued. The iPhone 4 has what is known as aluminosilicate glass both front and back with a stainless steel surround that doubles as an aerial. It's available in either black or white.

Networking

The current model, the iPhone 5 is a true 4G (1800MHz) network phone. This matched the competition and offers extremely fast download speeds.

Screen

All iPhones have a nine centimetre touchscreen, except the iPhone 5 which has a 4-inch screen. This is a visual display that's able to detect the touch of a finger or fingers. A touchscreen such as that supplied by Apple in their iPhones enables you to directly interact with whatever is displayed instead of having to use a mouse. The first three iPhones had a resolution of 320 X 480 HVGA (half video graphics array) at 163ppi, however the iPhones 4 and 4S have a resolution of 640 X 960 at 326 ppi. The touchscreen technology used by Apple in their iPhones is derived from that originally developed by Fingerworks, a company founded by Wayne Westerman and John Elias in 1998 at the University of Delaware in the United States. All the Fingerworks company assets were acquired by Apple in 2005. From the iPhone 3GS onwards all iPhones have a fingerprint resistant oleophobic coating that prevents you leaving fingerprint marks on the screen. You'll also benefit from the following features:

You can also delete or add icons on all home screens to suit your own preferences as each home screen holds 16 icons. The iPhone 5 now holds 20 icons thanks to the larger screen.
The iPhone 4S and 5 offer Retina display feature, actually delivers the sharpest highest resolution possible to date.
All the latest iPhone home screens have the following default icons; MMS and SMS messaging, a compass, App Store, iTunes, settings, calculator, notes, voice memos, weather, Google maps, stocks, YouTube, camera, photos, GameCentre, Facetime, reminders, newsstand and clock. Phone, Safari , mail and music are grouped in a prominent position at the bottom of the screen. There are also nine additional home screens available for further app icon displays you might wish to add yourself. These screens are accessed by swiping your finger horizontally across the screen.

Speakers and Sound

Your iPhone speaker is located at the bottom of the phones casing left of the docking connector. The microphone is to its right. Other speaker and sound features include the following:

An additional speaker is located above the screen that doubles as an earpiece when you're making a phone call.
The iPhone 4 also included an extra microphone at the top of the device for the purposes of filtering out ambient noise when the phone is being used in places where there's a lot of distracting sound. The volume control is placed at the left side of all iPhones.
The 3.5 mm audio jack, or TRRS connector, is located at the top left corner. The headphone socket is flush mounted in later iPhone models.
Apple actually provide a headset for use with all their iPhone models although the phone is compatible with the regular off the shelf products.
A button near the microphone enables the playing or pausing of music tracks as well as ending and answering phone calls without you having to handle the phone in the normal manner. These same controls are also built into many headsets if they've been specifically designed for use with an iPhone handset.
The iPhone 4S introduced two antennas to better receive and transmit calls. This has improved call quality and assisted in the doubling of 3G HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access) data speeds. Besides improving the sound quality is has also delivered a faster connection of up to 14.4Mbps.

Battery and Charger

Apple has built up a considerable reputation with their iPhone battery life; a most contentious issue with all smartphones. Now 4G is becoming more widely available the battery has come under spotlight. The iPhone battery has the following flaws:

iPhone batteries are not user replaceable
All iPhones have a lithium-ion rechargeable battery
Re-charged by connecting it to a computer or directly to a power source via an AC adaptor to a USB port
When the battery dies before its time you can return the phone to Apple and it'll be replaced at no cost
The warrant is valid for up to 12 months
Apple claims its batteries will last 400 discharge and full charge cycles before its drops to 80 percent of its initial capacity.

Camera

Apple claims that its current camera is the best ever to be installed onto a mobile phone. It goes even further to suggest that you can now throw away your stand alone camera, as the one installed on your iPhone is all you'll need to take that perfect shot. The iPhone camera of today has a custom lens boasting a bigger f/2.4 aperture with an eight mega pixel resolution. It also has a feature that reduces motion blur, face detection, the latest in colour accuracy, automatic white balance and a far better backside illumination sensor than ever before.

The video gives you 1080p HD video at all times. The colour is vivid, the light is constantly just right and stabilisation steadies those shaky times. You can also edit right there and then and send it off to friends or relatives instantly. It a big advancement on the original iPhone with its 2 mega pixels and no video recording. The iPhone 3GS was a marked improvement with its 3.2 mega pixel camera, 640 X 480 VGA resolution, automatic white balance, and auto-focus.

The iPhone 4S features a camera at both the back and front to allow for face to face calls between iPhone users or when using software such as Skype. Other features introduced with the iPhone 4S include a camera that:

Shoots 8MP of still photographs
Records 1080p of videos
Is accessible from the locked screen
Volume button doubling as a shutter button
Has an inbuilt gyroscope that stabilises things as you shoot a video.

Bluetooth and Connectivity

iPhones feature a variety of ways in which they make connections and Bluetooth is one of them. Bluetooth is used by iPhones to link your phone to allow you to wirelessly connect with certain peripherals like keyboards, headsets and multiplayer gaming. However, before this function can work it must be switched on and the connection authorised. iPhones have a built in Bluetooth 2X+EDR that supports stereo audio, headphones and earpieces and has a HSP profile to allow it to work. However the iPhone does not support the OBEX file protocol and therefore can not exchange multimedia files (videos, music and photos) with other Bluetooth enabled smartphones. All iPhones allow you to deactivate 3G, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi separately and Airplane Mode disables all such connections at the same time, overriding all other previous settings. Once Airplane mode is activated you can then enable Bluetooth and/or Wi-Fi networks to operate while the phone itself remains deactivated.

Storage

The first iPhones came with only 4GB and 8GB of storage. Apple soon dropped the 4GB phones and in 2008 added a 16GB model to the 8GB phone. When the iPhone 3GS made its appearance it came with 16GB and 32GB, some 8GB phones are still available. The iPhone 4 originally offered only 32GB and 16GB storage capacity although it later brought in a phone with 8GB that sold at a lower price. The latest iPhone 5 is available in:

64GB
32GB
and 16GB.

All iPhones store data on their internal flash drive as they don't possess a memory card slot.

GPS

The GPS (Global Positioning System) is a satellite navigational system that provides location and time details anywhere on Earth. It's maintained by the government of the USA and is made freely available to anybody with a GPS receiver.
A GPS capable iPhone can:

Give information on the whereabouts of restaurants, re-fuelling stations etc.
Provide details on traffic conditions and suggest alternative routes
Guide a robotic probe
Give directional instructions to the driver of a vehicle whether by speech or text
Display maps in text or graphical form

The first iPhones used mobile phone towers and Wi-Fi networks for determining locations. However, the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4 utilise A-GPS with the last two models also incorporating a digital compass. The iPhone 4S supports the GPS system as well as the GLONASS positioning system, a radio based satellite navigational system operated by the Russian government. GLONASS provides an alternative to the GPS system.

SIM

The iPhone 5 was the first mobile to support the new Nano-SIM format.

The GSM iPhone 4 was brought out with a MicroSIM card that's held in place in a slot on the phone's right hand side.
The SIM card is held in a little tray at the top of the device and can be removed with a paper clip or a special SIM ejector tool.

Comparison of iPhone Models

The original iPhone that was launched back in 2007 can attribute much of its revolutionary zeal from its touchscreen. The original iPhone is not in production anymore nor is it any longer supported by Apple. From a start the rocked the world the following was to come to pass over the next four years:

The iPhone that followed the original later the same year was the iPhone 3G. This phone had improved speed capability over its predecessor but in many ways was much the same phone. It became the cheaper iPhone when its price was lowered to make way for the iPhone 3GS.
The iPhone 3GS was the first iPhone to carry the 'S' in its name. The 'S' standing for 'speed.' This means its new features were speed focused. It was first released in June 2009.
The iPhone 4 followed the 3GS a year later in June 2010. It was initially released in the United States, Japan, France, Germany and Britain. It came with many improvements when compared to its predecessors, the most outstanding being its insulated stainless steel frame that doubled as an antenna, a new improved A4 processor that made a big difference as far as speed was concerned, a larger RAM and much improved camera resolution. It was connected to the GSM network
The latest model to date has been the iPhone 4S. This phone was subjected to much speculation as Apple marketing had the world waiting with bated breath as to what to expect. Many expected a new design, perhaps slimmer and wedge shaped. Almost all expected it to be Apple's first 4G iPhone but none of this came to pass. It did, however, come with some quite innovative changes, it has a better camera, a faster processor, double the storage capacity of its predecessors, a smart virtual assistant and most of all it made the iPhone 4 cheaper. Apple claimed it as the best iPhone they had ever produced and no one could honestly contest the claim as that is exactly what it is.

The iPhone 4S brought with it many improvements over that of its predecessors, for instance:

The iPhone 4S introduced the series first rear facing camera in conjunction with a front facing camera to allow for FaceTime video telephone calls. Apple purchased FaceTime to obtain this feature and installed it in all its iOS platformed mobile devices. This development allowed face to face calls using Skype and other like apps.
The iPhone 4S also came with an improved camera that has 8 megapixels and video recording at 1080p.
Face detection became a reality for the first time and both CDMA and GSM/UMTS were made available on the one chip with its improved dual core processor.
Arguably the biggest change of all was the introduction of Siri. This is a knowledge navigator and a personal assistant all wrapped up in one. It uses a natural language interface to perform actions by sending requests to the relevant web sites, it makes recommendations of its own and it's capable of answering questions. The software eventually adapts itself to your own preferences and is capable of finding a restaurant of your liking and giving you directions to places you'd enjoy visiting. Siri can take dictation, make phone calls for you, send messages on your behalf, set up reminders and schedule meeting you have to attend.

Apple have improved the iPhone substantially with every new generation. The original iPhone now seems rather basic when compared to the latest but each was greeted with world wide acclaim. However, the company has persisted with certain familiarity functions that has kept a clear link through all its models:

For instance there's the button placements that have remained the same throughout, this means you can easily move from one iPhone to another without being confused.
The screen size is another precedent that has been kept throughout all models giving the iPhone its distinctive look.

Much of the evolutionary change taking place has been inside the phone in allowing it to keep pace with the changing technology:

Right from the start the iPhone was a GMS (Global System for Mobile Communications) mobile phone. This being a standard accepted by the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute).
The big change came with the iPhone 3GS that introduced the compass, 480p video recording, a high resolution camera and a faster processor.

Problems with iPhone 4S

On the down side, it was reported by some consumers that if the phone was held in a certain way the signal tended to drop out.

iPhone Operating Software

Apple uses a mobile operating system known as iOS. It's a system developed by Apple itself and is the same system it used when the first iPhone was launched in 2007. Throughout all this time it has never licensed it to be used on any non-Apple device. For the first six months of 2012 Apple had activated 410 million devices using its iOS software. To June 2012 the Apple App Store had a total of over 650,000 iOS apps available that had been downloaded on more than 30 billion occasions. It therefore handled 65 percent of the total mobile web data used during that time. The iOS platform has been developed by Apple from its previous OS X system which was in turn a derivative of the Darwin open source POSIX operating system. Darwin provides the core components that run the Mac OS X and iOS. This means iOS is a Unix operating system that was developed in 1969 at Bell Labs in the USA by AT&T employees; Joe Ossanna, Michael Lesk, Douglas McIllroy, Brian Kernighan, Dennis Ritchie and Ken Thompson. The operating system itself uses less than half a gigabyte of memory.

Apple updates of its operating software are free and major updates have always taken place at the same time a new model is launched. These updates are available through iTunes and on some occasions a new version of iTunes may be required before an update can be accessed. Updates include new features, security patches and bug fixes.

iPhone User Interface

The iPhone interface is all about direct manipulation with the use of multi-touch, a system whereby you're able to control what you want to see or do simply by touching the screen with your fingers. You either pinch them together to make the graphic smaller or spread them for enlargement purposes. The iPhone allows you to control what you want to do by sliding your finger across the screen vertically or horizontally. It also has aids in the form of buttons, switches and sliders. The response is immediate which means there is no waiting involved and you finish up getting a fluid interaction. You can also exercise control by using the iPhones internal accelerometers such as the undo command that is activated simply by shaking, or rotating it to achieve landscape or portrait mode. Other responses can be obtained by you reverse pinching, tapping and swiping.

Hardware interface consists of only four or five buttons. The number depends on which generation of iPhone you're using:

The menu button is below the display screen and it's commonly known as the 'Home' button. This button can close any active app you're using and it brings up the Home screen. The Home button is recognised as a rounded square, the same shape as the icons on the Home screen.
There's a multifunctional sleep/wake button at the top of the iPhone that doubles as a power button and phone call controller. If a call's received you can immediately silence the ringtone by pressing this button. Press it twice and the call goes to voicemail.
The volume adjustment is on the left side of the phone's surround. The older iPhones have a rocker type switch beneath a plastic panel but the iPhone 4 has two separate round buttons, one for loud and one for soft.
The ring/silent control is immediately above the volume adjustment. This button will mute the ringtone and the alert you get when emails are sent or received along with any other sound the iPhone would normally make. It won't mute the clock alarm.

There are also four sensors on the iPhone 4 display, three on all other iPhones. These carry out the following tasks:

A proximity sensor that deactivates the screen when it's held close to your head when making a call. This saves battery power and helps prevent radio activity near your face and ear.
An ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts the display brightness that saves power when not needed.
An accelerometer that works on three axis that'll automatically orientate the phone between landscape and portrait.
The iPhone 4 has a gyroscopic sensor that picks up on how its moved and makes for improved video recording.

Email and Text Messaging

All iPhones support HTML email that allows them to receive and send photo's within the email as an attachment as well as Powerpoint, Excel, Word and PDF. On June 6 2011, Apple announced it was replacing its MobileMe platform with iCloud. iCloud was eventually released in October 2011 with MobileMe users allowed to continue with its use until June 30 2012. It has now been fully taken over by iCloud. You are able to sync email account settings from Apple's own Mail app, Microsoft Entourage and Microsoft Outlook, or if you prefer you can manually do the configuration on your iPhone yourself. Once it's configured properly you'll be able to access any POP3 or IMAP account.

Text messaging is handled in much the same way as Mail, in a mailbox format. This puts all text recipients together along with their replies. The messages are then displayed in a similar way as that used with iChat, using speech bubbles below the name of the appropriate recipient. There's also inbuilt support for forwarding direct internal email to camera photo sending. MMS was added with the iPhone 3 update.

The iPhone provides a virtual keyboard on its touchscreen for texting. It has a dynamic dictionary for learning new words, predictive word capability, spell correction and checking. It's capable of predicting the word you're about to type and complete it for you. It's also aware when you mistakenly press a key near the one you intended to press and make an automatic correction. When you use your iPhone for texting you'll find the keys are larger in landscape mode.

Internet Capabilities

When your iPhone is connected to a mobile network through a particular carrier the status bar will show; 4G, 3G, E , the connection will depend on your carriers capability. When travelling overseas you can pay to have roaming capability activated that'll allow you to access an overseas carrier's network. You're able to adjust your network settings within the iPhone itself.

It's often found that Wi-Fi is faster than the service you get from a mobile carrier and you can adjust your iPhone to receive a Wi-Fi signal when it's available. Many Wi-Fi connections are password protected and you'll have to obtain the password before you'll be allowed access. A universal Wi-Fi icon shows up on your display bar when you have Wi-Fi connection. Some Wi-Fi connections are free whereas others require payment. Your iPhone will automatically look for a Wi-Fi signal to connect with, if it can't find one it'll look for your mobile phone carrier's signal.

Ringtones on iPhones

iPhone users are able to create their own musical ringtone from a large range of songs that can be purchased for a small fee from the iTunes Store. The ringtone can be chosen from any part of the song, it can be made fade in and out, and last from a split second to five seconds.

iPhone Apps and Games

For many iPhone users the attraction is the number and quality of the different apps and games that are available. The free apps that come with your iPhone are just the tip of the iceberg as a visit to the App Store will introduce you to hundreds of thousands more. In fact the more apps you get to download from the App Store the more you'll get to realise there's practically no limit to what your iPhone can do. You'll be able to solve puzzles, be a real hero, race faster than anyone around you and fly higher than you had ever dreamed of. It's all within you grasp at the App Store. If it's gaming you're looking for you won't go far past your iPhone.

Top 10 Applications for iPhones

The latest top 10 free apps currently available for your iPhone listed in CBS News Entertainment are the following:

NBC Olympics Live Extra made available by NBC Universal Inc.
NBC Olympics from NBC Universal Inc.
Catapult King by Chillingo Ltd
InstaCollage Pro from Pic Frame and Pic Caption for Instagram Free
Where's My Perry? Free by Disney
London 2012: Official Results for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games from the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Organising Committees
Flick Kick Football by PikPok
Instagram from Burbn Inc.
SongPop Free from FreshPlanet Inc.
Flow Free by Big duck Games LLC

Top 10 Games for iPhones

The King of Fighters i2012 from SNK Playmore. Probably the best fighting game released on iOS so far.
LostWinds2: Winter of the Melodias from Frontier Developments
Air Mail an adventure simulation from Chillingo
Bee Leader from Flightless a younger age game collecting nectar
The Sandbox a simulation for the young ones from Bulkypix
Score! Classic Goals, a football game from First Touch
N.O.V.A. 3- Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance, Science fiction first person shooter from Gameloft
Shoot the Zombirds an action game by Infinite Dreams
Slingshot Racing a racing game by Crescent Moon Games
Spellsword a retro slash and hack action game from Everplay.

iPhone App Development

Apple supports third party app development that's written in an Ajax (Asynchronous Java Script) format that shares the feel and look of the iPhone interface. It provides a Software Development Kit (SDK) for this purpose. This is a free download with Apple registration in which developers can create apps for both the iPhone and iPad. Your creation can be tested in an iPhone simulator but before you can load your creation onto a real device you'll have to pay an Apple Developer Connection fee to become a member. Once your app becomes distributable through the App Store you can set any price on it you feel appropriate and you'll receive a 70 percent share of the proceeds. If you wish you can release your app for free and you won't be liable for any costs other than your membership fee. Apple always retains the right to stop distribution of any app it feels is undesirable.

iPhone Activation

Your iPhone won't normally allow you to access any web or media player features unless it's previously been activated for use with an Apple authorised carrier. Non-apple software has been developed however that bypasses this restriction and has allowed the iPhone to be unlocked for use with any carrier. In most countries the iPhone 3G has to be activated in the store where it's purchased in an effort to discourage would be hackers trying to unlock its SIM card for wider use. In more recent times Apple has allowed free shipping to occur on both the 3G and 3GS iPhones which has effectively over-ridden the in-store activation requirement. In Britain activation can be carried out via iTunes. In most cases vendors will still offer activation for convenience sake.

Jailbreaking iPhone

What is Jailbreaking

Jailbreaking takes place when certain limitations that have been placed on your iPhone by Apple have been removed. Jailbreaking lets the user gain access to the operating system and download themes and apps that aren't available through the App Store. Simply put it means breaking the iPhone out of its 'jail.' Once your iPhone has been subjected to jailbreaking it will still be able to use all the iPhone functions such as making and receiving phone calls, access iTunes and use the App Store in the normal manner.

How to Jailbreak iPhone

Your iPhone operating system is designed so that it can only operate on Apple software. This can be averted by replacing the iPhone firmware, a combination of stored data, program code and persistent memory, with a modified version that avoids the Apple signature check. In recent years there have been a number of internet tools developed to make jailbreaking successful. These can be found online.

Unlocking an iPhone

In Australia you can now unlock your iPhone SIM card at no cost through any of the major carriers. It's even possible to purchase an unlocked iPhone 4, 4S and iPhone 3GS from Apple stores both on-line and at street front retail shops.

Timeline of iPhone Series

In 2007 the first iPhone was announced by CEO Steve Jobs and anticipation builds around the world of exactly what was in store until its release to the general public on June 29.
June 9, 2008, iPhone 3G was launched to take advantage of the faster GPS 3G technology network now being installed around the world. Third party apps were able to be run for the first time and the Apple App Store was created.
June 8, 2009, the iPhone 3GS makes its first appearance with a faster Arm A8 processor. The RAM was bumped up to 256MB, a digital compass installed along with a better camera for stills and video. It also came with 32GB downloading capacity.
June 7, 2010, the iPhone 4 comes on the market boasting a wrap around antenna, front facing camera, gyroscope, longer battery, improved Retina display and a faster A4 processor.
June 6, 2011, the long anticipated iPhone 4S was launched instead of the expected iPhone 5. Although it wasn't a 4G smartphone it did come with some amazing features such as the personal assistant software Siri, expanded RAM and improved camera.

iPhone Security

Security tips for iPhone

The latest iOS employed by your iPhone is very mature and has many security features. Quite a few of these security settings are enabled by default but as the user, you must be satisfied that you fully understand what these security features are and how to leverage them to your best advantage so that your iPhone and all the data it contains remains safe at all times. Utilising the following tips can help you in this regard:

Enable your passcode lock
Disable features that are accessible without having to enter a passcode
Erase all data before you resell, repair, or return your iPhone
Make regular firmware updates

iPhone Tracking

There's been much said over recent times regarding the tracking system employed by Apple in its iPhones. Apple has replied that the data used is a crowd sourced database cache which the company uses to make their location services faster. Apple updated the iOS version 4.3.3 which reduced the cache size and prevented it being backed up by iTunes. Every time the location service is turned off all data is automatically erased.

Top 10 Security Apps for iPhone

Here our the top ten security apps for your iPhone that'll give you more security than the iPhone's own default software. Because of the low volume of serious malware attacking iOS platforms, users can become complacent but the risks are still out there and it's too late to complain once you've been hacked. These 10 top security apps include the following:

Intego VirusBarrier. A mac-security firm's app that scans your iPhone for malicious content.
Lookout Mobile Security is a specific iPhone offering that warns you about unsecured networks.
Firewall iP gives you Firewall protection by blocking outgoing connections on a jailbroken iPhone.
McAfee WaveSecure iOS backs up personal data, other than the calendar and call history, to a web portal where it can be retrieved when needed. It can also remotely lock stolen or lost phones.
GadgeTrak is able to take a picture of the person using the phone and email it to a prescribed address letting you see who's using it. The location of the call is also recorded. This app can be turned on remotely meaning it doesn't need to be running all the time.
Ilocalis only works on a jailbroken iPhone but it can track the location of a lost or stolen phone. It'll also allow you to remotely communicate with it by letting you place calls, delete data, record audio and even lock it when you're not in possession of it. This app is available on the Cydia app store.
Webroot SecureWeb is an advanced iPhone web browser that blocks malicious sites.
Junos Pulse will allow you to establish a secure connection when using corporate applications.
Splash ID is a password manager specifically designed to work with an iPhone. It allows you to set up a master password to protect your site information, passwords, user names, account numbers and any other sensitive data.
Accellion allows you to connect to the cloud storage service at Accellion Secure Workspaces where you can view remote files in a secure manner.

Accessories for iPhone

Top 10 iPhone Cases and Covers

The Le Deux, a slim fitting case that comes in two pieces combining a brushed stainless steel backplate with a polycarbonate bumper.
Incipio OffGRID Pro, a heavier case for your iPhone as it allows for carrying a spare battery for the times when you're caught away from a charging facility.
Proporta Microbial Case that comes with an anti-microbial agent that protects your from 90 percent of germs. The case is constructed of sturdy silicone, easy to grip and comfortable.
Schreer Delight, a retro case that hides the modern ugly iPhone and returns it to the beautiful appearance of yesterday.
Opena Case, besides protecting your iPhone from damage this case comes with an inbuilt bottle opener so you're always ready and able to open your frothy refreshments.
Pico Genie A100 a protector case that doubles as a projector. This lightweight case can project your iPhone images onto the nearest wall and also boost the sound with its two watt speakers.
CalypsoCase both Sparkling and Dazzling, very hard to come by but if you can get hold of one it will be your prize possession. The Sparking is hand crafted with top grade Italian leather and the Dazzling with laser cut Titanium.
Case Mate dresses you iPhone up with its clown fish, owl, panda, penguin and other animations.
Case Mate Tank simply gives rock solid protection, including a reinforced screen protector. Ideal if you're prone to hurling your phone at others from time to time.
Case Mate Barely There sticks to the thin Apple design and is particularly useful for protecting your iPhone 4S glass back with a rubber coating.

iPhone Warranty

Your iPhone will come with a 12 month warranty that covers you for any hardware damage. It will also give you three months complimentary technical support. If you register with AppleCare your protection coverage can be extended to two years. Only two incidents of accidental damage is covered during this time and each claim will cost you a $49 service fee. Most issues with your iPhone can be solved with a phone call to Apple Support. If your iPhone needs service with an Apple technician, Apple will send you a prepaid box with instructions telling you how to ship it back to them. When your iPhone has been repaired Apple will ship it back to you. Apple won't charge you for shipping costs.

Tips to Avoid Damaging iPhone

Always treat your iPhone like you would a delicate package
Invest in a screen protector that's scratch resistant
Buy a good quality case as soon as you can
If your iPhone has been exposed to wet weather blow dry it before using it
Always double check your pockets before doing your laundry

Refurbished iPhone

Refurbished iPhones are available and you can save yourself money if you get a good deal but what you must consider is the real value for money. Before buying check out the following aspects of the phone:

Batteries. Smartphones generally are notorious for having poor battery lives. Most of them only surviving for a maximum of two years or less. This means if you are looking at buying an older iPhone you could be buying a worn out battery and these are soldered into the casing of the phone making them hard to access. An iPhone any more than a year old could have a risky battery therefore you should ask that the battery be replaced by Apple before you go ahead with the purchase.
Capacity. A new iPhone 4S can be purchased with 32GB of storage but this is not true of older iPhones, many with no more than 8GB. On older iPhone with little storage might not be a good trade off.
Features. An older iPhone will not be as fast or have as many features as a later iPhone therefore you should make sure you'll be content with this before you go ahead with the purchase.