Apple raises curtain on new iPhone (photos)

Scenes from Apple's "Let's talk iPhone" event, which took place this morning at the company's headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. Presenting, the iPhone 4S.

CNET News staff

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CNET News staff

Oct. 4, 2011 12:36 p.m. PT

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iPhone 4S

While many expected an iPhone 5, the big news at Apple's "Let's talk iPhone" event is instead an iPhone 4S, a modest upgrade to the company's iPhone 4.

The new model features a faster dual-core A5 processor, 1 gigabyte of RAM, and the ability to handle more complex and sophisticated gaming, with a seven-fold increase in graphics speed. It also offers eight hours of talk time over 3G, six hours of browsing over 3G, nine hours of browsing over Wi-Fi, 10 hours of video, and 40 hours of music.

The device also has an 8-megapixel camera and a new system Apple's Phil Schiller says would be comparable to a point-and-shoot camera.

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New CEO

Tim Cook today makes his first major presentation as Apple's new CEO after Steve Jobs stepped down from that position in August.

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Tim Cook

Cook starts off the event touting the success of various Apple products, saying the iPhone has become the No. 1 smartphone in the world and has seen 125 percent year-over-year growth. He also says the MacBook Pro and iMac are the top-selling notebook and desktop in the U.S., and that iTunes is the No. 1 music store in the world.

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iPads in schools

Cook says the iPad is changing the way teachers teach and students learn. Every state in the U.S. now has an iPad deployment program in place or going in, he says. Almost 1,000 K-12 schools have a one-to-one program, meaning students can use the iPad for an entire day.

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iPhone 4S pricing

Phil Schiller runs through the new pricing scheme for Apple's iPhone lineup. The 8GB iPhone 3GS will now be free.

The iPhone 4 gets a price reduction to $99 for 8GB.

The newly announced iPhone 4S comes in three sizes with corresponding prices: a 16GB model for $199, a 32GB model for $299, and a 64GB model for $399.

All standard pricing is for phones purchased with a two-year contract.

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iPhone 4S chip

The iPhone 4S features an A5 chip, a dual-core processor that is twice as fast as what current models tout. Schiller says graphics will be seven times faster, and that games will get a huge speed boost.

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Schiller on iOS features

Schiller touts more features in the iPhone 4S.

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Macro focus

Schiller shows photos taken on the iPhone 4S, including this one of squirrel shot with the macro focus.

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Siri

This is the starting point for Siri, a new voice-powered means of finding all kinds of information by simply asking your phone a question.

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Siri demo

During a demonstration today, Siri returns results for a Greek restaurant in the neighborhood, sorting them by user ratings. Forstall also shows off Siri's ability to respond to text messages, set reminders, schedule meetings, define words, look up information on Wikipedia, and even answer basic questions such as "How many days are there until Christmas?" or "How is Nasdaq doing today?"

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iOS 5

Scott Forstall, senior vice president of iPhone Software, introduces iOS 5--a free update that will become available October 12. It will include updates to the Mail app, Camera app, and the Safari browser.

Game Center, Apple's social-gaming network, will get photos, friend discovery, and game recommendations. The Reminders app is a tool that lets you nag yourself.

It also features better Twitter integration, which is a part of the OS. If you have a Twitter account you just add your account and it lets you tweet things like photos, Web links, YouTube videos, and locations from maps.

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AirPlay

Schiller introduces AirPlay, which allows users to watch content on multiple devices. AirPlay mirroring is coming to the iPhone 4S, so your phone can mirror what your AppleTV is doing. It also works with the HDMI adapter the company sells.

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Reader

A new Reader feature in iOS 5 makes Web pages more readable on mobile devices, and offers a reading list that lets you bookmark articles for reading later, Forstall says.

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Camera app shortcut

iOS 5 allows you to create a shortcut to the Camera app on the iPhone's home screen, and use the volume buttons to snap a shot, Forstall says.

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Cards app

A new iOS app called Cards lets you create and mail cards from your iPhone or iPod Touch. It's basically like making calendars in iPhoto, but just for cards, Forstall says. Apple prints it, puts it in an envelope, and mails it for you.

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Cards app envelope

In the Cards app, if a card is mailed to an address in the U.S., Apple adds a USPS bar code that sends you a push notification that tells you when it's delivered. The cost is $2.99 per card for the U.S and $4.99 everywhere in the world. It can be downloaded free on October 12.

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iPod Touch

Apple also updated the iPod Touch, introducing a white model and dropping the price for the low-end model.

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iPod Touch as game player

The iPod Touch is the company's most popular iPod, Schiller says, adding that it's become the No. 1 portable game player. This year's model comes with iOS 5.

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Nano update

Apple's iPod Nano also gets an update. The display uses larger icons that are easier to navigate and the fitness experience is also better with this year's model, Schiller says.

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Eddy Cue

Senior Vice President Eddy Cue pitches the "it just works" angle for iCloud. He demonstrates a new photo stream feature that transfers your pics from one iOS device to another.