iPhone 5 success on release could be dented if no quad-core
If you are one of the many people who are interested in news about the next Apple iPhone, currently dubbed the iPhone 5, then you’ll already have heard many of the specs and features rumored. One of the most persistent rumors has been a step up to an A6 quad-core processor but that seems to be in some doubt and we now wonder if the iPhone 5’s success on release will be dented if it arrives lacking quad-core.
It’s inevitable that the iPhone 5 will be a hit, almost regardless of how it actually turns out, as the iPhone is such an iconic handset and Apple devotees are an extremely loyal bunch. However it seems there will be a positive cornucopia of smartphone offerings this year featuring the NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor and very soon dual-core processor smartphones will seem outdated. Even before the release of the iPhone 4S last year there were rumblings of the iPhone stepping up to an A6 processor that would be quad-core and those rumors have grown.
In November we heard of what is likely to be the first quad-core smartphone release, the HTC Edge, and then in December we told how Apple was reportedly testing two new versions for the iPhone 5, one dual-core and one quad-core. Increasingly since then it had looked probable that the next iPhone would feature a quad-core chip. However a recent report told how the A6 processor for the upcoming iPad 3 could be dual-core and not quad-core, news that surprised a good few people, including us, and implied that the iPhone 5 processor may also be dual-core instead of quad-core. At this stage of the game though we have no way of knowing as the usual Apple secrecy is in place regarding new products. One thing we do know for sure though, is that even if the iPhone 5 lacks a quad-core processor, there will be plenty of devices around that do feature quad-core.
As well as the HTC Edge we’ve since heard of many more new handsets and a few days ago told how NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core smartphones could actually start launching in this first quarter, according to NVIDIA’s CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. We’re expecting to see many more unveiled at Mobile World Congress later this month including the LG X3 and more offerings from HTC such as the Endeavor and Zeta. There’s also widespread talk that Samsung’s flagship, the Galaxy S III (S3), expected to be announced in March, will also sport a quad-core processor.
So how important is a quad-core processor for the iPhone 5? Last year we would have said it was not so important, especially as dual-core smartphones hadn’t long been in existence and were very much ‘the latest thing.’ However as we now know that quad-core Android handsets are expected very soon, with Windows 8 quad-core smartphones apparently due later this year, the lack of quad-core for the iPhone 5 could certainly impact on how successful it is. Many iPhone fans could be turned off by the fact that it doesn’t feature the very latest type of processor, although as we said earlier it would still no doubt be a big hit with diehards.
We’d be really interested in hearing your thoughts on this. It may be some months before we hear confirmation of whether the iPhone 5 will be released with a quad-core processor but if quad-core is lacking, how much of an impact do you think this would have on its success? Maybe you think quad-core is not so important to you but you would be more deterred if the iPhone 5 lacked LTE or a bigger screen for example? Let us know with your comments.
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Comments
18 thoughts on “iPhone 5 success on release could be dented if no quad-core”
My iPhone 4s is plenty fast enough.
^ Yeah because you have never been on a device faster.
There is.
To be honest iphone has always been about innovation I have the 4s and if the 5 does not sport a quad core then I’ll wait till the 6. It’s like intel coming out withabrand new chip that’s the same speed as it’s predecessor then charging more money. For me it will definitely play a big part on whether I get it or not .
Try the Galaxy Note
The iPhone 4S will turn into a spoilt apple
I’m sure you probably said the same thing about the iPhone 4S.
I always find is so hilarious when people that wouldn’t cut it as the janitor at Microsoft, Facebook, Google or Apple profess to be better visionaries of what consumers want or what will sell and what will not than the very same people who built these organisations into what they are today.
Lets see you start your own billion dollar company, then we will be the ones telling you how stupid you are for not doing what we want you to do with your product.
so you never criticize anyone who does something you don’t do? you’ve never criticized the president? an athlete? you’ve never watched a movie and talked about how it could have been better?
i highly doubt it.
I don’t really care how many cores the handset contains, I am more concerned with how fast the phone operates. It could be a single core with well written software and a super fast clock speed.Â
Such bullcrap…..people thought that the iPhone 4s was doomed because it wasn’t 4G….how does 37 million sold (not “shipped” as other companies like to report) sound??? Does the average, non-geek customer ever know what quad core means??? Baloney….
I will admit coming from a Droid X and previous iphones before that; I thought my iPhone 4 was fast at first. Now, after about a year of use I am not so sure about that. It seems to lag at times and I want better performance like what my iPad 2 has. Enter the iPhone 4S.Â
I see no reason why a new iPhone with the same A5 chip would sell poorly. Chipsets can outlast one model generation. We’ve seen it several times in computers but it is somewhat rare.Â
who care about a quad core cpu on a phone ?
not me AT ALL.
It needs to have at least a 4.3″ screen or I AM OUT!!!
while,personally,i wouln’t buy the iphone if it ends up being dual core,i don’t think that most people care.Â
We care about these things because we are interested in them,i just enjoy technology in general,so when a phone comes out,the first thing we do is look at specs. But for the other 95% of people, they just look at the nice iphone advertising campaign, of maybe they just see that their friends are interested in the phone, and that’s all it takes before they buy it. so i honestly doubt that if the iphone 5 came out and it was dual core, it would make much of a difference at all.
For me,though,i would just move on to the Atrix 3
Could some explain exactly what a quad-core would be capable of that a duo-core could not?  I understand how quad-cores operate in my computer, but what could our current understanding of a phone do with the extra power?
 Build it… and they will come.
Should speed up web-browsing for a start…
Multi-tasking, faster speeds, better graphics………
lets improve sreen size the typeing on the screen bigger words and speed and the  batteryÂ
If it ships with a dual core thats faster than the quad core but saves on battery life count me in for the next iphone!!!!
no quad core = no buy