Yesterday during a keynote speech Apple announced the iPhone 5. If you are wondering whether it is time to upgrade your iphone or just stick with the ios upgrade here is some information to help you make your decision.

New Hardware of Iphone 5

• Taller, thinner, and lighter at 3.95 ounces
• Back has changed from glass back to metal to minimize cracks
• Larger display from 3.5 to 4 inches which allows a fifth row of icons on the homescreen
• 44% more color saturation should make video more vivid
• Supports 4G LTE
• Processor chip doubles in speed moving to the A6 chip
• Improved battery life
• Improved secondary camera and faster primary camera with panorama mode
• Take photos while shooting video
• Additional microphone and improved noise cancelling
• New Smaller dock connector (which means any docks you have will need to be replaced)

New Features in IOS6 (available September 19, 2012)

• Facetime will work over 3G networks
• New Apple Maps feature will replace Google Maps
• Passbook - a place to store electronic versions of all kinds of tickets (concert/plane/train/bus), coupons, loyalty cards, etc
• Shared photo streams
• Siri updates
• Respond to an incoming call with a text message
• Receive a reminder later about an incoming call
• Do not disturb phone option that will allow texts and messages but no calls
• VIP email option where you can get special reminders when you receive an email from specific contacts
• Ability to add photos to an email you are composing
• Integration with Facebook similar to the twitter integration of IOS5
• Safari ICloud tabs allow you to sync browsing throughout devices similar to chrome or xmarks
• Fullscreen viewing of safari on landscape

I am slightly disappointed in the innovativeness of this redux on the iPhone. There is nothing brand new but only improvements on existing features and integration of features that already exist in apps into the IOS. Never before have I been so tempted to research the newest android devices.

So if the iPhone 5 lives up to its promise of faster battery life, faster processing and web page loading then it may well be worth the investment to increase your work efficiency. The lighter phone with a bigger screen will also be a draw to anyone who uses their phone for multimedia and entertainment. Overall though, unless you are due for an upgrade from your cell carrier I would recommend sticking with the 4S and upgrading for free to IOS6.