At its iPhone release event today, Apple officially announced its iPhone 5C smartphone with release date, specs, and price. The new colorful handset is set to replace the iPhone 5 in basically every regard, taking design cues along the way to offer an even more formidable phone at a better price. Though Apple has yet to mention when the iPhone 5C will launch, we do know that the 16GB variant will cost a budget-friendly $99 with two-year contract.
Apple’s CEO Tim Cook handed the stage over to marketing chief Phil Schiller who introduced the more affordable iPhone 5C. And while he acknowledged that we’ve seen plenty via leaked photos and specs, there are plenty of useful features and functions to come with seamless next-generation device.
Design
As expected the iPhone 5C carries a polycarbonate shell, though we now know it’s a single piece for the both the back and the sides secured under the hood by steel reinforcements. There are absolutely no seams, lines, or joins, creating a consistent feel for the user. The single piece affords Apple room for color options and the device will be made available in green, yellow, blue, white and red. Custom silicon-rubber cases will also be available, tailored around the camera and flash.
Specs
The colorful iPhone 5C will boast a 4-inch Retina display with integrated touch and supports full sRGB widescreen video. The entire device will run on Apple’s A6 processing chip, and the 8MP iSight camera comes with BSI, hybrid IR filter, and a 5-element lens. A new FaceTime HD camera works well in lowlight with tis 1.9micron pixel lens.
The 5C will come with support for LTW bands, dual-band Wi-Fi, and BlueTooth 4.0.
For the green at heart out there, the iPhone 5C is completely arsenic, mercury, and Android free (Apple’s joke, not mine).
Launch date & Price
As is the case with the iPhone 5S as we’ll see in just a bit, the iPhone 5C will be available for pre-order on all major carriers in the U.S. on September 13, hitting the retail shelves on September 20. The 16GB variant will cost an easily affordable $99 with a two-year contract.
