iPhone 4S to arrive in SA

The iPhone 4S will be available in SA just in time for Christmas, as both Vodacom and MTN have confirmed a 16 December release date.

Vodacom CEO Pieter Uys tweeted yesterday: “iPhone 4s arriving in SA on 16 December :-) Pre-register on the Vodacom Web site.”

This was followed by a tweet from Vodacom directing followers to the pre-order form for the latest iPhone. Subscribers can choose between the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB models on a new contract or on an upgrade.

Pricing information is currently not available, but in response to queries on Twitter about the possible data plans, Vodacom directed users to its current iPhone packages.

MTN has also confirmed the release date, tweeting: “Guess what's coming on 16 December! The iconic iPhone 4S joins the MTN family. Who's in?” MTN says pricing details will be announced in due course.

According to Apple.com, the iPhone 4S is available on contract in the US from $199 for the 16GB handset, $299 for the 32GB and $399 for the 64GB model.

Pricing of the handset from Vodafone in the UK on prepaid is currently at £499, £590 and £680 for the different models respectively.

Notebook Company in SA currently has the handsets available at a retail price of R9 385, R10 535 and R11 915 respectively.

Following the initial product launch by Apple in October, many analysts speculated that consumers would not be interested in the iPhone 4S in the wake of the hype and expectation surrounding the iPhone 5.

The iPhone 4S, however, broke all previous iPhone sales records when it went on sale in seven countries on 14 October. Apple sold over four million handsets over the first weekend.

The rollout of the iPhone 4S has been the fastest iPhone rollout to date, and Apple promised the new device would be available in an additional 70 countries by December.

The iPhone 4S has a dual-core A5 chip, new camera with full 1 080p HD resolution recording, and AI software in the form of Siri - an intelligent voice-activated assistant.

Siri is one of the most notable features of the iPhone 4S and, according to Apple, it understands context, allowing it to understand natural speech.

“For example, if you ask 'Will I need an umbrella this weekend?' it understands you are looking for a weather forecast,” says Apple.

Siri can also assist in making calls, sending text messages or e-mails, scheduling meetings and reminders, completing Web searches, finding locations and getting directions.

“You can also get answers, find facts and even perform complex calculations just by asking,” says Apple.

While Siri has been billed as a game-changer, the application requires a constant wireless connection in order to function optimally, so it may not live up to expectations in the South African environment.