The iPhone 4S is a touchscreen slate smartphone developed by Apple. It is the fifth generation of the iPhone, a device that combines a widescreen iPod with touchscreen, mobile phone, and internet communicator. It retains the exterior design of its predecessor, iPhone 4, but is host to a range of improved hardware specifications and software updates compared to the previous model.
Integrated software and hardware changes support the introduction of new user interface and functions by Apple. Highlights include a voice recognizing and talking assistant called Siri, personal computer independence, cloud-sourced data (iCloud) and an improved camera system. A selection of the device's functions can be controlled by voice.
The iPhone 4S was unveiled at Apple's Let's Talk iPhone event on October 4, 2011 in Cupertino California Apple started taking pre-orders for the iPhone 4S on October 7, 2011 in seven initial countries (United States, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Japan) with a first delivery date set for October 14, 2011, and available on that same day for direct store sales in those countries. It will be released in 22 more European, American and Asian countries, including Ireland, Mexico and Singapore by the end of October.
It will be available on 100 carriers in 70 countries overall, including AT&T, Verizon, and for the first time, also for Sprint customers in the United States. In Japan it will be available for au (a KDDI brand) and Okinawa Cellular, for the first time. For US customers, while pre-orders for purchasers buying contracts started on October 7, 2011, unlocked (contract-free) sales are expected to begin in November 2011. AP says that AT&T described early iPhone 4S demand as "extraordinary".
