Gadgetory

the iPhone 5c isn't just the lower end of Apple's to new flagship smartphones it's the intended replacement of the iPhone 5 meaning you won't be able to find the older phone on the shelves for too much longer so if you're in the market for a lower end iPhone should you rush out and buy last year's iPhone 5 or get a little colorful with the brand new 5c i'm michael fisher with pocket now let's find out so the party line goes that the new iPhone 5c is nothing more than an iPhone 5 in a colorful new plastic casing to some degree that's correct but there are plenty of differences here worth covering we'll talk about them in terms of hardware software and some test notes putting these phones side-by-side it's hard to believe the 5c is the newer model yes we're all used to the classic style of the iPhone 5 by now with its chamfered edges glass end caps and smooth aluminum backing but despite its design being a bit old hat it still looks much more premium than the toy-like 5c now don't take us the wrong way there's a lot to like on the five Cs build the added customizability that comes with a choice of five colors is a definite plus and we've seldom come across a plastic phone that feels as well made and partially due to the five Cs rigid steel frame lying beneath the polycarbonate other details like button size travel and feedback are impressive and well done but there's no question that the 5c feels like the cheaper of the two devices it's more comfortable in the hand thanks to its rounded corners but the 5c was built as the lower end alternative and it feels like it despite its increase in weight and thickness in terms of published specs the differences are exceedingly minor the 5c is powered by the same Asics processor and modem combination as the iPhone 5 with the same 1 gig of ram and its display is the same exact panel as well the 5c does pack a slightly larger battery and the front-facing camera has seen a small upgrade as well from the standpoint of an end user everything else on the hardware front is exactly the same those similarities only multiplied on the software side the newer iPhone 5c runs iOS 7 out of the box but as Taylor Martin demonstrated in his iOS 7 gold master walkthrough video the iPhone 5 has no trouble running the new version app launch times between the two devices are exactly the same from stock to third-party titles and responsiveness throughout the interface is similarly identical from multitasking to browser performance to boot times the camera results follow exactly in the pattern you'd expect given the identical 8 megapixel shooters on the back of these phones the pictures shot with iOS 7's new stock viewfinder app are identical in both HDR and non HDR shooting modes colors are bright and edges are sharp in most well-lit situations but low-light is still a pretty big challenge compared to newer phone cameras with optical image stabilization is something not included on either of these shooters nevertheless photos are fine and videos come out smooth and well balanced on each on the other side the improvements to the front-facing camera are minor but they do result in slightly more accurate coloring on the 5c there's not quite as much parity in voice performance where the 5c takes a small hit in quality people we called said we came across slightly muddier on the 5c without as much of the crisp clearness the 5 delivered and we experienced the same on our end the difference isn't major but it's there in terms of speakerphone there's almost no difference in amplitude or clarity which is solid on both devices so taking in some YouTube videos or Spotify tracks with the loudspeaker shouldn't be a problem with either device the differences between these phones are so minor that the choice between iPhone 5 and iPhone 5c is almost entirely a cosmetic and aesthetic 1 if you want the added customizability of different casing colors and you don't mind the feel of plastic in the hand the 5c is a very capable mid-range iPhone but if you're looking for the same responsive performance with slightly better voice quality and a much more premium build you'll want to snap up an iPhone 5 while you still can folks there's an iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s review from pocket now coming shortly and in the meantime be sure and check out our comparisons including the 5s the 5 the 5c and every other device we can get our hands on follow us on social media and make sure to throw us a like if you enjoyed the video leave a comment down below if you have something to say and as always thank you for watching we'll see you next time