There is no doubt that the iPhone 5 - like it's predecessors - is a good phone. But looked at objectively, what is amazing is just how limited and expensive it is compared to the opposition, and how much Apple are simply paying catch-up. Here's some examples:
Battered Batteries
Smartphones have a relatively poor battery lilfe. A cheap and cheerful basic phone might last a week between charges (obviously it depends on how much you use it), whereas Smartphones such as the iPhone typically need charging every day or every other day. For a serious user, it is a good idea to carry round a spare battery, which can be swapped over in the event that you run out of power whilst on a business trip or holiday etc. Only you can't do this with an iPhone - the battery is non-removable. This also has major implications for when the battery finally wears out; with most brands, you buy a new battery for a tenner or so to replace the old one and you are good for another year or two. When the battery on an iPhone fails, the phone has to go back to Apple to be replaced (and it costs more than a tenner).
My Memory is Going...
You can't have too much memory (storage). Put your photos, favourite music, a couple of videos on a Smartphone and the memory soon fills up. Not a problem, though: simply buy another micro-SD card and slot it in. Not, however, if you have an iPhone as Apple don't use micro-SD cards. In fact, they don't have any method of incresing the storage on an iPhone at all - you are stuck with what you've got. Because of this, when buying one it is important to buy it with as much memory as possible. And here's the sting: despite being probably the larger buyer of flash memory in the world, Apple charges a fortune for memory. Typically, an iPhone with 32GB storage costs around £100 more than one with 16GB. Yet, if you have another brand of phone that takes microSD cards you can buy a 16GB card for between £5-£10 and a 32GB card for between £10-£15.
It's Expensive. Must be Good, eh?
The iPhone 5 on PAYG costs an eye-watering £529. That's a lot of money for a phone, between 50% to 100% more expensive than broadly comparable phones from the likes of HTC and Samsung. Of course, most people who buy an iPhone will do so on a contract basis and will pay a lot less than that, maybe even nothing at all. But in reality, a substantial part of a mobile phone contract is a disguised form of hire purchase in which you ARE paying for the phone in monthly instalments, along with your calls. This is reflected in higher monthly rates or less call value. For instance, you might be paying £30 a month for a 'free' iPhone and receiving 100 minutes a month, whereas with another branded phone you might be receiving 600 minutes for the same price.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly another winner from Apple, but also a timely reminder of how expensive the iPhone is. Now, I just need to get down to the Apple shop and get in the queue to buy one...