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The iPhone 4S is on sale now. Prices for the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB models have been confirmed and they’re available to pre-order from Apple and other retailers today, ahead of its official release date of 14 October.
The new iPhone 4S starts at £499 for the 16GB version. It’ll cost you £599 for the 32GB model, and the new 64GB version — the highest capacity iPhone ever — will set you back £699. You can choose whether you want your 4S in black or white.
The 4S is physically identical to the iPhone 4, but with a number of upgrades inside. It has a faster dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel camera and new iOS 5 software. The most interesting new feature is a voice-controlled ‘personal assistant’ called Siri.
Older phones are also available: the 8GB iPhone 4 is £430. The 8GB iPhone 3GS is £320.
Buying from Apple means you get the phone without a SIM card. You can then choose from any phone deal — here’s our guide to making any SIM work in an iPhone.
Buying SIM-free involves a greater outlay up front, but you’ll probably save money in the long run by getting a cheaper phone deal. You can get a cheaper iPhone from the phone networks but you’ll have to commit to an 18-month or two-year contract to do so. Carphone Warehouse and Phones4U, and Vodafone, T-Mobile and Orange have announced their tariffs today: keep it CNET UK for all the deal details as they emerge.
The iPhone 4S was announced on Tuesday, its lack of significant change from the iPhone 4 underwhelming many who’d waited so long for a new phone. We’d have liked to see a refreshed design, to maintain its cutting-edge, latest-thing appeal, but it seems Apple has favoured steady continuity over a flashy upgrade.
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs died yesterday, just two days after the 4S was unveiled and less than six weeks after finally stepping down as chief of the company.
Have you pre-ordered the iPhone 4S or are you planning to wait for the phone networks to announce their deals? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.