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It's not an iPhone 5, but Apple unveiled a souped-up version of its current model called the iPhone 4S. It's available Oct. 14, with the 16GB version at $199, the 32GB at $299, and the 64GB at $399. It will be up to twice as fast, featuring the same A5 chip the iPad 2 offers; on the outside, however, it looks just like the iPhone 4, Ars Technica notes. Graphics will be up to seven times faster, meaning even more impressive games; battery life and download speed will also be improved. The phone will run on both GSM and CDMA networks, Engadget notes. It also features a faster, improved 8-megapixel camera; demo photos "don't look like they're shot with a smartphone at all," Wired declares. Last but not least: It will offer improved voice control via an "intelligent assistant" called Siri that "is blowing everyone's minds," Ars Technica tweets.
Other big topics of conversation included the new iOS 5, available as a free update next Wednesday, and iCloud, which will be free for iOS 5 and Lion users with a free 5GB of online data storage and more available to purchase. Both are out Oct. 12. Updated, cheaper iPods were also unveiled. As for new CEO Tim Cook, he noted, "This is my first product launch since being named CEO. I'm sure you didn't know that." He looked "cool, comfortable. Genuinely happy and excited," Engadget notes, although he's a bit more "subtle" and "understated" than Steve Jobs (and no black turtleneck). Jobs did not make an appearance.
