iPhone 5 and the problems associated with it

BANGALORE, INDIA: Apple Inc. has had a very successful year so far. According to reports, over five million units of the iPhone 5 have already been sold.

Consumer Reports, the influential reviewers' group that blasted the iPhone 4 for a faulty antenna, on Friday gave Apple's iPhone 5 a thumbs-up. The phone has a 4-inch retina display, is taller and thinner than the iPhone 4S, 4G LTE, 1136X640 screen resolution and the new iOS 6 operating system.

However, consumers have complained about a few features of the iPhone 5, which cannot be ignored. Let us take a look at some of the problems.

Maps

Apple abandoned Google Maps in favor of its own mapping system. What this lead to is angry consumers who vented out their anger on social media. A day after the new system was released, users from countries including the United States, Britain, China, France and Japan protested that the new maps misplace some landmarks and leave others off altogether.

"In the UK many town names are wrong, with some missing; roads are all the same colour; satellite image resolution is not as good as it was previously," user Shilts9 wrote on Apple's support forum.

Apple CEO apologized for the error and suggested users to use other mapping systems like Google Maps.

Chipped handsets

After Apple Maps, users complained about ''scuffs, scratches and chips'' on the iPhone 5. When a user wrote to Phil Schiller, Apple's senior marketing vice president, regarding the same, he reportedly replied saying ''Any aluminum product may scratch or chip with use, exposing its natural silver color. That is normal."

Data guzzler

Reports about iPhone 5 sucking down cellular data have also emerged. The new Apple smartphone can result in big overages even when connected to Wi-Fi networks, according to media reports. Several viewers took to online forums to complain about the ''scary bug''. However, Apple came out with a software update to fix this issue.

Purple flare in images

Users have complained about a purple flare in the images taken with the iPhone 5. There are speculations that this may be due to the new sapphire cover that has been added to the camera. However, Apple has responded to this problem saying ''Moving the camera slightly to change the position at which the bright light is entering the lens, or shielding the lens with your hand, should minimize or eliminate the effect,'' according to a report on CNN.

A consumer unhappy with this response has posted ''You gotta be kidding me apple. You must be. Now I have to protect the camera with my hand when I want to take a picture?" in a thread on Apple's user forums.

''When a new iPhone comes out, I always buy it. If there is anyone from Apple reading this, I have to tell you that I am pretty disappointed with the product, for the first time. That's very bad,'' added the consumer.

Pricing factor

Although Apple hasn't announced what the price of iPhone 5 will be in the Indian market or when it will be available for Indians, reports suggest that it'll cost Rs. 48,000 here. This might not be a problem for some consumers, but in India there is a demand for smartphones that are reasonably priced. It is yet to be seen what the fate of iPhone 5 will be in India.

What do you have to say about iPhone 5? Do let us know.