After months of speculation Apple has finally unveiled a new iPhone, but its the iPhone 4S rather than the iPhone 5. The iPhone 4S looks identical to the iPhone 4, but it's a very different device inside.

iPhone 4S Hardware Improvements

The first hardware improvement is the new dual-core A5 processor which means its CPU is up to twice as fast as the iPhone 4.  The 4S also has a dual GPU making graphics performance up to 7 times faster which was  showcased with a demo of the game Infinity Blade 2.

Secondly , the antenna has been significantly improved and can now intelligently switch between sending and receiving. The outcome of this is better signal and improved speed with Apple claiming the new speeds match 4G performance levels (14.4Mbps).

The camera on the iPhone 4S has also been improved and now comes in at 8 mega-pixels with 33 per cent faster capture than the iPhone 4's 5 mega-pixel camera.

The camera also has a 5 element lens , hybrid IR filter and takes just half a second between shots to process all the information. It will also record 1080p HD video with noise reduction and real-time image stabilization.

The battery has been improved on the iPhone 4S and now supports up to 8 hours 3G talk-time or 6 hours 3G browsing.

Siri Voice-Control System

Apple also announced a new voice-control system called Siri who can answer spoken questions and take orders. Siri will only be available on the iPhone 4S, which has got to be the biggest reason so far to upgrade.

At the event Siri was asked "What is the weather like today ?"  and Siri answered him with a weather forecast. He then followed up by being asked "Do i need a raincoat today" and Siri answered with "It sure looks like rain". You can also use Siri to respond to text messages , set calendar appointments and reminders. Other demonstrations including converting currency, finding restaurants and more  using voice-input only.

In order to use Siri you need to hold down your home-button and ask the question you'd like answered or the function you'd like it to carry out. The other good news is that Siri also supports French and German as well as English.

iPhone 4S Release Date and Price

The iPhone 4S  will be released on October 14th and will come in 16GB , 32GB and 64GB versions. In the US on a 2 year contract the iPhone 4S will cost $199, $299 and $399 respectively.

We're slightly disappointed we didn't get the iPhone 5, but the iPhone 4S featured all the improvements we expected with the added bonus of Siri. In time we think everyone will realise Apple has again done a fabulous job.