Vodacom will be launching the smartphone in South Africa on this date, but the operator has already commenced with accepting pre-orders of Apple’s latest mobile on their site. You can order a 16 GB, 32 GB or 64 GB version of the device on a new contract or contract upgrade, if your current contract is about to expire.

MTN has also confirmed that it will be launching the iPhone 4S on the same date. The company said that pricing info will be announced in due time.

The new iPhone 4S is virtually indistinguishable from their current iPhone 4 model in terms of design, as it boasts the same slim glass and stainless steel look of the outgoing device. It also features the same 3.5" (640 x 960, 326 ppi) Retina Display as the current iPhone.

What is new?

Apple’s iPhone 4S features a dual-core 1 GHz A5 processor (the same one doing duty in the iPad 2), with the Cupertino-based tech outfit claiming that this processor is up to two times faster than the one utilised in the single core 1 GHz chip of the iPhone 4. The company also stated that the system-on-a-chip is up to seven times better when it comes to graphics.

It’s not only the processing power that has received a boost in performance though, as Cupertino also enhanced the stainless steel external, dual-antenna design of the iPhone 4. According to Apple, the iPhone 4S is the first phone to intelligently switch between two antennas to send and receive data, allowing it to support twice the download speed with HSDPA (up to 14.4 Mbps).

iPhonographers will be happy about the 4S’s new 8 MP rear-facing camera that boasts 60% more pixels than the current model’s 5 MP sensor, enabling them to capture higher quality photos that feature even more detail. iPhone 4S also sports a new custom lens, a larger f/2.4 aperture and an advanced hybrid IR filter that produces sharper, brighter and more accurate images. Besides greatly enhanced stills, this new snapper allows for the recording of full HD (1080p) videos (much like the Samsung Galaxy SII).

What we here at TechSmart is looking forward to most is getting to play with Siri, an intelligent digital assistant for the iPhone 4S. According to Apple, Siri understands context, allowing users to speak naturally when you ask it questions. A user can ask questions like: "Will I need an umbrella this weekend?" and it understands that you are looking for a weather forecast.

Siri is also smart about using the personal information a user enables it to access, for example, if a user tells Siri: "Remind me to call Mom when I get home", then it can find "Mom" in your address book, or when a user asks Siri: "What's the traffic like around here?" it can figure out that "here" means the user’s current location.

In related news Vodacom also recently made the new BlackBerry Curve 9360 available to local users along with MTN and Cell C.