iPhone 5

Apple has released the taller, thinner, faster, lighter, brighter iPhone 5 -- and we've got your definitive iPhone 5 review right here -- and now Samsung is bringing their next-generation giant, the Galaxy Note 2 to market.

As much as Samsung has been labeled a "copyist" over the course of the last couple years, the Galaxy Note series has always been a big exception, literally. Due to its size, some have labeled it a "phablet", half phone, half tablet. While it's both of those things, it's also neither. It's really a Wacom-style digitizer put into highly mobile form. And as anyone who's ever used a Wacom knows, it resembles a stylus in shape only.

So what happens when you put Apple's precision up against Samsung's power? The iPhone 5's elegance against the Galaxy Note 2's enormity? Let's take a look.

When Apple changed the dock connector on the latest iPhone 5, new iPod touch and new iPod nano there was a lot or controversy over the decision mainly due to incompatibility problems with expensive speaker docks and car audio systems. Thankfully the guys at CableJive are right on the ball as usual and are already shipping a solution to the problem.

Apple today launched the new iPhone 5 in 22 additional countries, including Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. That brings the total to 30 + Hong Kong, and represents one of Apple most aggressive launch schedules in history.

If you picked up an iPhone 5 in one of those countries today, let us know about your experience -- about the pre-order process or standing in line, and most of all about how you like your new iPhone 5.

Then check out these links to get up to speed as fast as possible:

The iPhone 5 was, is, and remains inevitable. An iPhone, new to be certain, but still an iPhone. Some say this is a sign Apple has lost their drive for innovation. Others, a sign Apple has kept their sense of focus. Both are facets of a single truth -- that through craft something is revolutionized, refined, and one day, replaced. The question then becomes, where is the iPhone 5 along this continuum? Is it a boring, uninspired, end-of-line update that should have Apple desperately seeking to once again "think different", or is it iconically, deceptively, insanely great enough to delight customers, inspire developers, and once again drive the entire industry forward?

Instagram and Google Chrome have finally received updates for compatibility with iOS 6 and the iPhone 5’s larger 4-inch screen. When we say finally, it’s funny as the iPhone 5 has only been out for less than a week but it seems like if your app is not updated on the day of launch then it’s already late to the party.

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The new iPhone 5 has an aluminum chassis that covers the sides and back, and in the case of the black and slate model, it's anodized to be black on black. As anyone who has ever owned an iPod knows, metal is a scratch and scruff magnet. With the iPhone, however, the combination of the polished bezel, matt back, and anodized black appears to show the wear and tear more prominently than ever. You can literally write into it with the fingernail, tilt it into the light, and see what you wrote. While some people may like the worn and torn, aged and destroyed look, those who want to keep their iPhones in mint condition, are less than thrilled by this. Apple doesn't seem overly concerned either, if this purported email from Senior Vice President of Marketing, Phil Schiller is any indication.

If you still haven't managed to secure an iPhone 5 for yourself or someone close to you, the online orders feel like they'll take forever, and the lineups are completely unappealing, good news -- it sounds like US Apple Retail Stores are preparing to start offering personal pickup.