If there’s one tech event I look forward to in the year, it’s Apple’s iPhone launch in September. Today’s the day that usually has people on the edge of their seats, waiting to be wowed by their (potentially) new phone and today, we’ve seen Apple announce the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.
Here’s what you can expect in the new generations of Apple’s flagship iPhones.
Fresh design
With Jony Ive presenting the iPhone 7 launch video, we’re getting a fresh looking high gloss black finish which they’re called “jet black” along with an alternative matte black finish. (We also get the usual Rose Gold, Gold and Silver finishes.) On the iPhone 7, the antennas are embedded into the aluminium enclosure for a more flush design.
Redesigned home button
The new home button will use Apple’s Taptic Engine, so rather than a physical button the iPhone will create artificial button feedback.
Water & dust resistancy
Finally, the iPhone 7 is IP67 water and dust resistant. While this doesn’t mean you can go for a swim with it, it’s good to finally have this feature for those who accidentally splash water on their devices.
A better camera for iPhone 7
The iPhone 7 will benefit from a number of additional and improved features, including 12MP camera, Optical Image Stabilisation, a larger 1.8 aperture for 50% more light, True Tone flash with 4 LEDs (50% more light & 50% further) along with a new Image Signal Processor which basically acts as a super computer to optimise your images.
Around the front there’s a 7MP front-facing HD camera for better selfies and FaceTime calls, along with auto image stabilisation.
iPhone 7 Plus gets Wide Angle & Telephoto lenses
While the iPhone 7 packs in a single lens, the iPhone 7 Plus is rocking two: a wide angle and telephoto lens (a lens that essentially zooms your image). With a simple tap of a button (above the shutter button) you can switch to your telephoto lens, and if you slide across it, you can adjust between varying zoom levels from 1-10.
Only iPhone 7 Plus will get Bokeh
There’s a new style in the camera app for ‘Portrait’, which is how to activate the Bokeh effect with a blurred background. This will only be available in the larger iPhone unfortunately, and it’ll be made available through a free update later this year.
Retina HD display
The new displays on these iPhones will be 25% brighter, include 3D touch just like the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, wide colour gamut and colour management.
Stereo speakers
With one speaker at the bottom and another at the top of the iPhones, we’re getting speakers twice as loud on this iPhone 7.
Dropping the audio jack for Lightning connector
As rumours suspected, the Apple iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have ditched the audio jack in favour of Lightning connectivity, in order to save space for other components. The new EarPods will ship with your new iPhone (along with an adapter for older headphones) in the box.
Apple AirPods: Wireless in-ear headphones
With a similar look to Apple’s existing EarPods — just without the wires and smaller — you’ll now be able to pick up wireless in-ear headphones for your iPhone called AirPods ($159). With a very simple setup process, you can connect to all of your Apple devices in one go which is convenient, avoiding the need for constant pairing and unpairing. You’ll get 24 hours listening time on a single charge too.
Apple Pay
Apple Watch and iPhone 7 will feature Felica, an NFC variant in Japan, meaning Japan will now be able to benefit from Apple Pay.
Performance
The new iPhone 7 will feature a new A10 chip which runs a four-core CPU, as well as improved graphics with energy efficiency in mind. For a better idea of what that means, 90% of the features available for RAW image editing in Adobe Lightroom are now available on the iPhone with this improved performance.
Battery life
Without touching on specific battery specs/sizes, Apple has mentioned that iPhone 6 owners will benefit from 2 more hours of battery with the iPhone 7. iPhone 6s Plus owners will benefit from 1 extra hour.
Pricing & availability
The new iPhone 7 will cost the same as the existing iPhone 6s: $649, with both models shipping in 32Gb, 128GB and 256GB sizes. Apple iPhone upgrade program will now be available in the US, UK and China too, although pricing is to be disclosed for the UK and China.
Pre-orders begin on the 9th and available from September 16th.
