This blog was written by Robbie Plankenhorn.
Last week, Apple unveiled some exciting new products that every Apple fan has been waiting for. The two biggest announcements were around the highly anticipated iPhone 7 and 7 Plus and the new Apple Watch model.
This being a non “S” year, Apple has unveiled a completely new design to the iPhone that includes several must have features.
The first, and arguably the most exciting, thing that you will notice about this new version of the iPhone is that it is WATER RESISTANT according to the IP67 standard. In an effort to compete with Samsung, this move to withstand up to 1 meter of water could be the push the industry needs to make water resistance a norm. Apple also announced several finishes that include jet black, black, gold, silver, and of course, rose gold. The home button is no longer an actual button and includes a haptic feedback sensor that can notify the user of different actions and developers will be able to control within their apps. The display has also been upgraded to be 25% brighter, a wider color gamut, cinema standard, has better color management, and also include 3D touch.
Apple also took the iPhone’s camera to the next level by improving both the hardware and software to get you the best image possible. In the iPhone 7, the new rear camera is 12 megapixels with a quad LED two tone flash, wider lens, three times longer exposure, and an Apple designed a signal image processor that makes 100 billion operations per picture. The front facing camera has also been upgraded to a 7 megapixel camera that takes advantage of the same signal image processor. With the iPhone 7 Plus, Apple has added two 12 megapixel lenses (a wide angle and a telephoto) that give the user a software zoom of up to 10x. Apple has also added a new Portrait mode that automatically blurs the background and focuses on the people in the foreground.
One of the most shocking, yet predicted moves by Apple, was their announcement about revamping the audio of the iPhone by completely removing the traditional headphone jack in favor of only using the lightning cable. The reason was to make room for the stereo speakers (one on the top and one on the bottom) that are twice the volume as the iPhone 6S and have an increased dynamic range. Don’t worry, the box will include both earbuds that plug into the lightning port and an adapter for older headphones.
Apple also unveiled a new version of their Watch that they are calling the Series 2. This new addition will also be “swim proof”, including a brand new display, built-in GPS that app developers can take advantage of, and also a new Nike+ edition (available in October) that is targeted towards runners and fitness gurus.
Preorders of iPhone 7 ($649), iPhone 7 Plus ($769) and the Watch (from $269) are now available and will start shipping on September 16th.
