Apple’s Events are always a big deal, and this event didn’t fail to impress. Although in some ways breaking their Fall showcase into two dulled the excitement a little. The iPhones weren’t announced alongside most other things in September and it allowed more of the focus to be around their flagship product.
As always, it was packed with the polish and glamour everyone has come to expect from an Apple Event and plenty of info about their new products. There were a few things non-iPhone related that were trotted out during the “Hi, Speed” announcement from Apple Park, but the spotlight was almost entirely on their new lineup of phones and the parts around them.
iPhone 12
As expected, the iPhone 12 family was the biggest announcement at Apple’s “Hi, Speed” event. The new iPhones have a flatter, slimmer design with significant size savings- 16% lighter, 11% thinner, and 15% smaller. It features the same chip in the iPad Airs at the September announcement, the A14 Bionic.
As is standard on iPhones these days, its camera will feature two lenses, the Wide and Ultra-wide lenses. New this year is a seven layer lens design that allows more light into all parts of the photo. As with the Pro line of phones, the regular iPhone 12s will come with the new Ceramic Shield glass technology for increased drop resistance. Right now the phone will be offered in five colors, including an all new blue that matches a new Apple Watch color. It will come in two sizes, the iPhone 12 at 6.1” starting at $799 and the 5.4” iPhone 12 Mini starting at $699.
iPhone 12 Pro
Now a standard in the Apple lineup, the iPhone 12 Pro versions take the iPhone 12 and ramp it up. Coming in two sizes, the iPhone Pro 12 Max will feature the largest display on an iPhone to date (even larger than its predecessor), as well as the highest resolution with almost 3.5 million pixels packed in.
Of course, one of the biggest selling points for the iPhone Pro line is the advanced cameras, and this edition isn’t a disappointment. The regular model will have a 52mm zoom lens, giving it an optical zoom range of 4x, while the Pro Max boasts 65mm lens capable of 5x optical zoom. Apple has also expanded its previous Night Mode capabilities to the wide angle lens and the front facing cameras, which will allow for clearer shots in dark settings. Added to this, the Pro Max camera sensor is 47% larger than previously, allowing for much better low light results. Add Dolby vision HDR for video recording and a LiDAR scanner for augmented reality apps to use, Apple is knocking the next generation cameras out of the park.
Apple also talked about the new glass technology used in the phone, with nano-ceramic crystals infused into the glass of the phone that provides 4X more drop resistance than previous iPhones. The new phones are also IP68 rated, making them virtually dust and waterproof.
The new phones are available in four colors. The smaller iPhone 12 Pro is 6.1” and starts at $999, while the iPhone 12 Pro Max is 6.7” and starts at $1099.
5G
One of the most anticipated announcements today was Apple technology finally being available to use on the new 5G bands. Both the regular iPhone 12 line and the Pro line will support the new 5G tech. Although only the models sold in the United States will support the millimeter wave technology, which Apple claimed allowed for speeds up to 4Gbps in their tests under ideal conditions, and speeds of up to 1Gbps in regular conditions. In addition to adding the new antennas to be able to receive the 5G signal, Apple spoke for a while about the new Smart Data mode the phones will come with. Using this mode, the phone will save battery by using the less power-intensive LTE networks already in existence whenever the speed of 5G isn’t needed; the switch to 5G if faster data is required will be seamless.
MagSafe
If you’re one of the people still mourning the loss of the MagSafe chargers from the MacBook lines, then today’s Event had a bit of good news. Apple is bringing back the MagSafe name for a new charging and attachment system for the iPhone 12 family.
Compatible with existing Qi technology, the new system features a super strong magnet in the back of the phone to allow easier placement on wireless chargers that have their own magnet. It allows for quick on and off of new accessories, including cases and wallets that attach via the built-in magnets.
No EarPods Or Adaptor
The iPhone 12 will come in a smaller, thinner box- thanks to the lack of EarPods and power adaptor inside of it. Apple mentioned that there are already millions of them in existence around the world, and with many customers opting to go wireless, they’ve been phased out.
HomePod Mini
The first announcement was the company’s new HomePod Mini, a smaller and more budget-friendly version of the larger and more expensive HomePod. At just $99 for this new smaller version, it certainly sits lighter on the wallet than the $299 full sized version, which it still strongly resembles. It isn’t lacking in features, either. It uses special computational audio to adjust the sound for the space it’s in, it also shares Siri and other features like Smart Home control with the larger version.
Intercom
Meant for use by people already largely in the Apple ecosystem, Intercom uses the family of HomePods to leverage all of your Apple devices into a new system that allows you to broadcast messages across all of the devices on your system. Sending a message through your HomePods will send it through all of the devices on your network- physical notifications will appear on devices like the iPhone and iPad, while the audio message itself will play through other HomePods or AirPods.