Another highly anticipated Apple presentation successfully concluded on Sept. 14. as Apple CEO Tim Cook leaves fans of new tech satisfied for another year. At nearly an hour and 20 minutes long, the event, dubbed “California Streaming”, was jam-packed with updates, reveals and features. The devices presented in order were the iPad, iPad Mini, Apple Watch Series 7 and the next generation of iPhone.
Mini, Yet Mighty.
Cook began Apple’s festival of reveals with the next generation classic iPad. Sporting the same chassis and 10.2” display size as previous generations, the new 9th generation iPad features an all new 12 Megapixel Ultra Wide front-facing camera, capable of Apple’s new Center Stage feature, which can focus onto and follow someone’s movements during video calls such as FaceTime or Zoom. This iPad also features an 8 Megapixel rear camera and the Apple A13 Bionic chip. Fans will be relieved to hear these improvements still carry the same $329 price tag as the previous models.
Next up is the newly redesigned 6th generation iPad Mini. Boasting its most daring design change yet. The new iPad Mini now features an 8.3” Liquid Retina display with the same full screen design as the iPad Pro and Air models, an improvement from the previous 7.9″ display. Ditching the traditional front facing home button, the all-screen design now houses the Touch-ID sensor on the lock/power button. Still small enough to be grasped with one hand, the redesigned chassis now supports USB-C connections and the 2nd Gen Apple Pencil, with a new 12 Megapixel front-facing camera. Under the hood, iPad Mini houses the new Apple A15 Bionic chip, meaning better performance, battery life and power consumption. Apple’s new iPad Mini starts at $400, and both newly announced iPad models are now available for purchase.
It Also Can Tell Time
Halfway through, the next reveal is the Apple Watch Series 7. Highlighted are the larger screen sizes available this year. The Series 7 features a 20% larger screen size on both models, now 41mm and 45mm displays. Apple describes these new displays as “edge-to-edge”, and official images support this claim. Fans and analysts, such as Jon Prosser, predicted a total redesign of Apple Watch including squared off edges as seen on the newer iPhone models, but this did not come to pass.
Apple states that the new models support existing watch bands. Additional improvements include 33% faster charging, a brighter Always-On display and the most durable, crack resistant glass ever on Apple Watch. All models of Apple Watch are now upgraded to Series 7 including the aluminum, stainless steel and titanium models. The same goes for the Apple Watch Nike and Hermès editions. The base level aluminum models start at $399 for the 41mm size, and $429 for 45mm. While no release date has been announced, Apple’s website mentions a release for later this fall.
Source: LovelyMockups
Focus, focus, focus.
Lastly, the iPhone 13 reveal included exciting improvements. iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Mini feature an all new Super Retina XDR display, with larger screen real estate thanks to a 22% smaller notch area. The rear camera assembly is all new, featuring a diagonal setup of two 12 Megapixel cameras, one Wide and one Ultra Wide. The all new 12 Megapixel front facing camera also makes its appearance on all iPhone 13 models.
Apple then showed off the power of their new cameras with the all new recording feature, Cinematic Mode. Recording in Cinematic Mode allows both the director and phone to choose where the focus will be in a shot.
iPhone 13 and 13 Mini have the Apple A15 Bionic chip. They include a 6-core CPU and 4-core GPU for a huge leap in performance. Both iPhone 13 models come in an array of five different colors.
Pro, to the Max
Following up the iPhone 13 were the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max models. The new Pros are available in two display sizes, 6.1” and 6.7”, now with the 22% smaller notch. The fan-favorite stainless steel chassis is back in a new Sierra Blue color, as well as Silver, Gold, and Graphite. One of the largest and most requested upgrades coming to the 13 Pro lineup is Apple’s ProMotion display. This smart display can tune the screen’s refresh rate anywhere from 10 to 120 hertz, allowing for better battery consumption while displaying extremely smooth scrolling, animations and video.
The new flagships feature a new rear camera assembly as well with three Pro cameras; Wide, Ultra Wide and Telephoto, with the same LiDAR sensor in the 12 Pro. The sensors and apertures on each camera are more finely tuned than previous generations and include the new Cinematic mode. The new camera assembly also allows for a larger battery in both models. The Pros also feature the Apple A15 Bionic chip, with an upgraded one Terabyte storage option accompanying the performance boost.
iPhone 13, 13 Mini, iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max have been available since Sept. 24. They start at $699 for the Mini, $799 for the larger model, the same $999 for the 13 Pro and $1099 for the Pro Max.
Existing Apple owners have been able to update to the newest software as of Sept. 20. This includes iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and WatchOS 8, while MacOS Monterey is expected to be available later this year.
