UNLEASHED: The iPhone 6, Apple Watch And All Of Apple's Biggest Announcements
The iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch, Apple's big event was jam-packed with new products. The two new iPhones and Apple's entry into the wearables market dominated much of CEO Tim Cook's keynote, but a number of new software features were also unveiled. Here's taking a look at the most noteworthy ones.
By Sadho Ram — 10 Sep 2014, 05:45 AM — Updated about 10 years ago
1. iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
On Tuesday afternoon, Apple CEO Tim Cook introduced the biggest iPhone in the device’s seven-year history. And then, five seconds later, he announced an even larger one. Yes, Apple unveiled two new iPhones on Tuesday — the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus — both of them with the biggest displays of any smartphone in Apple history. The iPhone 6 features a screen measuring 4.7 inches diagonally, while the iPhone 6 Plus is even larger, at 5.5 inches.
Both the devices feature rounded edges and are slightly slimmer than the iPhone 5s. The iPhone 6 is powered by a new chip, the A8 processor, which Apple says is 50 times faster than the chip in the original iPhone. It also ships with an upgraded 8 MP rear-facing camera and 2.1 MP front-facing camera for better selfies.
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The iPhone 6 Plus, Apple's first foray into phablet territory, will have Apple's new A8 processor. It comes equipped with the same 8 MP rear and 2.1 front cameras as the iPhone 6. Unique to the 6 Plus, though, is optical image stabilization, an improvement over the digital stabilization of the iPhone 6.
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2. The Apple Watch
It’s not called the iWatch, it’s called Apple Watch. Apple is positioning its first new major product since 2010 as a fashion accessory, a communication tool, a fitness tracker, and a method of payment, among other things.
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As rumored, it’s going to come in a lot of different models: There are two sizes, and six different straps created by Apple itself. There’s a sports band, a leather loop that uses magnets for fastening, and a second leather model that uses a metal clasp, among others. "Apple Watch is the most personal device we’ve ever created," Tim Cook says.
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It’s a precise, customizable timepiece accurate to within 50 milliseconds. It lets you communicate directly from your wrist, monitors your health and fitness, and is designed to work seamlessly with the iPhone. It has a touchscreen that can tell the difference between a tap and a long press, which access contextual menus. Apple Watch also has health monitoring features: it measures your daily activity, including steps taken and heart rate. And it charges inductively.
But it’s not a standalone device: The Apple Watch must be used in conjunction with an iPhone and will be compatible with the iPhone 5, 5C and 5S in addition to the 6 and 6 Plus. Cook says it has lots of features that weren’t even covered in detail today, including controlling your Apple TV, serving as a viewfinder for your iPhone camera, and acting as a walkie-talkie. One feature we know nothing about: battery life. Cook didn’t say anything about it.
mashable.com
3. Apple Pay
Apple—like every other phone manufacturer—has been trying to replace your wallet for a long time. But attempts to do this have mostly failed, and Apple has stayed away from the most widely accepted method, NFC payments. That’s all changed with Apple Pay. There’s now an NFC antenna at the top of the iPhone, which means ApplePay will function anywhere that something like Google Wallet would work.
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Apple's first platform for mobile payments, ApplePay will be rolling out as an update to iOS 8 in October. It will be compatible with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus and, eventually, the Apple Watch. The service relies on iOS' existing Passbook app and Touch ID. Users begin by scanning their credit cards (if it's MasterCard, Visa or American Express), which is then captured by Passbook. The app then creates a secure one-time code, stored locally on your device, which is used to pay at one of the supported merchants. This way, Apple says, your payment information is not shared with merchants or on Apple's servers.
mashable.com
Apple Pay can also be used within apps to make one-touch purchases by selecting "Apple Pay" at checkout and using your TouchID. Apple says more than 200,000 merchants will support the platform. Apple Pay will launch first in the U.S., though the company is "working hard" to roll its payments system out to more countries.
The TouchID fingerprint reader at the bottom is supposed to provide an extra layer of security. You can either take a picture of a credit card to use it (presumably there will be some safeguards to stop you from stealing your friend’s identity) or use a card that’s on file with your iTunes account already. Apple also has a fairly long explanation for why your data is secure, saying that cashiers and merchants won’t be able to see your card number, Apple won’t know what you buy, and that you can suspend service on a lost phone using the Find My iPhone service—although that’s going to need to be tested first.
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4. iOS 8
Apple didn't spend much time talking about any new features in the latest version of its mobile operating system, iOS 8, but did announce that it will be available as a free upgrade on September 17th, two days before the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
cnet.com5. New A8 chip with 50% faster graphics
Alongside new iPhone 6 models, Apple introduced the new A8 chip to power both devices. The company says its new system-on-a-chip has 2 billion transistors over 1 billion transistors from the A7 chip introduced last year with the iPhone 5s and iPad Air/iPad mini with Retina display.
9to5mac.com
The actual A8 chip has a 13% smaller footprint making more room in the device for other components. Performance wise, the A8 chip boasts up to 25% faster CPU and up to 50% graphics performance. Compared to the first iPhone’s process the A8 is 50x faster.
theverge.com