The Latest Apple iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus Are Water-Resistant and Dual camera
Apple just introduced the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, the latest iterations of its premium smartphone. The iPhone 7 and 7 Plus look remarkably similar to the phones they replace -- this is the smallest generational design.
The iPhone 7 Plus finally brings a dual camera to the iPhone line.The antenna bands on the back of the previous models have been made more discreet; they now hug the edges of the device. This repositioning has allowed Apple to squeeze in larger camera bumps on the back. To that end, Apple has thrown improved cameras into both its new phones.
For both devices, the new FaceTime HD camera ups the resolution from 5 to 7 megapixels. The big-ticket item for the smaller model -- following the addition of 4K video last year -- is a new f/1.8 12-megapixel "low-light loving" camera with optical-image stabilization. There's also a new four-color LED flash, a "flicker-sensor" to avoid flickering lights in videos and RAW DNG capture, plus Apple says shutter lag is down to 25 milliseconds.
Optical-image stabilization has been around the 7 Plus is getting a new feature to differentiate itself: a dual-camera system. The new cameras, both at 12 megapixels, operate together in ways we've seen before from other manufacturers. They're set at different focal lengths -- one wide, the other telephoto -- which allows you to "optically zoom" to 2x by switching cameras. You do this by tapping on a button above the on-screen shutter key, and you can also swipe across to zoom digitally up to 10x.
For the first time in the iPhone's history, the new phones are "water and dust resistant," up to IP67 (i.e., splashproof, not submersible). As we expected, there's no headphone port to be seen, but there's at least a stereo speaker for the first time. The home button no longer physically clicks in, but a haptic-feedback mechanism will trick your finger into thinking it has.
AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez:Tim Cook shows Maddie Ziegler the iPhone 7
The new iPhones are powered by Apple's latest in-house SoC, the A10 Fusion. As usual, Apple isn't giving firm figures on performance here. It says it's 64-bit, 4-core chip, with two high-power cores and two low-power cores to save battery life. The iPhone 7 lasts two hours more than the iPhone 6S, while the iPhone 7 Plus lasts one hour more than the iPhone 6S, apparently.
Apple's sticking with comparative and superlative statements, like "40 percent faster processing" and "two-thirds the power" graphics performance when compared to the 6S's A9. It's "the most powerful chip ever in a smartphone" and capable of rendering "400 flying monkeys" in Oz: Broken Kingdom.
Apple has finally dropped its much-maligned 16GB storage option. The lowest storage tier is now 32GB, with the middle- and top-tier options sitting at 128GB and 256GB, respectively. Essentially, it's doubled everything.
There's no resolution bump -- we're still talking 1,334 x 750 for the 4.7-inch 7 and 1,920 x 1,080 for the 5.5-inch 7 Plus -- but there is an improvement in color gamut. Both phones now support the P3 color space, which debuted on the iMac range before heading to the iPad Pro 9.7.
Apple killed the headphone jack. It's betting that the future of headphones is wireless, and that's a fair bet. But the vast majority of headphones in stores (and in homes) are wired. To remedy that, it's packing in Lightning EarPods and this beautiful and elegant Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter in the box:
Apple says it's doing this because it has the "courage to move on, do something new that betters all of us."
The wireless-headphone market isn't quite there yet, and the Lightning-headphone market barely exists. Apple has the power to boost that market, of course, and it's doing that with new $159 wireless earphones called "AirPods" as well as a ton of new wireless Beats headphones.
Pre-orders begin this Friday, and it'll be available on Sept. 16th. The iPhone 7 starts at $649 for the 32GB model while the iPhone 7 Plus starts at $769.
The iPhone 7 Plus finally brings a dual camera to the iPhone line.The antenna bands on the back of the previous models have been made more discreet; they now hug the edges of the device. This repositioning has allowed Apple to squeeze in larger camera bumps on the back. To that end, Apple has thrown improved cameras into both its new phones.
For both devices, the new FaceTime HD camera ups the resolution from 5 to 7 megapixels. The big-ticket item for the smaller model -- following the addition of 4K video last year -- is a new f/1.8 12-megapixel "low-light loving" camera with optical-image stabilization. There's also a new four-color LED flash, a "flicker-sensor" to avoid flickering lights in videos and RAW DNG capture, plus Apple says shutter lag is down to 25 milliseconds.
Optical-image stabilization has been around the 7 Plus is getting a new feature to differentiate itself: a dual-camera system. The new cameras, both at 12 megapixels, operate together in ways we've seen before from other manufacturers. They're set at different focal lengths -- one wide, the other telephoto -- which allows you to "optically zoom" to 2x by switching cameras. You do this by tapping on a button above the on-screen shutter key, and you can also swipe across to zoom digitally up to 10x.
The new iPhones are powered by Apple's latest in-house SoC, the A10 Fusion. As usual, Apple isn't giving firm figures on performance here. It says it's 64-bit, 4-core chip, with two high-power cores and two low-power cores to save battery life. The iPhone 7 lasts two hours more than the iPhone 6S, while the iPhone 7 Plus lasts one hour more than the iPhone 6S, apparently.
Apple's sticking with comparative and superlative statements, like "40 percent faster processing" and "two-thirds the power" graphics performance when compared to the 6S's A9. It's "the most powerful chip ever in a smartphone" and capable of rendering "400 flying monkeys" in Oz: Broken Kingdom.
Apple has finally dropped its much-maligned 16GB storage option. The lowest storage tier is now 32GB, with the middle- and top-tier options sitting at 128GB and 256GB, respectively. Essentially, it's doubled everything.
There's no resolution bump -- we're still talking 1,334 x 750 for the 4.7-inch 7 and 1,920 x 1,080 for the 5.5-inch 7 Plus -- but there is an improvement in color gamut. Both phones now support the P3 color space, which debuted on the iMac range before heading to the iPad Pro 9.7.
Apple killed the headphone jack. It's betting that the future of headphones is wireless, and that's a fair bet. But the vast majority of headphones in stores (and in homes) are wired. To remedy that, it's packing in Lightning EarPods and this beautiful and elegant Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter in the box:
Apple says it's doing this because it has the "courage to move on, do something new that betters all of us."
The wireless-headphone market isn't quite there yet, and the Lightning-headphone market barely exists. Apple has the power to boost that market, of course, and it's doing that with new $159 wireless earphones called "AirPods" as well as a ton of new wireless Beats headphones.
Pre-orders begin this Friday, and it'll be available on Sept. 16th. The iPhone 7 starts at $649 for the 32GB model while the iPhone 7 Plus starts at $769.
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