IPHONE 7: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Apple has finally lifted the lid on the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, putting an end to months of rumours, speculation, and blurry factory-floor leaks.
Related: iPhone 7 Deals and Contracts
On Wednesday, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco. The new handsets are direct sequels to last year's iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, and feature a new A10 chip, improved cameras, and stereo speakers. Oh, and they're both water-resistant – huzzah!
Here’s a quick rundown of the iPhone 7 specs:
- 4.7-inch screen
- 1,334 x 750 pixel display (326ppi pixel density)
- Dimensions: 158.2 x 67.1 x 7.1mm
- Weight: 138g
- A10 Fusion (64-bit, quad-core CPU, six-core GPU)
- 32/128/256GB storage
- 12-megapixel main camera (OIS, f/1.8)
- 7-megapixel secondary camera
- Stereo speakers
- Fingerprint scanner
- IP67 water-resistant
- iOS 10 software
- Colours: Jet Black, Black, Silver, Gold, Rose Gold
So what's different about the iPhone 7 Plus? Well, you're getting a 5.5-inch screen with a 1,920 x 1,080 pixel display – that's 401ppi. The dimensions are (obviously) larger at 183.3 x 77.9 x 7.3mm, and it's also heavier at 188 grams. Finally, there's a dual-camera module on the back that boasts a wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens – it's a great feature that, unfortunately, didn't make it to the iPhone 7.
WATCH: iPhone 7 vs iPhone 7 Plus – What's the difference?
Read on for the in-depth details of all the new iPhone 7 specs and features.
- image: https://assets1.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/handsets/apple-iphone-7-black/front-small.png
image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/networks/three-regular.png
24 monthsimage: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/retailers/three-regular.png
See deal - image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/handsets/apple-iphone-7-rose-gold/front-small.png
image: https://assets1.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/networks/bt_mobile-regular.png
24 monthsimage: https://assets1.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/retailers/bt_mobile-regular.png
See deal - image: https://assets1.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/handsets/apple-iphone-7-plus-rose-gold/front-small.png
image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/networks/vodafone-regular.png
24 monthsimage: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/retailers/mobile_phones_direct-regular.png
See deal
NO HEADPHONE JACK ON IPHONE 7?!
Yes, it actually happened. One of the headline iPhone 7 features is the absence of a headphone jack.
Our beloved 3.5mm audio port is gone, which means your standard headphone connection no longer works. Explaining the curious choice, Phil Schiller, Apple's SVP of Worldwide Marketing, said: "The reason to move on, it really comes down to one word: courage. The courage to move on, to do something new, that betters all of us."
Fortunately, it's not as bad as it seems. Apple has designed new earbuds that feature a Lightning connector, and will bundle these with the iPhone 7. You'll also find a 3.5mm-to-Lightning adapter in the box too, which means you can still use your old headphones with the iPhone 7. Plus, a bunch of third-party audio companies are already selling headphones with Lightning connectors (with many more on the way), so you've got plenty of choice.
image: http://static.trustedreviews.com/94/00003ab65/da23_orh616w616/apple-airpods-8.png
Apple's new wireless AirPods
And lest we forget, there's also Bluetooth. There are plenty of Bluetooth headphones in the wild, many of which offer seriously impressive audio performance. Apple announced its own wireless Apple AirPods during the keynote, which feature a new W1 chip. So those will work fine too. Plus, there are new wireless Beats that run on that same W1 chip. Cheers, Dre.
The new AirPods will also be coming in "late October" for £159/$159.
- image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/handsets/apple-iphone-7-plus-black/front-small.png
image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/networks/vodafone-regular.png
24 monthsimage: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/retailers/mobile_phones_direct-regular.pngSee deal - image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/handsets/apple-iphone-7-plus-rose-gold/front-small.png
image: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/networks/three-regular.png
24 monthsimage: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/retailers/three-regular.pngSee deal - image: https://assets1.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/handsets/apple-iphone-7-plus-rose-gold/front-small.pngimage: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/networks/vodafone-regular.png
24 monthsimage: https://assets0.uswitch.com/s3/uswitch-assets-eu/mobiles-web/retailers/mobile_phones_direct-regular.pngSee deal
IPHONE 7 DESIGN: IT'S BASICALLY THE SAME
The iPhone 7 has changed very little compared to the iPhone 6S. For a quick rundown, here's what Jony Ive, Chief Design Officer at Apple, had to say:
"An aluminium body and form sheet of glass describe a singular shape, one made with very few, very precisely engineered parts. Our obsession remains to continuously simplify and improve. From sculpting the camera housing directly out of the aluminium body to embedding the antenna within the enclosure, essentially making it disappear, each refinement serves to bring absolute unity and efficiency to the design."
Right – sounds fancy. But there's a much more important design change he glossed over...
IPHONE 7 WATER-RESISTANCE: SPLASH AWAY, FRIENDS
The new iPhone 7 is water-resistant and dust-resistant. Specifically, it's IP67-certified, which is better than any previous iPhone ever.
This basically means that dunking your phone in the bath is still stupid, but using it in the rain shouldn’t fry the hardware. Still, as is always the case with water-resistance, we recommend thinking of it as a last-resort feature rather than something you should try to push to its limits.
IPHONE 7 CAMERA: DUAL-LENS IS A REALITY
Apple showed off a number of cool new camera features at the September keynote. For a start, the iPhone 7 now features optical image stabilisation, which serves to reduce blur in images. There's also a wider f/1.8 aperture that takes in 50% more light, as well as: a new Apple-designed ISP, a six-element lens, True Tone Flash (again), and a 12-megapixel image sensor.
“Customers are going to love taking pictures with iPhone 7,” said Schiller. “This is the best camera we’ve ever made on any iPhone. It’s also the best camera we’ve had on the front side. There’s a new 7-megapixel FaceTime HD camera. This is up from 5 megapixels."
But the iPhone 7 Plus camera is even better, and that's because it features a dual-lens camera – one is wide-angle, and one is telephoto.
But there is a dual-lens camera on the iPhone 7 Plus; one lens is wide-angle, while the other is telephoto. As well as improving zoom, it also enables incredibly shallow depth of field.
Related: iPhone 7 camera in-depth
image: http://static.trustedreviews.com/94/00003ab4c/bf40_orh616w616/iphone-7-plus-camera.png
When the new camera ISP scans the scene of a photograph you're taking, it uses machine learning to create a depth map of the image. This allows the camera to keep the foreground in focus, and applies a blur to the background. On the user end, you just need to select the "Portrait" setting, which launches the telephoto lens. You should automatically see the depth effect generated in real-time as you look at your screen.
"It's something that is illustrative of a great camera," explained Schiller. "The quality of that background blur is called bokeh, and the quality of that is something found in great camera systems."
WATCH: What's new in the Apple Watch 2
Jason Nocito, a professional photographer who had early access to the iPhone 7 Plus, said: "I loved the depth-of-field capabilities and the ability to shoot fast without losing sharpness. This iPhone proves you don’t need a five-figure rig to be a great photographer. This camera is gonna change the game."
Here's the new shallow-depth-of-field processing in action:
image: http://static.trustedreviews.com/94/00003ab58/981f_orh616w616/iphone-7-and-plus-camera-tools-5.png
Apple's example of its new 'shallow depth of field' featureIPHONE 7 STORAGE: NEWER, BIGGER OPTIONS
Apple has finally ditched the 16GB base storage variant, which is sure to please media-hungry and app-hungry users. Instead, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus start at 32GB, just like the rival Galaxy S7. Apple has also added a new storage tier – 256GB. The maximum iPhone storage is now higher than some MacBook models. Hallelujah.
So to recap, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are both available in 32GB, 128GB, and 256GB.
IPHONE 7 A10 PROCESSOR: APPLE’S MOST POWERFUL CHIP EVER
Both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus feature Apple’s new system-on-a-chip, the A10 Fusion. It’s a 64-bit, quad-core processor that Apple promises is 40% faster than the A9, and twice as fast as the A8. Whoosh!
Two of the A10 Fusion’s cores are high performance, and will handle the most demanding tasks. There are also two high-efficiency cores that run at a fifth of the power, which are used for more menial tasks. To manage this process, Apple has designed a new performance controller that decides which cores to use when.
image: http://static.trustedreviews.com/94/00003ab73/b73e_orh616w616/rose-gold-7.jpg
Apple's new iPhone 7 in 'Rose Gold'
Apple also says that the graphical performance of the A10 Fusion is 50% better than that of the A9, and three times as fast as the A8. That’s thanks to a six-core GPU that uses two-thirds of the A9’s power and a half of the A8’s power. Apparently, the A10 Fusion is 240 times faster than the original iPhone processor.
It’s rumoured to have been built by Taiwan’s TSMC, although it isn't clear whether it was manufactured on a 16nm process, or a more efficient 14nm process like the Snapdragon 820 that features in the Samsung Galaxy S7.
NEW IPHONE 7 COLOURS REVEALED
Apple has introduced new colour options with the iPhone 7. There’s the usual Gold, Silver, and Rose Gold, for a start. And now there’s also Black and Jet Black. What happened to Space Grey? No idea, but it’s definitely dead.
Oh, and don't forget that Jet Black is only available on 128GB and 256GB models. It's also the only glossy colour option – the rest are matte.
IPHONE 7 DISPLAY: A NEW RETINA HD DISPLAY
Apple has also improved the displays on its new handsets, which feature a new Retina HD display. The display is 25% brighter than last year's model, and offers a newly wide colour gamut that achieves "cinema P3 standard colours". Apple also boasted of "end-to-end" colour management, and the return of the integrated 3D Touch layer that debuted on last year's iPhone 6S.
IPHONE 7 SOFTWARE: IOS 10, FINALLY!
As expected, Apple’s new iOS 10 software will debut on the iPhone 7.
image: http://static.trustedreviews.com/94/00003972a/7299/ios-22.jpg
Apple's iOS 10 is launching on the iPhone 7
The software is much smarter than last year’s iOS 9, and features a more powerful lockscreen with notifications and advanced widgets. The new OS will also make better use of 3D Touch, with many functions accessible without having to enter a given app. Siri will also be far more powerful thanks to the (long-awaited) addition of third-party app support, and a new Home app will provide better support for smart home technology.
You can read more about iOS 10 here.
IPHONE 7 SPEAKERS: NOW IN STEREO
Apple has finally moved to a stereo speaker system, putting speakers at the top and bottom of the phone. This should result in better audio in landscape mode, and you'll also get double the loudness of the iPhone 6S. Speaking at the announcement, Schiller added: "They [also] sound better because they have an increased dynamic range."
IPHONE 7 BATTERY LIFE: LONGEST BATTERY LIFE EVER, APPARENTLY
Apple reckons the iPhone 7 can manage 40 hours of Wi-Fi browsing, and 60 hours for the iPhone 7 Plus. Watching video wirelessly will kill your iPhone 7 after 13 hours; after 14 hours for the iPhone 7 Plus.
We don't yet have the exact battery capacity, however. We'll also have to wait for a review model before we can say anything about battery life for sure. Here are Apple's figures:
image: http://static.trustedreviews.com/94/00003ab70/7123_orh616w616/iphone-7-and-plus-battery-life.png
IPHONE 7 RELEASE DATE AND PRICE
Both new phones will be coming to the UK. The iPhone 7 pre-order date is 9 September, while the iPhone 7 release date is 16 September. The phones will ship in 28 countries at launch, with a further 30 countries getting the handsets a week later.
You can now pre-order the new handsets from networks like EE, O2, and Vodafone. Apple's SIM-free pricing is as follows:
- iPhone 7 | 32GB | £599 / $649
- iPhone 7 | 128GB | £699 / $749
- iPhone 7 | 256GB | £799 / $849
- iPhone 7 Plus | 32GB | £719 / $769
- iPhone 7 Plus | 128GB | £819 / $869
- iPhone 7 Plus | 256GB | £919 / $969
The iPhone 7 launches around one year after the iPhone 6S, which was Apple’s best-selling phone to date, setting a new first-weekend sales record of 13 million models – that was up from 10 million iPhone 6 and 6 Plus units sold in 2014. However, many analysts and bookmakers are expecting the iPhone 7 to under-perform on the shop-floor compared to its predecessor.
Related: Apple Watch 2: What you need to know
Watch our iPhone SE video review:
What do you think of the iPhone 7? Let us know in the comments.
Read more at http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/iphone-7-release-date-price-rumours-video-images-features-uk#zHAocwRP1yvyhiSo.99
0 التعليقات: