Today was arguably, Apple’s biggest event of the year – the iPhone event. However, Apple announced more than just iPhones at this event. So in this article, we’re going to round up everything that Apple announced, including some new USB-C accessories.
Apple iPhone 15
First up, we have the new iPhone 15 series. As has been the case for the last few years, there’s four new models here: iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. The entire lineup moved over to USB-C this year. So you’re going to need to buy some new cables this year.
On the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, Apple brought over the Dynamic Island. So now the notch is gone from all new iPhones. It also brought in the A16 Bionic chipset. Now this might sound familiar, and that’s because it was on the iPhone 14 Pro series last year.
Over to the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. These phones got much bigger updates. Starting with the A17 Pro chipset. Apple appears to be moving away from “Bionic” here, and offering a huge upgrade in terms of performance here. In fact, it’s bringing some console games onto the iPhone. Which is huge news.
Let’s not forget that these are made of Titanium as well. Which makes them more durable, yet lighter. Apple also ditched the mute switch this year, only on the Pro models. And instead is giving us an Action Button, similar to the Apple Watch Ultra. This new button will still work as a mute button, if you press and hold. But you can also use it to do other things, like the flashlight, and even using the Shortcuts app.
The cameras also got a nice upgrade this year, particularly on the Pro Max model. Which now uses a 12-megapixel periscope lens. This is capable of doing 5x optical zoom. On both models, it has adjusted the punch in on the main 48-megapixel sensor, so you’re getting a low more focal lengths on these cameras.
iPhone 15 pre-orders will start on Friday, September 15. The iPhone 15 starts at $799, iPhone 15 Plus at $899. While the iPhone 15 Pro starts at $999 and the iPhone 15 Pro Max at $1,199. The iPhone 15 Pro Max is the only one that starts at 256GB and the only one that got a price increase.
iPhone 15 FineWoven Cases
Apple is ditching all of its Leather products, and instead going with a FineWoven case. Which looks a lot like suede, and actually looks really good. Surprisingly, it’s cheaper than the leather cases were, coming in at $59. For all four iPhone 15 models, they come in five colors: Taupe, Mulberry, Evergreen, Pacific Blue and Black.
Apple says that these cases are made from “durable microtwill, the material has a soft, suede-like feel. The FineWoven material was also designed with the earth in mind – it’s made from 68% post-consumer recycled content and significantly reduces carbon emissions compared to leather.”
iPhone 15 Silicon Cases
Despite many rumors in the past few days of Apple ditching the silicon cases too, they are still here. Coming in at $49 for the iPhone 15 series, they come in eight colors this year: Winter Blue, Orange Sorbet, Cypress, Storm Blue, Guava, Clay, Light Pink, and Black.
Apple Watch Series 9
Next up is the Apple Watch Series 9. The big thing that Apple talked about here is that the Series 9 is now carbon neutral. Thanks to making the casing from 100% recycled materials, as well as remaking the watch bands with recycled materials and also ditching leather. Apple did debut new FineWoven bands for the Apple Watch.
Apple is also debuting its biggest performance boost in years here, with the new S9 SIP. This is going to make the Apple Watch faster and possibly give it better battery life. It has also refreshed the health sensors, which should be more accurate, as well as a new U2 chip for Find My. Apple also upped the peak brightness here to 2,000 nits to match the original Apple Watch Ultra.
Pre-orders for the Apple Watch Series 9 are open right now, starting at $399 for the aluminum and $699 for stainless steel.
Apple Watch Ultra 2
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 still comes in only one color – natural titanium. So those rumors about a space black model appear to have been wrong. Instead, Apple decided to up the screen brightness here, to 3,000 nits peak brightness. Which is just insane. It’s also getting on-device processing for Siri. So you can use Siri even when you are not connected to the internet. Which, if you’re hiking, that might happen rather often.
The Ultra model is made from 95% recycled titanium this year, which is a huge difference from the original Ultra, which was all fresh titanium. Apple has added a new Modular Ultra watch face, which provides a ton of data on the watch face, including the left and right sides. Finally, Apple has also added more Alpine Loop, Trail Loop and Ocean Band colors.
Pre-orders for the Apple Watch Ultra 2 are already available, and will start shipping on September 22. It’s priced at $799.
USB-C AirPods Pro 2 & Earpods
Apple also announced a new version of the Earpods and the AirPods Pro 2. Both now come with USB-C. The AirPods Pro 2 are basically the same as before, but the port has changed over to USB-C. They will cost the same $249, and you will be able to buy just the case. Though that’s not yet appearing on Apple’s website.
The EarPods are essentially what you’d expect. It’s Apple’s wired earbuds now with USB-C. And these cost $19. They are available to buy now, and will be available in store on Friday.
2023-09-13 15:09:30