Kylee Deering | A&L Co-Editor
Recently, Apple held a keynote over the release of new and improved products. They talked about the updated features on the Apple Watch along with the much anticipated arrival of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. Apple has been radio-silent during the entire process. They were careful not to let the public know anything – until right before the reveal when they accidentally tweeted about the iPhone a little too early. They deleted the tweet right away, removing all other tweets from the account with it.
Between the two new phones, the new camera features include a wider aperture, increased shutter speed and optical stabilization. Essentially, they have brighter and better exposed images. The phone also comes with a telephoto lens; the 28mm lens from before, supplemented by a 56mm lens. This helps zoom while having less quality loss than digital zoom.
Apple did away with the headphone jack for several reasons. The iPhone has a larger battery life than previous phones. With the removal, it left more space for a bigger power bank. It also allows the phone to be water resistant. Instead of the headphone jack, Apple provides an adapter for normal headphones to plug into which plugs into the charging spot. The phone also comes with a pair of EarPods which plug into the same spot or AirPods which are Bluetooth.
Kyle Wiebers, junior, shares his thoughts. He says, “Going wireless is a bold move. The wireless headphones have pros and cons. Obviously, the camera is a great feature as a photographer as well. That’s something that’s exciting. It’s something that down the road, I’d be looking at getting.”
Along with the phone come improvements in the new A10 processor and iOS 10 update. There’s more power efficiency so it keeps the larger battery lasting longer. The iOS 10 update features some fairly big changes in Messages and other apps. The A10 processor is 2X faster than iPhone 6.
Both phones also boast larger screens with a wider color gamut, 25% brighter displays and 3D Touch. Apple decided to add new phone colors to choose from too.
The iPhone 7 and 7 Plus won’t be released until Friday, September 16 but they’re available for pre-order. Students at Buena Vista University are already buzzing about the new technology. Some have even decided to pre-order their phone, securing a purchase with Apple.
Justice Gage, senior, reflects on the product. He says, “I think the thing that’s working best in Apple’s favor is the removal of the headphone jack. I think that was a smart move because it was bound to happen anyway. I could see why people would not see the benefit of the so-called “AirPods,” because they’re small and you can lose them. But Bluetooth is a great technology and Apple did the next best thing they could and they were able to give us those headphones (instead).”
His opinion on the headphones differs from a lot of the general public right now. Only time will tell whether Apple’s new ideas are good ones when customers can get their hands on the new phones.
Photo by Kylee Deering
