Logan Baldridge ’15

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Apple’s September 6th event sent Apple fans, tech gurus, and ordinary consumers clamoring. On this fateful day, the Cupertino based company announced the iPhone 6, iPhone 6+, and the Apple Watch. In addition to the new hardware, Apple also released a new version of its mobile operating system, iOS 8.

Both the 6 and 6+ have a plethora of new features. However, the most striking new characteristic about the new iPhones is their larger screens. The iPhone 6 has a 4.7 inch display and the 6+ has a whopping 5.5 inch display. The new screens are much larger than previous models. The iPhone 5 had 4 inch display, and the iPhone 4s only had a 3.5 inch display. The display on the new screens is also improved. Both of the new iPhones feature “Retina HD Display”, higher contrast, and wider angle viewing. The iPhone 6 has a resolution of 1334 x 750 (326 pixels per inch) and the iPhone 6+ has an even higher resolution of 1920 x 1080 (401 pixels per inch). 

But these new fancy screens are not the only things the new iPhones have to boast about. Under their skin, the new iPhones have a faster A8 processor, a better camera, an improved motion sensor, and a larger battery. Despite all this new tech, Apple has managed to further slim down the 6 and 6+ to 6.9mm and 7.1mm respectively. Both of the new models are a few millimeters skinnier than the iPhone 5.

The iPhone 6+ has several new features not found on its slightly smaller sister. In addition to its massive screen the 6+ also features optical image stabilization for the camera, a longer battery life, and an iPad-style landscape mode that displays more content on the screen.

Running on these new flagship phones is Apple’s iOS 8, which Apple boasts as “the biggest iOS release ever.” The new operating system has stuck with the flat, colorful, and elegant user interface introduced in iOS 7. Some of the new features in iOS 8 include: multimedia messages, Healthbook, a revamped photos app, customizable keyboards, the ability to access files in iCloud, and what Apple calls “Continuity”. Possibly the most interesting of the new additions to the iOS, Continuity allows for the syncing of most tasks across Apple devices. Emails and documents can be started on one document and finished on another. Even phone calls and SMS messages can be answered on different devices. iOS 8 has also added a slew of new features for developers and for the first time permits third party apps to talk to one another. This means thats many new apps with features never seen before might be on their way.

Also unveiled at the headline event on September 6th is the new Apple Watch. The Apple Watch will be Apple’s first stab at the emerging smart watch market, which is already full of competitors like the Pebble Watch, Samsung Gear 2, LG G Watch, and the Martian Watch. The Apple Watch has a very interesting design with a knob on the side of the watch. This “digital crown,” as it’s being called, has the ability to zoom into apps when rotated. The Apple Watch has the ability to run applications like iMessages, Calendar, Mail, Photos, Camera, Weather and Apple Maps. The watch also comes with a suite of health sensor that can track workouts and send health information back to an iPhone. While no exact release date has been set, the Apple Watch is expected to hit Apple Stores early 2015.

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6+ went on sale September 19th with a lot of fanfare. People waited in line for hours and some even camped out in front of stores waiting to get their hands on a new iPhone. Apple sold about 10 million units on iPhone 6’s opening weekend, which is a record breaker for the company.