Apple unveiled today at its « It’s Glowtime » conference a range of new consumer devices, led by the iPhone 16 and the new generation of smartwatches, the Watch Series 10, and the AirPods 4. The highlight of the event was the updated designs of the products and support for artificial intelligence technologies.
In this report, Technology News highlights the most important announcements from Apple’s most important fall conference, focusing on the top 8 announcements made during the event.
Apple introduced the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, which come with new features including two additional buttons, one similar to a DSLR camera button used for capturing photos and videos, and adjusting settings quickly, and the other is the commands button that was exclusive to the Pro and Pro Max models of the iPhone 15 last year.
The rear cameras in the iPhone 16 feature a new design that allows for spatial video recording, to be displayed on Apple’s VR glasses.
Both phones come with the new A18 processor, which enables the operation of new AI-based features, with the starting price of the first one being $799 and the starting price of the Plus model being $899.
The Pro models of the iPhone 16 this year feature larger screens, with the Pro model having a 6.3-inch screen and the Pro Max model having a 6.9-inch screen.
Both phones also work with the optimized A18 Pro processor, with Apple promising that the Pro Max model will offer « the best battery life in iPhone history. »
The new cameras include a telephoto lens for up to 5 times optical zoom, a « Tetrabra Prism » design, in addition to a 48-megapixel ultra-wide camera.
The starting price of the iPhone 16 Pro is $999, and the Pro Max model requires at least $1199 to purchase.
Apple introduced the new generation of its smartwatches, the Watch Series 10, which features a thinner design and a wider and brighter OLED screen by 40%.
The watch includes advanced health features, including the ability to detect sleep apnea, a sensor to measure water depth and temperature.
The watch is available in polished aluminum versions in black, rose gold, and silver, as well as a version of polished titanium, which the company says is 20% lighter than the previous generation.
Prices start at $399.
Apple did not unveil a new generation of the Watch Ultra series, but it offered major technological updates to the latest generation, the Watch Ultra 2, now available in a new color, black titanium, with a « Milanese » strap made of corrosion-resistant titanium designed for diving.
These improvements target sports enthusiasts and outdoor enthusiasts with their robust design.
The company also unveiled the fourth generation of its wireless earbuds, which come with an open ear design and offer an enhanced sound experience thanks to the new H4 processor.
The earbuds are said to be « the most comfortable, » and there is an option that supports features like Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) and Transparency mode, allowing users to hear ambient sounds during use.
The earbuds come in two versions, with the starting price of the regular version being $129, while the version with Active Noise Cancellation starts at $179.
In an upcoming update, Apple’s latest AirPods Pro 2, launched last year, will be transformed into a custom hearing aid for individuals with mild to moderate hearing loss.
This feature is awaiting regulatory approval, including from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
In addition, the earbuds will support a clinical hearing test feature to protect the ears in noisy environments, with these features being launched in a free software update in more than 100 countries this fall.
Apple announced a minor update to its over-ear headphones, AirPods Max, which includes adding a USB-C charging port instead of a Lightning port, with the headphones available in new colors.
All iPhone 16 models are ready to run the first Apple Intelligence features, which will be introduced next month in the iOS 18.1 release, including the « Visual Intelligence » features revealed by the company today, with the ability to quickly search for information about objects captured by the camera directly without the need to keep the photos.
Apple will start accepting pre-orders for all the devices announced today, starting today, with shipping and availability starting on September 20. The artificial intelligence features will be available after receiving the iOS 18.1 updates in October, and the iOS 18 updates for iPhone 15 and earlier devices will be released on September 16.
