When September rolls around, we can usually expect three things: class or school starting, Labor Day and the release of Apple’s latest device.
On Sept. 12, 2018 Apple launched its next series of iPhone. Apple is releasing three iPhone X-styled devices. “I’m not excited about Apple’s release because they always come out with new iPhone before we have time to adjust to the previous release. However, people will continue to buy them to fit into society’s standard of cool,” senior Alisha Milliosa said.
The three iPhones that were released were the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Plus and the iPhone 9. The iPhone XS has a 5.8-inch screen. The iPhone XS Plus, according to Apple, is the biggest iPhone to date, with a 6.5-inch screen. This is about the size of last year’s release of the iPhone 8 Plus though that was only a 5.5-inch display and includes a home button. Lastly, the iPhone 9, sold as a cheaper model, has a 6.1-inch display and will be released in 7 different colors. All screens will have OLED display, like a portable handheld television.
All new iPhones hold the Apple A12 bionic chip that will be up to 25 percent faster than the chip placed in the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X. The new iPhones are supposed to have boosted performance, faster app loading time, and a triple lenses camera with each phone.
Last year’s release of the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and the iPhone X sparked concern about whether or not Apple skipped over making the iPhone 9. With this debut, many people are excited to see what was worth waiting for. “I do not like the fact that Apple is doing things backwards, almost like Benjamin Button. I hope it exceeds expectations since we did have to wait a year for it,” freshman Ari Figgs said.
Apple referred to the latest iPhone as an all-screen design, not including a home button as seen on previous generations of iPhones, which will take some time for people to adjust to.
“I just feel as if it’s inconvenient to remove the home button from Apple iPhone, things like screenshotting, and talking to Siri will be different. If Apple could create an indestructible phone I’d be satisfied,’’ senior Alexandria Bibbs said. According to Fortune, the newest model carries enough changes to make this one of Apple’s biggest iPhone updates in history. Along with the release of the three new iPhones, Apple has improved their prices, making it less expensive to obtain an iPhone.
This year the cheapest iPhone will be as low as $600, about $300-400 cheaper than previous releases, which will make the phone a major target because of its more affordable price.
“I love the fact that Apple now has affordable iPhone! As a college student with tuition, books and outside expenses, it can get very hectic. The cheaper iPhone is very beneficial,” senior Breanna Brown said.
For those who are not into Apple’s iPhone, they also released a New iPad Pro, Apple Watch Series 4, as well as an Apple Home Pod Mini.
The iPad Pros have the same style as the all-screen design iPhone X, which includes facial recognition, animoji, memoji and group video calls. The Apple Watch has a 15 percent larger screen, bigger battery for a longer life-span, as well as new EKG tech. EKGs, also known as electrocardiograms, monitor heart rate similar to the standard monitor on the Apple Watches Series 3. The new watches come in two sizes, 38mm and 42mm, and also include GPS. Apple will also offer a more affordable solution to its Home Pod with the Home Pod mini.
The new home pod minis feature a digital Siri, similar to Alexa from Amazon. It has lower quality audio, but is a cheaper alternative to the $319 prior release. Once again, the world stopped to stare at the new gadgets offered by the technology kings at Apple.
Ashllee Spurlock
adspurlock@vwu.edu
