Taking a look back at another week of news and headlines from Cupertino, this week’s Apple Loop includes the big talking points from this week’s launch event, the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, and iPhone 14 Pro, the new A16 and older A15 chips, the seductive Dynamic Island, the problem with eSIMs, satellite SOS options, the Apple Watch Ultra, the worry of Apple Watch’s medical data, AirPods Pro go quietly, and Tim Cook’s answer to awkward messaging apps.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the very many discussions that have happened around Apple over the last seven days (and you can read my weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes).
The new iPhone 14
This week saw Apple’s “Far Out” event with new iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods, and naturally, these dominate Apple Loop this week. Let’s start with Apple’s view on the new products and what they say about the future direction of the company:
“Apple today announced iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, the most advanced Pro lineup ever, featuring the Dynamic Island — a new design that introduces an intuitive way to experience iPhone — and the Always-On display. Powered by A16 Bionic, the fastest chip ever in a smartphone,
“iPhone 14 Pro introduces a new class of pro camera system, with the first-ever 48MP Main camera on iPhone featuring a quad-pixel sensor, and Photonic Engine, an enhanced image pipeline that dramatically improves low-light photos. These groundbreaking advancements make iPhone even more indispensable for everyday tasks, creative projects, and now even emergency situations with features such as Emergency SOS via satellite and Crash Detection. “
Just How Fast Is The iPhone 14 Pro
The key product of the launch, and the key product for Apple as a company both in identity and income, is the iPhone 14 Pro (and the slightly larger iPhone 14 Pro Max). This is not a huge step forward for all the talk of being the best iPhone ever.
“…shows the new iPhone with a single-core score of 1879 and a multi-core score of 4664. The iPhone 13 Pro scores 1707 in single-core and 4659 in multi-core, only being marginally slower than the latest high-end iPhone .
“Despite the smaller jump in performance that some may have hoped, Apple says the A16 Bionic chip is “the fastest chip ever in a smartphone.” The A16 Bionic has a more powerful GPU that can provide up to 50% more memory bandwidth for graphics-intensive games.”
The Older Heart Of The iPhone 14
The lower tier of the iPhone has seen two notable changes. The first is that we have lost the ‘Mini’ form factor, with the two models as the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus. Not everything has been supersized, because the processor, the heart of the iPhone, will not follow the Pro models and pick up the new A16 chipset… instead, the lower tier smartphones will be on the now lower-tier A15 chipset that debuted last year:
“The decision not to update the chipset for the standard iPhone 14 isn’t exactly a surprising one. Analysts like Ming-Chi Kuo and reporters like Mark Gurman have been predicting the move for months, and the chip shortage isn’t quite over yet. Using tried and true chips that Apple’s manufacturer already has experience making could help ensure that there are enough processors to meet demand. The older chip could also keep prices down at a time when inflation is bumping up the cost of other gadgets.”
(The Verge).
Apple’s Hyacinth Bucket Moment With The Dynamic Island
One of the notable design differences in the new phones is the replacement of the notch for a large pill-shaped cutout, a style that several Android smartphones have utilised in years past. Only Apple could come up with a pretentious marketing name… meet the Dynamic Island. Now, the UI touch of bringing up black alert boxes that go around the cutout and mask the ‘dead space’ is a cute one, albeit one that will dominate both the UI and the discussion with the acerbic reactions:
“During the company’s live event on Wednesday, customers were met the Dynamic Island, which replaces the iPhone’s usual notch and expands and contracts into different shapes to share alerts and other activity. “Each alert has its own personality, and has been designed with its own unique character,” Apple says. The Dynamic Island also displays background activity or a phone call.”
(CNet).
No More SIM Cards Will Be An iPhone Pain Point
While this simplifies the construction of the iPhone and the activation process with US networks, the unilateral decision to make this the case for every iPhone 14 model in the US mean international travellers will be unable to purchase or use local SIM cards at their destinations, global SIM cards, or the like. Apple has, essentially, decided that SIM-swapping is no longer a feature US customers will receive
“Support for eSIM was added to earlier iPhone models starting in 2018. Still, the decision to rely exclusively on eSIM isn’t sitting well among international travellers, who use physical SIM cards to change carriers when visiting countries outside the US. Detractors argue that it risks creating a hassle for non-tech savvy vacationers who are unfamiliar with eSIM technology.”
(PC Mag).
Calling Thunderbird 5 In An Emergency
Apple has added satellite connectivity to the iPhone 14 handsets, but don’t go expecting too much from this. At the moment, data rates are minimal, and Apple has decided that it will be limited to SOS messaging in the event of assistance required while away from a regular network:
“In case of an injury in the backcountry or some such situation, users can activate the emergency SOS feature if they have an iPhone 14 or 14 Pro, both of which have an updated wireless chipset that allows it.
“The new feature is different from the satellite-based data and text connectivity incoming from Lynk and, assuming they can get it to work, T-Mobile and Starlink. Those are essentially orbital cell towers that are strong enough to reach and receive signal from the surface,
(TechCrunch).
Going Large With Three New Apple Watches
Both the Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch SE, much like the iPhone 14 handsets, are incremental updates over the previous Series 7 and SE wearables. It’s the third watch and the first in a new line, pushing the idea of what a smartwatch can achieve (albeit one priced at $799). Meet the Apple Watch Ultra:
“A chunky, expensive and powerful watch aimed at hikers, marathon runners and scuba divers, the Ultra features larger buttons for gloved use, a battery life that the company says will peak at 60 hours after optimisations are released this autumn, and a titanium case that rises up to protect “the biggest brightest screen ever on an Apple Watch”.”
(The Guardian).
Women’s Health On The Watch
One area that needs careful attention is the new Apple Watch feature on Women’s Health and the ability to track a menstrual cycle. With the recent overturning of Roe vs Wade, the use and access to health data is a not inconsequential point. Apple has stated that it is “…designed with the same privacy protections as with all other health data.” Is that enough protection, asks Stanford Institute’s privacy and data fellow Dr. Jennifer King:
“Yet, even with stringent built-in privacy, there’s still the issue of law enforcement being able to access your device. If they were trying to use this data as a way to understand your reproductive cycle, King said, “then we get into that fight around ‘can they make me unlock my watch?’ ‘Can they make me unlock my phone?’ ‘Is there a way for me to just delete that data quickly with no trace?'”
(Mashable).
A Quieter Experience With AirPods Pro
The latest version of Apple’s wireless headphones comes with a brand new audio processing and an upgraded chipset with the H2 silicon lying at the heart of the new AirPods Pro, with Apple claiming up to twice as much noise0cancelling power over previous models
“The H2 chip allows the new earbuds to cancel “up to twice as much noise” over the first generation AirPods Pro, Apple says in a press release. The new buds and the H2 chip also offer an improved Adaptive Transparency mode. And Apple also says the AirPods Pro have a new low-distortion audio driver and custom amplifier for “richer bass” and “crystal-clear sound across a wider range of frequencies.”
(The Verge).
And Finally…
For all of Apple’s lofty goals about benefitting its customers, sometimes the arrogance seeps through. In a discussion around messaging standards, Tim Cook was asked about both the RCS messaging standard that Apple has not adopted and the interoperability of files. Cook’s solution? “I would love to convert you to an iPhone”:
“I don’t hear our users asking that we put a lot of energy” into RCS, says Tim Cook in response to a question at Code. “I would love to convert you to an iPhone.” “I can’t send my mom certain videos,” says the questioner. “Buy your mom an iPhone,” says Tim.
(Nilay Patel, via Reddit)
Apple Loop brings you seven days worth of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future. Last week’s Apple Loop can be read here, or this week’s edition of Loop’s sister column, Android Circuit, is also available on Forbes.
