If you are not "in" to Apple products, you might want to skip this post.
I am that geek who watches all of the Apple keynote addresses---all the way back to when Steve Jobs did them. Now it's Tim Cook and I'm just as enthusiastic. This time, it was 2 hours long. Had I not been laid up AND in the market to upgrade my iPhone, I probably wouldn't have taken that much time. Still, these addresses are always exciting. I'm not that person that has to have the very latest and greatest. I love my Apple products and do like to know exactly what the latest technology is. My current iPhone is the 5---which was my first . I've had it for 4 years around the 1st of October. So you see, I'm good with keeping what works and what I love.
Without further ado, here is my little report to save you 2 hours of your time:
The new iWatch looks amazing!
New features:
*You can actually write on your watch—like a text, right on the watch face.
*Disney animations have been added.
*It now can measure your heart rate.
*You can do Pokemon Go on it (FYI—Pokemon Go has been downloaded more than 500 million times and logged over 5 billion kilometers by participants). An added benefit of Pokemon Go--the watch let’s you know what you’ve accomplished in terms of fitness—heart, calories and distance--while playing the game. It alerts you when you are near an egg—eliminating the need to be constantly looking at it.
*The new watch is water proof—totally swim proof. It even calculates your workout in the water. It tailors to you and your pace.
*For the golfers, the new watch measures and recommends how to improve your golf swing.
*It has the brightest display of all Apple products so you can see it easily in the bright sunlight.
*The watch has built in GPS. With this you can find all hiking trails across the United States (maybe the world). It gives you the difficulty level and distance of the hike. It actually directs you so you can’t get lost. If you stray off the path, you will get an alert and be directed back. At the end of the hike, it gives you a summary of your activity.
*Apple has partnered with Nike for runners. I don’t know what it means, but the CEO of Nike says it gives runners the BEST running experience out there. It reminds you to run and encourages you. Every Sunday, it invites you to run—called “Just Do It Sundays." Apparently they’ve done studies. If you run on Sundays, it sets you up to have a more active week and productive week. The watch will cost $369.00.
*You can still get the original watch with the addition of faster core processors updated to the current one. It just will not have all of the latest features. It costs $269.00.
iPhone:
*Over 1,000,000,000—that's one billion iPhones have been sold.
*Your phone wakes just by picking it up. Swiping is no longer necessary.
*Tons of new apps have been added including Home kit—to manage devices at home or while you are away. You can lock and unlock doors, set security systems, turn on lights, open garage doors, etc.
*There are more things you can do with your texts. iMessages—confetti and stickers have been added.
*The new phone is thinner and comes in 2 sizes. It has a high gloss black finish. The basic phone comes in black aluminum, silver, gold or rose gold.
*New enclosure is water resistant. If you drop it in water it will be safe. You can't swim with it, but if it falls in the pool or gets rained on, it will be okay.
*Camera—best available. Everything is new about the camera. 12 MP and is faster. It takes great pictures in low light now too. There are two complete cameras. The second one has a telephoto lens. You just tap it to go from 1x all the way up to 10x with no blurring. They showed examples of photos taken with high-end cameras and comparing those with those taken with the iPhone. It has a new portrait feature that blurs the background and focuses on the person. It is the best camera ever made for a smart phone.
*The display is 25% brighter than the iOS 6 to make seeing it in the sun better.
*Audio—twice the volume and better speakers. It comes with an adaptor so you can continue to use your regular headphones. With the latest technology, you can have wireless ear buds. They are called “air pods” and cost $159.00.
While wearing them and listening to music, you can double tap one of the pods and access Siri. They work for 5 hours without recharging but the storage case is also the charging case which holds 24hrs worth of charge. If you take a call, the air pods automatically decrease the volume until you finish so you can have a conversation without having to remove them. These “air pods” work with all Apple devices including the watch. The sound is supposed to be incredible. They are easy to set up. When you open the case of the pods, a message pops up on your device that says “connect” and that’s it!
*Apple Pay—I’m not really interested in this, but keeping all of your credit card information is supposed to be very safe and secure. Hmmm, I do keep my Starbucks card on my phone so maybe that will be more secure now.
*The 7 has more than double the storage. This allows for unlimited picture storage and has more video capacity. You can even buy the older phones and they will come with more storage.
*Performance—fastest smartphone on the market. Better graphics. Longer battery life—lasts a minimum of 2 hours longer than iPhone 6 and depending on what you are doing, most phones will get 4 extra hours of battery life. The cost of the phone is $649.00---OUCH! With your carrier, the phone is $27.00 a month with a 2 year commitment. There is also another program called the iPhone Upgrade Program. For $32.00 a month, you get a new phone every year plus Apple Care.
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I'm definitely getting the new phone---well, after I've looked at it in person. If it's too big, I might just get another 5 if they are available. I love that size. Plus, when I got my last 5, it was free with my phone plan since the 6's were already out. I like many of the new features, but I don't have to have them. Mostly, I would like the better camera. I don't do a lot on my phone except talk on it and take pictures. I text when I'm forced to, but I'm too slow at it. Plus, I'm too verbose for texting!
As for the watch, I'm excited about it. I don't need it. Maybe I'll ask for it for Christmas. I don't think I know anyone who has the watch. I'll think about it.
There you go. You're welcome!
Thanks for the summary Barb!
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