Apple's "It's Glowtime" Event Recap
Today Apple held their "It's Glowtime" event. Today's announcement was just about 100 minutes long and it was full of a lot of information. As expected Apple introduced new iPhones, new Apple Watches, and AirPods. Let us start with the AirPods.
AirPods
Apple has long been in the headphones game and they have had a number of various headphones available for purchase over the years. In 2016 Apple released their first set of wireless headphones, called the AirPods. Over the last 8 years they have released a variety of new models. Today, there are two new various of the AirPods 4. The AirPods 4 take their cues from the 3rd Generation AirPods and the AirPods Pro, but there are in fact two distinct models, the AirPods 4 and the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation.
AirPods 4
The AirPods 4 are meant to replace the AirPods 2, but have a shape similar to that of the AirPods 3rd generation. The H2 chip that powers the AirPods 4 enables a number of features including Voice Isolation. Voice Isolation will remove background noise and will allow you to sound clearer on calls.
The second new feature is head tracking, so that you will be able to track shaking or nodding your head to be able to respond to Siri announcements.
The case of the AirPods 4 are USB-C, which is a change from the AirPods 2nd generation and the AirPods 3rd generation, which were both charged Lighting. However, the AirPods Pro 2 do have a USB-C case. AirPods 4 are available for pre-order today and will cost $129. They will be available on September 20th.
AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation
The AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have all of the same features as the AirPods 4, but have even more features. As the name implies, the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation, like the AirPods Pro 2, does support Active Noise Cancellation. When you have Active Noise Cancellation enabled background noise will be reduced so that the sound that is coming out of your AirPods will be clearer. This will reduce the instances where you need to adjust the volume up just to drown out the background noise.
There are those instances when you may want to switch between Active Noise Cancellation and just standard listening. The AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation also have Adaptive Audio. Adaptive Audio automatically blends Transparency Mode and Active Noise Cancellation and it does this dynamically as external noise changes. This is a plus if you do not want to have to keep adjusting not only the listening mode, but also the volume.
The AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have a USB-C case, but they also supports Qi-2 charging. This means that you can use the Apple Watch charger or any other Qi or Qi-2 compatible charger to charge your AirPods 4.
If you need to use Find My on your AirPods, the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation also have a speaker that will allow you to more easily find your AirPods.
The AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation are available to pre-order today for $179 and they will be available starting on September 20th. Next, let us look at the iPhone.
iPhone
The big draw for Apple's September event is the iPhone. Today Apple unveiled four new iPhones, the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max. All of these support Apple Intelligence, meaning that they have 8GB of RAM. The two models have a number of common features, let us look at those.
Common Features
There are a number of features coming to both the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lines. The biggest change is called "Camera Control". Camera Control is a new button on all of the phone models that will allow you to control various aspects of the camera using certain gestures. You can press and easily swipe between five different functions: Exposure, Depth, Zoom, Cameras, Styles, and Tone. This will make it easier to quickly switch between functions.
One of the features that was introduced in 2017 with the iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and iPhone X was the addition of wireless charging, using the Qi charging standard. This has been a standard for all iPhones since then. MagSafe is great for charging without cables, but it can be a bit slower; but no more.
Starting with the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro you can charge using MagSafe for up to 25 watts provided you have a 30-watt power adapter, or higher. This is an improvement over the maximum 15 watts provided with the previous adapter. You will need to purchase a new adapter to have this work properly.
The display on both the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro are Retina OLED displays. They still have the same brightness values of 1000 nits during typical use, 1600 nits when looking at HDR content, and 2000 nits max brightness when outdoors. However, the big change is that the minimum brightness can now go down to 1 nit. This is great for dark rooms, because the brightness can go even lower.
The iPhone has a cellular modem and the 5G modem is in the 16 and 16 Pro, but what has changed is the Wireless standard. The new iPhones support Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be). These are the first Apple devices to support Wi-Fi 7. Many will not need it now, but it will be great a few years down the road when Wi-Fi 7 is more ubiquitous.
Now, let us look at specific features for each of the models.
iPhone 16
The iPhone 16 often gets features that were previously only available on the Pro line. In the past this has included the Dynamic Island, but this year the iPhone 16 gets the Action Button. The Action Button is a customizable button that will allow users to choose what action to perform. This could be opening the camera, handling the ringer, or even running a shortcut depending on time of day.
The big change with the iPhone 16 is the new camera system. This includes a 48 Megapixel Fusion camera with a 2x Telephoto lens. This is done on the same lens. Similarly, the Ultra Wide camera enables Macro photography, which is new for the iPhone 16.
One of the features that was only available on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max was the ability to record Spatial videos. Now that comes to the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, and you can record up to 1080p at 30 frames per second.
The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus are powered by the A18 processor, which is an improvement over the A16 on the previous iPhone 15. The A18 is up to 20% faster than previous models and up to 2x faster than the A16 Bionic chip, when it comes to Machine Learning operations. Beyond being faster, the A18 is able to perform the same workload with 30% less power, which means that the battery should last even longer.
The iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus have the same screen sizes as the iPhone 15 line. This means that the iPhone 16 has a 6.1-inch screen while the iPhone 16 Plus has a 6.7-inch screen and both models come in five colors, Black, White, Pink, Teal, and Ultramarine and it comes in three storage sizes, 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB. The iPhone 16 is $799, $899, and $1099 for each size. Meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Plus is $899, $999, and $1199 for the same sizes.
You can pre-order the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus this Friday, September 13th, beginning at 7 a.m. Pacific time.
iPhone 16 Pro
The iPhone Pro line is where the latest and greatest features. One of the most used features is the camera, and the new 48 Megapixel camera system. Then new camera system allows for recording video at 4K at 120 frames per second with Dolby Vision. This is an increase from 4K for 60 frames per second, so this is a huge improvement. Along with this, you can even adjust the speed later in the Photos app. The Ultra Wide camera on the iPhone 16 Pro Max is now a 48 Megapixel camera. This is an increase from the previous 12MP. An even better improvement is a zero-lag shutter. This results in photos being taken even faster, and this is all made These new camera system is made possible with the A18 Pro.
The A18 Pro is even more powerful than the A17 Pro. The A18 Pro has 17% faster memory bandwidth. This bandwidth increase means that the CPU can be up to 20% faster and hardware acceleration can provide ray tracing up to 2x as fast. Because these are faster, they should result in less battery usage. The A18 Pro enables even faster USB 3 speeds and it has new video encoders, which also enables the 4K at 120 Frames per second.
The sizes of the iPhone 16 Pro has changed slightly, by 0.2-inches. This means that the iPhone 16 Pro is now 6.3-inches and the iPhone 16 Pro Max has a 6.9-inch screen. The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max comes in four colors, Natural Titanium, Black Titanium, White Titanium, and Desert Titanium. The "Desert" color replaces the Blue with the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max.
Just like with the iPhone 15 Pro, the iPhone 16 Pro comes in 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB models. The prices are for these are $999, $1099, $1299, and $1499 respectively. The iPhone 16 Pro Max comes in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB options. These are $1199, $1399, and $1599 respectively.
These devices all have the A18 Pro processor. Pre-order start this Friday, September 13th and 7am Pacific Time with delivery starting next Friday, September 20th.
Apple Watch
The Apple Watch has gotten some updates as well. The Apple Watch Series 10 is another Apple Watch model that has some significant changes, including a new design. The Apple Watch Series 10 has a slightly in screen size, from 41mm and 45mm on the Series 9 to 42mm and 46mm on the Series 10. This is a slight increase, but not the only change with the screen.
The Apple Watch has always had an OLED display, in order to save battery. The Series 4 introduced the LTPO OLED Retina screen. The Series 5 introduced the Always On display and this remains on the Series 10. However, The Series 10 now has an LTPO3 screen that is an "Wide-angle OLED". This means that the screen will be able to be seen more clearly when viewing at an angle. While you might not think about it, there are many situations where you might look at your Apple Watch at an angle, including sitting, typing, or even using your iPhone. In fact, when viewing your Series 10 at an angle it should be up to 40% brighter, making it that much easier to see the information.
The Apple Watch Series 10 comes in two finishes, Aluminum and Titanium. The Aluminum some new colors including Jet Black, Rose Gold, and Silver. The prices for the Apple Watch Series 10 remain the same at $399 for the 42mm and $429 for the 46mm. The cellular models are $100 more at $499 and $529 respectively.
The Titanium replaces the previous Ceramic version and comes in three colors, Slate, Gold, and Natural finishes. The Titanium version comes in the same two sizes, 42mm and 46mm and like the previous Ceramic models, are GPS + Cellular versions. The 42mm starts at $699 and the 46mm starts at $749.
All Series 10 Apple Watches can be pre-ordered today and will be available starting on September 20th.
Other Changes
The AirPods Max got a slight update with some new colors and USB-C, but no other significant changes. The new colors available are Blue, Purple, Midnight, Starlight, and Orange. These still cost $549, can be pre-ordered today, and will be available on September 20th.
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 also got a small update, specifically there s a new Black Titanium color. To go with the new Black Titanium color there are new matching Milanese loop bands for both the Black and Natural Titanium. There are also some new Alpine Loop, Trail Loop, and Ocean Band for the Ultra 2.
OS Releases
The last item to cover is the operating systems that will run these new devices. iOS 18, iPadOS 18, watchOS 11, visionOS 2, and macOS Sequoia will all be released on Monday, September 16th.
Closing Thoughts
If you are in the market for a new Apple Watch or AirPods, you can pre-order them today and they will be available on September 20th. If you want to purchase a new iPhone 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro, or 16 Pro Max you will be able to pre-order them at 5am Pacific Time on Friday, September 13th, 2024. You can get your pre-order ready now, so it will be a faster checkout at pre-order time.
The AirPods 4, Apple Watch Series 10, updated Apple Watch Ultra 2, and AirPods Max can all be pre-ordered today.
All of the products announced will be available on September 20th and the new operating systems will be available on Monday, September 16th.
You can watch the "It's Glowtime" event on the Apple Events website, on YouTube, or even via Apple's Podcasts app.
Sources:
Apple Newsroom: iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus
Apple Newsroom: iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max
Apple Newsroom: AirPods 4 and AirPods Max
Apple Newsroom: Apple Watch Series 10