Apple Media Event – Overview and Summary
This spring Apple held it’s Media Event on March 21st.
Let’s jump straight into the details.
Today, the following things were released:
- iPhone SE
- iPad Pro with 9.7inch display
- iOS 9.3
- Apple Watch Nylon Straps
- Health Apps with CareKit
iPhone SE
Apple released a new iPhone SE with 4-inch display. It looks visually almost identical to the previous iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S, but what matters is inside.
iPhone SE has the new A9 chip that is also used in iPhone 6S and it uses the same M9 graphics as the iPhone 6S. Camera was also borrowed off the iPhone 6S with a 12-megapixel sensor that has True-tone flash and also Retina flash for the FaceTime camera. Battery was improved over the iPhone 5S and it has more LTE bands for those who travel around the world. “Hey Siri” function is now active, like it is in the iPhone 6S. Apple advertised iPhone SE as “The Most Powerful Phone With a 4-inch Display” and we believe it is an accurate statement.
Release Date: March 31, 2016 (in Stores)
Price: $399 (16GB) in US
Colors: Space Gray, Silver, Gold, Rose Gold
Memory options: 16GB and 64GB
Unlockability: Like other iPhones, this iPhone SE will also be unlockable and we will be able to unlock it as soon as it is for sale in stores.
Summary: iPhone SE is an iPhone 5S with all the goodies, hardware and software from the iPhone 6S. If you like smaller phones, then this is the perfect alternative for the iPhone 6S.
iPad Pro with 9.7inch display
Apple Released an iPad Pro with 13 inch screen last fall, now they have added a smaller version of the original iPad Pro to their lineup. This one looks and feels just like the iPad Air that we have gotten used to but, it uses the same powerful A9X chip as is used in the iPad Pro. In addition, it takes advantage of the 4 speaker setup that is 2 times better than the one in iPad Air 2. iPad Pro also features a new less reflective Retina screen and 12-megapixel rear camera with 4K movie capability. FaceTime camera remains at 5 megapixels. iPad Pro has both, Retina and True tone flashes, similar to iPhone SE and iPhone 6S. What else was new? – iPad Pro both models will now be available with the 256GB memory configuration. We are glad that Apple finally offered something bigger than 128GB.
Release Date: March 31, 2016 (in Stores)
Price: $599 (32GB Wifi) and $729 (32GB Wifi + LTE) in US
Colors: Space Gray, Silver, Gold, Rose Gold
Memory options: 32GB, 128GB, 256GB
Unlockability: Like other iPads, they are not usually locked to a carrier. However, in some countries they may be. If you happen to have or buy a locked iPad. You will be able to unlock it with ImeiPhoneUnlock.
Summary: The new iPad Pro with 9.7-inch Retina Display is a great addition to the iPad Pro family and it will be a very successful product. It has all the good hardware and the speakers from the bigger iPad Pro, yet it comes in a smaller form factor and the prices have stayed reasonable. Apple called this new iPad Pro as the “Ultimate PC Replacement”, but they have gotten a little bit ahead of themselves. Tablets such as iPad Pro still need some time before they can truly replace the practicality and possibilites of true PC or Mac Laptops.
Apple iOS 9.3
Supposedly, iOS 9.3 is the biggest “dot” release they have ever had.
iOS 9.3 has three new things that are worth noting: smart education upgrades, night shift, new 3D touch functions.
Smart Education Upgrades are targeted for school teachers and students in order to teach and learn better through the use of iPads and different applications.
Night Shift is a cool new concept that uses a sunset and sunrise to set up the color gamma for the screen. Apparently, blue colors affect sleep and in a bad way. So night shift knows when the sun sets and automatically reduces blue colors on the screen, so you get more warm colors and it also helps you to sleep better. When the sun rises, it will change back to normal colors until the sun sets again. With that being said, we would love to get feedback from the iOS 9.3 users who live close to the arctic circle 🙂
As far as the 3D touch is concerned, Apple has added new shortcuts for some of the native apps such as the compass, apple store, weather, and health kit.
Summary: iOS 9.3 looks promising and cool and there are many more smaller things that changed in the new iOS 9.3 that we did not mention above. However, to get a truly different and better experience, we will have to wait for iOS 10.
Release Date: Available for download starting March 21, 2016
If you are interested in the Apple Watch Nylon Straps or Health Apps with CareKit, we recommend checking out the official Apple website to get the best overview.