Apple’s September 7th Event

Apple’s September 7th Event has brought a plethora of new features to the Apple Watch, Airpods, and iPhone. The question is, are these changes worth the hefty price? The Airpods Pro with it’s upgraded processing power for enhanced audio and noise cancelling, the all new Apple Watch Ultra that focused on extreme sports, the near unchanged iPhone 14, and the iPhone 14 Pro, the first iphone to lack the notch since the iPhone 8. This article will go into detail about each and every new feature on the entire lineup, so you can decide for yourself if it’s worth the price.

The new Airpods Pro 2nd Generation are quite similar to the previous generation, though with some new unique features and enhancements. The Airpods Pro Gen 2 now feature the brand new H2 Chip, which along with new low distortion audio drivers and a custom amplifier, improves the sound quality of the earbuds. The H2 Chip also allows for up to 2x the background noise canceled with Active Noise Cancelation, and a new feature called “Adaptive Transparency”, in which loud sounds like construction are blocked out but other sounds are left untouched. Another new feature is “Personalized Spacial Audio”, which uses the TrueDepth camera on your iPhone to create a personal audio profile based on the size and shape of your ear. 

The H2 Chip also features better optimization, meaning the battery has been increased up to 6 hours on a single charge. That’s a 33% increase over the previous generation. Including the charging case, you can get up to 30 hours of battery life. The force sensor on the stem of the Airpods has been upgraded, adding touch controls. This means you can now swipe up and down on the stem to change the volume, without having to get your phone out. 

There’s also been changes to the charging case, which now supports Apple Watch chargers and Magsafe. You can also now use Precision Finding, along with the built in speaker, to locate your Airpods if you ever lose or misplace them. Last and definitely the least, there’s now a Lanyard loop built into the case. Considering they can already fit in basically any pocket, this feature seems mostly irrelevant.

The price remains the same at $249.99, and they goes on sale on September 23rd. But are these new additions worth an upgrade? If you already own a working pair of Airpods Pro, it seems like this year you might want to hold off on an upgrade. But, if you don’t already own Airpods Pro, I wholeheartedly recommend the 2nd Generation. This is primarily because of the various “quality of life” changes, such as its compatibility with Precision Finding and increased battery life. 

Next up, the Apple Watch. This year there are 3 different versions of the Apple Watch. The Series 8 as the standard model, the SE to serve as a more budget version of the aforementioned Series 8, and last but certainly not least, the Apple Watch Ultra, designed specifically for professional use. Though, that’s not to say it doesn’t have any features for the average consumer.

Let’s begin with the usual Apple Watch models, the Series 8 and the SE. Both the Series 8 and the SE feature Crash Detection, a new feature that uses an improved 3-axis gyroscope and a high g-force accelerometer to detect when you’ve been in a severe car crash. It automatically connects to emergency services, gives them your location, and notifies any Emergency Contacts. There are not many other changes of note, but the Series 8 does feature Low Power Mode, allowing for up to 36 hours of battery, and the new SE is apparently 20% faster than the previous model. 

The Apple Watch Series 8 will cost you $399 for GPS only, and $499 for Cellular and GPS, while the Apple Watch SE will cost you $249 for GPS only, and $299 for Cellular and GPS. Both watches go on sale September 16th. To be honest, if you already have a Series 6 or 7, or an older SE, I’d hold off on upgrading to either of these watches for now.

Now for the big addition to the lineup: the Apple Watch Ultra. The Apple Watch Ultra was completely redesigned, engineered to be as rugged and durable as possible. It’s constructed out of aerospace grade titanium, which also surrounds the display for protection against edge impacts, unlike the Series 8 and SE. The display is the biggest and brightest display yet, and is also apparently made of Sapphire, which is much stronger than glass and has a much higher resistance to scratches. The Digital Crown is larger and has bigger grooves for better grip, and the side button has been raised from the casing so it’s easier to press. Both of these are specifically designed for using gloves. There’s also the new Action Button, which is a customizable button that can do an action of your choice. 

The exterior isn’t the only thing that’s been changed, though. The Apple Watch Ultra is designed to handle extreme heat and extreme cold, and has the biggest battery yet, with 36 hours on a single charge, and 60 hours with a new optimization setting that will apparently be coming in an update this fall. It now features a second speaker, so it’s easier to hear in louder environments, along with a built-in 86 decibel siren that can alert others to your location from about 600 feet away. There’s also a new precision dual frequency GPS, which can use both L1 and L5 for improved accuracy. 

On the software side of things, there’s the new Wayfinder watch face, which includes a compass and other important information. By rotating the crown, the UI turns red and the background goes black, so you can easily see it in the dark. Speaking of the compass, there’s a few new additions to it with the Apple Watch Ultra. You can now mark compass waypoints, such as the direction of a campsite. There’s also Backtrack, which automatically creates a path of where you’ve been when you go off the grid, allowing you to retrace your steps, which sounds like one of the most useful features of the bunch if there aren’t many landmarks.

The Apple Watch Ultra now has the durability to withstand watersports, featuring WR100 water resistance. It also has EN13319 certification, which is the international standard for recreational dive computers. The Apple Watch Ultra automatically opens a new Depth app when submerged, showing depth, dive time, and water temperature. Apple has also partnered with Huish Outdoors to develop the Oceanic+ App, which has all sorts of features for recreational divers, turning your Apple Watch into your dive computer. 

There’s also 3 new watchbands designed with different applications in mind. The new Alpine Loop, designed to have extra strength. The Ocean Band, designed to stretch and fit over things like wetsuits. And finally, the Trail Loop, designed with comfort in mind for endurance athletes. I can imagine the Trail Loop being the most used by consumers, if it’s truly as comfortable as they say.

When it comes to pricing, there’s only one model. It includes GPS and Cellular by default. The Apple Watch Ultra becomes available starting on September 23rd, and it will cost $799. That’s the same price as the iPhone 13’s launch price. Unless you need the extra features and durability, or have some extra money to throw around, I wouldn’t buy the Apple Watch Ultra. It’s extremely expensive, and I’d suggest you purchase the Series 8 or SE instead, as it will likely be able to do all the things the average person needs.

And finally, the iPhone. This year there are 4 models: the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. First, we’ll start with the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus. Apple has officially dropped the Mini line of iphones, and has replaced them with the previously abandoned Plus lineup. The 14 features the usual 6.1” display, while the 14 Plus mimics the Pro Max series, with it’s 6.7” display. They both feature Apple’s Super Retina XDR Display, which has Apple-custom OLED panels, HDR with a 1200 nits peak brightness, a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, Haptic Touch, True Tone, and Dolby Vision support. The phone itself is constructed out of Aerospace-grade Aluminum, and has the usual water and dust resistance. The display also has the usual “Ceramic Shield” technology, apparently making the screen even more damage resistant. There’s 5 colors, Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple, and Product Red. 

There’s also been various internal changes. The iPhone 14 and 14 Plus both have all-day battery life, with the Plus having the best battery life ever in an iPhone. Unfortunately, the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus still use last year’s A15 Bionic Chip, albeit with slightly better thermal performance. Despite this, the iPhone 14 still outperforms even the best of the competition by a long shot.  There’s also 2 new possibly life saving features: Crash Detection and Emergency SOS via Satellite. Crash Detection is the same feature as seen on the new Apple Watch models, in which the iPhone uses it’s multitude of sensors to detect information such as high g-force, change in pressure, and more to be able to detect when you’ve gotten into a serious car crash. If you don’t respond to the onscreen prompt, the iPhone 14 notifies emergency services along with your emergency contacts, sending them your location and any other required information. 

The other feature, Emergency SOS via Satellite, is a combination of hardware and software that allows you to send messages and receive help in an emergency, even if you don’t have service. As you may have guessed, this service utilizes satellites, and by pointing your phone directly at a communications satellite you can send a message or contact emergency services from a dead zone. Satellites can be hard to see, but thanks to a special UI made by Apple, it’s easy to find a satellite from anywhere. Sending a message can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes, depending on the weather. Because of this, there’s a new menu which prompts you with most questions that emergency services would need to ask and sends that information all in one message, so there’s no need for a slow back and forth conversation. For Emergency Services that don’t accept text messages, Apple has set up call centers of some sort to act as a converter, which seemingly allows your emergency messages to reach any emergency service provider, but details are limited. The Emergency SOS via Satellite is currently limited to the US and Canada, and will be free for the first two years.

Another smaller change referring to communications would be the SIM Card tray, or, the lack thereof. Apple has completely removed the SIM Card slot in all US models. This apparently makes it easy to transfer plans from device to device, and multiple of these eSIMs can be installed on the same device, though many phones nowadays have multiple slots for physical SIM cards. Apple claims this increases security as the SIM card can’t be stolen, but that seems tacked on. Overall, many see this feature as somewhat negative, as there are many situations where you would want a physical SIM. The iPhone 14 also features 5G capabilities, but that’s pretty much standard.

The cameras also remain quite similar to their predecessors. The 12MP Main Camera now has a slightly larger sensor, along with 49% low light improvement. The Ultrawide Camera also remains mostly the same, but the 12MP TrueDepth Front Camera now has Autofocus and 38% low light improvement. Thankfully, on the software side, these cameras have gotten some new features, such as an improved DeepFusion, which combines multiple frames into a single image, and the Photonic Engine, an enhanced image processing pipeline. There’s also a new mode called Action Mode, which apparently makes the video as smooth as modern stabilization equipment like a gimble, but it seems to crop out a fair bit of the image. We’ll have to see how it is for ourselves when the iPhone 14 actually releases.

The iPhone 14 will start at $799, and the iPhone 14 Plus will start at $899. The iPhone 14 will be available on September 16th, while the iPhone 14 Plus will be available October 7th.

And now, the star of the show, the iPhone 14 Pro. They look fairly similar to last year’s model, being made of the same stainless steel and frosted glass combo. There’s 4 colors, Space Black, Silver, Gold, and an all new Deep Purple. There’s the usual 2 models, the Pro and Pro Max, with a 6.1” and 6.7” display respectively. The borders are thinner, and the screen can now get up to 2000 nits peak outdoor brightness, which is the best brightness in any smartphone ever. There’s also the all-new (for iPhones, that is) Always-On Display. By dimming the OLED display, and Apple’s custom displays that are able to get the refresh rate down to as low as 1 hertz, it’s possible to keep the screen on constantly, and drain little to no extra battery. Unlike other Always-On Displays, a dim version of your wallpaper remains, and skin tones are preserved. iOS 16 also features lock screen widgets, meaning it’s the perfect time for this feature.

Those changes aren’t the focus of this generation’s display, though. The biggest change to the screen is the all new Dynamic Island. “The Notch” is gone, and to replace it comes the Dynamic Island. It’s a “pill-shape cutout”, which has been seen on various Android phones these past few years. Apple has turned this limitation into somewhat of a feature. The Dynamic Island will expand to show notifications, ongoing activities, and stuff like starting a charge. It’s hard to understand this feature without seeing it for yourself, so a video made by Apple showcasing it can be found by clicking here. There will also be support for third party applications, meaning you can, for example, follow a baseball game or keep track of a Lyft ride, while in a completely different app. 

The Dynamic Island is my personal favorite addition to the new iPhones, but a possibly more major change is the upgraded “Pro Camera”, with the star of the show being the all new 48 megapixel Main Camera. Apple’s cameras have been stuck at 12 megapixels for years now, and while 48 megapixels isn’t the highest on the market, it’s definitely more than enough, being higher than many professional photography cameras. For low light photos, the main camera can group 4 pixels into one large “quad pixel”, which allows for increased light capture. This increased light capture greatly increases the low light performance, while keeping the reasonable 12 megapixel photo size. The camera itself is also 65% larger than the iPhone 13 Pro camera. The Ultrawide camera has also been modified, boasting 3x low light improvement from the previous generation. 

There’s also Action Mode and Cinematic Mode. Cinematic Mode is for video filming, and films at 4k 30fps, or 24fps if you so choose. Action Mode is the same as on the base model iPhone 14, though perhaps with better quality due to the upgraded cameras.

The internals have been updated as well, with both models featuring the new A16 Bionic chip. With a focus on power efficiency, display quality, and the camera, the A16 Bionic is once again the fastest chip in any smartphone, apparently being 40% faster than the competition. The improvements made to this chip allows for the previously mentioned Always-On Display and higher brightness, and an upgraded image signal processor designed to support the upgraded camera system. Both models also apparently feature all-day battery life.

The iPhone 14 Pro starts at $999, while the Pro Max starts at $1099. The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max both go on sale on September 16th.

By the time this article is released, the majority of the products mentioned will probably have been released already. You can likely find a plethora of review videos online, and your local tech store might have many of these items already. But, is the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro different enough to warrant an upgrade? Do you need the extra bells and whistles found on the Apple Watch Ultra? Do you need the enhanced noise canceling from the new Airpod Pros? In the end, that’s for you to decide, not an article. Though, I will say that iPhone 7 and below are unable to receive any of the recent software updates, and next year the 8 will likely be dropped from update support as well. If you have any of those models, then this year seems like a great time to upgrade.   

Next year’s iPhone 15 is rumored to feature more physical improvements such as USB-C and a periscope lens, but nothing is set in stone. Unless USB-C is important to you, then I wouldn’t think you’d be missing out on much by buying the iPhone 14. It’ll last you a solid 5 years or so before it loses update support. The iPhone 7 only just lost said support, and it was first introduced in 2016. That’s 6 years of updates, which is leagues better then Samsung’s 3 or 4 years. 

I’d suggest trying out anything that interests you in-person at an Apple Store or other tech center, and looking into any available deals offered by your carrier. For example, AT&T is giving up to $1000 off the iPhone 14 and 14 Max with an eligible trade in, along with one of a few eligible data plans, so make sure to at least check them out. You might find that you can upgrade for little to nothing!