“It’s Glowtime.” was the title of Apple’s most recent launch event held on September 9th, 2024. During this event, Apple unveiled their latest iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods, set to be available for purchase in later September. While this is one of Apple’s annual events, there was additional excitement surrounding this one in particular, as many awaited the announcement of Apple’s own generative artificial intelligence coming to their newest phones.
The iPhone 16 has been a highly anticipated device as many were expecting a design refresh after recent iPhone releases have left some users disappointed. As per usual, the latest phone comes with an increase in battery life, boosted durability, thinner bezels, and everyone’s favorite update: the new colors. This year, Apple has finally embraced vibrant colors with their Pink, Teal, and Ultramarine swatches available for iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus. The colors on the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max are still quite plain with minimal design refresh apart from a gold-tinted Desert Titanium. Apple has also re-introduced the Action Button onto standard devices, a feature that was previously exclusive to Pro and Pro Max models. This button has replaced the mute switch on the device and can be programmed to perform a number of actions, such as toggling your flashlight or opening the camera app.
But who needs to use an action button to open the camera when you have a whole new button for that! On all iPhone 16 models, a new Camera Control feature has been added below the power button allowing you to take photos and control various different features within the camera app. Tapping the button takes a photo, holding it records a video, and swiping it adjusts the zoom. Along with improvements to the sharpness and color grading of photos on the iPhone 16, the Camera Control is definitely a surprise hit.
While it’s easy to get lost in all of these features, viewers stayed glued to their seats as they awaited the introduction and capabilities of Apple’s headlining AI and Siri improvements. Featured at the top of the iPhone 16 page and making headlines in various news articles, Apple Intelligence is the company’s newest generative AI feature that is exclusive to the Apple Ecosystem. It was introduced as a secure, personalized assistive tool to help improve your iPhone experience. Included with features to improve writing, identify photos from descriptions, create custom emojis for iMessage, and even summarize emails and notifications before you open them, this AI is predicted to transform what people can do with their iPhones.
With the rise of generative AI’s availability to the public, Apple Intelligence is not something totally new. AI is an exciting tool that has propelled to fame, with multiple purposes such as summarizing text, searching through data, scheduling events, and even generating images. But it’s natural to be concerned about the rapid development of this technology, especially if you’ve ever seen a Sci-fi movie. In those special cases, there are ways to distance yourself from AI and avoid it from seeping into everyday life.
However, our phones are one of our most personal devices, and we carry them with us everywhere. While some users are excited about the additional AI capabilities, some users may be wary about combining AI with our sensitive, personal data. But with Apple and other major companies incorporating generative AI into the core functionality of smartphones, I guess we’ll have to start getting comfortable with constantly having AI in our pockets.