I think it is finally worth saying that Apple is losing its touch and without any further innovation, it is all set to tumble down. With yesterday’s Apple event, it is safe to conclude that Apple has come a full circle, right back to where it began. Apple introduced the iPhone SE and a new 9.7-inch iPad Pro at its keynote event yesterday. Being an Apple fangirl myself, I was pretty disappointed to see the same routine of Apple trying to push off its products as special, while the only difference between the iPhone 6S and the iPhone 5SE seems to be the size. I guess the disappointment is pretty evident in my writing.
The iPhone SE and the iPad Pro (9.7 inch)
It seemed like the event had more things to focus on rather than the launch of a fancy new Apple gadget. It is almost like Apple just launching two products for the sake of launching it and drawing in crowd for other important matters. The keynote started off with Tim Cook, CEO talking about Apple’s ongoing fight with the FBI and his promise that Apple would never compromise its users’ privacy. Soon, it shifted focus to how Apple was completely environment-friendly and how 95% of an iPhone’s parts are recyclable. It almost seems like Apple launched the iPhone SE and the iPad Pro as an afterthought. While we do appreciate Apple’s interest in the environment and privacy, we were hoping for more of a bang! product launch than anything else.
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LIAM
An interesting thing in yesterday’s Apple event was the introduction of LIAM, Apple’s 29-armed robot, kept a secret for so long, that works on disassembling old and ruined iPhones. By letting us know about LIAM, Apple is showing its stand as an environment-friendly company and addressing the issue of smartphone waste that is piling up as I write this. LIAM is used to salvage any usable parts out of broken or repaired iPhones and give it a new life.
What’s new after yesterday’s launch?
Coming back to the gadgets that were launched, the iPhone SE will be the cheapest iPhone in the market and it is ideal for consumers who are not ready for the big screen yet. In short, it is the iPhone 6S packed in a much smaller package (not all features of the 6S are included in the SE). The phone is available in 4 colours: black, white, gold, and the new colour, rose gold. The SE has Touch ID, a 12MP camera, uses Apple’s A9 processor.
The 9.7 inch iPad Pro also comes in the same 4 colours as the SE and packs all the features of the iPad Pro except for the screen size. There is also a 256GB version of this smaller iPad Pro. Also, Apple had added some new bands to the Apple Watch in a woven nylon material. Basically, the Apple Watch now has a variety of straps to make your watch trendier than before.
Apple iOS 9.3
Perhaps something to look forward to for existing iPhone users is the release of iOS 9.3 with its much touted Night Shift feature. The Night Shift feature aims at reducing the harm caused by looking at your phones at night, in the dark. Once you activate Night Shift, your iPhone’s display colour will shift to the warmer end of the colour spectrum, thereby reducing your exposure to ‘blue light,’ which interferes with your sleep pattern at night. This is pretty useful for all us smartphone addicts who can’t sleep without browsing through our smartphone at night.
Night Shift can be accessed from Settings-> Display and Brightness-> Night Shift (Make sure your iOS is updated to 9.3)
While Apple is impressive when it comes to technology, it has a serious need of upping its game if it wants to stay in it. As it is, many of us are tired of new Apple phones with one or two extra features in it and a serious hike in the cost. If Apple wants to be in the top spot, it is going to have to give us more than smaller iPhones or similar specs.
