For those who missed the big announcement live (or didn't have time to watch the 2-hour event), I have done most of the work for you. Here's a quick recap of today's big news.
Introduction
- Tim takes the stage
- Reiterates that the iPhone is the #1 smartphone in the world
- Announces that today's announcement will be the biggest since the iPhone
- Announces the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
iPhone
- Phil Schiller takes the stage
- iPhone 6 will come in 2 sizes... 4.7" and 5.5"
- Thinnest iPhone ever (6.9mm & 7.1mm)
- Increased resolution (1334x750 for iPhone 6, 1920x1080 for iPhone 6 Plus)
- iPhone 6/6 Plus & iOS 8 will have new landscape mode to take advantage of the higher resolution
- 1.3 million apps available for iPhone today
- iPhone 6/6 Plus is powered by the new Apple-designed A8 chip (25% faster)
- Graphics are 84x faster than the original iPhone, overall 50% faster than the original iPhone
- Next-generation motion coprocessor M8
- New Barometer sensor senses air pressure changes
- LTE capable of 150 Mbps
- 802.11ac supportedWiFi Calling supported (VoLTE)
- 8 MP sensor with f/2.2 aperture
- New feature called "Focus Pixels" offering twice-as-fast focusing
- iPhone 6 Plus has image stabilization (sorry, not available for iPhone 6)
- New front-facing camera supports burst mode
- iPhone 6 pricing: 16 GB = $199, 64 GB = $299, 128 GB = $399
- iPhone 6 Plus pricing: 16 GB = $299, 64 GB = $399, 128 GB = $499
- iPhone 5c = free
- iPhone 5S = $100
- Pre-order September 12
- Available September 19
- iOS 8 available September 17
Wallet
- 200 million transactions per day totaling $12 billion
- Magnetic stripe is 5 decades old and traditional credit cards are archaic
- Tim introduces Apple Pay
- Apple Pay will use NFC technology
- Apple Pay will go live with AmEx, Visa MasterCard at 22,000+ merchants
- Apple Pay will offer one-touch payment for online payments
- Apple Pay API will be available to all developers
- Apple Pay wil be supported on iPhone 6 & 6 Plus (requires NFC chip)
One more thing...
- Entirely new product... Apple Watch
- Standing ovation
- "The Apple Watch is the most personal device we've ever made" - Tim Cook
- Time is accurate to within 50ms
- Works seamlessly with iCloud
- A breakthrough new interface was needed
- The new Digital Crown helps to navigate the interface
- "We've been working on Apple Watch for a long time" - Tim Cook
- Two new apps designed specifically for Watch: Fitness and Workout
- Apple Watch requires an iPhone for communication
- Apple watch offers magnetic, inductive charging
- 3 versions: Apple Watch. Apple Watch Sport & Apple Watch Edition
- Apple Watch starts at $349 and will be available early 2015
- Apple Pay will work with Apple Watch
All in all, a very exciting announcement! Apple will have video available shortly on their site. I highly encourage you to watch when you have the time.
