New Apple Products Released

Photo by Kaitlyn Stratman

Last Wednesday, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook announced the lineup of new and improved products during a keynote event in San Francisco.

One of the devices revealed in the keynote is the long-awaited iPhone 7, which will be available for sale in-store on Friday, Sept. 16. Apple has debuted a new version of the iPhone every September since 2012, along with other up and coming devices, such as the Apple Watch.

There will be five available colors to choose from on the new iPhones– rose gold, gold, silver, black and the new jet black. The redesign of the model will not have a headphone jack, which means iPhone users will be required to use wireless headphones or a lightning cable to headphone jack adapter cable.

The lack of the headphone jack has created the most controversy. Consumers protested against this change on Twitter, tweeting things like, “Now that my headphones are Bluetooth, how will they catch my phone from falling out of my pocket?”

A lightning cable to headphone jack adapter cable will be included in the box of the iPhone 7, as well as the typical charger and headphones.

The newest accessory to complement the upgraded iPhone are AirPods. AirPods are wireless, bluetooth enabled headphones that will be for sale for an additional $159.

Freshman Noah Uresti believes the AirPods will cause more problems than it solves.

“I don’t think taking away the headphone jack is a good idea because the Bluetooth headphones [AirPods] could be easily lost,” Uresti said.

Other upgrades in the iPhone 7 include a dust and water resistant frame and a larger, 12mp camera. This means the front facing camera will offer FaceTime in HD, and pictures in low light situations will turn out in higher quality.

With the annual redesign of the phone also comes a software update. Apple’s current operating system, iOS 9.3.5, will be updated to iOS 10. One feature of iOS 10 is an enhanced Siri who will be able to interact with third party apps. Apple users will now have the option to remove default apps, such as the Health, Weather and Calendar apps.

Through the years, Spanish teacher Dr. Jeff Finnie has owned countless Apple products. He is looking forward to the release and is planning on buying the iPhone 7 the day it comes out. Finnie uses four Apple products on a regular basis– his iPhone, MacBook, Apple Watch and iPad. Not only does Finnie like to use Apple at home, but he finds it beneficial in the classroom too.

“Apple products have helped with activities in terms of doing more than a worksheet,” Finnie said. “It’s also helped with students who learn in different ways, instead of standard, traditional ways.”

Apple will be also be reintroducing their Apple Watch, with a new series called the Apple Watch 2. The Apple Watch 2 will be sold with a plethora of new bands and face designs, as well as a brighter screen. New additions to the Apple Watch 2 software include a built-in GPS, a waterproof frame and a dual-core processor.

Apple and Nike have collaborated to create a watch called the Apple Watch Nike+. This watch has a durable, lightweight band and an app called Nike+ Run Club that tracks your runs, while also supplying motivation through sharing your friends’ activity with you.

Overall, Apple customers have been highly anticipating the arrival of the iPhone 7 and its corresponding products. The iPhone 7 was available for presale on September 9, and the Apple Watch 2 will be available for sale near the end of October.