Now THIS is what we've been waiting for
- Great design
- Improved camera
- Better battery?
- Still pricey
- Low-res screen compared
For some, the attraction of the masses to Apple devices is almost unfathomable. The iPhone has never been one of the most powerful handsets in the world, nor the smallest, nor largest, and yet seven years later it has retained (and grown) its unshakeable following.
However, in the last 18 months, the death knells have started quietly sounding, ringing in the distance as the best Android phones - once only a rival on spec or price - became genuine challengers and then out-and-out better handsets.
The processor is obviously uprated, the camera quicker and more capable than ever before, and the battery has been enlarged significantly to quell the disquiet at the power use of previous models.
But there's so much more here that represents a seismic shift for Apple: the increased resolution on the screen is really helpful (and badly needed) and the payments mechanism, while limited to the US only at the moment, will be the boost that the smartphone payment industry needed.
And of course the larger screen will stop those locked into the iOS ecosystem from casting admiring glances at phones such as the HTC One M8 and Sony Xperia Z3.
Check out the new iPhone 6 in our hands on video direct from Apple's event:
Design
Apple's design overhaul is much-needed and as much as many could have hoped for – taking a number of cues from the iPad Air to bring a metallic, almost ceramic, shell that feels simply brilliant in the hand.
The iPhone 6 pushes that idea to the next level, losing the sharp edges in favour of sleek and rounded sides that make the device much more pleasing in the palm. It just feels so thin, but doesn't have the overly-lightweight feeling of the iPhone 5S.
It's one of those phones that I'm actually sad feels so nice in the hand - when reviewing phones, proving oneself agnostic to whichever brand is critical, but Apple consistently shows it knows how to make a well put-together handset, and it's done it again here.
It just feels premium the moment you pick it up, from the vibrant and clear screen to the subtle curve of the display into the rounded frame.
The larger screen is certainly an improvement on the previous models – while I think 4.7-inches is going to be a tiny bit small for those that have lusted after their friends' Galaxy S5 devices with the 5.2-inch screen, it's still a very good size for one hand.
It's not got a great resolution, at only 1334 x 750 it's essentially 720p, but the new Retina HD screen looks brilliant. So much so that I thought I was picking up a dummy model to play with. It's another point that Apple fans will leap upon in the interminable Android vs iOS debate: if the screen looks good enough, then it's good enough.
And if you're so desperate for the larger resolution, there's always the iPhone 6 Plus to be looking at, despite that being more of a phablet / Note 4 rival.
Some people say that the Full HD / QHD displays on offer today from Sony, Samsung and LG are overkill, but there's no way that you won't see the difference in sharpness if you put the iPhone 5S and LG G3 next to one another.
However, it's the same PPI as the iPhone 5S, so the iPhone 6 might not stand up to sharpness tests next to the best the Android world has to offer.
The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have been confirmed to pack upscalers within the device, and combined with the improved iOS 8 developer tools to play with, there's no chance of unsightly black bars showing up.
Everything rejigs itself to fit the screen - while there will be some apps that are dubbed 'iPhone 6 ready', they'll be because the developer chose to upgrade them to make use of the new designs, not because they were forced to.
Disclaimer: I've erroneously stated that resolution is the reason that Android devices can't show some apps, when Android does in fact upscale apps automatically. This has now been rectified.
In terms of the performance advantage Apple has given itself, the new A8 processor certainly seems up to the task. While (as usual) we've not heard much in the way of specs for it, save to say it's the same 64-bit architecture that Apple added into the mix last year.
However, if we're not looking at the power, there is some really rather good news: the A8 chip is capable of a 50% power reduction, meaning there's a strong chance Apple has gone some way to solving its power-management woes that have so plagued previous devices.
As such, the same snappiness is there in terms of camera processing, general browsing and app use, but it will only be with some serious use that the power of the new A8 chip will show itself.
And while we've not been told the RAM inside the iPhone 6, there's a feeling that Apple will have doubled it at least to 2GB in order to facilitate more powerful and impressive apps, as well as allowing the phone to function better under duress.
Apple Pay
One of the big changes here, along with the newly announced iPhone Plus, is the new Apple Pay system. It means the iPhone finally packs NFC technology inside, which means the tech is finally here to stay as all the top vendors are now using it by default.- Hands on: Apple Pay review
M8 co-processor
Another big change for Apple is the update to the companion CPU - the M7 co-processor which tracks movement has been upgraded to include things like a barometer so it knows how many steps you've climbed, how many flights of stairs and just general elevation too.It's not something that's been super-publicised by Apple, possibly because I think the M7 was under-used in the last 12 months. It could have been a real boon, but if this version, combined with the health chops of the Apple Watch, starts to really integrate with Health, then it seems Apple has made the right move.
iOS 8
The new operating system that was debuted at WWDC earlier in the year has the expected poster boy in the iPhone 6 – while it's not a massive overhaul of the platform, it brings with it some nifty tweaks.For instance, the updated notifications center is imbued with better powers than before, allowing you to see more relevant information from a simple pull down from the top of the screen.
The new OS brings with it other big upgrades, such as the ability to use other keyboards in the future – the thought of Swiftkey on an iPhone, and one without such cramped conditions for typing is an appealing one – which shows that Apple knows it needs to do something big to keep up with the smartphone competition amid eroding market share.
It will also play much better with Mac OS X than ever before thanks to the new powers Yosemite brings while this will work with any iOS 8-powered phone, the new abilities to make calls or get SMS from the computer will be a big draw for those that like their new phone to be integrated with their laptop.
Camera
The camera on the iPhone 6 isn't much of a change... from the outside. It's still 8MP, and still doesn't record in 4K.It does protrude out from the top of the iPhone in order to pack in greater optics while keeping the slender frame, but will only annoy you if you rock the iPhone when placed down on a table.
There's an algorithmic update too, allowing you to smooth video on the fly. Yes, it's not much of an update, but combined with the crisp video images Apple is packing into the iPhone 6, I can see it being something of a big selling point.
You can also now shoot time lapse videos right from the app, edit your snaps with more aplomb thanks to clever tool updates and this is all with a greater degree of sharpness and colour thanks to the improved Retina HD screen.
0 comentarii:
Post a Comment