Apple has finally unveiled its new iPhone 14, with tech fans analysing the latest update.
The new phone will be available in Australia from next week. Among the updates include an improved selfie camera, an added shimmery purple colourway and changes to the display on the Pro and Pro Max models.
Apple also plan on releasing an SOS satellite message function. This means users can send messages sans internet connectivity. Instead the phone will help you connect to a satellite connection.
The high-performance A16 Bionic chip (more battery, quicker processing) will also be the norm in the Pro and Pro Max models.
Hilarious reaction to exxy new iPhone
Many initial comments have also been on the price of the latest device. In Australia, iPhone 14 prices will start $1399 and go up to $1899, with the standard Plus, Pro and Pro Max formats on offer.
“Me watching the #AppleEvent mentally calculating how many organs I can sell just to afford the new iPhone 14 Pro Max,” one user joked.
“Me after selling my left lung for the iPhone 14 Pro Max,” shared another.
“Me waiting for iPhone 14 to drop, so that iPhone 13 price drops, so that iPhone 12 price drops so that I can buy iPhone 11,” another comment read.
Fans react to the ‘dynamic notch’
It appears the most controversial feature on the new phone is around the ‘dynamic island notch’ which sits at the top of the screen. Gone is the blank patch that houses the camera and sensor which will now answer calls and display album notes and directions. However, this feature will only apply to the Pro model.
“Honestly, this new iPhone 14 Pro notch system is great. Apple always comes up with impressive ways to combine software design with hardware,” wrote US tech expert, Tom Warren.
“FINALLY! There is no notch in the iPhone 14 pro!” shared another user.
There have also been some initial criticisms that the iPhone 14 isn’t starkly different from the previous models.
“I hate the current smartphone release cycle,” one user wrote on Twitter.
“The iPhone 14 could’ve been a software update.
“Smartphone companies should release new phones every 3 years or something. So when it’s an upgrade, it’s an upgrade.”
Some also made fun of content creators who would no doubt film gag videos of dropping the latest models off flights of stairs, tall buildings and slinging them in bodies of water – to test the phone’s hardiness.
For the record, the iPhone 14 has an Ingress Protection of 68 which means that it can be submerged in up to 6m of freshwater for up to 30 minutes but it is not waterproof.
Other users on Twitter made light of the fact that now that a new model was released, their iPhone 13s would stop working. Officially dubbed as ‘programmed obsolescence,’ the tech company was fined $35.7 million in 2020 for slowing down older iPhone models without disclosing this to the consumer.
In 2017, Apple said certain software updates for older models were implemented to help prolong the life of the phone’s lithium-ion batteries, which lose performance over time.
However, France’s competition and fraud watchdog DGCCRF said iPhone users were not told installing the iOS updates (10.2.1 and 11.2) would slow down their devices.
However, it’s not just the iPhone that’s getting an upgrade, Apple also announced an updated versions of Airpods and Apple Watch too. Notably, there were no new announcements of a virtual reality headset or upgrades intended for Mac computers.
Speaking from Apple Park in Cupertino, south of San Francisco, Apple chief executive officer Tim Cook said: “People love iPhone and it’s an important part of our daily lives. We’re constantly challenging ourselves to raise the bar to make it better and even more loved”
Originally published as iPhone 14: Apple fans lose their mind over cost of the new device
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