{"id":61226,"date":"2015-09-14T10:46:18","date_gmt":"2015-09-14T02:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=61226"},"modified":"2015-09-19T11:40:17","modified_gmt":"2015-09-19T03:40:17","slug":"first-look-whats-inside-matters-in-new-iphones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2015\/09\/14\/first-look-whats-inside-matters-in-new-iphones\/","title":{"rendered":"First look: What\u2019s inside matters in new iPhones"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"(Photo<\/a>
(Photo from Wikimedia Commons\/Kelvinsong)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

SAN FRANCISCO \u2013 Don\u2019t let looks deceive you.<\/p>\n

The new iPhones look the same as last year\u2019s models on the outside. But changes on the inside matter, from camera improvements to new sensors that enable quicker access to tasks.<\/p>\n

I had only about 90 minutes to try out the new Apple products unveiled Wednesday \u2013 not enough time, given that Apple Inc. has a larger iPad, a new Apple TV device and new software for the Apple Watch, alongside the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. I wasn\u2019t able to test the new iPhone cameras in natural settings, for instance, to say whether pictures are really better with 12 megapixels, instead of 8 megapixels in the previous iPhones.<\/p>\n

But I was able to try 3D Touch, a new way to interact with the iPhone. You save a few taps by pressing and holding on an app icon to go directly to a particular function. Microsoft\u2019s Windows phones let you create shortcuts as home screen icons, but few people have Windows phones. On iPhones, the 3D Touch feature isn\u2019t about enabling new functions, but getting you there quicker.<\/p>\n

If you want to take a selfie, for instance, you currently have to launch the camera app and hit a corner button to switch to the front camera. If you were taking video before, you need to slide the camera to \u201cPhoto\u201d first. With the new iPhones, just choose \u201cTake Selfie\u201d when you press down on the Camera app. The phone makes all the switches automatically.<\/p>\n

With Maps, you can use 3D Touch to get directions home, find nearby businesses or message your location to a friend. With Mail, go directly to your inbox or create a new message. I used 3D Touch to quickly post a status update \u2013 \u201cHi\u201d \u2013 on a test Facebook account.<\/p>\n

From a message, you get a preview of a Web page by pressing on a Web link. Similarly, you get a map preview by pressing on an address. Press harder to switch to the browser or Maps app. A new iPhone software update adds a back button so you can jump right back to what you were doing, even in a different app.<\/p>\n

As for the camera, selfie fans will appreciate having the phone\u2019s display mimic a flash. It\u2019s not a real flash like the main camera, but the display lights up briefly so that you can see faces in low-light settings.<\/p>\n

With a feature called Live Photos, the iPhone camera records an extra second or so before you take still shots so that images appear in motion. You need an iPhone, iPad or Mac with the latest software to view it, though, which could limit sharing with your Android and Windows family and friends.<\/p>\n

The changes aren\u2019t revolutionary, but the new iPhones have enough new features to consider buying over an older model. Of course, wait for a full test rather than just first impressions. The new phones aren\u2019t coming out until Sept. 25 anyway, although advance orders begin Saturday.<\/p>\n

As for Apple\u2019s other products:<\/p>\n

Ipad Pro<\/strong> (coming in November)<\/p>\n

As someone who prefers an iPad Mini over the full-size version, I\u2019m probably not the right customer for an even larger iPad.<\/p>\n

But the iPad Pro does have promise for heavy-duty users, particularly if you pay $99 for a stylus and $169 for a physical keyboard cover, on top of the $799 starting price. The keyboard doesn\u2019t feel as flimsy as ones for Microsoft\u2019s Surface tablets, but you don\u2019t get to change viewing angles as the Surface\u2019s adjustable kickstands allow.<\/p>\n

What I like most is the new stylus, known as Apple Pencil. That\u2019s not an Apple Pen, mind you. The stylus does mimic a pencil when you try to draw on the iPad Pro\u2019s screen. When you choose a black pencil, it comes out gray, like a real pencil. The line appears thicker when you press harder, and you can shade in areas by drawing with the Pencil lightly from an angle.<\/p>\n

Apple TV<\/strong> (coming in October)<\/p>\n

Although Apple TV\u2019s new app store will enable non-video apps, such as games and home automation, video will remain the centerpiece.<\/p>\n

The new remote shows a lot of promise, with a touchpad much like what\u2019s found on laptops. You can fast forward more quickly, or even hit the microphone button and tell the Siri voice assistant to \u201cfast forward five minutes.\u201d And when you encounter dialogue that\u2019s mumbled, just say, \u201cWhat did she say?\u201d Siri will rewind 15 seconds and temporarily turn on closed captioning.<\/p>\n

New software<\/strong> (coming next Wednesday)<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been using a preliminary, \u201cbeta\u201d version of the new iPhone and iPad software, iOS 9, for more than a month. I particularly like that you can get transit directions on Apple Maps and scroll through photos more quickly. The font is bolder and easier to read. The update isn\u2019t as huge as what you got in previous years, but I\u2019m not complaining when it\u2019s free.<\/p>\n

Likewise, the Apple Watch\u2019s software update will enable new types of third-party apps. It should address many of the watch\u2019s current limitations, but it\u2019ll take time to try out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SAN FRANCISCO \u2013 Don\u2019t let looks deceive you. The new iPhones look the same as last year\u2019s models on the …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":16062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[35],"class_list":["post-61226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-original","mauthors-anick-jesdanun","mauthors-the-associated-press"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61226","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61226\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}