Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus on Tuesday, two new iPhone models with 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch Retina HD displays. The phones include the Apple-designed A8 chip with second generation 64-bit desktop-class architecture, and will be running iOS 8, which includes among other things Apple’s contactless payment technology as well as a bunch of health and fitness apps. This is the first time its history, Apple is launching an iPhone version with two different screen sizes.
What is changing with the new phones? The iPhone 6 features a 4.7-inch Retina HD display with 1334 x 750 resolution, providing 38 percent more viewing area than iPhone 5s, while the iPhone 6 Plus model features a 5.5-inch Retina HD display with 1920 x 1080 resolution, providing 88 percent more viewing area and nearly three times the pixels than iPhone 5s. The Retina HD displays include higher contrast for deeper blacks and dual-domain pixels for more accurate colors at wider viewing angles, says Apple. Both the phone models include the M8 motion coprocessor that gathers motion data from the accelerometer, gyroscope, compass and the new barometer, which senses air pressure to provide relative elevation.
The iSight camera gets an upgrade too, with a new sensor featuring Focus Pixels for faster autofocus. The phones also include an optical image stabilization technology that compensates for hand shake in low light and works with iOS 8 to reduce subject motion. High-definition video on iPhone improves with faster frame rates up to 60fps for 1080p video and 240fps for slo-mo, as well as continuous autofocus, cinematic video stabilization and time-lapse video. The FaceTime HD camera captures over 80 percent more light with a new sensor, larger f/2.2 aperture and new features including burst mode and HDR video.
The new phones come with faster LTE download speeds of up to 150 Mbps, and now support high-quality voice calls over LTE (VoLTE) as well as Wi-Fi calling. The phones have support for up to 20 LTE wireless bands, and include 802.11ac Wi-Fi with speeds up to 433 Mbps and Bluetooth 4.0. IPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus introduce Apple Pay, Apple’s contact-less payment technology, which the company also showed off on Tuesday.
The iPhone 6 comes in gold, silver and space gray, and will be available for $199 for the 16GB model, and $299 for the 64GB model. Apple is also introducin a new 128GB version, which cost $399 with a two-year contract. The iPhone 6 Plus comes in gold, silver or space gray, and will be available for $299 for the 16GB model, $399 for the 64GB model, and $499 for the new 128GB model, with a two-year contract. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will be available in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore and the UK beginning September 19. Pre-orders begin this Friday.
[Image courtesy: Apple]