iPhone 6 Plus

472 'iPhone 6 Plus' stories September 2014 - January 2016

The iPhone 6 Plus ($299 and up from the Apple Store) is Apple’s flagship phone, and one of its most popular products, period. Equipped with a 5.5″ Retina HD display, the iPhone 6 Plus boasts full 1080p HD resolution (1920 x 1080) at 401 PPI, the sharpest-looking screen on any Apple device. It’s also color-accurate, with a full sRGB color gamut and a wider viewing angle than prior screens. Three capacities (16/64/128GB) and three colors (gold/silver/space gray) are available.

Due to its larger screen, the iPhone 6 Plus has the ability to display the Home screen in landscape mode for the first time. It also has the best virtual keyboard yet offered in an iPhone, making accurate typing a lot easier for people with larger hands. Video viewing is dramatically better than older iPhones, as well.

Apple has upgraded the 6 Plus with a second-generation 64-bit A8 chip, delivering 25% faster CPU performance and up to 50% faster graphics than the iPhone 5s. Despite the superior processing and thinner body, 6 Plus blows away other iPhones in battery life, typically running for at least a full day without requiring a recharge. iPhone 6 Plus includes 802.11ac Wi-Fi support, Voice over LTE with Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and others abroad, and Wi-Fi calling using T-Mobile in the US. It also has a Touch ID sensor with full support for secure Apple Pay transactions, both in retail stores and online.

The 8MP iSight camera has been improved. Although the 1.5µ pixels and ƒ/2.2 aperture aren’t hugely different from before, there’s an all-new sensor that improves focus, face detection, and image stabilization. The iPhone 6 Plus also includes an “optical image stabilization” feature that isn’t present on the iPhone 6. Video can be recorded in 1080p at 30 or 60fps, with slo-mo video at 120 or 240 fps. Small hardware improvements to the front-facing camera come from a new sensor and a larger ƒ/2.2 aperture, as well as H.265 video support for much smoother FaceTime calls.

Even with a big screen and improved hardware, the iPhone 6 Plus measures only 7.1mm thick, versus the iPhone 5s’s 7.5mm. The only question is whether it will fit in your pocket or purse. If it will, go with the Plus, which is our top iPhone pick.

California bill over encryption backdoors could prevent Apple from selling iPhones on its home turf

Benjamin Mayo Jan 21 2016 - 6:15 am PT

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California is now presenting a new bill that, if passed into law, would stop Apple from selling iPhones on its home turf, via ZDNet. The bill requires smartphone manufacturers to sell devices that have backdoors to allow them to be decrypted. Naturally, this affects iPhones which use high-strength security methods and make it practically impossible for anyone including Apple to gain access without the passcode. If this proposed bill sounds familiar, there’s a reason for that. A nearly identical proposition was made in New York state earlier in the month.

Although the bill is only being proposed and isn’t law at this time, it poses a big issue for Apple which is facing pressure from politicians across the US to relax its stance on privacy in favor of security. The California case is especially problematic given the location of Apple’s HQ. It would be very awkward if Apple was barred from selling iPhones in the state where they’re designed.