iPhone 7

Alongside the new (RED) iPhone, Apple has also given existing iPhone 7/Plus owners the chance to update the color of their phone with a range of six new cases. These match the colors of the new Watch bands also announced today.

As with the bands, the new colors are split between silicone and leather. You might need a color chart to make sense of some of the names, though …

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Apple today has taken the wraps off of a new (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. The device was unveiled alongside a new iPad and a new social video editing app.

Apple made the announcement in a press release, which contained quotes from Tim Cook and offered up more details on the (RED) initiative.

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According to Digitimes, Apple and Samsung will dominate OLED display supply this year whilst smaller phone vendors struggle to secure suppliers. The report says Apple will get about 75 million OLED panels from Samsung in 2017 for iPhone 8, which is about 15% of total annual OLED production output. Samsung Electronics will get about 56%; Apple’s share would be even higher if the iPhone 8 launched earlier in the year.

It’s also worth noting that Apple is only launching one iPhone this year with an OLED display, as the other two new 2017 iPhones will continue to use LCD displays like the iPhone 7.

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There have been a few reports over the last couple of months that the iPhone 8 will be significantly more expensive than the current iPhone lineup, with one source citing $1000 starting price points. Ostensibly, Apple’s new flagship iPhone will include many advanced features to justify that higher pricing tier; bezel-less display, integrated fingerprint sensor, and wireless charging to name a few.

Today, Digitimes is reporting that the 3D Touch module in the OLED iPhone will cost $15, an increase of 60% over existing iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models. This supports the idea that the iPhone 8 will come at a premium, as Apple will have to increase prices to retain its margins …

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Apple today has shared a new advertisement on its YouTube channel. This one focuses on support for sticker packs in iMessage. While the ad is part of Apple’s iPhone 7 “Practically Magic” series, support for stickers in iMessage is an iOS 10 feature, thus meaning they’re supported on most recent devices, not just the iPhone 7.

The ad depicts the idea of bringing sticker packs to the real world…

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Apple is widely expected to launch three new iPhones this year, two iterative updates to the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus and one radical new form factor device with an OLED screen, informally dubbed ‘iPhone 8’.

Recent reports have suggested that the iPhone 8 may launch later than the other two models, as some of the innovative components will not be ready for September …

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As we reported exclusively last night, Apple Pay is now live in Ireland. The service allows iPhone and Apple Watch owners to use the NFC chips in their devices to pay for their shopping at contactless terminals in retail stores across the country.

Apple Pay requires iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, iPhone SE, iPhone 7, or any Apple Watch, and is launching with support for Ulster Bank and KBC in Ireland. Apple has also announced that the service is coming soon to Italy.

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Digitimes is today reporting that Apple has developed a custom fingerprint sensor replacement for Touch ID, which will allow Apple to offer biometric fingerprint recognition in the iPhone 8 — a device that is rumoured to have no bezels at all. The report describes the component as a ‘built-in’ sensor which very much implies that it is integrated into the screen.

Rather than use Synaptic or Qualcomm technology, Apple will reportedly be building its own system using Authentec algorithms and Privaris glass tech. Strangely, the report also says that the iPhone 8 will not go into mass production until September …

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KGI is refuting claims made in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week that Apple’s upcoming iPhone 8 would replace Lightning with a USB-C port.

KGI’s Ming-Chi Kuo today writes that this is not the case, all three new 2017 iPhones (two modest updates to existing iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus and one radically-redesigned OLED bezel-less device) will retain the proprietary Lightning port. Apple will add fast charging capabilities with internal component changes …

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The Wall Street Journal has outlined their current thinking on the next new iPhone from Apple, colloquially dubbed the iPhone 8. They believe that Apple will replace the Lightning connector on the bottom of the phone with a USB-C port, ditching its own propriety connector with an industry standard.

The report also reaffirms rumors of the device featuring a large curved OLED display, losing the Home Button in favour of a new touch screen function area.

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Mophie has long been considered a leader when it comes to iPhone battery cases, and for good reason. Its products in my experience usually have close enough to an Apple product-like finish to justify similarly high price points compared to the competition. Its new iPhone battery case came a few months after the latest device’s release, and I’ve been testing it in recent weeks to see how it compares to the alternatives and previous versions…

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Apple’s upcoming iPhone 8 is going to feature a major upgrade to the front camera, according to Apple analyst KGI Ming-Chi Kuo. A report published today says that the OLED iPhone will include a ‘revolutionary’ front camera and Infrared module that can sense the 3D space in front of it.

The analyst says the new components will be able to merge the depth information with the 2D images from the front camera for applications including face recognition, iris recognition, and 3D selfies …

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Update: Two new Portrait Mode ads + a tweet from Tim Cook below.

Hot on the heels of a report claiming that Apple was shifting its ad focus to more regional campaigns, the company has shared four new videos on its YouTube channel, each focused on a specific city. All of the new videos are apart of the “One Night” series that the company had previously unveiled.

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There was a supply-chain rumor toward the end of last year that Apple was working on a new red color option for the iPhone 7, and Japanese blog Macotakara cites a Barclays analyst supporting this.

It’s possible that Barclays has heard from the same supply-chain source as earlier reported direct by Macotakara, so this may not be independent corroboration of the idea, but the fact that it is still being suggested a couple of months later does at least lend a tiny bit of weight …

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Last night, reliable Apple analyst KGI’s Ming-Chi Kuo posted his latest assessment of the iPhone 8 detailing the addition of a virtual function area replacing the physical Home button. However, the report also included screen resolution specs which help draw some additional insight.

KGI’s numbers imply that the iPhone 8 will have a pixel density around 521 PPI, far higher than the existing iPhone lineup (iPhone 7 PPI is ~320). It also seems likely that Apple will use Retina assets at 3x scale, packing Plus features into a body the same size as the 4.7 inch phones …

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Popular audio accessory company Pioneer today announced a new line of Lightning earbuds that the company says offers an experience not possible with traditional 3.5mm headphones. The “Rayz” series includes two pairs of earbuds, the Rayz and the Rayz Plus and will be available soon.

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All four products in the announced Apple W1 lineup of wireless headphones and earbuds are now available: the Beats Solo3 headphones, the Powerbeats3, the BeatsX and the truly wireless Apple AirPods.

Wireless headphones are becoming the defacto choice for Apple users, with the iPhone 7 dropping the analog headphone jack. Apple Watch can also only pair with wireless music devices.

We don’t know what the future holds for the W1 chip, perhaps more manufacturers will be allowed to use it, but the product range is already diversified with what’s available today, spanning different form factors, audio quality, convenience, innovation and price points.

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[UPDATE: Brazilian Carnival-themed ad included below the fold.]

Apple has published new iPhone 7 Plus video ads that highlight Portrait Mode with the flagship model’s Camera app.

The first video is called Soul Mate and explains how Portrait Mode makes the subject stand out from the background when Blur Effect is applied. While Portrait Mode was first tuned to work best with people’s faces, this video demonstrates the feature on a dog sitting still (which may be the hardest part).

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A new report from KGI’s Ming-Chi Kuo indicates that the upcoming iPhone 8 will be about the same physical size as the 4.7 inch iPhone 7 and yet pack a much bigger battery, comparable to the 2700 mAH battery in iPhone 7 Plus.

With reports indicating the OLED iPhone screen is circa 5.5 inches, it seems that the ‘no bezels’ rumor is true as its the only way the device would be able to be similar in physical width and height to a 4.7 inch iPhone.

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Samsung has signed a deal with Apple to make 160 million OLED panels for the company’s next-generation iPhone, according to the Korea Herald. The iPhone 8 will likely debut in the fall with an OLED screen and Apple needs all the panels it can get for its new flagship phone.

The iPhone 8 is expected to distance itself from the iPhone 7 with a radical new all-glass design, an OLED screen between 5.2-5.8 inches, wireless charging. Rumors indicate the phone will have almost no bezels with the Touch ID home button somehow integrated into the screen.

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