Status: 12.09.2023, 21:06 p.m.
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Apple CEO Tim Cook announcing new products at Apple's Cupertino campus. © Jeff Chiu/AP/dpa
Buyers of the new iPhones will need different charging cables than before - the EU rules for uniform sockets apply. Meanwhile, more and more innovations are migrating to expensive Pro models of Apple phones.
Cupertino - The more expensive Pro models of the new iPhones will stand out even more from the standard version this year. Among other things, the iPhone 15 Pro gets a titanium case and a new chip with greatly improved graphics performance, Apple announced. Making the more expensive Pro models more attractive is an effective means of keeping sales high in a shrinking smartphone market.
For all new iPhones, meanwhile, you will need different charging cables than before. According to EU requirements for uniform charging sockets, Apple is switching to the USB-C standard instead of the previous in-house "Lightning" format. With the change, future iPhones will be able to be charged with the same cables as most Android smartphones, notebooks or wireless headphones.
The EU's charging cable requirement is intended to help prevent electronic waste. Apple had criticized the plans in recent years as a potential brake on future innovations, pointing out that in many households, the "Lightning" cables would now be useless. The company introduced "Lightning" in 2012. Now the cable of Apple earbuds will also be switched to USB-C.
Camera of the Pro models can take 3D shots
The largest and most expensive iPhone - Pro Max - gets another innovation: fivefold optical zoom. A few months before the launch of Apple's VR glasses, the camera of the Pro models will also be able to take 3D shots, which you can then immerse yourself in with the headset.
Meanwhile, the innovations of the Pro version from the previous year are now arriving in the new standard model. For example, the iPhone 15 gets the image sensor with 48 megapixels for more detailed photos and the area for dynamic display of current information.
Some iPhone models are getting cheaper
After Apple raised prices in Europe a year ago in view of the weak euro exchange rate, in some cases significantly, there is now a countermovement. For example, the cheapest iPhone 15 now costs 949 euros - 50 euros less than the 14 model. The entry-level Pro model is now 1199 euros cheaper at 100 euros, while the price of the large Pro Max remained unchanged at 1449 euros.
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Pricing is helping Apple offset the declines in the smartphone market. Recently, Apple was no longer able to resist the general downturn in the business: According to calculations by the analysis company IDC, a good six percent fewer iPhones were sold in the second quarter than a year earlier. However, sales fell by only about 2.4 percent - indicating that Apple is managing to sell more expensive models. The iPhone is by far the company's most important product, accounting for more than half of its revenues.
New version of the Apple Watch
Among other things, the new version of the Apple Watch computer watch gets a faster chip and can now process requests to the voice assistant Siri directly on the device. For example, the display can be twice as bright in bright sunshine as the previous model.
What is new is that you can also operate functions of the watch by tapping your thumb and index finger together twice. This is supposed to help operate the watch when the other hand is not free. For example, you can use it to answer or end a call and turn off the alarm. The watch detects the type of movement with the help of its sensors and machine learning.
Group claims progress on environmental issues
Apple devoted a considerable part of the presentation to environmental issues. For example, the responsible top manager Lisa Jackson announced that the new Apple watches will be completely CO2-neutral. In addition, the Group will no longer introduce new leather products. Even the future bracelets of the luxury group Hermes will be made of fabric. In the case of the iPhone 15, the body is made of 75 percent recycled aluminum. In the Pro model, the chassis inside the device is made entirely of recycled aluminum. The cobalt used in the batteries comes entirely from recycling. Dpa