By: Gillian Marcus
On September 7th, 2016, Apple finally announced the launch of its new iPhone, the iPhone 7, which will officially be released September 16th. While there are multiple new features many people will thoroughly enjoy, such as better battery life, there are also some features that have caused a lot of people to think twice about purchasing this new device, like the lack of a headphone jack.
Fortunately, the iPhone 7 is water-resistant, certified with an IP67 rating. This means that the phone is fully protected from dust, and that it can also withstand being submerged in about 3.3 feet of static water for up to thirty minutes. This feature will certainly make a huge difference to many people who are very accident-prone, especially those who tend to drop their phones in water. However, water-resistant is not the same as waterproof. You shouldn’t take it in the shower or intentionally run it under the sink, especially since liquid damage is not covered under the phone’s standard warranty.
On top of this new feature, the iPhone 7 also has a new static home button, meaning you can’t physically push the home button in. It’s now pressure-sensitive, which might take some time to get used to. Additionally, the iPhone 7’s camera has a larger aperture and optical image stabilization that keeps images steadier. The phone also now has stereo speakers, as there is one speaker at the bottom and one at the top, making it the first iPhone to possess this feature.
Possibly one of its best new features is greater battery capacity for longer battery life. Apple estimates 12 hours of LTE browsing (with the iPhone 7 Plus having two extra hours). There is also much more storage available on the phones; you can get 32GB, 128GB, or 256GB.
Lastly, Apple has also decided to completely get rid of the headphone jack. Instead, their new EarPods headphones will connect through the Lightning connector port, and there will also be an adaptor in the box. Apple’s new “AirPods”, which are wireless headsets that connect through auto-pairing, will work with the iPhone 7. For many, this will be a new, undesired change. Personally, I’d worry about the wireless AirPods falling out of my ears, as Apple earbuds always do for me.
Preorder has been available since September 9th. The 32GB iPhone 7 starts at $649. Apple has also incorporated new phone colors; they now have gold, rose gold, silver, black, and jet black (in case the regular black isn’t black enough). So far, the phone has proved to possess many interesting new features, which I’m sure many people will be excited to try out these next few weeks.
