iPhone J.D.

Podcast episode 69: All the Shiny New Toys! Plus Shiny New iOS Updates!

Brett Burney was in Chicago when we recorded this week's episode of the In The News podcast, and shortly after we finished recording, he got to see all of the shiny new toys from Apple at the beautiful Apple Store on Michigan Avenue.  We talked about those devices during this week's episode.  First, we talked about the iPhone 14 Pro and some of the new features I've discovered since I wrote my review earlier this week.  Next, we talked about the fascinating Apple Watch Ultra, which went on sale yesterday.  We also discussed the new second generation AirPods Pro, which also went on sale yesterday.  (Mine arrived just a few minutes after we finished recording, and I'll have more to say on this product soon.)  Finally, we discussed even more useful iOS 16 tips.

In our In the Know segment, Brett discusses seeing full-size cover art on your lock screen in iOS 16, a great new feature.  I talk about all of the different status icons that appear at the top of the screen and recommend that folks check out this page on Apple's website to learn about the ones that they don't already know.  (If any of you out there can honestly say that you already know about every single one of those icons, then I tip my hat to you.)

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just use your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

In the News

Today, the new Apple Watch Ultra goes on sale in stores.  Folks who pre-ordered will start to receive their deliveries today.  Although I doubt I will ever own one, I am fascinated by this version of the Apple Watch.  It offers lots of features that I'd love to see on a regular Apple Watch like the action button, longer battery life, and some interesting sensors.  And it includes lots of features that belong only on an Apple Watch Ultra, and I'm interested to see how people use those.  The initial reviews are now out from members of the press who got a pre-release units, and the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive.  The consensus seems to be that it can do most but not all of what a high-end sports watch sold by companies like Garmin can do, so it will be perfect for some sports watch customers but not quite enough for high-end users.  But unlike those other watches from Garmin and similar companies, the Apple Watch Ultra is the best ever Apple Watch, so it will have a broad appeal to those who might not have purchased a sports watch before.  I think it is great that Apple is now selling this model, and I suspect that it will make a lot of folks happy.  And now, the news of note from the past week:

• As we near the end of September, Childhood Cancer Awareness Month is coming to a close.  Right now would be a great time for you to do something that will make you feel great: donate to St Jude.  A big thank you to those who have already donated.
• There are lots of Apple Watch Ultra reviews that are worth reading if you are interested in this product.  I'll link to some of my favorites.  Amy Eisinger of Self reports that the larger screen makes tapping the screen mid-run even easier, the Action button is one of the best features, and it greats battery life.  She also said that the bulkiness might be a drawback for some, and the watch is so large that it invited several unprovoked comments.  She includes a comment about the temperature sensor for fertility tracking that I did not realize: "Temping is persnickety because, in order to get an accurate reading, you need to take your temperature immediately upon waking—before you even sit up in bed.  The watch solves this.  While Apple is quick to point out that this is not a true basal reading, it comes close."
• Liz Plosser, the editor-in-chief of Women's Health, says that if you were already thinking of getting an Apple Watch Series 8, the Apple Watch Ultra is a better purchase for many.  She liked the Action button "to turn on the stop watch in a flash, which was great for cooking, and to instantly begin a workout."  She notes that the 86-decibel siren may be designed for hikers, but "it's also going to give peace of mind to everyday, recreational adventurers like you and me."
• John Gruber of Daring Fireball says that thanks to the big display, loud speakers, and long battery life, an Apple Watch Ultra could almost replace an iPhone, except that you lose the camera.
• Lexy Savvides of CNet concludes that if you want "a true hybrid smartwatch and sports watch, the Ultra is the one to beat."
• Leon Poultney of The Gear Loop wrote a comprehensive review for an extreme outdoor enthusiast and concludes that "the Apple Watch Ultra does most things very well but never quite goes to the lengths real outdoors enthusiasts want and often need in the wild.  However, the same cannot be said for its quality as a smartwatch, where it is still undeniably one of the best around."
• Michael Frank of Men's Journal notes that a key advantage of the Apple Watch Ultra over other sports phones is that the Apple Watch Ultra contains a phone and does a great job with text messages.
• Victoria Song of The Verge wrote that even though she has small wrists, the Apple Watch Ultra felt light for its size, and she loves the large screen.  She also notes that when attorney Nilay Patel was wearing the watch at home and not pushing it too hard, he got 56 hours on a single charge.
• There are also many video reviews of the Apple Watch Ultra, and I thought that the one by iJustine was the best.
• Another new Apple product that goes on sale today is the second generation AirPods Pro.  Mine should arrive later today, so I'll have more to say about them next week.  As Joe Rossugnol of MacRumors noted in a review roundup, the initial reviews from folks who have been using them for a while indicate that while they look about the same, they sound better, have better noise cancellation, gain the useful ability to adjust volume, and are easier to locate if you misplace them because the case now has a built-in speaker to make noise.
• Zac Hall shares the story of a person in the UK who had only had his new Apple Watch Series 8 for a few days before it detected a potentially fatal heart condition of his mother.
• If you use an iPhone 14 Pro, you should download iOS 16.0.2 (released yesterday), which fixes a bug that could cause the camera to shake when taking videos, fixed a bug that could cause lots of prompts to appear when you copy-and-paste between apps, and fixes other bugs.
• Mike Wuerthele of AppleInsider reviews the iPhone 14 Pro and concludes that anyone considering an iPhone 14 should get the iPhone 14 Pro instead.
• Rajesh Pandey of Cult of Mac notes that Apple is using a better modem in the iPhone 14 Pro that can provide up to 38% faster 5G data speed, depending upon the network that you are using.  This is just one data point, but I just ran a few tests on my iPhone 14 Pro in New Orleans on AT&T and saw that I was consistently getting about 50 Mbps on LTE but 250 Mbps on 5G, which is a big increase for 5G speeds since the last time that I paid attention to it on my iPhone 14 Pro.  I see that I'm on AT&T's 5G+ network—which, confusingly, can mean two different things on AT&T: C-Band spectrum or millimeter wave spectrum.
• I agree with Stephen Hackett of 512 Pixels that it makes no sense that when you transfer data to a new iPhone your CarPlay settings do not transfer, which means you need to go back and re-order your apps again.  It baffles me that Apple hasn't fixed this yet.
• Josh Centers of TidBITS reviews the iPhone 14, comparing it to the iPhone 11 Pro.
• Glenn Flieshmann of Macworld compares the camera on the iPhone 14 Pro to an expensive mirrorless camera.
• Jason Cross of Macworld recommends some iOS 16 features that you might want to use, such as locked folders in Photos, the ability to see a wi-fi password after you are already connected, landscape Face ID, and more.
• Allison Sheridan of Podfeet shares some favorite iOS 16 features, including dictation improvements.
• Attorney John Voorhees of MacStories recommends some favorite iOS 16 Lock Screen widgets.
• If you enjoyed the show Better Call Saul like I did, you will be pleased to learn that Nellie Andreeva of Deadline reports that co-creator Vince Gilligan and star Rhea Seehorn (who played Kim Wexler) are going to do a new drama on Apple TV+.
• The Joy of Tech comic books a trip to Dynamic Island.
• Kevin Hurler of Gizmodo reports that the first Emoticon debuted 40 years old.  That makes me feel old  :-(
• And finally, I figured it would be just a matter of time before someone would post a YouTube video of a car crash performed for the sole purpose of determining whether crash detection in the iPhone 14 works.  TechRax did just that and ... spoiler alert ... it works.  In all seriousness, it is useful to know how this feature works before you get in a car crash.  When the iPhone senses the change in motion, it first waits about 10 seconds (I suppose for the crash to end), and then it beeps and starts a 10-second countdown timer with an alert that it is about to call emergency services.  You can cancel it during those 10 seconds.  Otherwise, it makes the call.  If you have both a new iPhone and a new Apple Watch that both have crash detection, they talk to each other to determine which devices will make the call (so it doesn't dial 9-1-1 twice):

Review: iPhone 14 Pro -- a new island, better camera, life-saving, and more

Apple has been releasing a new iPhone every year for 15 years.  Each year, the newest iPhone always offers something more than its predecessors, but some years, the improvements are more impressive than others.  This is a good year for the “Pro” version of the iPhone.  The iPhone 14 Pro offers numerous improvements over older models, most of which are also improvements over the brand new iPhone 14, and any one of these additions would have made for a nice upgrade.  Put them all together, and you get an iPhone that is significantly better.  If you are in the market for a new iPhone this year, the iPhone 14 Pro is fantastic.

Life is better when you have your own island

Five years ago, Apple introduced the iPhone X with an edge-to-edge screen.  The ability to see even more on the screen of a device that was roughly the same size as its predecessor was amazing.  The drawback was that there had to be a notch at the top to house cameras and sensors, but fortunately, it didn't take long to get so used to the notch that you rarely paid attention to it.  On the iPhone 14 Pro, the notch has turned into the Dynamic Island.  That’s a radical name for a terrific new feature.  Instead of being something to ignore, that area at the top of the screen is now something that you want to pay attention to: a valued feature, not a necessary compromise.

The term "island" typically makes me think of a beautiful beach with white sand and blue water where I relax and enjoy doing nothing.  That’s not what we have here.  The Dynamic Island is all about utility and productivity.  It is a form of multitasking, allowing you to do more things at the same time.  There is nothing unusual about that on a computer, where you can have several overlapping windows open at once so that can go back and forth and be productive.  The iPad also offers split screen and other multitasking solutions that boost productivity.  I always thought that the iPhone’s screen size was too small to offer any sort of usable multitasking, other than notifications that would briefly appear and then disappear from the top of the screen.  But it turns out that multitasking is possible and useful on the iPhone when done the right way.

The Dynamic Island takes key information about one app running in the background—or sometimes, two apps—and places it in the same area of the screen that was previously just dead space that we learned to ignore for the last five years.  Thus, the portion of screen real estate that it uses was previously wasted space, so you don't lose anything on the main part of the screen.  And what you gain in the Dynamic Island is the key information that you need about another app and the ability to interact with that other app without leaving the app that is occupying the primary portion of the screen.

If Apple had just created an Island, that alone would have been pretty neat.  But the "Dynamic" part of Dynamic Island makes it infinitely better than a dedicated area of a fixed size.   It allows the island to get longer or shorter to display more information as needed.  You can even hold down a finger on the Dynamic Island to enlarge it, providing space for more buttons and information.  If you have two apps that can use the Dynamic Island, they each get their own island: one larger, and one very small.  And you can do all of this without leaving the primary app that is on your screen.

For example, if you are playing a song in the Music app and then switch over to the Mail app, the Dynamic Island shows the album art for the song that is playing and a (true) waveform.  If you want to control the music, there is no need to go back to the Music app.  Just press on the Dynamic Island for a second and the island grows to show a lot more information and lots of controls.  As an alternative, you can use the Dynamic Island to go back to the Music app if you want—just tap it quickly to launch the Music app—but you probably won't need to do so because all of the most important controls are shown on the larger version of the Island.  This means that you don’t lose your focus on the emails that you are reading in the main portion of the screen just because you want to make a quick change like jump to the next song track.

 
Other apps that use Apple's built-in controls for playing sound, such as the Overcast app that I use to listen to podcasts, work the same way.  So you can listen to and control the In the News podcast—or, I suppose, some other podcast—while you are using another app on your iPhone.

If you have a second app that wants to visit Dynamic Island, the island splits.  One app gets a longer island on the left.  The other island gets a small round island on the right.  For example, in the following picture, music is indicated and controlled on the left while a timer indication is on the right.  If I hold down on the timer for a second, it gets large for just a second or two so that I can see the time remaining, and then it becomes small again.

There are already tons of built-in apps and services that support Dynamic Island.  Jacob Siegal of BGR compiled this list of them.  For example, the Dynamic Island can hold timers:

However, since the Dynamic Island was a surprise when Apple announced it, third-party app developers are just now starting to come up with ways to integrate it with their apps.  As they do so, the Dynamic Island will become even more useful.

Even better, when Apple releases iOS 16.1, the Dynamic Island will support Live Activities.  Live Activities are sort of like notifications, except that they can keep up to date—always showing you, for example, the latest sports score, new message count, Lyft status, etc.  And of course they are also interactive, just like the Dynamic Island is now.  Live Activities in the Dynamic Island will mean that you can do one primary thing on your iPhone while keeping tabs on something else at the same time.

And perhaps best of all, the graphics used for the Dynamic Island are incredible.  Because the Dynamic Island animations run as 120 FPS, they are super smooth and feel alive.  The way that they bounce as they transform size is fun to watch.

The team at Apple that invented and implemented Dynamic Island are geniuses.  This is a cool and useful feature today that is going to get dramatically better in the future as developers come up with new ways to take advantage of it.  I love it.  Every other iPhone, including the brand new iPhone 14, is missing something special by not having this feature.

Impressive camera improvements

The Dynamic Island was unexpected.  But when Apple said that you can take better pictures with the iPhone 14 Pro, many may have been tempted to yawn.  Apple says the same thing every year.  But some years, the camera improvements are larger than other years, and this year, we have more substantial improvements.

New hardware seems like the main reason that the iPhone 14 Pro cameras are so much better.  Both the ultrawide camera and the 3x telephoto camera have improved lenses that take better pictures.  But the standout is the main lens.  It can now take 48 megapixel photos with more detail than ever.  Or, it can take a standard 12 megapixel photo, but use four hardware pixels to create a single pixel in a 12 MP image, a process called binning that selects the best information from multiple pixels to create a single great pixel that is better lit and more precise.  The result is pictures are are more detailed and more true to life.

I'm sharing some sample pictures below, but note that all of these pictures are not at their original size.  Sharing those pictures would make this post far too big.  Instead, I've scaled and compressed the pictures in a way that reduces the file sizes while still presenting the differences.

For the times when the light is good and you want to get pictures with better details, the 48 MP camera can make a big difference.  For example, I took a picture out of my office window on Friday (I’m on the 46th floor), looking towards the Warehouse District section of New Orleans where the National World War II Museum is located.  Here is an overview, to show you everything that was in the full frame when I took the picture at my window.

The World War II museum recently added a huge canopy on top of the buildings that is lit up at night but can also be seen during the day.  I was taking the picture during the day, so there was plenty of light.  First, I took a picture using my iPhone 14 Pro’s main camera, a normal 12 MP picture.  Second, I took a picture with the same Main camera but tapped the RAW button to switch to a 48 MP picture.  Third, in both pictures, I zoomed in to the part showing the canopy.  In the following image, the left side reflects what I took with the 12 MP camera and the right side reflects what I took with the 48 MP camera:

As you can see, the 48 MP picture contains much more detail.  You can see the red-and-white stripes on the flag.  The canopy is much more detailed.  And while the words THE NATIONAL WWII MUSEUM are almost impossible to make out in the left side of the picture, you can barely read them on the right side of the picture.

When you don’t have lots of light, the new camera is also useful because it uses binning to take each of the four pixels that would be used for a 48 MP photo and turn them into the best and brightest single picture of a 12 MP photo.  For example, the new iPhone produced a much better version of a piece of artwork.  Just for context, here is the overall picture, captured using the iPhone 14 Pro’s camera, but again note that this version is scaled and compressed:

In the next picture, I’ve zoomed in on the full-quality versions of two pictures, on the left using the iPhone 13 Pro’s camera (12 MP) and on the right using the iPhone 14 Pro’s camera (12 MP).  As you can see, the version on the right is brighter and shows a lot more detail.  Indeed, on the right side, you can even see the brush strokes:

Zooming in on an image amplifies the effect, but even when you are looking at the image at normal size, you can often tell that the iPhone 14 Pro image is crisper and more precise—especially if you are using a larger screen.  The difference is also more noticeable if you crop a photo, which is something that I do frequently to change the focus of the picture and/or to make the picture more dramatic.  Whenever you crop, it helps to start with a higher-quality image.

I've taken some other comparison pictures of my kids over the weekend.  In some cases, both the iPhone 13 Pro and the iPhone 14 Pro took pictures that were equally excellent.  In other cases, the iPhone 14 Pro pictures were better, especially if you zoomed in.  As iPhone 14 Pro devices have gotten into more reviewers' hands, I've seen other post similar results in articles in which they shared some sample pictures that show off what the iPhone 14 Pro can do.  For example, check out this review by Raymond Wong of Input and this article by Patrick Holland of CNet.

Something else that I really like about the new cameras is the return of a 2x optical zoom.  When Apple first introduced an iPhone with three cameras, the iPhone 11 Pro, there was a 0.5x camera for ultrawide shots, a 1x camera for normal shots, and a 2x camera for zoom shots.  In my review of the iPhone 11 Pro, I provided lots of sample pictures showing how those three different sizes allowed your pictures to tell three different stories.  Last year, in the iPhone 13 Pro, Apple replaced the 2x telephoto camera with a 3x telephoto camera.  As I noted in my review, that 3x lens allowed you to get closer to the subject of your photo, and in some circumstances, that is great.  But 2x is also a very nice zoom ratio, and I missed it.  It is roughly similar to a 50mm camera leans, perhaps one of the most popular lenses.  Sure, I could just take a 1x picture and crop to fake a 2x zoom, but then I was sacrificing some detail.

This year, the main camera has a trick up its sleeve: it can be turned into a 2x telephoto camera.  When you tap the 2x button in the Camera app, the iPhone 14 Pro takes a 48 MP image with the main camera and then crops it to a 12 MP image, which results in a 2x image as compared to what you would have gotten if you took a normal picture in 12 MP mode.  So in other words, this is a true optical zoom, not a digital zoom that sacrifices quality for size.  In a low light situation, a 2x photo might not come out quite as good as a 1x photo for which the iPhone 14 Pro can use binning to use four different pixels to produce each final pixel, resulting in a brighter and more clear photo.  But if you have decent light, then you won’t notice the difference in quality—you will just see that you have a great 2x picture. 

Thus, with the iPhone 14 Pro, and for the first time ever in an iPhone, you have four choices for picture size.  You can take a 0.5x photo using the ultrawide lens.  You can take a 1x or a 2x photo using the Main lens. And you can take a 3x photo using the telephoto lens.  You can also use a digital zoom up to 15x, but that just means that you are making everything bigger and reducing picture quality as you do so.

Another way to look at it is that the new Main lens on the iPhone 14 Pro has three different roles.  If you take a normal 12 MP photo, at 1x, each of the final pixels will be created by looking at four different pixels.  If you take a 48 MP photo, you get a ton more detail, albeit without the extra light.  If you take a 2x photo, then you get the center portion of the 48 MP image.  Which mode you select for the lens will depend upon what kind of picture you are trying to create.

The front-facing camera on the iPhone 14 Pro is improved in two ways.  First, unlike the camera used for the last two years which was f/2.2, the iPhone 14 Pro uses f/1.9, so it lets in more light.  Second, this is the first time that the front-facing camera has used autofocus.  In my tests over the weekend, these changes made a noticeable difference.  If you take lots of selfie pictures, or if you use the front-facing camera for videoconferences, you will see an improvement.

Those are just the hardware improvements, but there are software improvements as well.  Apple uses a new technique called the Photonic Engine to improve the detail in light-light.  Apple also has something called Action Mode to reduce shakiness in handheld videos.  I haven’t had a reason to use either yet, but I look forward to doing so. 

Another change is that you can use Cinematic mode for videos in 4K and HDR.  I prefer to take my home videos in 4K HDR because I know that, years from now, that quality difference will be appreciated.  Thus, I didn't try out Cinematic mode during the past year because I didn't want to have to take videos at 1080p.  With this improvement to Cinematic mode, I'm more likely to use it in the future, but I haven't done so yet.

All of these changes add up to an incredibly impressive camera.  If taking pictures with an iPhone is important to you, then you will love the iPhone 14 Pro.

The iPhone that can save your life

Sure, we all like better photos and a funky little island at the top of the screen, but wouldn't it have made more sense for me to start this review by shouting that the iPhone 14 Pro can save your life in two different ways: crash detection and Satellite SOS?  You could make a good argument for that, especially if you happen to be the person who was saved by one of these two new features.  Nevertheless, I don't have too much to say about these features beyond what I said in my preview about two weeks ago because I haven't tested these features.  First, I'm happy to report that I wasn’t in any car accidents over the weekend.  Second, the satellite features don’t go live until November.

A screen that doesn't sleep

When iOS 16 was released on September 12, I installed it on my iPhone 13 Pro and used it all week.  I enjoyed the new ways to customize the lock screen, especially the ability to have different photos show up at different times, but I didn't do much with the lock screen widgets.  Instead, I would typically pick up my iPhone to do something specific, so I only saw the widget for a fraction of a second before I unlocked my iPhone.

With the iPhone 14 Pro, the screen can stay on all of the time, albeit in a dimmed mode.  The screen does go completely off sometimes, such as if the iPhone senses that it is covered or face-down on a table or in a pocket.  It will also go off completely if you are in a sleep focus mode.  But if your iPhone is just on a desk, you will see the screen dim, but you will still be able to see things on the screen.  For this iPhone, lock screen widgets make more sense, although for my eyes, they are still a little small to see when I just glance at my iPhone on my desk.  It is clear to me that lock screen widgets are better when you have an always on screen.  But it is not yet clear to me how much I will care about this feature.

On the other hand, the clock on the always-on screen is large and clear enough that I can always easily see it.  And that feature is nice.  I like that whenever I glance at my iPhone I can see what time it is.  Sure, I could do the same thing by glancing at my Apple Watch (which also has an always-on screen), but now I have more clocks to catch my eye.

The lock screen photo is dim when my iPhone is just sitting on a table without being used, but it is typically just bright enough that I can see what the picture is.  Is this important?  No.  Is it nice?  Yes.

For now, the main reason that I find the always on screen useful is the clock.  It's the same reason that I prefer the always on screen of the Apple Watch: I can see the time without having to raise my wrist.

Etc.

The Dynamic Island, cameras, ability to save my life, and always-on screen were the most obvious changes with the iPhone 14 Pro, but I noticed other things as well.

First, the iPhone 14 Pro can have a brighter screen.  In normal use, both the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro use a 1,000 nits screen, and they look the same.  (The iPhone 12 Pro used a 800 nits max screen.)  When looking at an HDR (high dynamic range) photo, such as one taken by an iPhone, the iPhone 13 Pro can go up to a peak of 1,200 nits while the iPhone 14 Pro can go up to a peak of 1,600 nits.  If you have an outdoor photo where one part of the photo is especially bright, it looks more lifelike if you compare the iPhone 13 Pro to the iPhone 14 Pro side-by-side.  But it is a subtle difference, and unless you are doing a direct comparison, you won't notice.  When you are outside, the peak HDR on the iPhone 14 Pro is 2,000 nits.  In my tests, there was a more noticeable difference between the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro when outside and looking at an HDR photo with a part of the photo especially bright.  But how often will this be an issue for most folks?  Perhaps at the beach?  Most of the time that I am looking closely at photos, I am unlikely to be in direct sunlight.  I'm glad that Apple continues to push the limits, but this isn't a feature that you will notice unless you go looking for it.

Second, the iPhone 14 Pro uses the latest-and-greatest chip from Apple, the A16 Bionic.  According to some initial speed tests, this new processor is 10% faster than last year's iPhone.  That all sounds great, but that much of a speed increase wasn't something that I could notice in everyday use.  Having said that, I'm sure that the processor works closely with the camera when taking photos, and if part of the reason that I was so happy with the new camera is attributable to the A16 Bionic chip, well then I guess I'm a fan.

Third, the new iPhone 14 Pro uses an eSIM with no option for a physical SIM for the United States model.  I didn't notice any difference when using the phone portion of the iPhone.  If you are the sort of person who travels internationally and likes to purchase SIM cards in other countries, you should look into whether getting an eSIM is an option for those countries, and if not, this change can have an effect on you.  But for most folks, I don't think that they will ever notice the lack of a SIM tray port.

By the way, I've heard that in the iPhone 14 Pro, Apple isn't do anything to take advantage of the extra space that comes along with not having a SIM card tray.  That makes sense since Apple still supports SIM cards in the international version of the iPhone 14 Pro.  My guess is that Apple is making this a transitional year.  Perhaps next year, there will be no SIM tray port in any iPhone sold anywhere, and at that time we will see how Apple uses that space.  Perhaps it will result in extra battery life.

Conclusion

The iPhone 14 Pro gives you the delightful and useful Dynamic Island, plus it takes noticeably better pictures, plus it has features that can help to save your life.  Any one of those three would be a compelling reason to upgrade from an iPhone 13 Pro, and getting all three of them makes this feel like a substantial upgrade over last year's iPhone.  I consider the always on display a less important new feature, but it is something else to put in the "plus" column.  Moreover, if you are upgrading from something older than an iPhone 13 Pro, then you will get even more great features that will be new to you, like the 3x telephoto lens and macro lens that were both added last year and the fantastic design with flat sides that was introduced two years ago.  Suffice it to say that anyone who purchases an iPhone 14 Pro will find something new to love.  The iPhone 14 Pro is an amazing device that gets my highest recommendation.

Podcast episode 68: Duplicate Yak Pics, Sneaky Jamaican TMs, and Jeff’s iPhone Delivery!

This week's episode of the In the News podcast is jam-packed with tons of great information for anyone who uses an iPhone.  We share tons of tips about iOS 16, addressing small but incredibly useful features that you might want to use in the Photos, Mail, and Settings apps.  We also talk about the iPhone 14 Pro, including the impressive camera improvements.  We discuss the new Apple Watch Series 8 and some cool features in watchOS 9 that you can use even if you don't have a new Apple Watch.

In our In the Know segment, Brett and I each pick one of our favorite features of iOS 16.

Finally, Brett and I encourage folks to donate to the fundraiser for St Jude, and thank those of you who were generous enough to donate already.

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just use your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

In the News

Today, the new versions of the iPhone go on sale.  Well, at least three of the four models do; the iPhone 14 Plus won't be available until October 7, but the iPhone 14 and both sizes of the iPhone 14 Pro are available today.  If you pre-ordered early enough last week, UPS or FedEx may have one on the truck just for you.  (At least, I hope so; Chance Miller of 9to5Mac notes that some folks who were supposed to get their new iPhone today will now have to wait.)  If you did not pre-order, you can sometimes find a few of the new models at the local Apple Store in your mall on the first day, if you are lucky.  But even if you don't have new hardware, you can refresh the look and feel of your older iPhone by installing iOS 16, which came out earlier this week and has lots of great features.  And now, the news of note from the past week:

• A number of you have donated to the fundraiser I am promoting this month for St Jude, and if you did so already, you are so awesome!  If you haven't done so yet, there's still time.  Don't feel bashful to toss in something small like $20.  Any amount that you contribute will go directly to St. Jude and make a big difference for kids with cancer.  That's a pretty great way to start your weekend on the right foot.
• A small number of professional journalists have been testing the new iPhones since last week, and the embargo on those reviews lifted on Wednesday morning.  Attorney John Voorhees of MacStories does a good job of linking to some of the best of those reviews.  Note that the SOS and Find My via satellite does not go live until November, so we haven't yet seen any reviews of that interesting new feature.
• For the last few years, professional photographer Austin Mann has taken the newest iPhones to exotic locations to push the camera upgrades to the limits.  The pictures that he took this year with the iPhone 14 Pro in Scotland are simply stunning.  He also does a great job of showing and explaining what has changed.
• Chris Velazco and Geoffrey Fowler of the Washington Post conclude that the cameras on Apple's newest iPhones are the best ever, but sometimes you need to look closely to see why.  Their article includes some great comparison shots between many different iPhone models.
• Jared Neman of Fast Company discusses the implications of the removal of the SIM tray in the U.S. versions of the new iPhone.
• We were all surprised to learn about the "Dynamic Island" feature of the iPhone 14 Pro.  How did Apple register that trademark without any of us knowing about it?  Mark Gurman of Bloomberg explains how: Apple filed the trademark in Jamaica on July 12, and the only way to search for trademarks in that country is to go physically to that country's trademark office.
• Josh Centers of Reviewed reviews the new Apple Watch Series 8.
• DC Rainmaker posted an in-depth review of the Apple Watch Series 8.
• iJustine created a great video review of the Apple Watch Series 8.
• Dan Moren of Six Colors reviews iOS 16.
• The subject isolation feature in iOS 16 is extremely cool on its own, but it can also be used by app developers in interesting ways.  John Voorhees of MacStories reviews Sticker Drop, a $2.99 app that lets you create, store, and organize iMessage Stickers using subject isolation.
• Another nice feature of iOS 16 is the ability to use the Photos app to find duplicate pictures in your library and then merge them, keeping the best picture and the most metadata.  Michael Potuck of 9to5Mac explains how it works.
• Another nice feature of iOS 16 is the haptic keyboard.  Jason Cross of Macworld explains how it works.  I've been using it all this week, and so far, I like it.
• Third-party apps can now add widgets to the lock screen in iOS 16.  Sarah Perez of TechCrunch is impressed with the widgets from the Flighty app for flight tracking.
• Jess Weatherbed of The Verge discusses new features in CARROT Weather for iOS 16.
• John Voorhees of MacStories describes what is new in the Mail app in iOS 16 (and what is coming soon to the iPad and Mac).
• Jason Cross of Macworld notes that a feature coming in the future to iOS 16 is Clean Energy Charging, allowing you to reduce your carbon footprint while you charge your iPhone.
• July Clover of MacRumors notes that another feature coming to iOS 16.1 is Live Activities on the Lock Screen.  For example, a sports score could include live updates.
• Jeff Butts of The Mac Observer discusses some lesser known features of iOS 16.
• iOS 16 on the iPhone is getting most of the press, but there is also a very important update for the iPad that came out this week.  iPadOS 15.7 fixes a zero-day flaw that is being actively exploited by hackers, according to Carly Page of TechCrunch.  If you haven't updated your iPad yet, do so now.
• Alex Guyot of MacStories wrote an excellent review of watchOS 9.
• If you have an Apple Watch Series 6 or later running watchOS 9, you can take advantage of the new Waypoints and Backtrack feature of the Compass app, a way to leave digital breadcrumbs for yourself so that you can retrace your steps later.  Juli Clover explains how it works.  One downside of this feature is that it completely undermines the premise of a large number of horror movie plots.
• A number of people who attended the Apple keynote in person last week wrote about the experience.  If you are interested in that, I recommend Jason Snell's article on Six Colors and John Gruber's article on Daring Fireball.  And while M.G. Siegler just watched the event online like I did, he also has an interesting take on the announcements and more.
• In an article for Macworld, Jason Snell notes that one common theme of Apple's new products is that they have new features that can save your life.
• Apple TV+ had a nice showing at the Emmys this year.  As Chance Miller of 9to5Mac notes, Ted Lasso got lots of top awards.  However, Succession beat out Severance for outstanding drama.  I watched a portion of the Emmy's in a corner of my iPad (while I was reading Federico Viticci's excellent and comprehensive review of iOS 16), and my main takeaway is that there were lots of really good shows up for the big awards this year, any one of which was deserving to win.
• And finally, one new feature of the newest iPhone and Apple Watch that you cannot really test yourself is the crash detection feature.  I strongly recommend that you watch this short and informative video from Apple that explains all the details of how this feature works.  If you find yourself in a crash, it will be extremely helpful to have prior knowledge of what is happening and why:

Why lawyers will love the 2022 models of the Apple Watch

Last week, Apple made lots of changes to the Apple Watch line.  With different models that have different features, it is easier than ever to find an excellent Apple Watch that is right for your needs.  Here are the features of the three new models that are likely to appeal to lawyers and other professional users so that you can decide which model is right for you.  I will start with the least expensive new model, the second generation Apple Watch SE, and then move up in price to the Apple Watch Series 8 and the Apple Watch Ultra.

Apple Watch SE (second generation)

If you are looking to get your first Apple Watch, or if you are looking to upgrade from an Apple Watch Series 3 (which came out in 2017) or earlier, the Apple Watch SE is an excellent model to consider buying.  It starts at only $249 (for the 40mm size for smaller wrists) or $279 (for the 44mm size for larger wrists).

The new Apple Watch SE is available with an aluminum case in the colors Midnight, Starlight, and Silver.

The new Apple Watch SE includes all of the core features that make the Apple Watch so wonderful.  It is a great device for receiving notifications, which can customize on the iPhone.  Thus, when an important client or colleague sends you an email or a text, your watch can discretely tap your wrist to alert you.  It is also a great device for watching your activity throughout the day and monitoring your exercises.  And of course it tells you the time, with lots of watch faces to choose from and customize.

The Apple Watch SE also can sense fall detection, a feature that was introduced with the Apple Watch Series 4 back in 2018 and that was also in the first generation Apple Watch SE.  I know that many people purchase an Apple Watch for an older relative because of the fall detection feature, so it is nice that the entry-level SE continues to include this sensor.

The main change that Apple added to this second generation Apple Watch SE versus the original Apple Watch SE that debuted two years ago is that this year's model uses the top-of-the line S8 chip, the fastest chip currently available for any Apple Watch.  (The original SE used an S5 chip that was already a year old when the original SE was introduced.)  This means that the Apple Watch will be very responsive to your touch and you shouldn't find yourself annoyed because you are waiting for the watch to do something.

This second-generation Apple Watch SE also adds sensors that were not in the model that was released years ago which allow this new model to sense if you are in a car crash.  This is a new feature that Apple also added to the iPhone 14, which was also announced last week.  If the watch senses a sudden change in acceleration that is typical of a car crash, the watch will automatically call 911 or other emergency services to seek help.  (You have 10 seconds to cancel if for some reason it is a false alarm.)

For all of the basic Apple Watch needs, the new Apple Watch SE has you covered.  But you don't get some advanced features available in the more expensive models, so let's discuss those next.

Apple Watch Series 8

The new Apple Watch Series 8 starts at $399 (for the 41mm model for smaller wrists) and at $429 (for the 45mm model for larger wrists).  Here is what you get for the additional $150 over the Apple Watch SE.

First, you get a slightly larger screen, a feature that debuted with the Apple Watch Series 7 (and which I discussed more extensively in my review of that model).  The 1mm increase doesn't sound like much, but it does make a real difference when you are using the watch.  Many on-screen buttons are noticeably larger and easier to tap.  And you sometimes see more information on the screen, which is nice.

Second, the larger screen can be on all the time.  This is a huge difference.  With the Apple Watch SE and many older models, you need to move or raise your wrist to activate the screen.  With the Series 8 (like the Series 5, 6, and 7), you can just glance at your wrist without moving it to see the time or to look at a notification.  When you are in a meeting or with other people, this allows you to be much more discrete, potentially avoiding the embarrassment of a client or someone else thinking that you are getting bored with what they have to say because you are fiddling with your watch just to turn on the screen to see a notification or the time.

Third, the Series 8 has many more sensors than the SE, providing you with even more useful information.  One of them is new to the Series 8 this year: a sensor that tracks your temperature while you are sleeping that can help a person who is ovulating track their cycle, which can help you make decisions for family providing and which provide a more detailed view of a menstrual cycle.  There are actually two temperature sensors; one on the back that is near your skin, and another just under the display to reduce bias from the outside environment.  Apple doesn't advertise this temperature tracking as being accurate enough to tell you whether you have a fever, so I get the sense that Apple sees this more of a way to track relative average temperature over time, not your specific body temperature at a point in time.  For example, the Health app shows your relative temperature as compared to a baseline:

The Series 8 also has a blood oxygen sensor (first introduced with the Series 6), which you can use to monitor your breathing and blood circulation, and thus your overall cardiac health.  The Series 8 also has an ECG (also called an EKG) (first introduced with the Series 4 in 2018).  The Series 8 also has a more advanced heart sensor than the SE (first introduced with the Series 6).  Apple is careful to say that this is not a medical device, but these sensors can give you a warning that it might be a good time to go see a doctor.  

Fourth, the Series 8 is more resistant to the outside world.  Both the SE and the Series 8 are water resistant, so it is OK to swim with them or get them wet.  But the Series 8 is also dust resistant (IP6X) (a feature introduced with the Series 7).

Fifth, you can charge a Series 8 more quickly than an SE.  This is something that Apple first introduced with the Series 7, and I like it.  I usually have no trouble with my Apple Watch lasting all day long.  But on days when I push it to the limit, it is nice to give the battery a little boost at some point during the day, and it is noticeably faster to do so with an Apple Watch that supports a USB-C charger with fast charging.

Sixth, the Series 8 adds a U1 chip (Ultra Wideband).  You can use this with your iPhone's Find My app to locate your Apple Watch more precisely if you forgot where you left the watch.

Finally, with the Series 8 you can choose to pay more for a stainless steel case.  I prefer the shiny look of the stainless steel case, and I've been using this version of the Apple Watch since 2015 when the Apple Watch was first introduced.  The stainless steel case is a little tougher, and when you get that model you also get an improved screen that uses sapphire crystal instead of Ion-X glass to be more resistant to scratches.  You have to pay an additional $300 for the stainless steel model so it is definitely a premium purchase, but if you think of an Apple Watch as jewelry that you wear all the time, that price increase may seem more reasonable.

Even if you don't opt for the stainless steel model, you can see that the Series 8 offers lots of useful advantages for the additional $150.  I think that for many professionals, the always-on, larger screen alone is worth the $150, so if you are looking for my recommendation as to whether you should get the SE or a Series 8 as a first Apple Watch, my recommendation for most folks is to get the Series 8.  But don't get me wrong, the SE is also a very good Apple Watch if you just want the basics and you don't mind missing out on some of the latest and greatest features.

What if you use an older Apple Watch, like a Series 4, 5, or 6?  Is it worth the extra money to upgrade?  From a Series 4 or 5, I would say probably yes.  The new Series 8 is very similar to the Series 7 that came out last year, and I myself was very happy that I upgraded from a Series 5 to the Series 7 to get the larger, brighter screen and extra sensors.  From a Series 6 or 7, I would not upgrade unless there is a specific new feature that you think is going to be very useful for you, such as the temperature tracking or (if you have a Series 6) the slightly larger screen.

The Apple Watch Series 8 is available with an aluminum body in the same colors as the Apple Watch SE—Midnight, Starlight, and Silver—plus the additional PRODUCT(RED) color.  With the stainless steel body, the color choices are Graphite, Silver, and Gold.

Nike and Hermès models

A quick note: Apple is no longer selling Nike models of the Apple Watch.  Instead, all versions of the Apple Watch can now use the Nike watch faces, and you can continue to purchase the Nike versions of the watch bands and use them with any Apple Watch.  The Nike Run Club app also works on any Apple Watch. However, Apple is continuing to sell the Hermès versions of the Apple Watch with exclusive watch faces.

Apple Watch Ultra

Some folks will not need advice on whether the Apple Watch Ultra is right for them.  They already live the sort of extreme active lifestyle for which the Ultra should be perfect.  Having said that, there are lots of great features in the new Apple Watch Ultra that will appeal to a wider audience.  And at $799, which is only $100 more than the stainless steel Apple Watch and less expensive than many other extreme sports watches on the market, it may not take much for many folks to decide that this is the best Apple Watch for them.

First, you get the largest and brightest display ever offered with an Apple Watch in a 49mm case.  Unlike the 1000 nits brightness of the Series 8 and SE, the brightness on the Ultra is 2000 nits.  Thus, when you glance at this watch, it should be much easier to see the information that you need.

The larger size on the Ultra means that in the Workout app you can now see six different metrics on the screen at the same time.

Second, you get the most durable Apple Watch ever made. It features the same sapphire crystal on the front that you get with the stainless steel version of the Series 8, but on the Ultra that crystal is completely flat with protection on the edges to give it additional protection.  It features a case made of Titanium, so that it is both rugged and light, and there are raised guards around the digital crown for more protection.  (There are no color choices with the Apple Watch Ultra; it only comes in a single color of Titanium.)  It is strong enough to be water resistant up to 100m (versus 50m on the Series 8 and SE) with EN13319 certification, so it can be used for scuba diving.

Third, speaking of scuba diving, the Ultra has a depth gauge with a temperature sensor.

It also comes with an Oceanic+ app to use as a dive computer.

Fourth, the Ultra has an 86-decibel siren that you can activate to attract attention from up to 600 feet away.  If you are lost in the woods and want someone else to find you, that siren can help.  I suppose this could also be useful in a city if you are trying to attract attention because you are in an unsafe situation.

Fifth, the battery lasts up to 36 hours, which is twice as long as the 18-hour battery on the Series 8 and SE.  And Apple says that later this year it will add low power settings that will allow the Ultra to go 60 hours between charges.  Apple says that "Apple Watch Ultra has enough battery life for most users to complete a long-course triathlon, consisting of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and full marathon at 26.2 miles."

Sixth, the Ultra includes a new feature called Backtrack.  This feature is also available on the Apple Watch Series 6 and later if running watchOS 9, but perhaps it will be most useful to the type of folks who would purchase an Ultra.  Apple says:  "Backtrack uses GPS data to create a path showing where the user has been, which is useful if they get lost or disoriented and need help retracing their steps. It can also turn on automatically in the background when off the grid.  With a single press of the Action button, users can quickly drop a Compass Waypoint or start or view a Backtrack."  It sounds like a digital version of dropping bread crumbs.

Seventh, the Ultra features a new button on the left side of the Apple Watch called the Action button.  Unlike the button on the right side of the Apple Watch, which performs system functions and thus cannot be used with apps, the new Action button on the left can be used by apps to allow for input without touching the screen.  If you are underwater, this is especially useful because you cannot touch an Apple Watch screen when it is in water.

In a workout, you can use the Action button to begin the workout and to move to the next interval of a custom workout or the next leg of a multisport workout.  If you are running on a track, you can also use the Action button to mark each segment.

Eighth, the Ultra features better GPS than the normal Apple Watch.  (In addition to using the L1 frequency, which is the oldest and most-used version of GPS, it adds support for the new L5 frequency, which can provide less interference.)

Ninth, the Ultra has much louder speakers (Apple says 40% louder than the Series 8) and a much improved microphone.  Thus, if you are in extreme weather conditions, it should be far easier to have a phone conversation using just your watch.

The Ultra also uses Bluetooth 5.3, as opposed to the Bluetooth 5.0 used by the Series 8 and SE, but Apple has not yet announced what difference this makes.

Apple also created three bands designed for the Ultra: an Ocean Band for swimming, an Alpine Loop for rough outdoor use, and a Trail Loop for long runs.

I've never owned an extreme sports watch, such as the models sold by companies like Garmin, nor do I participate in extreme sports, so I don't have the first-hand experience required to judge how good a job Apple did with adding these specific features.  Nevertheless, it is fascinating seeing Apple come out with a new category of Apple Watch.  I'll be curious to read the reviews.

Although Apple's advertisements for the Ultra may give the impression that you need to be running up a mountain while it is snowing to take advantage of it, the reality is that this is also a superior watch for less extreme activities like running through the park.  The larger screen, increased durability, longer battery life, and action button will surely be useful for anyone who lives an active lifestyle.  On the other hand, the Ultra may be a little large on your wrist when you are just working in an office or going out at night.  If I were wearing a button-down shirt, I'm not even sure that the Ultra would fit under many shirt sleeves.  I'm sure that some folks will get the Ultra as a second Apple Watch to only use during sports and exercise.

Finally, for those of us unlikely to ever purchase an Apple Watch Ultra, I hope that some of these new features, like the Action button, brighter display, and longer battery life, eventually come to the mainstream version of the Apple Watch.  The Action button, in particular, looks like it could be very useful.

Conclusion

The Series 8 as compared to the Series 7, and the new SE as compared to the original SE, are nice but modest improvements.  But the overall state of the Apple Watch market in 2022 is the best that it has ever been.  Both the Series 8 and SE look to be fantastic devices.  You just need to decide if the more advanced features are worth an additional $150.  And with the new Apple Watch Ultra, Apple is entering a brand new market and introducing great new features that are useful today for certain types of activities.  Hopefully, some of the great new features of the Ultra will eventually come to other models so that the masses can enjoy them.

iOS 16 will be available today

Today, Apple is releasing iOS 16, the next major version of the iPhone operating system.  Based on past practices, I expect it to become available around mid-day today.  I discussed many of the features of iOS 16 in this post from three months ago, when Apple first previewed the update.  Over the last three months, Apple has revised some of those features, but the large majority of that post remains relevant today.

Here is a quick recap of the top new features that you will see on your iPhone once you update:

• New Lock Screen: This will be the most visible change in iOS 16. The lock screen will look different, you can have multiple Lock Screens and easily switch between them, notifications will look different on the Lock Screen, the Lock Screen can hold widgets, when you play music you can see the album art on the Lock Screen, and more.
• Messages: You can edit or delete a text message after you send it, assuming that the other person is also running iOS 16 or later.
• Mail: You can put aside an email in your inbox and have the system remind you of it later, search is improved, you can schedule an email to be sent at a later time, you can configure the Mail app so that when you hit send the message won’t actually be sent for a short period of time so that (if you act quickly enough) you can unsend the message, etc.
• Maps: You can use multistop routing for driving directions.
• Home app: There is a new interface.
• Siri dictation: You can dictate and use the keyboard at the same time.
• Medications: The Health app can keep track of your medications and remind you of what you need to take and when.
• Apple Pay Later: Purchase an item now and pay for it over six weeks with no interest and no fees.
• Tap and drag photos: You can tap an object in many photos (like a dog) and drag it to another location—just the dog, without the rest of the picture around it.

If you want a very detailed look at everything that is new in iOS 16, Federico Viticci is preparing a comprehensive guide to iOS 16, as he has done for many years now.  It will be available at some point today on MacStories.net.

Although the iPhone update is coming today, iPadOS 16 is still about a month away, and macOS Ventura is also probably a month away.  For that reason, there are some features in iOS 16 that will have limited utility.  For example, if you delete or edit a message in Messages, another person using an iPad or a Mac will still see the original message.  Also, a new family photo sharing feature in Photos will have limited usefulness if you and your family have not yet updated all of your devices.

Moreover, because iOS 16 is such a major update, you might decide to wait a little bit before you install it just to let other folks figure out if there are any major bugs in the initial release.  The latest versions of the beta versions of iOS 16 have been quite stable, so I do not expect that to be a problem, but you never know.

Podcast episode 67: Islands in the Phone, That is What We Are…

This week's episode of the In the News podcast is all about Apple's announcements from this past week.  First, we talk about the four new iPhones, including the impressive new features in the iPhone 14 Pro models.  Next, we talk about the new Apple Watch models, including who the new Apple Watch Ultra is designed for and who it will appeal to—which is not necessarily the same thing.  Finally, we discuss the new second generation version of the AirPods Pro.

In our In the Know segment, we talk about the release of iOS 16, coming this Monday.

Click here to listen to the audio podcast, or just use your podcast player of choice.  You can also watch the episode on YouTube:

In the News

Today, Apple starts taking pre-orders for the new iPhone 14 models and the new AirPods Pro.  Given the supply constraints around the world that have affected every industry, but especially the electronics industry, get your order in early if you don't want to have to wait a long time for delivery.  Or, you can skip the pre-order and just plan to show up at your local Apple Store on the  morning of September 16 (or September 23 for the new AirPods Pro) because Apple traditionally sets aside a small number of units for Apple Store shoppers.  I pre-ordered an iPhone 14 Pro, 256GB, Space Black, a leather case, and the new AirPods Pro.  And now, the news of note from the past week:

• While you are thinking about spending money on new Apple products, how about throwing in a few bucks to help kids with cancer?  Simply go to the page, click the big green DONATE button, and donate any amount.  Thanks in advance!
• Mark Spooneuer of Tom's Guide discusses what is new in the iPhone 14 Pro Max, after having spent a little time with the device this week.
• Jason Cross of Macworld discusses the new iPhone 14 models.  He notes in the article that many had expected Apple to raise prices this year because of inflation and supply constraints, and while Apple did do that in some countries, it did not do so here in the United States.
• The satellites that work with the iPhone 14 models are operated by Globalstar, a company from Covington, LA, which means it is just across the lake from where I live.  In an article for the New Orleans newspaper, the Times-Picayune, Timothy Boone says that Globalstar has been working with Apple for years to prepare.  The article says that "Apple will pay 95% of the costs Globalstar incurs launching new satellites to build out the network," and Apple "will spend $450 million to build out satellite infrastructure to support the feature," with most of that money going to Globalstar.  "Because of the Apple deal, Globalstar has dropped the development of its second-generation duplex service, which provides two-way communications," so that the company can instead concentrate on Apple.
• The new iPhone 14 Pro models support the Dynamic Island, which looks like a great new feature.  Felipe Espósito of 9to5Mac explains how it works.
• Ed Blumenthall of CNet reports that AT&T is rolling out a new 5G midband network, but the only iPhones that can use it are the new iPhone 14 models.
• Three new Apple Watch models were announced this week: the Apple Watch Ultra, the Apple Watch Series 8, and the second generation Apple Watch SE.  Michael Potuck of 9to5Mac compares the new models.
• In an article for Macworld, Jason Snell shows off some initial pictures of the Apple Watch Ultra.
• California attorney David Sparks wonders if the Apple Watch Ultra might be the start of other new versions of the Apple Watch.  Now he has me wondering what features I'd want to see in an "Apple Watch J.D."
• Can you use the new bands designed for the Apple Watch Ultra with other versions of the Apple Watch, and vice versa?  Zac Hall of 9to5Mac explains the band compatibility issues.
• Attorney John Voorhees of MacStories discusses the second generation AirPods Pro.
• Voorhees also write an in-depth preview of the iCloud Shared Photo Library feature that is coming in iOS 16.
• Dan Moren of Six Colors labels certain features as winners, losers, and in-between based upon the Apple announcements this week.
• Jason Snell of Six Colors discusses some of the bold moves by Apple that were revealed this week.
• John Gruber of Daring Fireball notes that the iPhone is extremely popular in the United States, Japan, and in many English-speaking countries like Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia, but Android phones are more popular than iPhones in countries like Germany and France.
• Jay Peters of The Verge wrote an article titled "Apple Maps Turns 10—And It's Finally Worth Using."
• The Steve Jobs Archive is a new website created by friends and family of Steve Jobs that is devoted to the core ideals that motivated Steve Jobs throughout his life.
• Kara Swisher interviewed Tim Cook, Jony Ive, and Laurene Powell to discuss Steve Jobs.  Chance Miller of 9to5Mac provides some highlights of what they said.
• Mitchell Clark of The Verge notes that Apple's Lightning port is now 10 years old.  I remember being impressed when Apple introduced it with the iPhone 5; it was so much smaller than the 30-pin connector, and the plug worked no matter which way you inserted it.
• Ed Hardy of Cult of Mac reports that Apple Pay now handles over $6 trillion in transactions each year, which is more than MasterCard.
• Juli Clover of MacRumors reports that YouTube TV on the Apple TV has been updated to support 5.1 audio.  (YouTube TV is a streaming television service; this is not the YouTube app.)
• And finally, if you didn't already watch the Apple video introduction on Wednesday, I encourage you to watch this three minute video from the beginning of the show.  In it, real people explain how an Apple Watch enhanced or saved their life as they describe—and recreate—what happened.  Some of these stories are amazing.

Why lawyers will love the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14

Yesterday, Apple introduced the 2022 versions of the iPhone, and there is a lot to love about these new models.  There are four new iPhones in two sizes.  If you want the regular size with a 6.1" screen, you can get either the iPhone 14 or the iPhone 14 Pro.  If you want the larger size with a 6.7" screen, you can get the iPhone 14 Plus or the iPhone 14 Pro Max.  This is the fourth year that Apple has introduced a "Pro" model of the iPhone, and while I've always enjoyed the extra features, in the past, they may not have been worth the extra expense for many folks.  This is the first year that the Pro version has substantially more features, and I suspect that this will result in more folks getting the Pro model even if they didn't do so in prior years.  Let's jump right in and talk about the features that lawyers and other professionals are going to love about these new devices.

Safety thanks to satellites

There are two different ways in which the new iPhones can help to keep you safe, and the first safety feature is provided by satellites.

If you find yourself in times of trouble, it has always been comforting to know that you can use Wi-Fi or cellular to send a message to friends or families—or, in a real emergency, to 911.  But what if you are "off the grid" and cannot get even a cellular signal?  I’ve certainly had situations in the past when I was driving to a remote location to interview a witness or take a deposition and there is suddenly no cell phone coverage, and I find myself wondering what would happen if I had car trouble with no way to call for help.

All four of Apple's new iPhones can communicate with satellites to send an emergency message, should you need it.  It works best when you have a clear line of sight to the sky; those emergency messages take about 15 seconds to send.  If you are under trees, Apple says that it could take over a minute to send a message (and bigger obstructions might block the satellites completely). 

 

The way that Apple is implementing this feature is interesting.  When you use Emergency SOS via Satellite, your iPhone will ask you a series of questions to figure out what is wrong.  It can then communicate, in the most efficient way possible, from your iPhone to a satellite to a ground station (that communicates with the satellite) to a relay center.  People at the relay center then contact the appropriate emergency services.

If you are stuck in the middle of nowhere, this feature can be a real lifesaver.  But you can also take advantage of this feature even if you are not in an emergency.  The iPhone already has the ability to share your location with family members or friends that you designate.  So long as you are on the cellular grid, this feature works great.  But if you are off the grid, the new iPhone will use the satellite feature to communicate your location to Find My.  That way, your designated friends and family members will still know where you are located.

Apple hasn't said how frequently your location is updated via satellite, and I have to imagine that it doesn't happen very often.  In the example photo (above) provided by Apple, the person's location was as of 4 minutes ago, which is great.  Hopefully, the locations are updated frequently enough for this feature to be useful, but I'm sure that Apple took that into account.

The ability to communicate with satellites is a service that costs money.  Apple says that the service will be free for the first two years that you use one of these phones.  After that, you will have to pay a fee that Apple has yet to disclose.  (Currently, satellite communication services from companies like Garmin cost over $100 a year depending upon the features, but who knows what Apple will charge.)

Safety in a car accident

Another safety feature with all four new models of iPhone is that they can use the improved accelerometer and gyroscope to detect when you are in a severe car crash.  If the iPhone detects this, it will automatically call emergency services (giving you about 10 seconds to stop this, in case of a false alarm) so that your iPhone can call for help even if you are unconscious or unable to reach your iPhone. 

Dynamic Island for improved notifications

If you lead a busy life and are a heavy iPhone user, then your iPhone always has a lot going on.  You are dealing with lots of incoming messages, and you have different apps running that sometimes need your attention.  One of my favorite features of the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max (not available on the other two models) is called Dynamic Island.  Apple has taken what used to be a notch at the top of the screen (where a front-facing camera and sensors are located) and turned it into something the size of a pill.  But the size of the pill changes dynamically to display different messages.

The best way to understand this feature is to see it in action.  Here is a very short, under-one-minute, video from Apple that shows how the Dynamic Island feature works.  (You can keep the sound turned off if you want; it is just background music.)

Having useful information displayed at the top of an iPhone seems like a fabulous idea, and I cannot wait to try it out myself.  This feature looks amazing.  And you have to love that Apple has taken something that used to be considered a hindrance—the notch—and found a way to turn it into a feature for which people will want to pay extra.

Impressive camera improvements

Every year, Apple does something to improve the iPhone camera. There are a few new features that come to the cameras on all four new iPhones.  First, Apple is using technology that Apple calls the "Photonic Engine" to improve the quality of low-light images.  Second, a new Action Mode will use sensors to improve the stabilization of video when you are recording video as you move around.  These are both nice improvements.

For the major improvements, you need to use a Pro model.  Instead of the 12-megapixel camera that has been standard in the iPhone for a long time, the Pro models use a 48-megapixel camera.  Normally, the iPhone will treat this like a 12-megapixel camera, and the 4x pixels will be used to capture maximize the amount of light that is captured, resulting in sharper pictures.  Apple will also use the increase in pixels to offer a true 2x optical zoom using the main camera (which is in addition to the 3x optical zoom using the telephoto camera that is on the Pro model).  But if you want to take a 48-megapixel picture (which will be huge!), you can do that as well when you use the ProRAW model on the iPhone.  Apple has also improved the lenses, so all of them should produce better pictures even with less light.  And there are other improvements too, such as the ability to use Cinematic mode (introduced last year) for 4K video, not just 1080p video.

Thus, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus will have very nice cameras that should take great pictures.  But the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will have truly incredible cameras, and I cannot wait to see the resulting picture quality.  Considering that low-light is always such a problem for taking pictures with a cellphone camera, it is great to see that Apple is doing so much to make pictures look much better even when you are not outside with lots of sunlight.

A display that is always-on, and more

Another feature that only comes to the two Pro models is an always-on display.  I've mentioned in the past that the lock screen in iOS 16 will be vastly improved with the ability to display lots of useful information in widgets.  With the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, you can see those widgets even when your iPhone is just sitting on  your desk.  This works similar to the always-on display on the newest models of the Apple Watch; after a short period of time, the image dims and the refresh rate goes down substantially—which means, for example, that a timer will stop displaying seconds, although it will still countdown minutes.  I'll have to try this out to see how useful it really is, but I imagine that, in some circumstances, it will mean that you can get the information that you need with a quick glance instead of taking the time to pick up and use the iPhone.

The peak brightness is also improved on the Pro models, going up to 2000 nits when you are outside, twice as bright as the iPhone 13 Pro.  This should make it much easier to see the iPhone screen when you are outside on a sunny day.  If you are inside, the iPhone 14 Pro can go up to 1600 nits for displaying HDR photos, an improvement from the 1200 nits of the iPhone 13 Pro.

A16 Bionic: a faster processor

Yet another improvement that only comes to the two Pro models is Apple's newest, fastest processor: the A16 Bionic.  (The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus use the same A15 Bionic chip that was used in all four of last year's iPhone 13 models.)  I'm sure that one of the things that this new processor does is enable some of the features noted above that are unique to the iPhone 14.  But in addition, the new processor should make the iPhone even faster and more responsive, which is always nice.  Apple says that the biggest improvements that come from the A16 Bionic are in power efficiency, the display, and camera features.

Goodbye, SIM

One interesting change for all four new models is that the devices no longer have a SIM Card slot.  Instead, they use an eSIM.  I'm sure that not having a SIM Card slot is useful for several reasons: cost, one less point of entry for water, a little extra space for battery, etc. But if you are someone who likes being apple to swap a physical SIM card in and out of your iPhone, you can no longer do that.  However, the new iPhone does support up to two eSIMs at a time.

Colors

The iPhone 14 comes in Blue, Purple, Midnight, Starlight, and (PRODUCT) Red.  The iPhone 14 Pro comes in Deep Purple, Gold, Silver, and Space Black.

Storage and Price

The iPhone 14 starts at $799 for 128GB, which is the same price as the iPhone 13.  For an extra $100, you can double the memory to 256GB.  Or you can pay $1099 for the 512GB model.  If you want the larger iPhone 14 Plus model, each of those price points is $100 more expensive.

The iPhone 14 Pro starts at $999, so you are paying an additional $200 over the iPhone 14 for all of the extra features noted above: Dynamic Island, better cameras, always-on display, and the faster processor.  From there, the pricing tier is what you would expect.  For an extra $100, you can double the memory to 256GB.  Or youc an pay $1299 for the 512GB mdoel.  Or you can pay $1499 for the 1TB model.  If you want the larger iPhone 14 Pro Max model, each of those price points is $100 more expensive.

International - an update

After I initially published this post, "John" noted in a comment that there are, for now at least, some differences between the new iPhone in the U.S. and in other countries.  First, the satellite feature is only available in the U.S. and Canada.  That is true for now, but I'm sure that Apple will change that soon.  As I understand it, the issue is not the satellite itself but instead what happens here on Earth.  Apple has a call center to handle the emergency requests it receives from a satellite.  If the appropriate emergency services department can receive messages via text, then Apple forwards the emergency text message to that service.  But if not, then Apple has a person call the appropriate emergency services department to explain what is going on.  Apple needs time to get a similar service available in other countries.  I strongly suspect we will see other countries added soon.

Second, the removal of the SIM Tray is, for now, only on the U.S. phone.  There have frequently been differences between the U.S. iPhone and international iPhones on issues like SIM cards, cellular band compatibility, etc.

Pre-pre-order

If you know that you want to get a new iPhone, the new models go on sale for pre-orders starting Friday, September 9, at 8am Eastern.  But a nice change is that you don't need to wait until then to start your order.  If you use the Apple Store app on your iPhone, you can choose a model (and any accessories) and make most of your decisions now.  That way, once pre-orders begin on Friday morning, you should be just a few button clicks away from completing your order.  

Conclusion

I'm very excited about the Pro models of the iPhone this year.  The improved cameras along would have made this a nice improvement.  The Dynamic Island features looks amazing, and the always-on display and faster processor could be quite useful.  For folks who are often on the fence between the Pro and the regular models, it is going to be very tempting this year to spend the extra $200.  But even if those Pro features don't appeal to you, the safety improvements that come to all new iPhones could be useful to anyone.  Plus, the idea that an iPhone can communicate with a satellite in sky is pretty darn impressive.  The 2022 models of the iPhone are very impressive.  I look forward to using an iPhone 14 Pro soon.