Although Apple didn’t hold an official event to mark some major announcements, the mini press release that was held revealed a lot. New hardware products, a new app and improvements to existing devices were only some of them.
When Apple’s online store was taken down for ‘scheduled maintenance’ on Tuesday, everyone was expecting great things. There had already been a lot of rumors surrounding the potential announcements from the company and many of them were proven to be correct.
Firstly we were informed of the special edition (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus due to be released on March 24. These will be available in 128GB and 256GB for the same price as the equivalent models in standard colors. Apple said that this release came about due to 10 years of partnership with (RED), giving customers a way to contribute against the global fund.
“Since we began working with (RED) 10 years ago, our customers have made a significant impact in fighting the spread of AIDS through the purchase of our products, from the original iPod nano (PRODUCT)RED Special Edition all the way to today’s lineup of Beats products and accessories for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The introduction of this special edition iPhone in a gorgeous red finish is our biggest (PRODUCT)RED offering to date in celebration of our partnership with (RED), and we can’t wait to get it into customers’ hands.”
Next came a release we had all been hoping for: the new 9.7 inch iPad with A9 chip to replace the current iPad Air 2. Alongside the A9 chip, this iPad will have a brighter retina display and the entry-size 9.7 inch will come with either 32GB or 128GB. Other features include 2,048 by 1,538 resolution and 264 PPI, 8-megapixel rear-facing iSight camera, 1.2 megapixel front-facing camera, two speakers, Lightning connector, 3.5mm headphone jack, Touch ID for Apple Pay, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.2. Apple are referring to this model as simply ‘iPad’ as the iPad Air 2 has now been discontinued. This too will be available to order beginning Friday 24 March from the online store.
As part of their tablet lineup refresh, the iPad Mini 4 with 32GB of storage has now been discontinued and replaced with a 128GB option. The rumor regarding a 7.9 inch iPad Pro is yet to be confirmed.
The iPad Mini 4 is available now in Silver, Gold and Space Gray.
Apple then went on to unveil their new first-party video creation app titled ‘Clips’. Users can use this app to “create expressive videos” on both their iPhone and iPad by combining videos, images and music into one video that can easily be shared to social media platforms. Animated captions called “Live Titles” can be created with your voice and you can apply effects such as comic book filters, speech bubbles and shapes.
“Clips gives iPhone and iPad users a new way to express themselves through video, and it’s incredibly easy to use,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of Apps Product Marketing. “The effects, filters and amazing new Live Titles we’ve designed for Clips let anyone make great-looking, easily shareable videos with just a few taps.”
The app isn’t available yet but is due to be released at the beginning of April on devices that are running on iOS 10.3.
Other updates included: