
Apple Special Event [video] - pome
https://www.apple.com/apple-events/september-2018/
======
oh_hello
I'm amazed by the sizing. The SE appears to be gone. This means the smallest
device you can buy is the 7/8\. Many still find this to be too large.
Considering Apple's history of selling older iPhone models at a lower price,
it seems like two years from now the bottom of the line will be the Xs and Xr
announced today. The smallest lower-end iPhone available at that time would be
the Xs which is larger than the 6/6s/7/8\. Obviously I have no idea what Apple
has planned, but the push to increasingly large devices seems like a bad idea.

~~~
trixie_
During Steve Jobs

    
    
      Rationally sized phones
      No gimmicks
      Few model numbers
    

After Steve Jobs

    
    
      Phablet sized phones
      Gimmicks everywhere (Animoji, AR, etc..)
      Lots of confusing model numbers
    

Basically Apple has become like every other phone manufacturer. It goes to
show how much a good leader at the top of a company matters. I will keep using
a SE for the foreseeable future.

    
    
      Fits in my hand
      Cheap to self replace screen/battery
      Has a headphone jack

~~~
flipgimble
And yet despite your criticism they are selling more devices than during Steve
Jobs by a large margin. My iphoneX is by far the most usable and comfortable
form factor of a smart phone I’ve used in the past decade. I’m just glad Apple
has far better ways to decide on their device strategy than internet hot takes
to so reliably and predictably miss the boat.

~~~
trixie_
Are you sure Apple is selling more devices because of the new direction OR the
mobile market is just larger than it was 7 years ago.

~~~
threeseed
What new direction ?

Apple is following the same path they have done since the original iPhone.
They have always had models at different price points.

~~~
megy
The new direction they are referring to is clearly the phone size increase.

~~~
djrogers
Which started under Steve Jobs (the 5 was the first bigger screen).

~~~
pdpi
Crucially, though, it had a bigger height but not width.

------
josh2600
If the new Apple processor is actually 7nm fab, that means that Apple is
performing at a higher level of execution than basically everyone else in
silicon land. Intel just failed spectacularly at shipping 10nm and TSMC is
just beginning to do 7nm production hypothetically (I don't think any major
production runs have been announced yet, but please correct me if I'm wrong).

If Apple is shipping 7nm in iPhones, that's actually incredible.

Edit: After doing a bit of research, it seems like Intel is actually the odd
duck out and TSMC is doing the fab on these chip runs as well as the fab on
Huawei's new chip with dual Neural Processing Units. It's actually just Intel
that's failing to produce smaller and smaller chips (again, TSMC is producing
7nm for this Apple run as well as Huawei's new chip).

~~~
plantain
7nm != 7nm - there's a lot of variety between processes.

7nm on a (relatively) small ARM is also a different world to 7nm on a chip the
size of the latest Intel's.

~~~
tigershark
6.9B transistors doesn't look small by any standard to me..

~~~
bookofjoe
Concur. I almost passed out when that slide came up.

------
Odenwaelder
They killed the SE! Now we're stuck with screens too big to use with one hand.
I really really dislike this.

~~~
eitally
Sony offers top tier Xperia models in compact sizes, and has for several
years.

[https://www.sonymobile.com/us/products/phones/#filter=](https://www.sonymobile.com/us/products/phones/#filter=)
(ctrl+F for "compact").

~~~
endemic
Amazingly, they also offer official AOSP builds
([https://developer.sony.com/develop/open-devices/latest-
updat...](https://developer.sony.com/develop/open-devices/latest-updates/)).
LineageOS is also supported on the Xperia Z5 Compact. GApps optional for the
privacy conscious.

~~~
Youden
> LineageOS is also supported on the Xperia Z5 Compact.

There's also unofficial support for the more recent XZ1 Compact.

~~~
balladeer
I was immediately put off by the generous bezels on top and bottom.

Sony had really improved on this aspect of late (actually kinda got rid of
that questionable design and form factor that was ubiquitous in Sony phones).
It seems they figured they need it back for some reason.

------
DaveSchmindel
I can imagine Apple has quite a few linguists on its payroll; They are still
beating the words “beautiful” and “best” to death in their keynotes. It’s
tough to not be excited about new features that are debuted upon each release,
but it’s also getting monotonous to hear, “Product X is the _best_ version of
its kind. Product Y is the _most_ <adjective> we’ve ever created and its
pictures are simply _beautiful_.”

~~~
clwk
Yesterday evening, my daughter noticed an iPad had been removed from its case
and held up the empty one asking what gives? My immediate response, "What
you're looking at is the THINNEST, LIGHTEST, iPad we've ever produced. It's
127% faster than the case alone. And now for something we know you're going to
love. In the past you've enjoyed lunch, and you've told us about how much you
liked late lunch. Tonight we have something really special for you, and I
can't wait to tell you about it. Introducing dinner."

~~~
lucb1e
The thing is, when Steve Jobs spoke such words unironically, the apple fans
swallowed every word whole. And the non-fans were comparing it to existing
products but also didn't really remark much upon it. But yeah, when they keep
repeating it when there is nothing new to report...

------
untog
It occurs to me today how sad it is that we only have two viable mobile
ecosystems these days. I have an iPhone SE, which Apple has opted not to
update. That's their decision to make, I suppose, but no-one else can make iOS
devices and I really don't want to switch to Android (it isn't ignorance, I've
used it since the Nexus One, I've just grown to dislike it for privacy and UI
performance reasons over time, and it doesn't have great hardware in the size
I want either)... and there aren't really any other choices.

Sigh. It's enough to make me nostalgic for Windows Phone.

~~~
GFischer
UI performance in Androids is decent these days. Privacy, well... no.

Even within the Android ecosystem, it's very sad that innovation is stymied.
The only ones that even try are LG and they always fall flat.

There's a long list of different Android phones I'd like to see:

\- Keyboard / Accessible phones. My mother in law has some disabilities that
prevent her from using a touch-phone and she's using an Android phone with
keyboard for messaging. Once it breaks, I'll be hard pressed to find a
replacement

\- Small size phones with decent specs. Lots of people are very vocal about
that, a current coworker spent a lot of time searching and got frustrated, the
only small phones available were basically dumbphones

\- Specialist phones, I can't believe we still don't have phones with physical
camera button and better swappable lenses (I think Sony tried that one, and
there are some add-ons).

Sure there are a lot more undeserved niches.

~~~
oxplot
On Android, you can assign volume buttons to be there shutter button. You can
also open the camera at anytime even when locked, by double clicking part
button.

~~~
GFischer
Yeah, and none of those options work as well as the camera button in the old
Nokias (I was a happy Nokia user as well, but they missed the boat with their
software, even though their hardware was top notch)

~~~
oxplot
This is a matter of taste. It works better for me. I have used phones, Sony's
specifically, that do sport a dedicated button. I never used them because I'm
not used to the location of the button I use once in a while. The power button
however I use multiple times an hour so I can put the phone into camera mode
and take a photo with my eyes closed.

------
vedtopkar
FDA approval to market the new Apple Watch as a medical device is a huge deal.

~~~
dv_dt
I wonder if that ECG feature might change the market perception of the device
- maybe that was the intent. With the ECG and slip and fall detection, I sort
of thought it makes the Apple Watch sound like the most consumer medical alert
bracelet ever.

For people with aging parents that don't really use mobile phones, I could
many watches purchased as safety devices. (Though the battery life doesn't
make it ideal for that...)

~~~
el_benhameen
Yeah, agreed. I have never thought of buying an Apple Watch for myself or as a
gift, but after seeing that, I would at least consider buying them for my
mother and mother-in-law.

------
plantain
The showmanship really feels like it's run out.

Even when it was the post-Jobs Ive and Cook it was still captivating, but this
is just tiresome.

~~~
adrr
I just wish they would stop saying "the most advanced X ever made". Every new
revision of a product is the most advanced version of the product.

~~~
nailer
Just read your comment and hit play on the livestream to hear Jonny Ive
immediately say "the most advanced LCD in a smartphone"...

~~~
AdamJacobMuller
I understand that to a degree, there theoretically could be a better screen in
a competitors phone, though I still think its tired out.

The constant "This is the best X that Apple has done, or the best X in an
iPhone/iWatch" was seriously grating. Well, duh, new year, new products. If
this wasn't better then apple wouldn't be releasing it....

------
slg
It is interesting that Apple will now sell 7 distinct phone models. Throw in
the different capacities and carriers and you have a few dozen different SKUs.
That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it is a notable deviation from their
early approach to the iPhone.

~~~
smitherfield
When the original iPhone launched there was no other product like it; nowadays
they need to be able to compete with Android on price.

~~~
endemic
Compete on price? They're getting more and more expensive...

~~~
21
Flagship Androids are also getting more and more expensive.

~~~
GFischer
Both Apple and Samsung are going to get their lunch eaten by Xiaomi, Huawei
and the rest I guess, then.

I'm eagerly awaiting the Pocophone F1 release here in Uruguay.

~~~
microtherion
That must be an odd definition of "lunch", given that Apple tends to capture
roughly 80% of Smartphone profits, Huawei about 6%, and Xiaomi even less than
that.

~~~
GFischer
Now. But they're in serious danger of being disrupted from the bottom.

[http://www.claytonchristensen.com/key-
concepts/](http://www.claytonchristensen.com/key-concepts/)

 _Low-end disrupters (think steel minimills and discount retailers) come in at
the bottom of the market and take hold within an existing value network before
moving upmarket and attacking that stratum_

~~~
microtherion
For a value of "now" that includes the last 10 years. And for the entire time,
low end disruption has been predicted, with the list of designated disruptors
occasionally changing.

~~~
GFischer
One pretty good barrier that Apple has built and defends well is the phone as
a status symbol and object of desire.

But, as a phone, I think low end disruptors are here, and I can't understand
why people would pay 3 or 4 times as much as needed for a phone - other than
that they have the money, and they want the phones for reasons unrelated to
performance (aesthetics, perceived quality, privacy, etc.).

Xiaomi in particular is trying to erode that particular Apple barrier, their
flagships are already objects of desire in India, China and in my country
(Uruguay).

------
newfocogi
It was interesting to hear apple state that one of their goals for building
products was to make them last longer in order to minimize waste. People often
accuse hardware manufacturers, including apple, of intentional obsolescence. I
am interested to see if they actually change anything about their process,
software and hardware, to put any weight behind this claim, or if it is just
marketing doublespeak.

~~~
xvector
Has it ever really been marketing doublespeak? AFAIK, Apple keeps their
devices updated longer than any other hardware manufacturer.

~~~
acomjean
Yes and no.

I have a MacBook pro with full ports. It should last me a while (like a tank).
But Windows has generally been far better about supporting older hardware
(though MS isn't generally thought of as a hardware... )

My coworker needed a new battery for her Air as it wasn't keeping power long
enough for her teaching (it wouldn't make it through her lecture). Apple
labeled her machine "vintage" so no official battery replacement available.
She was not happy.

Making components non-upgradeable also lowers serviceable life.

They're better at supporting iOS devices, though I have a iPad1 and a
iphone4S.

Hopefully this new initiative will help.

------
lanestp
I can't believe they named a phone X[s]. How can they not see everyone calling
it "iPhone excess?"

~~~
nickpp
I can’t believe they didn’t call the Xs Max - XL instead. I mean they have an
XS and an XL size...

~~~
mschaef
"XL" has some negative connotations for Apple:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_XL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macintosh_XL)

~~~
lallysingh
33 years ago. I don't think it's a motivation here.

------
VectorLock
>This will be the first ECG product available over the counter to customers.

The AliveCor Kardia has been available for a while. I got one for a family
member with atrial fibrillation issues and it works really well and sticks on
the back of their cell phone.

~~~
guzik
I don't know why they lie in their presentations. There are at least 100
consumer ECG monitors/trackers on the market.

~~~
theshrike79
The presentations aren't exactly off the cuff, that shit is vetted by two
dozen lawyers.

Apple doesn't 'lie'. They might stretch and embellish the truth or use very
specific phrasing, but they don't lie.

~~~
Someone1234
This seems like needlessly trying to take an inch. Apple says statements which
the average person with a fully array of facts would call untrue i.e. a lie.

The fact that a lawyer somewhere can find a loophole or just enough edge for
doubt, doesn't within itself disprove that. It is common tongue, common sense,
a lie, a untruth, factually incorrect, etc.

------
mattbierner
The base phone price is now $999. The announcement and marketing effectively
position the XS as the default model (with the messaging around the XR casting
it as a downgrade, more like the iPhone 5C). They also eliminated the regular
Plus so users who want a larger phone are forced to the even more expensive
Max.

It looks like they pulled this off pretty well too, although sales numbers in
the coming months will tell the true story. In one generation they went from,
"pay $999 to upgrade to the higher end option (the X)," to, "pay $999 for our
regular phone or downgrade to the XR."

~~~
0x8BADF00D
That’s a good point. You also won’t be able to upgrade your NAND size to 512
GB unless you buy the XS.

------
xkr
It might be a dummy question, but what does FDA clearance mean exactly? Does
it make the watch a medical-grade device and I can do ECG using the watch
instead of going to the hospital?

~~~
mereel
I missed the part in the stream about FDA clearance, but my guess is yes, it
would be some sort of medical device. However comparing the ECG functionality
available for an apple to watch to even a standard portable 12-lead ECG is
like comparing a slide rule to a modern GPU. It is definitely _not_ a
replacement for going to the hospital, but it is a novelty and might be a good
way to tell someone when they should go to the hospital to get checked out.

~~~
sho
> it is a novelty

I'm sure those millions of people who have hospital-grade ECG machines at home
have no need for this toy, but for those few who don't, it sounds like an
absolute game-changer that could really save lives. The best medical device,
like the best camera, is the one you actually have with you when you need it -
and as someone who has occasionally worried about what feels like a weird
heartbeat, I'll be buying this "novelty" instantly.

~~~
mereel
You're right -- I thinking more of a clinical context, which is definitely the
wrong frame for this. From what I've read online, it only seems to detect
AFib, which is obviously useful since I think it's the most common abnormal
rhythm. Maybe it's only able to detect AFib since it's just on the wearer's
wrist? I wonder if there are plans to make little wireless sensors pads to
mimic having more leads. That'd be pretty cool

~~~
aesclepius
The fact that it can pick up on A. Fibb, but likely track and save strips of
SVT can at least get the user to a medical evaluation with a licensed
physician. It's a big deal, as a medicine resident, this could be a game
change for a large segment of the population.

------
Tomte
IP68 is neat. The second camera is also pretty important. The other
differences between Xs and Xr I don't care much about. I don't particularly
care about OLED.

I don't play AR games (and I'm disappointed nobody seems to have found an AR
killer app. Those games are so lame.

Star constellation recognition is nice, but doesn't excite anyone anymore. But
practical uses? Just today I was standing on the beach wondering whether the
town in the distance was town A or town B (or if town A is maybe behind the
curve). The phone knows my location, my bearing and has a map. It could label
POI in display. That's the most practical use I can come up with right now,
and I doubt I need the bazillion times improvement in their ML coprocessor for
that.

I'm in the market for an iPhone right now. The event didn't wow me enough to
really get comfortable with that kind of money.

But will I resist the voices in my head that say that the 7 and 8 are old? I
was hoping for a price drop for the original X.

------
dlojudice
I had a HUGE expectation on a new MacBook Air! I've watched til the end
expecting "one more thing" (which would be unlikely, given it isn't a exactly
a new product)

~~~
smitherfield
Expected in October along with a new iPad Pro and iMac. It's been some time
since they launched any new Macs at an iPhone event.

~~~
justadudeama
Do we know when in October?

~~~
smitherfield
Nope.

------
thought_alarm
I hate the loss of the home button.

Face ID is fine, but multiplexing so many different features on to the single,
poorly-placed, side button has been a huge negative for me.

The side button is way too easy to hit when the device is in your pocket, and
when that happens you're activating Siri, or Apple Pay, or some accessibility
shortcut, or you're taking a screenshot, or you're activating emergency mode.

I've lost count of the number of times I've pulled my iPhone X from pocket to
find that the screen is on, Siri is waiting for a command, and the
accessibility menu is on screen.

And when I actually need to take a screenshot, or shutdown the device, I can
never remember the actual key combination. It's such a mess.

~~~
uptown
I've been using the X and while it's a great device, the one thing I miss most
is TouchID. Things like ApplePay are less convenient using FaceID, so I'm less
likely to use it. The side-button double-click is awkward and unnatural
feeling. Unlocking the device when it's flat on a desk or table now requires
that I pick up the device instead of placing a finger on the sensor. Unlocking
on the X seems slower than with the finger -- perhaps because in order to
unlock I need to have it aimed towards me, whereas with TouchID I could unlock
as I brought the device in front of my field of view. I really wish they'd
found a way to keep TouchID even while introducing FaceID capable cameras.

~~~
sixstringtheory
As an iOS developer who constantly needs to reunlock test devices, I simply
cannot be required to face each one each time to use FaceID, that’s an
ergonomic nightmare.

It also reminds me of the Black Mirror episode where people live in those
small rooms with walls and ceilings lined with TV displays, and it would pause
ads while it detected they weren’t actively watching. (S1E2: Fifteen Million
Merits, probably NSFW)

Maybe Apple will eventually “catch up” to Android and put a TouchID on the
back of the phone :D H*ck, make it Apple shaped!

~~~
curun1r
> it would pause ads while it detected they weren’t actively watching

OT, but I absolutely hate the Page Visibility API for this reason. There are
sites out there that will pause ads if you switch to another tab or bring up
another window in front of your browser. It's stupidly annoying and, at a
minimum, should require user permission much like geolocation or
notifications.

------
asaph
Apple just announced the iPhone Xs. Surgical grade stainless steel. 3
finishes: Gold, Silver, Space Gray. New glass. Waterproof, saltwater proof,
even beer proof. 5.8" screen. Still has a notch like the iPhone X. Improved
FaceID.

~~~
koolba
> ... even beer proof.

Is beer proofing that different from regular waterproofing? I can imagine
juice leaving sugar residue and being sticky. Does beer have similar issues?

~~~
spike021
Ever spilled a full to the brim beer on your hands before? It can definitely
be sticky.

------
whitepoplar
Is Apple discontinuing the iPhone SE without a replacement? :(

~~~
BillinghamJ
The "R" is the replacement

~~~
whitepoplar
The R is bigger than the iPhone 8. How is it a replacement for the SE?

~~~
mikestew
Let's not shoot the messenger here. You might not like it, but the R is the
for "replacement". You'll have to take it up with Apple if you want to know
why.

~~~
fusiongyro
You sure about that? The XS is smaller than the XR.

~~~
mikestew
Was the SE about size or price? I thought it was about price, and
coincidentally was smaller. If it's the other way around, then you're right.
But then my whole world view on Apple's product lineup kind of gets confused.

~~~
fusiongyro
Apple may have intended it to be about price, but look at all the complaining.
A lot of people bought it for size.

~~~
whitepoplar
Yep, I bought it for its small size. I still think it's the perfect iPhone.
The best in the lineup, even today (notwithstanding it being discontinued).

------
guessmyname
Watch the Apple Keynote via MPV or VLC using the following link [1].

[1] [https://p-events-
delivery.akamaized.net/189kljhbasdcvjhasbds...](https://p-events-
delivery.akamaized.net/189kljhbasdcvjhasbdscvoahsbdcvaoshdbvaosdhbvasodhjbv/m3u8/hls_mvp.m3u8)

~~~
what_ever
The Apple.com video works for me on Chrome on Linux just FYI.

~~~
applecrazy
Same here for Apple.com, Chrome, Windows 10.

~~~
singularity2001
Even worked in FF on linux. THAT is progress!

~~~
applecrazy
I heard it also was streamed on Twitter. That’s the next level of progress.

------
thcsa
They presented the dynamic depth control with the words: "No other smartphone
right now can do that".

Lie. I'm writing this comment on a Vivo Nex and I have been using this for
months.

~~~
heartbreak
No, the Vivo Nex cannot adjust depth of field in post-processing. It can
adjust depth of field (via aperture) before capture.

~~~
thcsa
Wrong. I shoot the photo, and can afterwards (or whenever I stumble upon the
photo in my gallery) adjust the depth of field with a slider. Pretty similar
to what they did in the presentation. I can even change the subject of focus.

------
ynniv
Something to note on the market: AAPL was trending well up during the Watch
announcements, and well down during the rest.

~~~
21
AAPL is one of the most watched and analyzed stocks in the world. What I mean
is that it's behavior is beyond the understanding capabilities of a mere
mortal which is not heavily involved.

~~~
ynniv
I agree on complexity, but when you see a clear up/down peak that is well
correlated to a popular live event... you can make a decent guess.

~~~
21
Sure, but you don't know what in the popular live event was the trigger of the
move. At this level, it might be the color of the shirt of somebody walking on
the stage, or the length in seconds of the video for some feature.

~~~
ynniv
Seriously did you look at the chart compared to the Mac Rumors time stamps?
This isn't butterflies and hurricanes. I'm not even sure why I'm writing this
reply.

------
mereel
They just said the new A series processor is made with a 7nm process. That's
pretty neat

------
gnicholas
It's now possible to change the depth of field after taking the photo. I
wasn't paying close enough attention to know if this will also be possible on
older iPhones.

EDIT: sounds like it's just the new iPhones. But it includes the less
expensive Xr.

~~~
gpantazes
Was the bokeh functionality using software to create an artificial depth of
field effect, or does the camera capture a range of depth of field? My
immediate guess was that it's actually clever software, but was it confirmed
either way?

~~~
gnicholas
When Portrait Mode was first released, they said that the camera array splits
the field up into 9 (IIRC) depths based on distance. So probably what's
happening here is they save the depth metadata so that you can adjust how
blurred you want the background to be.

~~~
FireBeyond
There's more to bokeh than 'how blurred is the background', it involves things
like "how many leafs inside the lens are you using to control aperture".

You can "simplistically" (although still nicely) simulate this, of course.

------
asaph
Just announced: Apple now runs on 100% renewable energy.

~~~
samstave
They said all of their facilities, worldwide...

Are apple stores considered a "facility"?

Because, I cant see how the apple store in the Valley Fair Mall can get its
own apple-power feed?

~~~
walrus01
It's not like Apple or any other entity doing this is building new last mile
electrical distribution, or putting new PV on the roof of malls. They're
buying "credits" for kWh from solar/wind/hydroelectric generation sources,
which feed into the same electrical grid operator, matching the number of kWh
that the meter for the store consumes in a month.

------
praseodym
Does anyone have more information or insight into about Apple’s GPU design?
The Apple A12 chip has 4 GPU cores vs. 3 cores in the A11, but GPUs from
Nvidia have orders of magitude more (3584 CUDA cores for the GTX 1080 Ti, each
of which can run 2048 threads). How do these numbers compare?

~~~
gbear605
Notably, you’re comparing the gpu inside an iPhone to a gpu that is more than
twice as big as the entire iPhone.

Unfortunately, I’m not sure about how the actual numbers measure up though.

~~~
singularity2001
The Bionic chip does 5 trillion operations per second. That's about the same
as a NVidia GFX 970. Truely impressive!

------
maithd
I love apple products, but number one thing I still don't understand is why
Siri insists on taking up the entire screen. Siri should be a small overlay
much like on mac os, its such an oversight by their software engineering team!
This still hasn't been addressed on iOS 12.

------
asaph
Uhg. Still no Airpods wireless charging case (first announced at last year's
September event). I've held off on buying Airpods for a full year because I
want the wireless charging case. How much longer will we have to wait for this
product, Apple?

------
gnicholas
The "super retina" designation doesn't refer to PPI, right? Seems like 458
isn't that much higher than past models, if at all.

Is "super" just a reference to the increased color gamut and true tone
functionality?

~~~
hinkley
In laser printers it was a big deal when they hit 200, 300, 400 and 600 dpi.

Going from >300ppi to >400ppi probably warrants a special mention.

~~~
gnicholas
It looks like the last-generation iPhone X also had 458 PPI. I got the
impression from the presentation that the super retina display was new to this
year. My mistake.

EDIT: Also, if Jobs' original theory about retina displays was that the human
eye can't see individual pixels at this threshold (300 PPI), then going above
and beyond that is perhaps not that important.

~~~
rstupek
Retina display also takes into account how far the device is from your eyes so
higher PPI means you can't see the pixels when holding it closer.

~~~
gnicholas
True, and this is why they refer to computers as having "retina" displays with
a lower threshold. But AFAIK, people don't hold phones closer these days than
they used to, so wouldn't be a factor here. Might apply to watches?

------
maz1b
I think the one really innovative thing that is going on at Apple is their
investments in their AI/ML/N team. Plus, the silicon team always does great
work with the A series cpus and all the new ones too like the S4 for the
watch.

I'm going to use my iPhone SE until it no longer works. I don't want bigger
phones, and I'll vote with my dollars.

I'm also in the market for a MacBook Pro, but the touch bar is not something
I'm interested in at the expense of the function keys. We should be able to
get the best of Apple hardware, but not at a compromise.

------
folkrav
Dual SIM could be big in some countries.

~~~
davb
I’m quite concerned about the fact that only China will be getting nano-SIM
and every other territory will have e-SIM only. On a recent trip from the UK
to South Korea and Japan (where my network has very high roaming prices), it
was relatively easy to pick up SIM cards from vending machines and desks at
airports. I don’t imagine it’ll be as easy to negotiate and activate an e-sim
connection.

~~~
singularity2001
you can use esim at home and physical sim on travels, or switch physical sim.

~~~
davb
I got the impression where they said that China would not have e-sim but would
instead have a dual SIM tray that it was a mutually exclusive thing. E-sim or
physical but not both. I hope I’m wrong. There’s a link on the spec page
(point 11 in the small print) to details on the e-sim but it returns a 404.

~~~
singularity2001
Non-China version has 1 esim & 1 physical

------
lowlevel
Also went from large phone to SE... I can't stand the power button on the
side. I can't stand the rounded edges. I can't stand the bending phones (5
now)... and yea, they're all just too big for my hands. iOS 11 has also been a
complete nightmare. Dead batteries, hot/slow phone, crashing, text messages
have been out of order for over a year. Cost was not a factor. I'm now on my
4th iphone in 6 months due to hardware and software failues, and manufacturing
issues. The warranty experience has also gone down hill.. they keep telling me
they have to ship my phone away and give me a loaner... only to call me back a
day later saying 'uh we have to give you a new phone' ... in the past, they
would just give you the new phone while you were there the first damn time and
thats really something that has changed for the worse. I managed to get a new
SE w/iOS 10.x.x out of them a couple weeks ago... so I'm hoping I'm good for a
couple years as long as I don't accidentally update it. It's looking like the
iPhone SE will be my last apple product... ever.

------
HoppedUpMenace
I still cannot believe that in order to use the latest Apple watch, you still
need an iPhone 6 or later with iOS 12 or later. I was dead set on grabbing a
watch once I heard what it would feature but after reading the small print,
why would I spend money on getting an iPhone, then an expensive monthly plan,
followed by a watch, then a separate plan for that?

Is there something I'm not seeing? This seems like a lot of money to front
just to get into the device I really want but at the same time having to deal
with something I don't want, plus 2 monthly plans.

Edit/update:

So as it stands now, $749 for an iPhone XR, roughly $80/month plan, $499 for
GPS + Cellular watch, and $10/month for watch (based on current series 3 watch
plan).

That basically breaks down to $1250 plus taxes in upfront costs to get access
to a device that, for me anyway, has more useful utility to it than the phone,
plus over $100/month (again, after taxes) just so I can utilize the full
feature set of said watch.

~~~
codyb
Couldn't you buy an iPhone 7 for a lot cheaper? And my plan's not 80/month at
Sprint, I think it's 63 a month with insurance for my phone through Assurion.

I mean, still a lot of money for a watch you want, but I don't think you'd
need to spend quite so much if you didn't want to.

------
daviddumon
Could someone enlight me on the EU prices ? US has the 5.8 Xs 64go model
listed for $999. Eu price for the same model (french store) is 1159€ ...
According to xe.com, current USD/EUR rate is 0.8599, so $999 => 859€. It seems
to me that they've applied the inverse rate : 1159*0.8599 = 996. What am I
missing there ?

~~~
Steko
> What am I missing there ?

It's usually something like the worst exchange rate in the last x months plus
VAT.

~~~
daviddumon
Thanks, seems like I forgot to account for VAT in the french price.

------
shroom
Tiny note: Their event videos are no longer Safari exclusive. Nice!

------
Matthias247
The loss of 3D touch on the Xr seems pretty disappointing. I use that feature
quite a lot on my iPhone 8, especially for moving the cursor around in text
messages. It seems like the Xr would be a lot less efficient for that, unless
they have found another good UX for
that.

~~~
05
Tapping and holding the spacebar moves the cursor in ios12, but selecting text
becomes much more awkward without force touch..

------
whymsicalburito
This is how apple will lose me as a customer. These giant phones are horrible.
All their products are getting progressively shittier. No real Pro laptop,
horrendous keyboards (even the new "quieter" ones), borderline unusable
phones. What the actual fuck.

~~~
j79
The other day, I read on /r/apple that people were getting surveys regarding
their iMac Pro purchases. There was speculation that maybe they were using the
feedback for the next Mac Pro upgrade. It got me thinking that it's been THREE
years since I personally bought an Apple product. I made me wish that I could
personally provide feedback through a survey about why I haven't purchased a
new Apple product recently (I'm assuming they have some history of my
purchases?)

Since I switched from PCs to Macs, I've purchased (not in order):

PowerBook G3 (Pismo) - My first Apple device that started my love affair
PowerBook G4 12" MacBook Pro 12" MacBook Pro 15" Power Mac G5 (with ACD) Mac
Pro (with ACD) iPod (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th gen) iPod Mini (1st, 2nd, 3rd gen)
iPod Shuffle (1st, 3nd, 4th gen) iPod Touch (forget which gen) iPhone
(Original, 3G, 3GS, 4S, 5S, 6S) iPad (Original, iPad 2, iPad Mini, iPad Pro)
Apple Watch (3) Apple TV (multiple)

And countless Apple products for family (three or four Mac Minis over the
years for parents, iPhones, iPods, etc.)

It's a shame because NOTHING Apple offers is of interest to me. Like you said,
I don't want a giant phablet (remember when Apple fans mocked those?? "But I
can use my phone with one hand!" we all said mockingly)

I'm not even sure if they're listening to their "pro" customers when it comes
to "pro" hardware (or if pro customers are even a demographic Apple wants to
cater to?)

Unfortunately, I've started looking at non-Apple devices. (The Lenovo ThinkPad
P1 is what I want in a laptop. I'm still not sold on any particular iPhone
replacement, yet...) But, nearly 20 years of my life, I've called myself an
Apple "fan". So it's tough. I don't know, maybe I'm just not the target
demographic =\ I realize I'm just one person (who use to buy Apple products
for six other people - all family), so my move from Mac -> PC wouldn't affect
Apple's bottom line. But, I'd like to think that there are others out there
like us, who are getting fed up with Apple of today.

Sorry for the long rant (that's slightly humblebrag-ish, I don't mean for it
to be...)

------
rubatuga
A shame new mac models weren't announced.

~~~
heartbreak
The new Mac models (spec bumps, really) were announced a few weeks ago.

~~~
golangnews
Days since an update:

Mac Pro, Mac mini - 1427

MacBook, iMac, MacBook Air - 464

The only thing updated recently was the MacBook Pro (to fix the keyboard).

------
mixmastamyk
How have privacy concerns over the facial recognition panned out?

~~~
MBCook
They all seem to have been made up, just like the Touch ID ones. I’m not aware
of anyone figuring out ways to extract your face print or fool it without high
resolution 3D scans and expensive fabrication of custom masks.

------
demircancelebi
It looked like they intentionally hid the notch in iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max
during the keynote with the background they chose, maybe to differentiate it
from iPhone Xr.

~~~
jpttsn
Maybe it’s because OLED phones do black backgrounds well: next to them LCD
phones look their best with colorful backgrounds.

------
manigandham
I've owned iphones for 8 years. They are great devices but even with the
hardware doubling in speed every year, it still takes just as much time (if
not more) to do the same tasks.

Perhaps its a software and bloat issue, but the only noticeable thing
improvements have been better pictures and I can read more on a single page-
view, but everything else seems exactly the same.

------
Splines
iPhone pricing tiers:

\- XR $749

\- XS $999

\- XS Max $1099

Yikes. And that's for the lowest storage available.

~~~
gbear605
The iPhone SE, iPhone 7 and iPhone 8 are still going to be for sale, at $349,
$449 and $599 respectively. The range is plenty wide.

~~~
oh_hello
This strategy makes perfect sense, but does come with a psychological
component that is difficult to overcome. When you but the 7 or 8 there is a
sense you are buying an out of date product as opposed to a new, lower-end
product. I'm sure managing the products this way saves a fortune because they
are always only working to engineer the latest products and coasting on
previous years' work for the cheaper models.

------
threatofrain
It's amazing that Apple's watch is now the cheapest cell phone in their new
lineup.

~~~
thirdsun
If we ignore the fact that it's a cell phone which requires another cell
phone.

~~~
threatofrain
I thought it now comes with independent calling!

~~~
thirdsun
Sure, but an iPhone is still required to set the device up. The watch needs to
be paired to an iPhone. While you can use it without the phone after the
initial pairing it's still not intended as a stand-alone device for longer
periods of time.

------
JumpCrisscross
Any notable security improvements?

~~~
oh_hello
There was mention of the secure enclave and FaceID technology being updated,
but I was a little distracted. I did hear them declare it the most secure auth
in any phone ever or something to that effect.

------
rleigh
The only thing I want to hear about is the release of a new Mac Mini. I want a
new CI build slave, and I'm not paying for the existing obsolete one.

------
torgian
iPhone 5s was the perfect size for me (I guess that's the SE now). But I've
been using the iPhone 6s for the past few years and like it. I don't see
myself replacing it anytime soon since it works just fine the way it is.

The new phones are pretty damned expensive though. nearly a thousand bucks
where I live for the 256gig version of the XR, and the iPhone Excess is a good
1600USD after taxes in my area.

Just too damn expensive.

------
johnhenry
Probably not the best place to ask this, but what did Phil Schiller mean by
"one trillion operations per photo"?

~~~
celeritascelery
Basic They have dedicated hardware that is used for image processing. They run
a trillion operations through this hardware to post process the photo. That
sounds insane till you realize that these operations are very small and the
hardware is highly parallelized.

------
isoprophlex
Everyone must be able to admit: the automated HDR and improved bokeh look
pretty hot..!

~~~
lowlevel
Yes, the new cameras and image processing are very impressive.

~~~
celeritascelery
That is the only reason I would consider the xs over the x. Still waiting for
reviews to see just how good it actually is.

------
vinceguidry
Skipping this round in favor of the Librem 5. If Purism can deliver a usable
phone I'll be so happy. Apple has managed to run my digital life from bliss to
constant, guarded skepticism, happy to jump off that train.

------
jarsin
TLDR: "It's our newest most beautiful ever."

~~~
aklemm
Also in...credible.

------
darkhorn
No FM radio? Too bad.

------
tosh
How does the iPhone X s max differ from the iPhone X?

~~~
masklinn
"Max" is the new "Plus", it designates the larger phone in the lineup. And the
X/XS is about the same screen size as the old Plus (slightly larger at 5.8 v
5.5) so the entire lineup was bumped up a screen size.

I expect the yet unannounced 3rd phone in the lineup (apparently "Xr") will be
the same screen size as the old regular, in a smaller package, and a
replacement of sorts for the SE.

edit: well I was wrong, apparently it sits between the XS and the Max, with
completely different capabilities…

~~~
wnissen
Yeah, not sure what is going on with there being no truly hand-sized phone
available except the SE. You could fit a much bigger screen in that form
factor, it would have a huge (pun intended) impact. Instead you see a bunch of
bezel-less phones hanging precariously out of pockets.

------
kanishkdudeja
> The iPhone XR will offer an LCD screen with a resolution of 1,792 by 828.
> This would give it a resolution of around 324 pixels per inch, slightly
> below the iPhone 4’s 326 ppi.

This is sad.

~~~
read_if_gay_
How so? It has sufficiently high PPI, you won't be able to see individual
pixels. Going higher is pointless.

~~~
kanishkdudeja
If going higher is pointless, why does the iPhone XS has a PPI density of 458?
They should have stayed at 326 in that case as well.

~~~
celeritascelery
OLED needs higher pixel density to achieve the same level of “sharpness”.
That’s why LCD’s can looks as crisp at much lower PPI.

------
gmailsyncer
I just bought a Macbook Pro yesterday

~~~
lowlevel
I would return it and get the macbook air before they discontinue it or put
the new keyboard in it.

------
mixmastamyk
Wish they would target battery life/optimize OS further.

512GB storage, what to do with that? Perhaps long-form video.

Cook wearing white shoes after Labor Day, tsk tsk.

Recommend Ars Technica live blog.

