It’s iPhone day! As expected, today Apple lifted the lid on four new smartphones in the iPhone 15 range, with some decent upgrades across the board.
Here’s a quick and easy guide to all things iPhone 15.
iPhone 15: A breakdown of all the new models
iPhone 15
After a pretty lacklustre iPhone 14 base model, the new iPhone 15 is actually a significant upgrade.
The new model has been updated with the Dynamic Island that was previously exclusive to the iPhone 14 Pro models. This is a small bar that houses the camera and speaker, which has been turned into an interactive module by Apple that can show you alerts and notifications, rather than just being a notch taking up a bunch of screen real estate.
The display is a Super Retina XDR with peak HDR brightness of up to 1600 nits. Outdoor brightness on the screen also now reaches 2000 nits, which is double that of the previous generation.
iPhone colours are always a point of interest, and this year, Apple has infused the colour into the back glass of the smartphone’s design. There are five colour options in 2023 – pink, yellow, green, blue and black.
Moving on to the cameras. The iPhone 15 camera is still lesser than that of the Pro models, but it has still received a decent upgrade this year. The Apple device has a 48MP main camera and an additional 2x Telephoto option that gives users 0.5x, 1x or 2x optical zoom levels for the first time on the dual camera system.
Additional nifty camera features include an automatic portrait mode, an improved night mode and a new smart HDR system that are in effect across the main, ultra-wide and true depth front camera.
Under the hood, the iPhone 15 is packing the A16 bionic chip, which is the same processor powering the iPhone 14 Pro lineup.
This chip features two high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores, which make it much faster than the previous generation, plus a 5-core GPU offers 50 per cent more memory bandwidth for smoother graphics and gaming. The 16-core Neural Engine is capable of 17 trillion operations per second which is basically too much to comprehend.
Lastly, the iPhone 15 will offer safety features, including Crash Detection and Emergency SOS via Satellite.
You can read more about the new specs and features here.
iPhone 15 Pro
As usual, Apple has pulled out all the stops for its flagship Pro models.
This starts with a lightweight titanium design that uses the same premium alloy that is used in spacecraft. The 15 Pro also features contoured edges and the thinnest borders yet on an iPhone.
The other major design change is the new Action button, which replaces the toggle or switch that was previously used to switch your iPhone to mute. The new Action button is customisable, allowing you to choose its function, whether that be accessing the flashlight, entering a focus mode or another pre-defined shortcut.
The iPhone 15 Pro is powered by the A17 Pro chip, which is the first 3-nanometer chip and features Apple’s biggest GPU redesign. The CPU is up to 10 per cent faster, the GPU is up to 20 per cent faster, and the Neural Engine is double the speed.
A major advancement that this chip is capable of is running next-generation games natively. Apple announced that titles including Resident Evil Village, Death Stranding and Assassin’s Creed Mirage would all be available to play on the iPhone 15 Pro within the next year.
Next, let’s talk about the cameras. The 48MP main camera features a new 24MP super-high-resolution default and can switch between three focal lengths (24mm, 28mm and 35mm). It also supports ProRAW and 48MP HEIF images. The Pro features a 3x Telephoto camera, as well as auto-Portrait mode, Night mode portraits, new smart HDR capabilities and higher quality video in low-light and action mode.
Like the iPhone 15, the Pro supports Crash Detection and Emergency SOS via satellite.
As for colours, the 15 Pro and Pro Max models are offered in black titanium, white titanium, blue titanium and natural titanium.
Read more about the new iPhone here.
iPhone 15 Plus and Pro Max
Really the only difference between the iPhone 15 and the Plus and Max models is that the latter are larger in size. Where the 15 and 15 Pro are 6.1 inches, the iPhone 15 Plus and Pro Max feature a 6.7-inch display.
Between the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, the latter also offers a Telephoto optical zoom of 5x at 120mm, which is the longest ever on an iPhone.
Otherwise, the larger size includes all the same features and improvements as the base model.
USB-C
Of course, we can’t round out an iPhone 15 piece without the most significant announcement this year – USB-C.
As was long predicted in leaks and rumours, Apple has switched its iPhone 15 range to a USB-C input and cable for charging. This brings it in line with requirements from the EU.
The new USB-C capabilities will allow users to charge their AirPods or Apple Watch directly from iPhone with a USB-C connector.
iOS 17
All the new iPhone 15 models will utilise iOS 17, which offers new features like Contact Posters, Live Voicemail, NameDrop and interactive widgets.
You can get a preview of all the new iOS 17 features here.
Price and release date
The 15 and 15 Plus models will be offered in 128GB, 256GB and 512GB. The Pro and Pro Max models are offered in 128Gb, 256GB, 512GB and 1TB storage sizes.
Pricing in Australia starts as follows:
- iPhone 15 – $1499
- iPhone 15 Plus – $1649
- iPhone 15 Pro – $1849
- iPhone 15 Pro Max – $2199
Pre-orders begin on September 15, with availability starting on September 22.
This article has been updated with additional information since its original publish date.
Lead Image Credit: Apple
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