Apple just improved the world’s best smartphone with iPhone Pro

With the fastest processor in any smartphone, the all-new iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are not only the best available iPhones, but by many metrics also the best smartphones on Planet Earth today. Apple has even given these things Mac-like start-up chimes. So, what’s so great about these new iPhones?

What Apple says

“Our customers count on their iPhone every day, and with iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, we’re delivering more advancements than any other iPhone. iPhone 14 Pro introduces a camera system that empowers every user — from the casual user to the professional — to take their best photos and video, and innovative new technologies like the Always-On display and the Dynamic Island, which offers new interactions for notifications and activities,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.

“Groundbreaking safety capabilities bring users even more security, offering help when they need it most. And with the incredibly powerful and efficient A16 Bionic chip and all-day battery life, this is the best iPhone yet.”

What you’ll find

Open them up and you’ll find an always on display, a massive 48-megapixel camera, a new notification feature built around the notch Apple is calling Dynamic Island, and cool plus helpful software implementations such as Crash Detection and Emergency SOS via satellite.

Available in 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch sizes, both models include a new Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion that features the Always-On display for the first time ever on iPhone, enabled by a new 1Hz refresh rate and multiple power-efficient technologies.

iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will be available in four gorgeous new finishes: deep purple, silver, gold, and space black. Pre-orders begin Friday, September 9, with availability beginning Friday, September 16.

Apple’s fastest smartphone chip

Apple somewhat downplayed its introduction of the world’s fastest smartphone chip, the A16 Bionic. The processor is only available in the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, ,and is the engine that drives new experiences such as Dynamic Island, all-day battery life, and impressive computational photography capabilities.

The processor includes two high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores, the new 6-core CPU is up to 40 percent faster than the competition and easily handles demanding workloads. A16 Bionic features an accelerated 5-core GPU with 50 percent more memory bandwidth and a new 16-core Neural Engine capable of nearly 17 trillion operations per second. You can expect more performance at a fraction of power.

The CPU, GPU, Neural Engine, and image signal processor seamlessly work together to support the new camera hardware and perform up to 4 trillion operations per photo.

What is Dynamic Island?

Dynamic Island exploits the notch, the Always-On display and A16 Bionic chip. It’s an  on screen area that adapts in real time to show important alerts, notifications, and activities. With the introduction of the Dynamic Island, the TrueDepth camera has been redesigned to take up less of the display area. Without impeding content on the screen, the Dynamic Island maintains an active state to allow users easier access to controls with a simple tap-and-hold. Ongoing background activities like Maps, Music, or a timer remain visible and interactive, and third-party apps in iOS 16 that provide information like sports scores and ride-sharing with Live Activities can use this space.

The camera improvements are immense

iPhone 14 Pro introduces a new class of pro camera system, with the first-ever 48MP Main camera on iPhone featuring a quad-pixel sensor, and Photonic Engine, an enhanced image pipeline that dramatically improves low-light photos.

iPhone 14 Pro takes computational photography even further with Photonic Engine, which enhances mid- to low-light performance in photos across all cameras. It enables this dramatic increase in quality by applying Deep Fusion ML analysis earlier in the imaging process to sensitively and effectively improve images you take.

The Main camera has a quad-pixel sensor that adapts to the photo being captured, and features second-generation sensor-shift optical image stabilization. That sensor adjusts intelligently, and also enables a 2x Telephoto option that uses the middle 12 megapixels of the sensor for full-resolution photos and 4K videos with no digital zoom.

The quad-pixel sensor also brings benefits to pro workflows, optimizing for detail in ProRAW. And with a new machine learning model designed specifically for the quad-pixel sensor, iPhone now shoots ProRAW at 48MP.

Additional pro camera system upgrades and features include:

• A new 12MP Ultra Wide camera with 1.4 µm pixels, which delivers sharper images with more detail.
• An improved Telephoto camera that offers 3x optical zoom.
• A new front TrueDepth camera with an ƒ/1.9 aperture that enables better low-light performance for photos and video.
• A new Adaptive True Tone flash  changes pattern based on the chosen focal length.
• Powerful computational photography solutions, such as Night mode, Smart HDR 4, Portrait mode with Portrait Lighting, Night mode Portrait photos, Photographic Styles to personalize the look of every photo.
• A new Action mode for video capture.
• Cinematic mode, now available in 4K at 30 fps and 4K at 24 fps.
• Pro-level workflows for video, including ProRes3 and end-to-end Dolby Vision HDR.

Crash Detection and Emergency SOS via Satellite

The entire iPhone 14 lineup introduces groundbreaking safety capabilities that can provide emergency assistance when it matters most. With a new dual-core accelerometer capable of detecting G-force measurements of up to 256Gs and a new high dynamic range gyroscope, Crash Detection on iPhone can detect a severe car crash and automatically dial emergency services when a user is unconscious or unable to reach their iPhone. When a severe crash is detected, the emergency services call interface will appear on Apple Watch, as it is most likely to be in closer proximity to the user, while the call is placed through iPhone if it is in range for the best possible connection.

The iPhone 14 lineup also introduces Emergency SOS via satellite. Apple has worked on this feature for years, It allows antennas to connect directly to a satellite, enabling messaging with emergency services when outside of cellular or Wi-Fi coverage. The process can take a little time, but it gives users a chance to find help when they are in need of it. The breakthrough technology also allows users to manually share their location over satellite with Find My when there is no cellular or Wi-Fi connection. Emergency SOS via satellite will be available to users in the US and Canada in November, and the service will be free for two years.

Cellular and 5G

iPhone offers users super-fast downloads and uploads, better streaming, and real-time connectivity with 5G to help them stay in touch, share, and enjoy content. eSIM allows users to easily connect or quickly transfer their existing plans digitally, is a more secure alternative to a physical SIM card, and allows for multiple cellular plans on a single device. iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max remove the SIM tray for US models.

Availability

iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max will be available in deep purple, silver, gold, and space black in 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB storage, iPhone 14 Pro costs $41.62 (US) a month for 24 months or $999 (US) before trade-in, and iPhone 14 Pro Max for $45.79 (US) a month for 24 months or $1,099 (US) before trade-in.

Also read

• What’s new in iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus?
• Apple iOS & watchOS 9 updates ship Sept 12, Mac, iPad later
• What’s new in the Apple Watch Series 8 and SE
• What’s new in the new AirPods Pro introduced with iPhone 14?
• Apple Watch Ultra, the smartwatch you didn’t know you’d need
• Apple Fitness+ available to all iPhone users in autumn
• This is what Morgan Stanley expects from Apple’s iPhone 14

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