Following weeks of speculation, Apple officially introduced its latest flagship models at its recently held Apple September Keynote event, held in the Steve Jobs Theatre at Apple Park, California on 10 September. As always, the event was met with great excitement and anticipation from the public, and they were not disappointed.
Following rival Samsung’s release of the Galaxy Note 10 in August, Apple also opted to let the focus fall on the camera abilities of its latest models, the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max. Considering Huawei, the other main contender in the market’s concentration on the camera system in its flagship models, it would seem this department is where the tech wizards of the world’s largest smartphone manufacturers are aiming their attention in 2019.
In the iPhone 11, the camera has been upgraded to a dual-camera system, which, according to Apple, makes it “a whole lot harder to take a bad photo”. This is achieved with the addition of two new cameras: a 12MP wide-angle camera and a 12MP ultra-wide-angle camera. The phone has 2x optical zoom and the easy ability to switch between different modes, thanks to an improved camera interface which overlays the wide-angle lens’ view with that of the ultra-wide lens. The iPhone 11 also features a 12MP TrueDepth front camera, which allows for so-called “slofies”, or slow-motion selfies.
With the iPhone 11, Apple also introduces Night Mode, which lets users take exceptionally detailed photos in low light conditions. Portrait mode gives amateur photographers the chance to take studio-style portraits, and smart HDR and built-in machine learning mean the camera recognises faces and lights them accordingly, with great contrast, highlights, shadows and natural-looking skin tones.
The new camera set-up is also great for amateur and professional videographers, allowing 4K video capturing at 60 frames per second, with the device automatically also honing in on the audio when the camera zooms in. Switching between photo and video mode is super simple with QuickTake, which lets users start shooting video instantly by holding the shutter while in photo mode and swiping to the right to continue recording.
The iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max (with their OLED screens measuring 5.8 and 6.5 inches respectively) add yet another camera to the mix. Aside from the two 12MP wide and ultra-wide cameras, the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max also have a third telephoto lens, making for a whopping 4x optical zoom range.
Aside from the cameras, the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max are all powered by an A13 Bionic chip, with an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance. This means the iPhone 11 is water-resistant up to 2 metres for 30 minutes, and the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max can withstand a depth of 4 metres for 30 minutes. All three new models support fast-charging with a newly introduced 18W fast charger that powers the devices up to 50% in 30 minutes, and the Pro and Pro Max will come with this new, faster charger. In terms of battery power, the iPhone 11 will give users one hour’s worth of power more than its predecessor, the iPhone XR, while the iPhone 11 Pro’s battery will last 4 hours longer than the iPhone XS, and the iPhone Pro Max’s battery lasts 5 hours longer than the battery of the iPhone XS Max.
The Apple iPhone 11 comes in four new colours – black, green, purple, white yellow and red – while the iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max come in gold, midnight green, silver and space grey.
The iStore has announced that the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max will be available to South African customers from 27 September, with Vodacom clients being offered the opportunity to trade in their old iPhones and save up to R330 per month on a new or upgraded Vodacom contract. Contact Agora tec for more information.