TechFriday: iPhone watching as September 12th approaches
Posted By RichC on September 1, 2017
The big day looks to be September 12, 2017 when "watchers" expect Apple to release their 10th Anniversary iPhone. I may have been slow to accept the virtual keyboard "back in the day," but have comfortably adapted to it starting with the iPhone5 in 2012.
As smartphones go (after the Palm Pilots and Handspring clones), my early-on favorite was the Samsung i500 pocketable flipphone with PalmOS followed by the 600, 700p and Centro Palm Treo series and Palm Pre devices.
As for the new iPhone, rumors have it that it will push the $1000 price and eliminate the "home" button on the screen. The likelihood is we’ll also see the move to eliminate the bezel around the outside of the display as well … barring a small opening for the FaceTime camera and earpiece phone speaker. Apple previously address the battery life anxiety issue and since the iPhone 7, there haven’t been many complaint over battery longevity (suspect companies who make cases with batteries have suffered? ie. Mophie, Lexar, etc)
Apple has received some criticism over their recent lack of innovation, so the new iPhone8 (or whatever it will be called) has a high bar. Consumers who are waiting for the next evolution in their mobile device have their expectations high, but Apple has a lot in their favor:
- Mobile web fully adopted and websites for purchases are nearly 100% onboard
- Wireless carriers have stepped up LTE networks and in populated areas offer excellent speeds and reliable connections
- Users have accepted touchscreen displays and are more comfortable with them than they are a keyboard and a mouse nowadays
- Updates and Apps (at least with Apple) are painless and reliable. Gone are the days of frequent stalls, stuck screens and reboots.
- Smaller is no longer better. Some users prefer to carry larger screen devices where others still want something that fits comfortably in their pocket. Manufacturers make several models.
- Camera/Video is top notch and use software that rarely gets in the way for those using their iPhones as a primary video and picture taking device.
- The storage complaint has disappeared and user seem happy with iCloud (or other cloud storage) for archiving content off their phone. No longer do users complain about not having an SD slot.
- Water-resistance has been enhanced with the iPhone7 models and likely will continue to improve.
- Wireless charging will be likely with the new iPhone as previous generations have eliminated all need for tethering "except" for charging.
The new iPhone may be just what you will want, but maybe not what you can afford!
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