At a product launch at its Cupertino, Calif., headquarters, Apple has taken the wraps off of its refresh of the iPhone, the Apple Watch and AirPods.
At the event, Apple introduced the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max.
It also unveiled the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and AirPods 4 and AirPods Max in new colors and with USB-C charging. The new Apple Intelligence features for iPhone 16 will launch in beta next month and pre-ordering for the new iPhones will begin Sept. 13.
Apple said the iPhone 16 Pro features a Grade 5 titanium design with a new, refined microblasted finish. “Titanium has one of the highest strength-to-weight ratios of any metal, making these models incredibly strong and impressively light. iPhone 16 Pro comes in four stunning colors — including new Desert Titanium,” the company said.
Apple said internal design improvements include a 100% recycled aluminum thermal substructure and back glass optimizations that further dissipate heat. The company said it will enable up to 20% better sustained performance than iPhone 15 Pro.
“New display technology allows us to route display data under active pixels with no distortion, resulting in thinner borders for larger 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch Super Retina XDR displays that feel great in the hand,” Apple said.
Hearing assist
Apple also touted what it calls new health features of the AirPod Pro 2. Hearing protection is a default feature and there is even a build-in hearing test. The company said that once users complete the hearing test, AirPods Pro can ber used as a personalized hearing aid.
“At Apple, we believe that technology can help you live a healthier life, and we’re excited to enable incredible new health capabilities for serious conditions that affect billions of people around the world, while continuing to keep user data private,” said Dr. Sumbul Desai, Apple’s vice president of Health.
The new Apple watch will have features to help people suffering from sleep apnea, which is a nighttime breathing disorder.
Sleep apnea is a prevalent disorder in which breathing momentarily stops during sleep, preventing the body from getting enough oxygen. According to Apple, the condition is estimated to impact more than 1 billion people worldwide, and in most cases, goes undiagnosed. If left untreated, it can have important health consequences over time, including increased risk of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and cardiac issues.
So Apple is introducing Breathing Disturbances, a new Apple Watch metric that uses the accelerometer to detect small movements at the wrist associated with interruptions to normal respiratory patterns during sleep.
Every 30 days, Apple Watch will analyze breathing disturbance data and notify users if it shows consistent signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea so they can speak to their doctor about next steps, including potential diagnosis and treatment.