September 2014 Apple Announcements – What You Need to Know

As has become customary around this time of year, Apple recently announced their latest iPhones. However, this year Apple also made two other big announcements: Apple Pay and Apple Watch. There are a ton of details about the new iPhones, Apple Pay, and Apple Watch on the Internet already if you are interested in learning more. What I’d like to do here is give a brief synopsis of the Apple announcements and their impact for most people.

To be brief, while the new iPhones are obviously more technologically advanced than previous models, there are two main features that are probably the most important. The most obvious change with the iPhone 6 is that Apple has introduced two new screen sizes. The “standard” size iPhone 6 is now 4.7″ (measured diagonally), with the iPhone 6 Plus measuring 5.5″. For those people who have wanted an iPhone with a larger screen, their wishes have been granted. Of course, not everyone is happy with the fact that the iPhone now has larger screens, because a larger screen means a larger phone and larger phone is harder to fit into pockets and purses. The other significant addition to the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus is the capability to make payments with Apple Pay, which I will cover soon.

In addition, there are several improvements to all supported iPhones coming soon with Apple’s new operating system, iOS 8. It is sometimes difficult to differentiate the features of Apple’s new iPhones and the new operating systems that are introduced at around the same time, since they seem to all blend together in discussion. But even if you don’t purchase a new iPhone 6, your current iPhone (if it is an iPhone 4S or newer) will soon have some new capabilities with the free iOS 8 upgrade. The key features I’m looking forward to are:

• Continuity, which will allow users with iPhones, iPads and/or Macintosh computers to work with their devices more seamlessly
• Wi-Fi Calling, which will allow iPhones to be able to use Wi-Fi networks to place calls when cellular coverage is weak
• Family Sharing, which will allow families to have individual iTunes accounts that can share purchased music, movies, books, and Apps.
• Voice Messaging, which will allow users to send voice/sounds in text messages.

Back to Apple Pay, which is Apple’s new payment system that works by simply holding an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus near a compatible contactless reader. The idea is that you can store your credit cards within the Apple Pay system so that you do not need to swipe your card to pay. Combined with the fingerprint sensor on the iPhone, this should make transactions faster and more secure. It will also work for on-line payments. Apple has announced that Apple Pay will cover 80% of the United States credit card market at launch. That is significant. If Apple Pay can fundamentally transform the way people make payments, Apple will have made yet another huge impact on our everyday lives.

Finally, Apple announced the Apple Watch, which is Apple’s first “smartwatch”. I assume Apple simply couldn’t get it ready in time for the holidays, because based on the buzz it has generated so far, it would have likely been the year’s hottest tech gift. As it is, Apple is planning to release the Apple Watch in “early” 2015, which I take to mean the March/April timeframe. Given that it is probably 6 months away, we all have plenty of time to learn more about what the Apple Watch will be able to do before it launches (which will be significantly expanded based on 3rd-party Apps). What I will say about the Apple Watch at this time is that it could drastically change the way we monitor our own health and fitness. Because health and fitness are so important to a key demographic, namely women, the Apple Watch has the potential to create a significant market for smart watches. Other previous smartwatches have not been successful in establishing a viable market but if anyone can crack it, it seems Apple is in the position to do so.

If you have any questions about the latest Apple technologies, or any other technologies, please feel free to contact me and I’ll be happy to answer your questions. Based on the new Apple announcements, are you likely to purchase a new iPhone or Apple Watch? Are you excited about the possibilities of Apple Pay?