[imagesource: Apple]

The new iPhone is here and it’s beautiful.

During yesterday’s Far Out event, Apple revealed its iPhone 14 lineup and three new Apple Watches, including the much-anticipated Apple Watch Ultra.

There was also buzz around the next generation of AirPods Pro earbuds.

So, in a nutshell, what do you need to know? We’ll start with the iPhone 14 lineup, comprising four models.

Here’s The Verge:

Apple introduced a new Plus model that comes with a bigger 6.7-inch display and improved battery life.

Both devices come with an upgraded 12-megapixel main camera sensor, as well as a 12-megapixel TrueDepth selfie camera with autofocus…

The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max come with a few big upgrades, including a design that swaps out the notch for a pill-shaped cutout that houses the camera and under-display Face ID system. Apple calls this the “Dynamic Island,” as notifications will pop out and move around this space.

The Pro line is packing the all-powerful A16 chip and a 48-megapixel rear camera with a quad-pixel sensor that might have stolen the show.

The Emergency SOS Satellite feature is also a nifty addition:

Keep an eye on Digicape, South Africa’s largest independent Apple retailer, for local pricing and release dates.

As for the Apple Watch Series 8, it’s been designed to be more durable than those that came before.

CNBC runs us through some of the other standout features:

[It also] has a new temperature sensor that can be used to help monitor health data, including ovulation…

Apple also added a new safety feature powered by two motion sensors. The new car crash detection can detect if you were in a severe car crash and automatically call emergency services.

A new mode on Apple Watches can extend the Apple Watch battery life from 18 hours to 36 hours by temporarily disabling the always-on display and workout notifications.

Apple CEO Tim Cook made it clear that the device is designed to keep data secure and private, with health data shared only with explicit permission from the user.

Those features are just the tip of the iceberg:

The Apple Watch saves lives – time and time again.

Upgrades have also been made to the Apple Watch SE, which is incredibly budget-friendly and still comes with some of the same capabilities as the Watch Series 8, including crash detection. It’s by far the lightest model in the range.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Apple Watch Ultra comes with all the bells and whistles. Here’s CNET:

“Extreme” is the watchword for this model. It’s the most rugged yet, made of titanium, with a bezel to protect the display from impact. There are new bands designed for specific activities (alpine, trail and oceanic).

There’s a new Action button for quick physical control, plus the controls are designed to be usable when wearing gloves.

The battery can last as long as 60 hours using the optimisation setting and the watch face has a night mode.

There are apps galore, including a dive computer and Wayfinder system.

All in all, it’s an impressive beast built to withstand whatever you can throw at it:

Remember when we wore Casios and the highlight was the fact that it lit up when you pushed a button? Humanity has come a long way.

To finish, let’s look at the AirPods Pro (2nd generation), which Cook called Apple’s “most advanced” so far:

They come with a new H2 chip and spatial audio and have twice the noise-canceling capabilities as the previous model.

In addition to an increased six hours of listening time on a single charge (or 30 hours with the charging case), there are also speakers installed on each earbud and the charging case, so you can locate them using the Find My app.

Whatever your taste in music, it’s going to sound good coming through these bad boys:

Again, we don’t yet know the South African release dates or pricing for yesterday’s major product announcements.

We do know that you can knock some serious cash off whatever the end figures are by trading in your old smartphones, tablets, watches, Apple TVs, laptops, and desktop computers with Digicape.

Then it’s all about smugly plonking your new toy down on the table at dinner and waiting for others to notice.

“Oh, ja, this is the new iPhone 14 Pro. It puts your old model to shame but no biggie.”

[sources:verge&cnbc&cnet]