If nothing else happens, Apple will officially release a new generation of iPhone (no matter what the name is) next Tuesday, September 6, because the annual iPhone release time has long been followed. The Tuesday of the second week of September corresponds to the early morning of Wednesday in Beijing time.

At the end of March this year, Apple launched the iPhone SE for the first time, the cheapest iPhone with the same performance as the iPhone 6s but only a 4-inch screen. The outside world generally believes that this is Apple's rescue strategy for the sluggish sales growth after iPhone 6s. However, judging from the performance of Apple's third quarter financial report, the iPhone SE has little effect. Naturally, the hope that the iPhone will continue to maintain strong sales growth is pinned on the iPhone 7.

Amidst the numerous and confusing leaks, let’s restore the iPhone 7 that is closest to the truth and see what Apple can do to create another sales miracle.

First of all, there is the name. Some media broke the news that Apple's new autumn product will not be called "iPhone 7", but "iPhone 6SE". Coupled with various rumors that the new iPhone's functions have not been greatly improved, everyone can't help but think that this is another minor repair on the iPhone 6s. Does Apple really want to save its big move until the 10th anniversary of the iPhone next year, and just release two less distinctive "SE" models this year as a show?

Although the editor doesn't think there will be any big changes in this year's new products, it's better to keep some expectations. After all, there will be some black technology in the press conference every year. The editor below will give you a sneak peek of what is worth paying attention to in this year’s new iPhone.

Bottom: Secrets of iPhone 7

The iPhone 7's confidentiality work is considered good. Although there are many revelations, there is no complete leak of the real phone. According to the editor's brother who installs mobile phones at Foxconn, a full confidentiality agreement is necessary; you have to go through many security inspection procedures every day before entering and leaving the factory, and it is almost impossible to take away a single part; there are many security personnel in the production area of ​​unlisted products, and you are not allowed to bring mobile phones to work, so there is no way to take pictures; and each of them makes the parts they are responsible for, and the parts are just code names in production. No one knows what the thing is used for, and only the final assembler can see the product.

But there is no airtight wall!

Various people have revealed that various renderings are becoming more and more real, and many people have already gotten iPhone 7 prototypes. Judging from the situation in previous years, some of the leaks are relatively reliable, such as the tip master Evan Blass@evleaks, and Lin Zhiying who often uses new products one month in advance (although it is very likely that he gets the machine model).

There is news that the new iPhone will not be named iPhone 7, butIt's the iPhone 6SE, and if there is one, this may just be an extended model. The editor below will still call the new iPhone "iPhone 7" to give you a glimpse of what changes it may make.

1. Price and configuration: No increase in price if you increase the quantity!

There are probably no surprises in terms of price. The iPhone 7 is expected to start at 5,288, and the iPhone 7 Plus will start at 6,088. However, it is rumored that from now on, the minimum memory of all iPhones will be 32G, and then 128G and 256G. The 16G and 64G models will be cancelled. If the memory is upgraded and the price starts at 5288, it is still quite cost-effective.

In addition, the price of the 256G version should also be very expensive. Last year, the 128G version of the iPhone 6s Plus sold for 7,788 yuan, and the 256G version should cost up to 8,000 yuan.

2. Appearance: There will be no qualitative change

Like many Apple products, such as MacBook, iPad, etc., once the product develops to an extremely mature stage, the appearance style will be fixed, mainly due to upgrades in performance, thickness, weight, etc. It seems that iPhone 7 has reached this stage.

Size: Starting from the iPhone 4, each new generation has become larger and thinner. However, judging from the renderings currently obtained and the mobile phone case recently exposed by foreign media, the appearance of the iPhone 7 still continues the design of the iPhone 6 era, with rounded corners, a 2.5D Gorilla screen, and an integrated metal body, with sizes of 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches respectively.

Thickness: According to foreign media "evaluations", the thickness of iPhone 7 has changed after canceling the 3.5mm headphone jack. The thickness of the iPhone 6 Plus is 7.31mm, the thickness of the iPhone 7 Plus is 7.18mm, and the thickness of the iPhone 7 is only 7.14mm.

Weight: Weight may also vary. iPhone 6s is 14g heavier than iPhone 6, which can be measured with your hands. iPhone 6s Plus is also the heaviest in history at 192g. If the rumors that the iPhone 7 Plus is equipped with two cameras are true, the weight will further increase.

Sensor: Some foreign media said that the front panel opening will be changed. Compared to the iPhone 6, the hidden opening that should have been on the left side has been moved to the right side, so the iPhone 6/6S film cannot be applied to the iPhone 7. In addition, the earpiece has also been enlarged and lengthened, and the possibility of a new built-in sensor cannot be ruled out.

Antenna design: The white band on the back of iPhone 6 has always been criticized. It is reported that the new generation iPhone will cancel the three-stage design, and the edge antenna will be closernear both ends. Judging from the pictures of Lin Zhiying taking pictures with his mobile phone last week, the design has indeed been changed this time, and it is much more beautiful than before. I heard that Jimmy Lin lost 6 million followers on Weibo because he showed off his iPhone 7. I felt distressed and looked at the phone in his hand again, eh? Where is the flash next to the dual cameras? Regardless of whether it is a real mobile phone, a model or a case, this hole should be there. The only reason is that the one he took is a fake one.

Camera: Changes on the back include cameras, but according to news, only the iPhone 7 Plus will be equipped with dual cameras. But the iPhone 7 is not without changes. The iPhone 7’s camera is more protruding. Compared with the iPhone 6’s lens that protrudes directly, the iPhone 7’s lens adopts a transitional design that’s a little bit more rounded.

Headphone port: Another important change is the cancellation of the 3.5mm headphone jack at the bottom of the phone. This can be proven by Apple's official website starting to sell Lightning headphones. After the headphone jack was removed, the original position was changed to a speaker hole, with speakers symmetrically arranged on both sides of the bottom.

Color matching:The appearance has not changed. The best way to distinguish new models is to add new colors. iPhone 5s champagne gold and iPhone 6s rose gold are good examples. This time the new iPhone may come in two new colors, one is space gray (or matte black), and the other is navy blue. These two new colorways will also be hot sellers.

3. Screen: Equipped with the same TrueTone Display technology as iPad Pro

The previous speculations about sapphire screen and 2K screen were all too ridiculous. The most credible thing is that iPhone 7 will be equipped with TrueTone Display technology. This technology was previously used on the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, which can change the display color of the screen according to the ambient light. This technology is one step closer than simple brightness adjustment. It directly changes the color of the screen. For example, when the weather is cloudy, the screen will be cooler, and the surrounding warm-toned screens will also appear warmer.

4. Chip: A10 processes faster

Processor: iPhone 7 should use the A10 processor, and this year's processor will be produced using TSMC's 16nm FinFET process. In the past few months, TSMC has doubled its 16nm FinFET chip production capacity to meet Apple's demand for processors when it launches the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus in September.

Memory: This chip may use 3G memory. The website Geekbench has revealed the running scores of the A10. The single core exceeds 3000 and the dual core 5200, which is 20% higher than the A9 of the iPhone 6, almost catching up with the A9X of the iPad Pro, and even beating the 2200 points of the Snapdragon 820. Moreover, the operating efficiency of the dual-core can basically catch up with the efficiency of the Snapdragon 820 quad-core. Apple's multi-threaded operation efficiency is strong, and multi-core processing may be greatly improved. With this configuration, whether it is taking photos or surfing the Internet, its operating efficiency is outstanding.

The size of the A10 chip will be reduced, making the iPhone 7 thinner and improving performance significantly.

5. Camera: dual cameras are worth looking forward to

It should have been confirmed that the iPhone 7 Plus will be equipped with dual cameras, while the iPhone 7 will retain a single 12-megapixel camera.

In recent generations, iPhones have had very few camera upgrades, but the Samsung S6/S7 series have long begun to use large apertures, large sensors, and optical image stabilization to improve the photography effect. The Note 7 released last month also has a large camera on the back, coupled with Samsung’s naturally gorgeous AMOLED screen, the imaging effect is already ahead of the iPhone, not to mention night photography.

Unlike other components that are getting smaller and smaller, the camera must follow the basic imaging principle. The larger the lens, the more light will enter, and the better the imaging effect will be. Therefore, Samsung’s camera is very large. If Apple wants to achieve better results, it must also make the camera larger. However, the camera on the iPhone 6 was already bulging out. After optical image stabilization was added to the iPhone 7, the bulge became more obvious. If you want to improve it further, you can only change one camera to two.

Using two cameras on the iPhone 7 Plus increases the CMOS sensor area in disguise, which has a better effect than using one large camera. There are also reports that the two cameras of the iPhone 7 are one large and one small. They are different from the black and white dual camera technology used by Huawei P9, but are somewhat similar to the two cameras used by LG G5, which have different focal lengths.

For the current problem of excessive noise in night shots taken by iPhone, two cameras can easily solve it. Because of the use of dual cameras, the amount of incident light will theoretically double, which can directly increase the sensitivity of photos, reduce image noise, and perform better in low-light photography and night scene photography.

It was previously reported that one of the two cameras can be used to capture panoramic views and the other is used to capture details. The effect is similar to this:

You may say that this kind of effect is not considered black technology. Why do I have such expectations here? Because the examples cited above underestimate the imaging effect of two cameras! The benefit of dual cameras is not just to increase the photosensitive area, nor is it 1+1=2, but 1+1>2.

Single camera and dual camera can imagine an adult seeing objects with one or both eyes. When viewing with one eye, the image and scene are two-dimensional. It is easy to distinguish the up, down, left, and right positions of objects, but it is difficult to distinguish the distance of objects. If you don’t believe me, just close one eye and open both eyes to feel it. With the addition of another camera, the imaging will become three-dimensional, making it easier to perceive distance and dynamics, and capture dynamics more clearly.

It is obvious to all that the iPhone is slow to focus when taking photos. The addition of dual cameras has changed the previous model of focusing first and then shooting. It can now shoot first and then focus. When taking a photo, the phone will automatically save photos of different focal lengths. After taking the photo, you can click on the position you want to focus on to get photos focused at any angle.

These are all (somewhat reliable) guesses. Let’s wait for Cook to demonstrate it himself next month.

6. Headphones: The jack is gone, you may use Bluetooth headphones

It has long been reported that the iPhone 7 will cancel the 3.5mm interface and use the charging port as a headphone port. This immediately aroused everyone's doubts. The main concern is how to charge and listen to music at the same time. Apple must have thought of a solution to this problem, because there are still many cases of using headphones while charging. There may be Bluetooth headphones that can also be used with Lightning cables.

In fact, Lightning is more advanced than the 3.5mm interface. Through firmware upgrades or equipped with new sensors, headphones can achieve more functional expansion, richer forms and application values, and bring different and better listening sensations. The elimination of the 3.5mm headphone jack will bring more playability to users.

In addition, the elimination of the headphone jack can also increase the internal space, which can be used to place speakers and batteries. However, it seems that there is a symmetrical speaker hole at the bottom, so this position is more likely to be replaced by a speaker, and the sound quality of the external amplifier will be greatly improved.

7. Battery life: 14% longer than iPhone 6s

Battery life is definitely an issue that everyone is more concerned about, but the bad news is that the iPhone 7 is unlikely to improve the battery life. Foreign media said that the battery life of the iPhone 7 may only be about 14% higher than that of the iPhone 6s, with a capacity of 1960mAh.

According to current technology, battery capacity is directly proportional to battery volume. Unless there are new technologies or new materials that can double the density of batteries, it will be impossible to increase battery capacity with the same volume.

Another point to note is that the battery capacity of the iPhone 6s is slightly smaller than that of the iPhone 6 due to the newly added 3D Touch module. However, the power consumption dividend brought by the processor upgrade and software optimization has basically filled the hole of shrinking battery capacity. Therefore, the difference in battery life between the two generations of products is actually not that big. If this logic still applies now, the battery life of the iPhone 7 will not be much improved. Subversive improvements should wait until the iPhone 8.

8. Fast charging: another way to solve the battery life problem

Although the battery life of iPhone 7 will not be improved, iPhone 7 may be equipped with fast charging technology, which is absolutely great news for iPhone users who dare not go out without a mobile charger. In fact, fast charging technology has not been difficult for a long time. Many domestic mobile phones use fast charging as a gimmick: "charge for five minutes and talk for two hours." However, the iPhone, which consumes a lot of power, has never been equipped with it. This improvement may be a reason for people to buy iPhone 7.

9. Waterproofing: important measures to make up for weaknesses

Samsung's waterproof performance has always been very good, while Apple has never marketed waterproof performance as a major gimmick. The iPhone 6 has already had preliminary waterproofing treatment before. After canceling the 3.5mm interface this time, it will reduce the difficulty of waterproofing the whole machine, so the waterproof function can be expected.

It’s just that Apple seems unwilling to only do low-level waterproofing. Information shows that Apple has applied for a patented technology, emphasizing editing tools suitable for underwater photography to ensure that the underwater imaging effect will not be too bad. This may mean that Apple will make great efforts to create a fully waterproof device, but it may also be a peripheral equipment that can take pictures.

Before this, Apple has applied for several patents related to waterproofing, such as enabling electronic products to sense that they are immersed in liquid, using special coatings to seal electronic components to prevent water from entering, etc. It’s time for the entire iPhone 7 to be waterproof.

10. Is there any surprise at the end?

You can clearly see in some leaked pictures that there are three metal points on the back of the dual-camera model. Like the iPad Pro released last year, it can be used to connect external keyboards and other peripherals, and can also be used as a wireless charging interface. However, looking at the latest models and casings, these three metal points are missing. This function may not be displayed in the end.

After reading the above introduction, I believe everyone has an idea of the new iPhone. I don’t know if you are all the same as me. Except for the camera and fast charging, which can make people a little tempted, the other functions are just so so. After all, I'd better continue to use my iPhone 6s. The money I save is worse than buying a new MacBook.

So you know what I’m going to talk about next! That must be:

What else is there besides iPhone?

In addition to releasing the new iPhone, there may be other new products to be released. It was previously reported that MacBook Pro will receive its largest update in history, a new iPad Pro is also in the pipeline, and the second generation of Apple Watch may also be released.

1. Macbook Pro

Foreign media said this may be the biggest change in the history of MacBook Pro. The appearance should be thinner and more colorful, mainly due to performance improvements.

MacBook Pro will use AMD's latest "Polaris" architecture graphics card this year. This graphics card can drive VR devices, which seems to indicate that Apple will also take a share of the VR field and further meet the needs of gamers. The new GPU not only has stronger performance and higher energy efficiency, but can also be made thinner, which perfectly matches the thinner body.

Another major change may be to change the column of function keys at the top of the keyboard directly into an OLED touch bar. When users use the new MacBook Pro to open iTunes, they can theoretically control playback through the touch screen bar; during word processing, it can also directly display editing commands such as copy and paste.

In addition, Apple also plans to transfer Touch ID to the MacBook Pro product line, which can support fingerprint quick login and Apple Pay payment. The pressure-sensitive touchpad will also be slightly wider for easier operation.

2. iPad Pro 2

This conference may also release a new 12.9-inch iPad Pro. The new product may use the A10 processor, the camera components will be updated, and the body will also support the True Tone function on the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. Apple previously said that using 3D Touch on a large screen is still difficult, and I don’t know if Apple has made a breakthrough. It’s really worrying.

3. Apple Watch

Apple Watch is likely to be made into an independent product, rather than relying on an iPhone to be used. HowWhat about independence? The new Apple Watch will be equipped with an LTE communication module, allowing it to support cellular data networks, allowing independent networking and even independent calls. In addition, there may be a camera that allows users to make and receive FaceTime video calls, not just audio calls.

In appearance, it is estimated that the dial will not be round, but will continue to be square. After all, the square operating area will be larger, making it easier to check emails, videos, etc.

The battery life of Apple Watch on one charge per day has also been criticized. The new Apple Watch will not only improve battery life, but may also be equipped with fast charging technology.
The above are all the highlights of Apple’s launch event in September. It makes me feel a little sad to think of the glory of Apple’s products in the past and that no one will buy them now.

Okay, after talking about the press conference, let’s return to the question in the title:

Is the iPhone old?

Next year, it will be 10 years since the iPhone was launched. In these ten years, the iPhone has also made Apple a lot of money.

According to IDC market research data, Apple sold a total of more than 231.5 million iPhones in 2015, maintaining its position as the world's second largest smartphone manufacturer with a share of 16.2%. Moreover, the profit brought by iPhone to Apple is almost the sum of other smartphone manufacturers combined.

However, iPhone sales showed sluggish market growth in 2016. Gartner's global smartphone market data for the second quarter of 2016 showed that Apple's iPhone sales, which ranked second, fell 7.6% year-on-year to 44.4 million units, and its market share fell to 12.9% from 14.6% in the same period last year. Therefore, at this point in time, Apple urgently needs a new generation of iPhone to revive sales.

At present, the reasons for the weak growth or even decline in iPhone sales are obvious:

1. iPhone’s natural update cycle

Apple's product strategy is to update a small amount every year and a major update every two years. The S series every year does not sell as well as the previous year's major update. It is natural that people do not have such high expectations for minor repairs. The iPhone 5s does not sell as well as the iPhone 5. From the end of last year to the end of the launch of iPhone 6s, the decline in sales is also a normal sales cycle of this generation of iPhone products.

2. The "dividends" of Android large-screen phones

The size and sales volume of mobile phone screens follow a downward curve, and the 5.5-inch screen is at the top of the curve and should be the largest screen that can be grasped by human hands. And now every brand has a large-screen mobile phone, especially the domestic Android mobile phone camp. The pace of looking towards the iPhone has diverted many iPhone users from mid-to-high-end Android mobile phones.

3. The update space of iPhone has not been that big in recent years

From iPhone 4 to iPhone 6s, the screen can no longer be bigger and the body can no longer be thinner.The functions that address user pain points have been implemented, and the current updates are all minor repairs to the original version. It is difficult to achieve a disruptive breakthrough in a certain function. This is also an important reason why iPhone 7 is not favored by the outside world.

The sales from last year’s iPhone 6s to this year’s iPhone SE were not very good, probably because the differences between these mobile phones are not very big. iPhone SE claims to be focused on the mid-range market, but its price is also set too high, resulting in failure in China and India.

What does iPhone 7 rely on to achieve another sales miracle?

You must know that Apple invests billions of dollars in R&D every year, and it is impossible not to develop several black technologies. In the past, the fingerprint recognition that was first added to the iPhone and our screen have provided technical guidance to the mobile phone industry. Taken together, this time the iPhone 7 regains its glory mainly due to the following aspects:

1. Fill technical shortcomings: meet user expectations

After reading the above speculations about iPhone 7, although there are not many highlights, I can still feel that Apple is still trying its best to create a more perfect mobile phone. Isn’t it said that the memory is small, then we will start from 32G and go up to 256G; the camera effect is not good? Double shot! Not only is the battery life short, but charging is also slow, so fast charge first; isn’t it waterproof? Then add waterproof function.

Although it is a few steps slower than some other high-end flagships in terms of photography, waterproofing and fast charging, judging from past experience, Apple is either the first to use many new technologies, or it waits until the technology is more mature before making further updates. In short, it can be seen that Apple's products are getting better and better with each generation.

2. Adding black technology: the ultimate move is still mysterious

The past few generations of iPhone have brought many surprises. Many functions may not sound like much, but they bring great convenience to use. For example, the newly added 3D Touch on iPhone 6s, whoever uses it knows~

This year’s black technology is most likely to appear in dual cameras, because this technology has been used on some mobile phones, and there are also different dual camera solutions. I believe that Apple will definitely come up with something big when it makes up for the defects of the original cameras.

3. Model differentiation: Will there be another SE?

Since the iPhone 6, Apple has released two mobile phones with different sizes every year. This year, the differences between the two models will be even greater, involving the difference between dual cameras and single cameras. There is also a big memory gap between the same size.

Conclusion: Another autumn of kidney crisis

Every year, the wait for the new generation of iPhone becomes a year-long mystery. Every September, this mystery will be truly solved. This is why Apple fans around the world flock to every new Apple product release and sale, just like a festival. Next week, let’s wait for the answer to be revealed.