Apple has finally raised the curtain from its next generation iPhone models. What was surprising is that instead of one, it has announced two iPhone models – iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Notably, the iPhone 6 Plus is its first phablet and it comes with a huge 5.5 inch Retina display. The iPhone 6 features a 4.7-inch Retina HD display. Both new Apple iPhone models will be offered in gold, silver and space grey colour options in 16 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB storage variants.
On its India webpage, Apple has mentioned that the iPhone 6 will be launched in the country on October 17. However, there was no information about the iPhone 6 Plus.
Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus bear similar design and styling treatment with the anodized aluminum with the shaped glass and gives a continuous smooth surface experience. The iPhone 6 measures mere 6.9 mm thick while the iPhone 6 Plus is just 7.1 mm thick.
Apple has used a 4.7-inch Retina HD display with IPS technology in iPhone 6 and it supports 1334×750 pixel resolution natively. Yet again, Apple manages to keep the Pixel density above 300 pixels per inch for this device. Meanwhile, the iPhone 6 Plus is the company’s first large screen device flaunting 5.5-inch Retina HD display with IPS technology and supports 1920×1080 pixel resolution. Both new Retina HD display clad smartphones have oleophobic coating on the front for resisting the fingerprints. The new Retina HD displays aim to deliver better viewing angles, accurate colors and more responsiveness compared to predecessor models.
Apple has housed the new 64-bit architecture based Apple A8 mobile Chipset coupled with the M8 motion processor. This basic hardware will drive the new iOS 8 software update experience on both the devices.
For imaging, the phone has an 8 megapixel iSight camera with f/2.2 Aperture and comes with new Focus Pixels feature for faster auto-focus, very similar to the laser auto-focus in the LG G3 but not the same technique. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus model owners can record full HD videos at 60 frames per second and even 240 frames per second for slow motion videos. The BSI sensor is married with five element lens and Hybrid IR filter along with Sapphire crystal lens cover for clearest and crispest images. Apple has offered Optical Image Stabilization only in iPhone 6 Plus but not on the iPhone 6. Apart from the new Burst Mode, the camera App offers the HDR function for both still images and video as well.
The front facing 2.1 megapixel iSight camera allows capturing FaceTime HD. The new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will offer faster speeds offering 4G LTE network networks and also Voice over LTE along with WiFi calling function. Apple has added the latest WiFi 802.11ac standard for faster downloads and Bluetooth 4.0 for connectivity.
On the software front, Apple has added the QuickType keyboard, new Health app, and several features in the new iOS 8 update. Apple has introduced the new Apple Pay payment system for physical goods that can be used with the new Near Field Communication chip integrated inside. As of now, there is no clarity on whether Apple Pay would be made available to India at the launch of the new iPhone models.
Apple will offer the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models in 16 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB on-board storage options. As per Apple, the iPhone 6 will offer 14 hours of Talk time over 3G network while the iPhone 6 Plus will offer talk time of up to 24 hours.
Both iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models will support the new nano-SIM modules.