Apple usually unveils its latest iPhones in the first half of September, and this year was no exception.
On Wednesday, the company introduced the new iPhone 14, with a Satellite Emergency Service feature that allows users to communicate when cellular service is down or from a remote location. Apple said it has set up relay centers to enable this feature.
When users point their device at the satellite, the phone will help determine its location, and users will be able to send and receive information for emergency assistance. Apple says local service providers will be alerted to call for help.
The company says it has developed a short text compression mechanism that would allow compressed messages to take 15 seconds to send if there is a clear sky.
The iPhones feature longer battery life, “ceramic shield” smartphone glass, and the same A15 chip as last year’s iPhone 13 Pro.
The most significant change in the iPhone 14 Pro is in the camera system, which has become a slightly larger camera, and the notch for the front camera has been replaced by a pill-shaped hole for Face ID sensors.
The Pro models have a 48-megapixel wide-angle camera, along with 12-megapixel ultra-wide and telephoto sensors. The new front camera features autofocus for the first time, allowing the camera to focus at multiple distances in low light for individual and group selfies. It also has a new action mode that allows users to keep videos steady while moving, and has improved video recording.
The new series will have a 6.1-inch screen and the iPhone 14 Plus a larger 6.7-inch screen, though the company eliminated the 5.4-inch “mini” version.
The yearly launch comes as consumers deal with inflation and a faltering economy.
Apple rose nearly 1 percent to $174.54 in New York trading, despite shares still down 2 percent this year.
Apple has announced that iPhones will eliminate the need for a physical SIM card and instead use a digital, “e-SIM” card.
With this setup, multiple e-SIMs can be stored on one device and have multiple mobile plans and phone numbers on one phone.
This prevents others from removing the SIM card if an iPhone is lost or stolen.
Apple says that all U.S. iPhone models will not have a SIM card tray.
The iPhone 14 will start at $799, the same price as last year’s iPhone 13. The prices for the other models are $899 for the iPhone Plus, $999 for the Pro, and $1,099 for the Pro Max.
Pre-orders will start on Sept. 9 and will be available from Sept. 16.
Reuters and The CNN Wire contributed to this report.
