APPLE is set to make millions of iPhones redundant in just three days.
The tech giant’s new release on September 10 – rumoured to be the iPhone 11 – will see a new iOS update that can only be supported from the iPhone 6s onward.
Every September, Apple dishes out loads of new features as part of an iOS update.
This year the big update is iOS 13, adding performance improvements and long-awaited features like Dark Mode and unknown caller silencing.
The new software will be released alongside Apple’s latest gadget next week and will power iPhones as well as the new iPadOS.
However, the update won’t work on any phones released before the iPhone 6s – meaning older devices will no longer receive security updates from Apple.
USER EXPERIENCE COMPROMISED
Without security updates, devices are more vulnerable to hackers, user experience will be compromised and iPhone users won’t be able to use their device to its full potential.
Apple reportedly sold more than 200 million iPhone 6 devices – which will all become redundant once the new update is in place.
As well as the new dark mode feature, iOS 13 will see a number of improvements.
There will be a new “swipe to type” function for texting that lets you drag your finger around the keyboard to type words, just like the SwiftKey keyboard or Android phones.
Apple Maps is also getting some much-needed love, with 3D terrain mapping (courtesy of Apple flying and driving across the USA with scanning tech).
Other countries will get this eventually, but it’s US-only for now.
Apple is introducing a new ‘Sign In With Apple’ feature that offers an alternative to ‘Log In With Facebook’ buttons you see on websites.
It means you’ll be able to sign up easily (and privately) for websites using your Apple, with an option to share a fake email that reroutes emails to your actual account.
Each app gets a unique random email address, so you can disable them at any time when you’re “tired of hearing from that app”, Apple exec Craig Federighi explained earlier this year.
It’ll be available across all of Apple’s platforms, and across the web.
TIME TO UPGRADE
Your iPhone camera roll is getting a major upgrade too, thanks to artificial intelligence.
There’ll be an option to hide duplicate photos, boring screenshots and photos of receipts, so you see a streamlined album of your best snaps.
It should make looking through your camera roll much more enjoyable.
You can split your camera roll into ‘Days’, ‘Months’ and ‘Years’ to see attractive highlights over those time periods, with the AI tech applied to make it look “beautiful”, according to Apple.
Upgrades to Siri’s text-to speech function will apparently make her sound less robotic, while Memoji are getting more customisable with the addition of new makeup and accessory options.
Spam calls will also become easier to deal with: iOS 13 can automatically silence unknown callers.
The new iPhone 11 is tipped to be a direct sequel to last year’s iPhone models, and will likely boast powerful specs, an amazing camera, and a swanky design.
Amongst the rumours surrounding the new gadget, it has been widely speculated that the new phone will be called iPhone Pro – but there’s no way to verify this.
Apple will almost certainly introduce a new smartphone processor, pegged to be an Apple A13 chipset – which will likely provide significant speed boosts.
ENHANCED TECHNOLOGY
And according to mobile expert Dan Ives, a top industry watcher there will be three cameras on the back of the new iPhone.
“This next phone will all be about triple rear-camera capabilities, with enhanced optical lens capabilities a major selling point,” said Dan, a Managing Director at Wedbush Securities.
“There could also be significantly enhanced face recognition technology and some other hardware/design enhancements to catalyse upgrades.
Another rumour suggested that an under-screen fingerprint scanner was in the works, although this might not be available in all regions.
Many Apple rivals are expected to launch 5G smartphones in 2019 but it’s widely reported that Apple won’t launch a 5G handset until 2020.
The top-secret iPhone 11 is tipped to be available in an all-new “matte dark green”.
The information was shared by a person claiming to be a factory worker at the Taiwanese firm that builds Apple smartphones in China.
But as specialist tech site MacRumors notes, the information is difficult to verify – and could easily be faked.
After Apple faced criticism last year for hiked up prices, analyst Dan Ives, of Wedbush Securities expects two iPhones, a cheaper “base” model and a more expensive version.
