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The March 21st Apple Event Thread: Looping In With OS Updates, A New 4-Incher, & More

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The Real Abed said:
The SE is just the replacement for the 5C. Which was just a replacement for keeping the previous model around. There will be another SE. But it isn't guaranteed that it'll be the same name.

My prediction is starting with the 8, they'll design it in all three sizes from the beginning and just have all three available from the start. 4", 4.7" and 5.5" all at the same time with the same design cues. The 5C had a new design because they wanted to show off their neat new way of moulding plastic shells. (Which is strange since nothing they sell is plastic anymore.) The SE is literally the same case as a 5 and 5S because it lets them reuse the old machines to make their casings. But once they streamline the process they'll most likely just design all three at once and get them released all on the same day.

At least that's how I see it.

And the 4" is going to sell pretty well. How well did the 5C sell? (I own one myself because there was no 6 at the time. It's white. I love how it looks. But sometimes wish it was black plastic, or bright Product (RED) colored.)
Click to expand...

The 5C didn't really change anything about Apple's lineup, it was still last year's phone dropped by $100, they simply changed the design. It was more a marketing ploy than a significant strategy change. The SE changes the lineup much more significantly - it's flagship specs in a 4" shell at a $400 price point. It's a much more modern and competitive phone than they've ever shipped at that price. My guess is Apple's worried that selling a two-year-old phone as their budget option is no longer competitive with other phones at that price point and it's slowing adoption of new features like Apple Pay and Live Photos as well as chaining them to supporting older hardware for longer. Obviously it will sell well regardless, it's an iPhone, but I bet there's a few variables Apple's testing with this phone:

1) The iPhone 5S and 5C sold 30 million units last year despite being older models. Are people buying these phones just because they're cheaper, or is there still a significant market for that form factor? I think your prediction about the 8 coming in a 4" model from the start will only happen if they decide the latter is the case.

2) Will selling a near-6S caliber phone for a significantly lower price cannibalize sales of the 6S, or are they still differentiated enough by screen size, extra features like 3D Touch, etc. that it doesn't hurt their flagship phones?

3) Is designing a more powerful and competitive phone for the bottom-end worthwhile? Will this sell appreciably better than the old strategy of simply selling older models, enough to make investing in these phones worth it?
 
How long does it usually take after a product reveal for the RAM amount to be discovered? Hoping confirmation of the 9.7" Pro having 4GB is here by Thursday.
 
PaulLFC said:
How long does it usually take after a product reveal for the RAM amount to be discovered? Hoping confirmation of the 9.7" Pro having 4GB is here by Thursday.
Click to expand...

probably only via teardowns or people getting hold of devices and interrogating them with tools. So on or shortly after the 31st.

But don't forget you have a 14 day return period, so feel free to preorder and get one delivered/pick up, and you can always return it.
 
I would prefer the new 9.7 over my larger pro.
I am selling a one month old 128 wifi & cellular space grey iPad Pro with keyboard, case and cover with AC+ for £850.
I live in the UK so would anyone be interested?
 
The new iPad Pro is really tempting. It's even better than the 12.9 inch one in some areas, like the ambient screen and the cameras.
 
I'm expecting Apple to drop the numbering pretty soon. There may be an iPhone 7, but a 7S is unlikely and an 8 is right out. The SE name (and design) is probably not going to be reused, either.

In the future (by 2018):

Macbook (two sizes)
Macbook Pro (two sizes)

iMac (two sizes)
Mac Pro

iPad Mini
iPad Pro (two sizes)

iPhone Mini (?)
iPhone
iPhone Pro/Plus
 
mrklaw said:
probably only via teardowns or people getting hold of devices and interrogating them with tools. So on or shortly after the 31st.

But don't forget you have a 14 day return period, so feel free to preorder and get one delivered/pick up, and you can always return it.
Click to expand...
Good point, thanks, I forgot about the return period!

Going to order one on Thursday, and probably bite the bullet for a 128GB - it's more expensive than I'd like but I'd rather have too much storage than too little if this is going to last years like the last one.

Now to just find a cheap case because the Apple markup on the Pro silicone case is absurd.
 
Quick question in regards to getting the new SE (or any phone for that matter).

With the new monthly payment/upgrade every year plans, can I get the new SE on a payment plan even though my contract doesn't end until September? Or will I have to buy it outright?

I use Verizon.
 
Servbot said:
Quick question in regards to getting the new SE (or any phone for that matter).

With the new monthly payment/upgrade every year plans, can I get the new SE on a payment plan even though my contract doesn't end until September? Or will I have to buy it outright?

I use Verizon.
Click to expand...

Verizon don't really do early upgrades, so if you want to stick with them, you'll need to buy it outright.

If you can switch, T-Mobile and Sprint will both reimburse Verizon's early-termination charge if you switch to their networks.
 
Roberto Larcos said:
Verizon don't really do early upgrades, so if you want to stick with them, you'll need to buy it outright.

If you can switch, T-Mobile and Sprint will both reimburse Verizon's early-termination charge if you switch to their networks.
Click to expand...
I've been with Verizon since 2004/5. I'm not happy with their plans, so switching to T-Mobile would definitely be something to consider.

I may look into that.
 
can you restore a backup even if it was from a larger capacity ipad? My ipad air 2 was 64GB but I'd most likely be restoring to a 32GB pro 9.7, and I don't recall how much free space I had
 
Servbot said:
I've been with Verizon since 2004/5. I'm not happy with their plans, so switching to T-Mobile would definitely be something to consider.

I may look into that.
Click to expand...

Remember to check coverage for the places you're likely to go. Also, don't discount Sprint - they've been cutting prices hard recently.
 
Is there any insight into the battery life on the iPhone SE? I presume this is something that won't come out until the phone is actually reviewed, though =(.

The only reason I own a 6 plus is because of battery life and would much prefer to go back to a 4" phone if possible. I presume it's got the same size battery as the 5s, but I'm hoping that improvements in hardware and software efficiency have a net positive effect on the running life. I've seen the numbers on Apple's site, and while most categories seem to be the same as the 6/6s, oddly, talk time is longer (I think?).
 
NinjaMouse said:
Is there any insight into the battery life on the iPhone SE? I presume this is something that won't come out until the phone is actually reviewed, though =(.
Click to expand...

You're not going to see the mAh rating until somebody gets ahold of a review model, I'm guessing. But given how Apple shows improvement across the board I'm guessing at best a mild improvement in mAh but overall big gains due to downclocking the much more efficient A9 architecture and smaller resolution. And if they moved to a newer screen tech revision that would help too.
 
The Real Abed said:
The SE is just the replacement for the 5C. Which was just a replacement for keeping the previous model around. There will be another SE. But it isn't guaranteed that it'll be the same name.

My prediction is starting with the 8, they'll design it in all three sizes from the beginning and just have all three available from the start. 4", 4.7" and 5.5" all at the same time with the same design cues. The 5C had a new design because they wanted to show off their neat new way of moulding plastic shells. (Which is strange since nothing they sell is plastic anymore.) The SE is literally the same case as a 5 and 5S because it lets them reuse the old machines to make their casings. But once they streamline the process they'll most likely just design all three at once and get them released all on the same day.

At least that's how I see it.

And the 4" is going to sell pretty well. How well did the 5C sell? (I own one myself because there was no 6 at the time. It's white. I love how it looks. But sometimes wish it was black plastic, or bright Product (RED) colored.)
Click to expand...

The 5C sold pretty well as far as we know, but I think perception was always skewed because Wall Street had been expecting some dramatically cheaper phone (basically the SE or even cheaper) and it turned out to just be a mid-gen update to an existing model with a different candy coating. And it sold like one as opposed to some cheap phone everyone would buy.

I think the real goal of the 5C, besides being an experiment, was to see if they could get people to spring for the newer models and thus boost the ASP of the iPhone. Whereas with the SE being very much a much better deal than the 5C, it seems like they've switched to deciding they are going to keep the 4" market for themselves and go for a premium market that might balk at the price of their larger handsets.
 
Do you think that Apple will release a newer iPad Pro 9.7 later this holiday season, or will it be a year or 1.5 to the next iteration? The latter is the only thing that makes sense to me, but you never know.
 
TheCarrotKiller said:
Do you think that Apple will release a newer iPad Pro 9.7 later this holiday season, or will it be a year or 1.5 to the next iteration? The latter is the only thing that makes sense to me, but you never know.
Click to expand...

Especially if this March event signals Apple moving to a three-event-year calendar, I suspect that the iPads will slow down updates slightly. Seems hard to argue they should get more updates when their sales are still sliding.
 
TheCarrotKiller said:
Do you think that Apple will release a newer iPad Pro 9.7 later this holiday season, or will it be a year or 1.5 to the next iteration? The latter is the only thing that makes sense to me, but you never know.
Click to expand...

I'd guess at least a year. There is more than enough power in that A9X.
 
TheCarrotKiller said:
Do you think that Apple will release a newer iPad Pro 9.7 later this holiday season, or will it be a year or 1.5 to the next iteration? The latter is the only thing that makes sense to me, but you never know.
Click to expand...
I think there'd be a negative reaction if they upgraded the 9.7" so soon - there's some negativity now from 12.9" Pro owners over the upgrades in the 9.7" (understandably). Then again, I bought an iPad 3... :(
 
PaulLFC said:
I think there'd be a negative reaction if they upgraded the 9.7" so soon - there's some negativity now from 12.9" Pro owners over the upgrades in the 9.7" (understandably). Then again, I bought an iPad 3... :(
Click to expand...
Yeah, that's understandable though the main feature of the big Pro is the larger screen which stays with the device.

However I'm in that iPad 3 group too so that's kind of why I asked, don't want to make the same mistake twice. :)
It has done well though, but it has run its course but I will happily upgrade to a 9.7 Pro and take advantage of multitasking, form factor and now night shift. (Even though the pricing hurts, especially in Europe)
 
my pencil just arrived, so I can avoid any worries about stock shortages.

Have we had confirmation that standard smart covers will work on the new ipad pro? and any news about the size of the smart keyboard? If it is less than full size I'll probably skip it and maybe get a separate bluetooth keyboard
 
Maybe I'm imagining things but my phone (6) feels so much snappier! And the night shift addition looks pretty cool. Can't wait to try it out.
 
mrklaw said:
my pencil just arrived, so I can avoid any worries about stock shortages.

Have we had confirmation that standard smart covers will work on the new ipad pro? and any news about the size of the smart keyboard? If it is less than full size I'll probably skip it and maybe get a separate bluetooth keyboard
Click to expand...

This is all I've been able to find from the Apple website:

"The iPad Pro Smart Cover, iPad Pro Silicone Case, and Smart Keyboard are made for the 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models. The iPad Air Smart Cover is compatible with both iPad Air 2 and iPad Air. The iPad Air 2 Smart Case fits only iPad Air 2. The iPad Air Smart Case fits only iPad Air. The iPad mini Smart Cover and the iPad mini Smart Case work with iPad mini, iPad mini 2, and iPad mini 3. And you can purchase a Smart Cover or Silicone Case that is compatible with iPad mini 4."
 
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