Week 252 was posted by Charanjit Chana on 2022-08-22.
We're about two weeks away from Apple's next iPhone event and hopefully less than a month away from orders being received (if the past decade or so are anything to go by).
I currently have the iPhone 8 Plus, which has served me well but it's 64GB storage (middle tier option at the time) is just not enough anymore. The battery is at 78% health and while it's survived another year and will continue to support iOS updates. For now. It's just not as spritely as it once was. Yes, feature wise it’s kept up fairly well but there are plenty of nice new things it’s not compatible with. A wide angle lens live text and cinematic mode are just the examples.
I’m in the market for a new phone this year, and as someone who didn't wait a month or two longer for the iPhone X, this would be my first in the "new" Face ID format. One of the odd things about Apple's OS longevity is that when you do get a new phone, it doesn't always feel that new. A reliable battery alone will be worth the upgrade though.
So what are the features I'm hoping for?
Smaller Notch
Everyone says you quickly stop noticing the notch and while I've not had a phone with this feature for daily use, whenever I've had my hands on them it's not been a huge obstruction. Sure, not my favourite solution, but it's fine. Rumours say we're getting a smaller notch, or more of a pill shaped cut-out, which will take the look of the iPhone up another level.
USB-C
If you had asked me a year ago, at the time I couldn't have cared less about the "USB-C all the things" movement that rears its head every time a new iPhone is announced. I've only really started to accumulate USB-C devices over the past year, apart from laptops with which I use the Multiport Adapter so that I can plug in a USB A hub.
Our phones as well as my keyboard, trackpad, headphones and ~2014 iPad all have Apple's Lightning port. We have USB-to-Lightning cables all over the house and it's been great... then I got the 6th-gen iPad Mini and suddenly I needed a few USB-C cables in different rooms, otherwise I'd be tethered to my desk.
My key light for video calls and game controller are also charged over USB-C meaning the ratio of Lighting to USB-C is becoming more even in numbers.
7:4 in favour of Lightning, but if the next iPhone has USB-C then it's tighter and the solution might be to just get a MagSafe compatible charger. We have one already and it’s quite nice so could see myself just living with one in my desk and/or bedside table.
One thing I've learnt this past year though, the USB-C landscape is a total mess. Some cables can fast charger (power delivery) but others might not. Does it support video? Your guess is as good as mine!
Insane Battery Life
Battery life seems to be pretty good on iPhones these days but I want it to be insane. Nokia 3310 insane. Days, no weeks, of usage.
Periscope Lens
A zoom lens that zooms would be the dream. It feels like a periscope lens like the ones we’ve seen on Android devices would be the way to solve this but that probably means moving parts. I can dream.
What are you hoping for next month?
Update
Yesterday, Apple announced the new Apple Watch Ultra, 2nd-gen Airpods Pro and the iPhone 14 lineup. There was the regular and now familiar iPhone 14, the mini is gone, but the Plus is back. Then there was a the new iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max. These feature the smaller notch, now known as a Dynamic Island which looks like a really clever use of the notch. There's an under-display sensor and always on display.
So I got the smaller notch I was after, but not USB-C and I wouldn't say that battery life is insane. Maybe the iPhone 14 Plus will achieve more than all-day battery life, but the Pro models get modest improvements.
I'll have to see what an always-on display is like, but right now that doesn't really feel like a feature I need in the way Apple have implemented it. I could give up the faded backgrounds for more battery life personally, but maybe the ultra-low refresh rate means that isn't really an issue.
Tags: apple, iphone, iPhone 14 Pro