Apple ‘Awe Dropping’ Event Debuts iPhone 17, Air Pods Pro 3, and Apple Watch Updates: Highlights
Apple CEO Tim Cook stood in front of viewers across the world today at the brand’s annual online product release event, and boldly proclaimed Apple was ready to unveil the “biggest leap ever for iPhone.”
The announcement also included updates to Apple’s AirPods and the Apple Watch, too. Here’s what you need to know about how the latest tech will impact the world of outdoor recreation.
You can watch a full recap of the event below:
AirPods Pro 3
For travelers, Apple AirPods Pro 3 will translate languages in real time while you have a conversation. The active noise cancellation (ANC) will lower the volume of the speaker and translate speech directly into your ear.
When you want to respond, you can speak full phrases, and the translation will appear on your phone. Or, if the other person also has AirPods Pro 3, you can both take part in a dialogue in your preferred languages.
For fitness, the AirPods Pro will carry IP57 sweat and water resistance — a first for the product. Plus, AirPods Pro 3 will have a built-in heart sensor, so you can track your biometrics (heart rate, calories burned, etc.) without a standard fitness tracker.
Combined with the built-in Fitness app on iPhone, AirPods Pro 3 can help measure a variety of workouts. For battery life, a single charge will last up to 8 hours. The AirPods Pro 3 will retail for $250 and be available on Friday, Sept. 19.
Apple Watch: Series 11, Ultra, SE 3
Next up was the Apple Watch Series 11, which the brand called the thinnest and most durable Apple Watch to date. A big focus for Apple Watch will be blood pressure monitoring, which Apple cited as a “silent killer.”
Apple Watch Series 11 will also add a sleep score to add greater context to its existing sleep-tracking capabilities. The new score will account for sleep duration, the time you went to bed, and any interruptions.
The new watch will support 5G connectivity while using less power, according to the brand. Apple states the Series 11 battery life will last up to 24 hours per charge. Apple Watch Series 11 will retail for $400.
Apple also announced Apple Watch SE 3 — a budget option with Apple’s S10 chip, which the brand calls its most powerful chip. It will carry an 18-hour battery life and charge two times faster than the previous model. The SE 3 will retail for $250.
Finally, Apple announced a new generation of Apple Watch Ultra, the “ultimate sports and adventure watch.” The Apple Watch Ultra 3 has a new display that is brighter when read at an angle, and has thinner borders, making it the largest display ever for an Apple Watch.
Apple Watch Ultra has 5G and satellite connectivity. Critically, Apple said it doubled the antenna for improved connectivity when adventuring in the backcountry. The Ultra 3 will launch on Sept. 19 for $800.
iPhone 17
The iPhone 17 debuts with four models: the standard iPhone 17, the new iPhone Air, the iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max.
The standard iPhone 17 will carry a 6.3-inch display and has thinner borders to increase the overall display. Apple said its new display will be its most visible to date. With 3,000 nits of brightness, it’s meant to be easy to read in any lighting condition. That’s 50% more than iPhone 16’s peak brightness.
Apple also claimed the iPhone 17 with Ceramic Shield 2 is its most durable ever, with three times the scratch resistance of the previous Ceramic Shield.
Also, the A19 chip will make the iPhone 17 about 20% faster than the iPhone 16. The base model iPhone 17 comes with a minimum of 256 GB of storage and an option to upgrade to 512 GB.
Camera
The iPhone’s camera offers a 48-megapixel standard lens and a 2x telephoto lens. This camera will have 4x the resolution of the previous camera on the iPhone 16.
Meanwhile, the front-facing camera — the “Center Stage Front Camera” — has the widest field of view yet. The sensor, nearly twice as large as the previous one, is square-shaped and allows for higher resolution in any phone orientation. In other words, you can take a portrait or landscape selfie without changing the orientation of the phone.
This also holds true for video and FaceTime. The selfie cam has an 18-megapixel resolution.
Big Reveal: iPhone Air
The biggest reveal was an all-new iPhone — the thinnest iPhone ever at 5.6mm thick. A mirror-finish titanium frame pairs with Ceramic Shield on both sides. Not only is this advertised as Apple’s thinnest phone, but its most durable to date as well. That’s because in addition to the titanium frame, the back glass on the phone has been replaced with Ceramic Shield 2 (in addition to the front). This makes the iPhone Air 4x more resistant to cracks than the previous back glass.
Like the 17, it has a 6.5-inch display at 3,000 nits. It’s powered by an A19 Pro chip, which offers “MacBook Pro levels of compute in an iPhone,” the brand said. All in all, the iPhone Air is Apple’s “most power-efficient iPhone” to date.
The 48MP Fusion Camera system also has integrated 2x telephoto, even though it only carries one lens on the back. Lens options include 26mm, 28mm, 35mm, and 52mm.
Interestingly, the iPhone Air has two case options, each that will be compatible with a cross-body sling. This could be a helpful accessory for fast-moving and rugged adventurers.
Availability
Customers can preorder the iPhone 17 beginning on Friday, Sept. 12. It will be available for purchase on Sept. 19. The iPhone 17 will retail for $800, while the MSRP for the iPhone Air will be $1,000. The iPhone 17 Pro will retail starting at $1,100.
More information on all the latest products is available on Apple’s site.
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