I was asked by Kamila last week to write an up-to-the-minute post on the Apple event to launch the iPhone 13 and other iToys. And here I am on Sunday afternoon trying to find a way to start writing about the event, trying to ignore the memos from Kamila, and now Diana, as to when I will get round to writing something about the Apple event for the blog and social media.
So as with all successful projects I made a sandwich and a coffee and settled down to talk to Diana, but as she was absorbed in some online political conference, I chose to binge watch some TV.
And that is when I got my inspiration…
I have been watching Modern Family on Netflix and when I got to season 6, episode 16, Connection Lost, I had my inspiration for the article.
In this episode we follow the exploits of the extended family, not in the normal way but through the screen of Claire’s Apple laptop and her Facetime calls to the various family members, web searches, a hack of an iCloud account (do not use “snoopy” as your password), “Find my iPhone” and other Apple technologies. Long and short of the episode was that Haley did not get married, likes cronuts and thinks Snoopy is a literary character (who can argue about that?).
Now I was not in the writing room when this episode was discussed so cannot comment whether the writers thought of the idea or Cupertino thought of it, but what the episode was, was a huge product placement of some of the best cutting edge consumer hardware and software of the time. The episode was made in 2015.
And here is my problem with the new iPhone 13. If you would like to experience 2015 then get a new iPhone 13, as things have not changed much for Apple since then. Neither I nor a whole bunch of other people was excited by the new stuff. Probably the new iPad Mini is the coolest thing in the launch, but the event was to launch a flagship smartphone.
I have a bunch of Apple stuff and really like it – check out many of my posts here and on www.clivecatton.co.uk and you will see I could fall gently into that category of an “Apple Fan” but earlier this year I bought an iPhone 12 Pro Max and with the launch of a new model I feel no purchase regret or hankering for an iPhone 13. What I feel is that the phone I bought was the equivalent of comfortable Dad slippers.
Don’t get me wrong, there are many incremental improvements with the new devices and if you want a new smartphone my recommendation would be for an iPhone from the Apple range, which now has a model to suit most budgets. There are many things I like – among them is the device longevity Apple supports by issuing updates for older devices – the upcoming iOS 15 will be available on the iPhone SE (First Gen) released in 2016 – you remember, back when Apple smartphones were exciting.
However, I do think Apple has a problem. It is very quick to play up its green credentials. This latest presentation was no exception, and though I am sure from the things it declares, it is doing very well, but the issue of third party repairs, function loss when someone else repairs a device and battery life that is exceeded by software updates, drastically reduces the good the world’s biggest company does by being green. These policies help make Apple a two trillion dollar company but add to e-waste. But don’t worry, Apple does pay expensive lawyers to fight people who want a right to repair Apple devices that are out of warranty. Watch some Apple videos on YouTube by Hugh Jeffreys to see the scale of the issue.
So my takeaways from the Apple event in this article are:
- If you buy an iPhone take your own steps to be green. Upcycle your phone, get the battery changed and pass it on to a new user when you get the new shiny model – I do.
- I was not disappointed with my purchase of what is now the previous model of iPhone – it takes great photos and the larger screen is great to work on – thanks Apple I am not hankering for an iPhone 13. The iPhone 12 Max Pro is still available from some suppliers.
- I am looking forward to iOS 15 – there is always the spinoff of a new iOS from the launch of a new iPhone.
- Do not discuss things with Diana – binge watch TV instead.
Clive Catton MSc (Cyber Security) – by-line and other articles
p.s.
Here are some links about the iPhone 13 you may find useful.
Apple iPhone 13 brings portrait mode for video – BBC News (really portrait mode in the headline!)
iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max – Apple (UK) – find out about all the features (and at this point I am not being ironic)
iPhone 13 – What Went Wrong? – Linus Tech Tips – YouTube
Photo by Giorgio Trovato
