Apple's iPhone 6 Plus Enters Phablet Territory

Along with the launch of the iPhone 6 is the equally stunning yet noticeably larger iPhone 6 Plus. Yes, it is a plus-size variant of the iPhone 6, which has a 5.5-inch screen making it Apple's very first phablet. And yes, comparison to the Samsung Galaxy Note series, LG G3, and the like are inevitable. Design-wise, the iPhone 6 Plus looks like a hybrid of the most recent iPod touch and the iPad mini. It is still clad in anodized aluminum, combined with stainless steel and glass. It measures 158.1 mm x 77.8 mm x 7.1 mm and weighs 172g. It packs a 5.5-inch IPS LED-backlit LCD panel that has a pixel resolution of 1080 x 1920, giving it a pixel density of 401 ppi. This is still in line with Apple's Retina display philosophy. In fact, the screen has a FullHD resolution, similar to that of the Samsung Galaxy S5, HTC One (M8), and the Sony Xperia Z3. Its pixels are dual-domain allowing for wider viewing angles. Its brightness reaches 500 nits and has a contrast ratio of 1300:1. An oleophobic coating will keep fingerprint smudges away from the iPhone 6 Plus' screen.


The iPhone 6 Plus is equipped with the company's brand new quad-core A8 system-on-chip along with the M8 motion co-processor. Like the A7 chipset of its predecessor, the A8 chip comes with 64-bit architecture. The GPU of the iPhone 6 Plus will also perform 50% better in comparison with the iPhone 5s'. This new SoC also comes with support for over 20 LTE bands, supporting LTE roaming, Voice Over LTE, and Wi-Fi calling. While its battery capacity was not mentioned in the keynote and neither on its website, Apple claims that the iPhone 6 Plus will offer up to 24 hours in 3G talk time, 80 hours of audio playback, and 8 hours of video playback. The iPhone 6 Plus, along with the iPhone 6, are the first iPhones to come with a barometer in addition to the usual smorgasbord of sensors.


Since the iPhone 4S, Apple is stuck with an 8-MP rear camera. This remains true with the iPhone 6 Plus. The rear camera of the new iPhone has 1.5µm pixels, five-element lens, and an f/2.2 aperture.  It is protected by a sapphire crystal lens cover. Similar to the Galaxy S5's camera, the iPhone 6 Plus' camera has some sort of phase-detection autofocus called Focus Pixels but will also be the first iPhone to have optical image stabilization (OIS). The TrueTone flash can still be found at the back of the smartphone. The iPhone 6 Plus can shoot videos at 1080p FullHD resolution at 60fps and slow mos in 720p HD resolution at 240fps. As for the front camera, the FaceTime HD camera has been improved, now with an f/2.2 aperture, allowing the camera to collect 81% more light for clearer selfies.


Perhaps one of the biggest changes in the iPhone 6 Plus is the introduction of iOS 8. It improves the notification bar, multitasking tabs, and the QuickType keyboard. The Touch ID fingerprint sensor can now be utilized by third-party developers. Siri, which is Apple's virtual assistant, will now be able to recognize songs, make iTunes purchases, and control smart household gadgets through the new HomeKit API. In addition, Siri can now understand about two dozen languages. Widgets are also a welcome addition on iOS 8 but they can only be seen within the Today tab.


Finally, Apple has joined the bandwagon of devices sporting an NFC chip. With the iPhone 6 Plus' NFC capabilities, the phone can now be used to pay at a number of retail locations, which include Starbucks, Subway, McDonalds, Macy's, Disney, Bloomingdales, among others. Apple has also partnered with VISA, MasterCard, and American Express to be able to process such transactions.


The 16GB variant of the iPhone 6 Plus will cost $299 on a 2-year contract, while the 64GB and 128GB versions will go for $399 and $499, respectively. There will be no 32GB models this time around. Pre-orders for the new iPhone phablet start September 12 and units will start shipping out September 19. The iPhone 6 Plus will come with a Lightning adapter and Apple EarPods. The first countries to get them are USA, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan. Before the year ends, some 115 countries worldwide will also have access to the iPhone 6 Plus just in time for the holiday season. Check out the iPhone 6 Plus' promo videos below:


Source

Til then...

xoxo Nash