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iPhone 6S: 5 Features To Be Excited About

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The iPhone 6S might come in two sizes too. Image credit: Jay McGregor

The countdown to Apple ’s likely September launch of the iPhone 6S has begun, and the rumours are flying in thick and fast. Everything leaked so far suggests that the 6S will be an incremental upgrade with one or two (or five) show-stoppers thrown-in to excite the public. But which rumoured features sound the most tantalizing?

Camera upgrade

The camera war continues. Samsung and Apple jostle for pole-position continuously (with a third contender recently on the scene - LG), routinely exchanging 1st place with every new release. The Galaxy S6’s camera pipped the iPhone 6 to top spot, but the latest iPhone 6S rumour points towards a pixel upgrade to 12MP. Not much else is known about aperture or sensor used, but the increased pixel count means that it’s possible to shoot 4k video (with the latest rumour suggesting an the ability to shoot 240 fps slow-motion footage). Apple’s expertise in the camera department often sets standards, so expect a clever take on 4K videography. I’d also expect some new camera features and editing options with iOS 9 and the improved hardware.

MORE: This Is What The iPhone 6S Looks Like

Force Touch

Perhaps the biggest feature in the upcoming flagship is the introduction of Apple’s Force Touch technology. It works by triggering different actions depending on how hard you press down on the phone’s display. This not only means a whole new way to interact with your handset, it also means that you have ways of controlling your device. You might want to register hard-press as a way to bring up the settings menu in an app, or even add new controls for mobile games.

iOS 9

We already know what to expect from iOS 9, but there’s a solid chance that Apple saved some iPhone 6S specific (Force Touch and 4K recording?) features for the official announcement.

So what joy will iOS 9 and an iPhone 6S bring you? Most notable, perhaps, are features like ‘proactive assistant’, which is Apple’s attempt at a  Google Now-style service. Proactive assistant works across pre-existing services like Siri and Spotlight and acts as your, well, proactive assistant. It will read your daily patterns and tailor your iOS 9 experience. For example, suggesting apps based on your phone-use and music to listen to based on your activity. This sort of intelligent assistant technology is fast becoming the norm, with HTC launching a similar service with the HTC One M9, and Qualcomm ’s upcoming Zeroth project.

Two other big improvements - and perhaps the most relevant to every future user - is smaller OS updates (Apple says iOS 9 will require 1.3GB of storage space) and general optimisation. The latter doesn’t sound particularly enthusing, granted. But Apple’s boasting an extra hour of screen time with iOS 9 and 3 additional hours of battery life in power-saving mode. This, I’m assuming, is largely thanks to Apple packing its HQ with a fleet of new employees solely focussed on improving battery life.  

A9 chip and extra RAM

The first iPhone to use 2GB of RAM and the rumoured A9 processor should both speed-up and optimise processes, making it more efficient and less power hungry.  The long-awaited jump up to 2Gb of RAM should, too, improve multi-tasking. The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, as it stands are extremely quick devices, so building on that should yield impressive results. Some rumours are even suggesting that the new chip will be smaller in size and therefore leave more space for a bigger battery.

Stronger

The ever leaking Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities suggested last month that the next iPhone will use a stronger alimuin to prevent….. well, you know. The alloy in question Apple’s custom  7000 Series aluminium, which is also used in the Apple Watch. Apple claims that it’s 60% stronger than most aluminum and is one-third the density of stainless steel, so hopefully the iPhone 6S won’t crumple around your finger tip as you try to make use of Force Touch.

Although, we’ve seen what happens when companies boast about the un-bendability of their products....

 

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