I didn’t expect much at the iPhone 15 event this year. There is only so much more that Apple can pack into a phone. Yet, during the 2-hour video, I found myself pleasantly surprised.

Here are my reactions to the latest September iPhone Apple Event.

Happy Birthday

I should have guessed Apple would start the show with a video about saving lives. It has been their iPhone event video template for a while.

This one had me guessing for a while. I kept trying to figure out what birthday Apple was celebrating. The reveal made me emotional.

Apple has done something with tech that has improved the world — and made education a little more complicated in public schools. Life-saving is something they should brag about and something that will sell devices.

Overall, this video felt impactful, but I’m not sure the right audience got hit here. Journalists already know how Apple devices can help with health issues. I’m sure most people who watch the keynote already know about the health features. Apple needs to make this a commercial, but I’m not sure it would be very receptive.

Carbon Neutral, Entertainment Neutral

Okay, the first thing I want to discuss didn’t come first in the video. Look, I appreciate the attempt to make a skit about the virtues of Apple trying to clean up its ways and become more Green.

But this little mother nature skit felt a little…ick.

Maybe it could have been a little better if the skit had been shorter and then not proceeded with someone telling me everything the performance told me. I enjoyed the skit more than the info dump, and it was better than just looking at a chart or something similar.

Also, maybe instead of Mother Nature, they could have gotten Greta Thunberg.

Its placement felt a little weird. Apple had just told us about the Apple Watch, and while it’s cool that it will offer carbon-neutral options, I felt like it broke up the information.

The video was a good attempt, but I think, overall, it failed.

Apple Watch 9 and Apple Watch Ultra

Two major announcements (besides the Carbon-Neutral news) came from the Apple Watch 9 reveal. For the first time since the Apple Watch Series 6, Apple is improving the SiP, or System in a Packet, and the Double Tap gesture.

The new SiP will bring a faster processor, better graphics processing, a new Ultra-wideband chip for precision locating, and more. The new Apple Watch will probably feel more smooth when navigating the interface. The new chip will allow Siri to run on the device more instead of having to call out to the internet. I think this will give the assistant a boost on the device.

I can’t tell you how often I’ve tried to start a workout on my watch with Siri, only to wait or try again. Allowing Siri to run on device will fix some of these issues.

The other cool new addition allows you to interact with the Apple Watch by bringing the thumb and finger of your watch hand together to make things happen on your watch. Apple calls this the Double tap.

So now, if your hands are full and you get a call, you can pinch your finger and thumb together twice to answer. This gesture will be context-aware, so you can also use this gesture to pause your music or time.

Interestingly, they are bringing this to the system as a feature because the Apple Watch has had this as an accessibility feature for a while.

I turned it on to try it out, and I like it. The Series 9 Apple Watch will have it as part of the system.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 gets all the features of the Series 9 and not much else. No new colors or anything.

Of course, a few more things are introduced to the Watch, like using the Ultra-Wideband to find your friends in a crowd or a brighter screen.

If you are in the market for an Apple Watch, I would probably try to go for one of these models, as it is actually updated on the inside versus the older models. But you won’t be sorry if you can get a series 7 or 8 for cheap.

However, next year is the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch. I’m curious if that will bring an iPhone X-style redesign or something similar. If you have a working Apple Watch, but you’re looking to upgrade soon, you’ll need to weigh the risk of updating this year versus what might come next year.

iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus

Last year, the iPhone 14 greatly underwhelmed. It was a transitional year as Apple moved its current strategy. Before, the standard iPhone line and the Pro would have nearly the same processor. They differentiated the phones with materials and cameras for the most part. The iPhone 14 got caught up in the transition and kept the same processor as the iPhone 13 for the most part.

This would cause me to think that the iPhone 15 wouldn’t be too exciting, but Apple proved me wrong. While I watched the announcement of the iPhone 15, I thought, this is a great phone. If I were upgrading this year, and one of the colors jumped out at me, it would make me think about not getting the Pro models.

iPhone 15 Processor and Camera Bumps

The iPhone 15 has the same processor as the iPhone 14 Pro and a new camera system. The base model iPhone now supports a 48-megapixel camera that can “zoom” to 2x.

It also gets the ability to change a normal photo of a person or pet into a portrait mode photo after the image has been taken. You also will be able to change the focus of portrait mode photos.

Dynamic Island Comes to the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus

The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus also get a screen with the Dynamic Island. If you don’t remember, the iPhone 14 Pro introduced a new pill-shaped design at the top of the screen that replaced the notch. This feature morphs around and provides more information to the user. For example, when a timer runs on your phone, you’ll see how much time is left at the top.

When Apple revealed the Dynamic Island last year, I thought it was cool. In practice, it hasn’t changed how I use my phone much. Maybe with it coming to more iPhones, more developers will find a way to use it, and I’ll see the effects. Still, it’s nice that it is coming to more phones and not just getting dropped.

The iPhone Gets USB-C

USB-C replaces the lightning connector in the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus. The switch in connector is probably the biggest news for the phones, and I’m interested to see what the public thinks.

With the connector switch, the iPhone now has the same charging connector as the latest iPads and Macs. AirPod Pros 2 also gets an updated USB-C charging port, but more on that later. As I wanted last year, you can use one cable to charge all your Apple devices if you have updated recently.

Sadly, Apple hasn’t done much besides changing the connector type for the basic iPhone 15 and 15 Plus. They didn’t add any fast charging or faster data transfer. I don’t know how many people still use a cable to charge or transfer data, but it is a little bit of a techie letdown that the change didn’t bring more with it.

iPhone 15 Colors

I haven’t seen the iPhone 15 in person, but from everything I’ve read, the new coloring technique looks fantastic. Sadly, all the colors are a pastel and a little washed out. If you’re looking for a bright and colorful iPhone this year, you’re out of luck.

But that’s okay since most people slap a case on it.

At least none of the colors this year make me wish that the bumper-style cases were still around.

iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max

As I mentioned, I thought the iPhone 15 offered an excellent standard iPhone. While my iPhone 14 Pro Max already has most of the offerings of the new iPhone, I thought the standard iPhone could tempt me, but I also knew that the iPhone 15 Pro hadn’t shown its cards yet.

The iPhone 15 Pro brings some new material designs, camera features, and ports. This seems like a solid upgrade to the Pro model.

New Case, Who Dis?

The iPhone 15 Pro has changed its clothes. Since the iPhone X introduction, the Pro-level iPhone has used stainless steel in the frame. While stainless steel looks great, it is heavy and picks up fingerprints quickly.

This year, Apple replaced the stainless steel with titanium. Titanium weighs much less and doesn’t shine as much as steel. So, the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro are much lighter than their predecessors. Most of the reactions to handling the iPhone 15 Pro in the hands-on area remarked about how light they were.

Camera Close Ups

The camera on the iPhone gets some significant additions this year, too. Luckily, many of these additions also come to the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

While Apple bragged about the technique and technology it is bringing to the iPhone 15 Pro, here’s what it boils down to:

• The iPhone 15 Pro Max gets a 5x zoom.
• Both Pro models get three additional focal lengths when shooting at 1x. You can choose between 24mm, 28mm, and 35mm. These are just crops of the 48-megapixel sensor image.
• The iPhone 15 Pro also gets the ability to make any photo of a person or animal a portrait mode shot in editing.
• Later this year, your iPhone will also capture spatial videos for use on the Apple Vision Pro

USB-C How Fast

The iPhone 15 Pro line also gets the change to USB-C, but unlike the standard iPhone 15, there is a speed increase in data flow. The Pro models get USB 3 speeds. This will bring a twenty-time increase in data transfer.

With this increase in data transfer, Apple brings with it the ability for the iPhone to shoot video directly to a plugged-in SSD.

Action Button

The mute switch is gone, replaced with an action button. Like the Apple Watch Ultra, the iPhone 15 Pro gets a programmable button. You can keep the button as the mute switch or replace it with a flashlight, camera, voice notes, or a shortcut.

It’s interesting to see on the phone, and I wonder what I would use it as. I’d have to see in practice what I would use the most. It is an interesting addition, and I’m grateful for the ability to customize it, but how many ways do we need to open the camera? If they added this, why not allow us to change the buttons on the lock screen that turn on the flashlight or open the camera?

New Chip, So Pro

The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max also get a new chip inside them, the A17 Pro. This is the first 3-nanometer chip from Apple. When you reduce the size of the chip, it boosts speed and efficiency.

I will be interested to see how the battery life is on these phones. Apple’s website claims these phones get 6 and 9 more hours of video playback than the iPhone 12 Pro, but why compare to such old phones?

They also improved the graphics chips in these phones, so now they can run modern games like Resident Evil Village and the new Assassin’s Creed games. I don’t know who is playing these types of games on their phones, but they are here now. Also, if you buy those games on your phone, they also come to your Apple Silicon Macs and iPads.

The iPhone 15 Pro is a solid update to the Pro line. I’m not really sure what else Apple can bring to the Pro line of phones other than spec bumps every year, but the lighter weight and Action button are interesting.

AirPods Pro 2.5?

Apple also updated the AirPods Pro to have a USB-C port and MagSafe. Interestingly, they also changed something to them. They aren’t calling these the AirPods Pro 3, but these USB-C models will be getting Lossless Audio Support when connected to the Apple Vision Pro, while the AirPods Pro 2 with Lightning will not.

As an AirPods Pro 2 owner, I’m not sure I like my less than 1-year-old device getting updated and not getting a feature like this. However, I’m not likely getting a Vision Pro or an iPhone 15, so I think I’ll be okay for a while.

With the connector change on the iPhone, Apple also allows you to use your iPhone as a USB-C battery for AirPods and Apple Watches. You can plug your USB-C cable into the iPhone and charge your two iPhone accessories.

Am I Upgrading?

So, what am I getting this year?

Nothing.

I’m in the middle of a career transition, so I don’t have the money to spend.

But even if I did, I’m unsure what to do. I think the 15 Pro Max looks great. I wouldn’t mind the lighter weight, but I don’t mind my current phone. Most of the photo features are coming to the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, so while the 5x zoom would be nice, I don’t think I’d use it much.

While I wanted the iPhone to move to USB-C, I’m not sure I want to buy a new set of AirPods. Of course, I could use my watch or MagSafe charger and be okay with it.

I just replaced my Apple Watch Series 6 with an 8 when my two-year-old threw it to the ground on vacation in March. So I’m good there for a while. I do want to eventually get an Ultra.

I also turned on the assistive touch accessibility feature on my Watch to get the double tap feature. I’m using it pretty often, so I like it. When I upgrade my watch one day, I’ll be used to it.

What’s Next?

Hopefully, that brings you an idea of what got announced. Having kids kept me from getting this done in a timely manner, so I hope if you’re still waiting to order, this helps a little.

If you got something out of this, please help me by sharing on social media, following me on all the socials (I’m most active on Threads right now), and if you feel generous, donate to help keep the site going and my children fed.

Apple might announce some new stuff in October, and preorders for the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, Apple Watch Series 9, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 are now opening. Happy shopping!