Apple has announced its new iPhone 13, which can film “portrait mode” videos with a depth of field effect.
The following written content by Cristina Criddle & David Molloy
The new cinematic mode “anticipates when someone is about to enter the frame” and shifts focus to them, Apple said – something known as “pull focus”.
It is the only smartphone that lets users edit this effect into videos after shooting, CEO Tim Cook said.
However, most other features on the new model were incremental updates over previous versions.
The event was also overshadowed by news of a new security flaw in Apple devices which could expose users’ messages.
Apple released a security patch on Monday for the previously-unknown flaw, which could let attackers access its iMessage service without the user clicking on a malicious link or file.
The new iPhone includes a faster A15 chip, a brighter display, and a battery life of up to 2.5 hours longer, and comes in new colours including pink, blue, “midnight starlight” and red.
The new iPhone will also have up to 500GB of storage with its lowest available storage rising to 128GB from previous models’ 64GB.
Apple was also keen to stress its green credentials. Kaiann Drance, VP iPhone product marketing, said the new model was “designed with environment in mind, using many recycled materials” – its antenna lines are made using upcycled plastic water bottles, an industry first, she said.
The new phone comes as buyers are keeping their phones for longer before upgrading. Investment firm Wedbush Securities estimates that around 250 million iPhone users have not upgraded their phones in 3.5 years.
“The iPhone remains a core lucrative product for Apple as it represents a gateway to other devices and more importantly services,” said Paolo Pescatore, an analyst at PP Foresight.
“While many will see some upgrades as incremental, there are millions of users who have yet to upgrade to 5G. Therefore, this so called ‘supercycle’ moment is still relevant.” Read more from BBC.
