iPhone 7

Papelbon's Poutine

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If you need to charge and drive, I am thinking Apple is assuming a lot of drivers use their car's speakerphone, so you can charge and talk on the phone at the same time while driving if you have that.

If you don't, you're SOL unless you get BlueTooth headphones.
They make Bluetooth speakerphone units as well, they clip to your visor. My dad always goes no frills on his options on his car and when our state went hands free a cpp years ago, he got a Motorola unit for his 2 year old pickup truck. Can't speak to quality, but its an option.
 

bohous

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The AirPods has me just a tad more curious. The current iPhone/Pod buds suck at staying in your ear if your moving around much hence you switch to another makers workout headphones that stay in your ear. As seen in the Keynote, other headphone company have already synced up with this such as Beats.
Highly recommend Earhoox if you like Apple's Earpods but have a problem with them not staying in. I run with them all the time and they never fall out. If the Airplays are same design as Earpods these would be a must IMO.

Regarding the bolded, Beats are not another headphone company syncing up with Apple. Apple owns Beats.
 

PaulinMyrBch

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One thing I would note -- lightning ports behave like crap when there is a lot of lint/fuzz/dirt jammed in them. When this is a problem -- if you wiggle the charger, you can usually make a connection, but have to apply some sort of force to keep it there.

I have been able to fix similar issues on multiple phones by straightening out a small paper clip and using it as a pick to gently pry out crud that has gotten wedged in the Lightning port. Worth a shot.
I tried that before I took it in. Geek Squad put it under a microscope and told me some tines are bent and it appeared to have some slight rust. Never had water issues, but I mount it on my bike and sometimes sweat drips down, so that is likely it.

I'm kicking around sending it in to get the port repaired, which is $75 for this phone. But I have figured out a way to charge it wrapping the cord under a drawer to keep pressure at an odd angle. So not as urgent as I was thinking a few days ago when I couldn't get it to charge.

What I do know is I doubt I'll ever get a protection plan again. Been paying $9 for 16 months. I can get a replacement for my deductible for $199. So that's $343. Apple would send me a replacement device for $350 according to the guy at CityMac.
 

canderson

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I know you posted this before the event, but what would you have liked to make it that much better? In this form factor you can only pack in so much stuff at this point. I think the 7 is a decent upgrade. It's a lot faster, much better camera, more battery life, stereo speakers, water-resistant and some other smaller stuff. I'm not sure what else people are looking for at this point.
Since the include the adapter maybe not. The average consumer I don't think cares about those things, they need a physical difference to be excited. No bezels which I think we see with the 7S will be a bigger deal IMO.

I have a 6S, am an all-Apple household, and wouldn't but the 7 over the 6S next week.
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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Since the include the adapter maybe not. The average consumer I don't think cares about those things, they need a physical difference to be excited. No bezels which I think we see with the 7S will be a bigger deal IMO.

I have a 6S, am an all-Apple household, and wouldn't but the 7 over the 6S next week.
I'm on the fence. I'm on a 6 now, girlfriend is on a galaxy 5 that she regrets getting and wants back onto iPhone. I told her we were going to just buy 6s when the 7 came out - $99 purchase price as opposed to monthly lease, not that much improvement, etc - because I didn't expect enough improvement over the 6s.

I usually upgrade to newest model every two years and skip the mid model S models. Last time I waited until January for the newest one, so now we have four months left, which complicates it because she smashed her screen to the point of being close to unusable (and has been having issues with the charge port for months) but we also wanted to switch carriers to save some money monthly.

To get the best deals to switch they want you to lease. If we didn't want to switch, I'd have her upgrade now ($135 left on phone vs $122 deductible on insurance) and ride mine out until I owned it to get some cash on the back end. But of course att isn't offering the 6s for $99 like sprint and Verizon so I'd still be leasing and at that point I'd rather just get the 7, pay for apple care to drop the insurance premium and be done with it all. But I think we could save about $50 a month swapping to sprint. I need to see the new numbers from the carriers and bite the bullet but my initial reaction is we will both be in a 7 next week or shortly thereafter. One thing I know I don't want is to deal with the release buzz and refresh my laptop for an hour to get it right off.
 

MuzzyField

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I have a 5, which I got not long after it was released in 2012. I am very much looking forward to the 7. I'd prefer to not have the camera that sticks out and I'm a little apprehensive about losing the headphone jack but overall I think this looks great.

Anyone have any insight as to when on the 9th you can pre-order? Is it likely to be Midnight eastern time? Midnight pacific?
Midnight pacific has been the norm.
 

NortheasternPJ

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I think i'm going to bite the bullet and get the Apple Watch Series 2 (btw is Apple Watch Nike+ Series 2 the worst name Apple's ever come up with?

With it now being water resistant, with a GPS in it I think it makes sense. As someone who gets hundreds of emails, texts and calls on a daily basis, being able to leave my iPhone in my pocket half the time is very appealing.
 

jercra

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I think i'm going to bite the bullet and get the Apple Watch Series 2 (btw is Apple Watch Nike+ Series 2 the worst name Apple's ever come up with?

With it now being water resistant, with a GPS in it I think it makes sense. As someone who gets hundreds of emails, texts and calls on a daily basis, being able to leave my iPhone in my pocket half the time is very appealing.
Just an FYI, there are many other devices that have a GPS in them that can display your texts and emails. You may want to do some research before deciding on one of the most expensive ones.
 

soxhop411

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I have to think they'll solve for this and announce something soon as there are too many instances where power and access to audiojack or lightning is required where BlueTooth isn't a great option. Beyond the folks driving around taking calls and business travelers that want to charge their phone while listening to music on a plane there are major restaurants and retailers that use the devices as a kiosk that require constant power and a card reader.

More BlueTooth peripherals address some of these concerns, but there are support complexities that high volume users won't put up with.
Thats my (and my wife's) biggest complaint too. I have to make a choice between charging or using my awesome headphones that I'm not in any mood to upgrade since they are Bose and werent cheap
My major complaint: they didn't include something to chain lightning devices together.

I use my car charger and my headset (for conference calls) in my car all the time, probably 2-3 hours a day. I hope they release something that I can charge and use the headset. I really don't have a desire for another device to charge in wireless headphones.

Coming out in October for $40



“@verge: This $40 adapter can charge the iPhone 7 with your headphones plugged in https://t.co/NEbs9P1Okh https://t.co/N1QqNz99GM

Picture this: a pair of headphones plugged into 3.5mm dongle, which is then plugged into a Lightning adapter, which is then plugged into your phone. That is the reality we live in now that Apple removed the headphone jack on the new iPhone 7. Because the new phone only has one Lightning port for all your peripheral needs, the company has tapped accessory maker Belkin to provide the adapter necessary to both charge the iPhone 7 and listen to music at the same time (so long as you're not using the new wireless AirPods). The product, called Lightning Audio + Charge RockStar, costs $40 and will be released on October 10th.

Belkin says it worked closely with Apple to develop the product, which essentially means Apple gave Belkin the license to develop it and the iPhone maker will stock it in Apple stores. The adapter only has two Lighting ports — one for charging and one for the new Lightning EarPods. So you’ll need to use the 3.5mm dongle Apple bundles for free with the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus to listen to standard headphones and charge. (Apple, likely anticipating the push back, is selling replacement dongles for $9.) Belkin says the adapter supports 48 kHz, 24-bit audio output, as well as remote control and mic support for Apple-made headphones.
 

canderson

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Also, you'll start seeing a big market IMO for battery cases that come with 3.5mm inputs. Charge phone + use earbuds seems to me like a nobrainer for a company to produce.
 

Dan Murfman

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I'm up at 3 so I went to Verizon and just to check it out. I was just checking it out and was still on the fence about upgrading my 6. They offering $650 on my 6 so I put my order in for the 256 7. I don't understand how they can offer so much for the 6.
 

B H Kim

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I'm up at 3 so I went to Verizon and just to check it out. I was just checking it out and was still on the fence about upgrading my 6. They offering $650 on my 6 so I put my order in for the 256 7. I don't understand how they can offer so much for the 6.
That's crazy. I sold my 6s plus on Gazelle and only got $350 (Verizon was offering $298 for a trade in).
 

Dan Murfman

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Well the one thing is I don't get the $650 up front but I get a $27 credit for the trade in each month for the next 24 months and I pay $35 each month for the phone for the next 24 months.
 

TFP

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Well the one thing is I don't get the $650 up front but I get a $27 credit for the trade in each month for the next 24 months and I pay $35 each month for the phone for the next 24 months.
Damn, I should have gone into AT+T to see if they'll do the same.

I pre-ordered the 7+ (128GB) via the AT+T site this morning and got my first experience with the AT+T Next plan. I'm hoping I don't end up losing my grandfathered unlimited data, but it wasn't clear how that would work when pre-ordering. I'm assuming nothing changes, but I've definitely been burned by making these assumptions. There was definitely no place to make changes to my service plan though, so we'll see.

This was the closest I've come to not upgrading when the new whole number phone came out (4, 5, 6, etc). This one doesn't blow me away but my phone is definitely struggling now and shiny toy syndrome and all that. Going with the 12 month Next option though so if the next one is amazing I'll get to trade this one in again.
 

BlackJack

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I'm hoping I don't end up losing my grandfathered unlimited data, but it wasn't clear how that would work when pre-ordering.
I am very interested to hear if you keep the unlimited data. I am also grandfathered in on AT&T for that. I did not pre-order the 7 this morning because we're in the middle of a fairly major renovation on the house and we need to see how the finances shake out (read: how far over budget it gets) before we upgrade the phones. The Next plan is interesting for the quick upgrade purposes so I might try to sell that to my wife as an option. If the unlimited data goes bye bye it would be a total non-starter.
 

TFP

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I probably should have done more research instead of just ordering right away, huh?
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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Damn, I should have gone into AT+T to see if they'll do the same.

This was the closest I've come to not upgrading when the new whole number phone came out (4, 5, 6, etc). This one doesn't blow me away but my phone is definitely struggling now and shiny toy syndrome and all that.
Ditto this. My 6 is starting to get glitchy and her galaxy is struggling. I bit the bullet and preordered a 32GB matte black for me and 32GB rose gold for her (had to buy hers out due to cracked screen). I do like that they stretched the 24 months out to 30 months (on payments) but allowed you to keep 24 month trade in.

Do I remember correctly that the last couple releases ended up shipping preorders a day or two early?
 

TFP

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Ditto this. My 6 is starting to get glitchy and her galaxy is struggling. I bit the bullet and preordered a 32GB matte black for me and 32GB rose gold for her (had to buy hers out due to cracked screen). I do like that they stretched the 24 months out to 30 months (on payments) but allowed you to keep 24 month trade in.

Do I remember correctly that the last couple releases ended up shipping preorders a day or two early?
The battery on my 6 is shot, but overall it's been my favorite iPhone by far. I'm going to hang on to it and if I don't love the 7 I won't be shy about trading it back in.

I do think they ship a bit early, the shipping dates were definitely on the conservative side in the past.
 

Dan Murfman

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Ditto this. My 6 is starting to get glitchy and her galaxy is struggling. I bit the bullet and preordered a 32GB matte black for me and 32GB rose gold for her (had to buy hers out due to cracked screen). I do like that they stretched the 24 months out to 30 months (on payments) but allowed you to keep 24 month trade in.

Do I remember correctly that the last couple releases ended up shipping preorders a day or two early?
I got my email with my tracking info an hour ago. It's coming from Fort Worth.
 

The_Powa_of_Seiji_Ozawa

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The battery on my 6 is shot, but overall it's been my favorite iPhone by far. I'm going to hang on to it and if I don't love the 7 I won't be shy about trading it back in.

I do think they ship a bit early, the shipping dates were definitely on the conservative side in the past.
I've been noticing that the battery on my 6s+ has been noticeably weaker. It's happened slowly. Overnight on standby with nothing running it will now go from 100% to sometimes about 92%, which isn't a big deal but I never had that experience with this phone or with any previous ones. Is this typical these days? I'm beginning to think it's this new battery design they started incorporating in the 6, another prong in their planned-obsolescence scheme?
 

Oil Can Dan

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I probably should have done more research instead of just ordering right away, huh?
I popped in to the Boylston St Apple store today and asked the question. The iDude said no need to change the unlimited data plan w/ATT, but to be careful if ordering via T to not select a new plan.
 

TFP

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I popped in to the Boylston St Apple store today and asked the question. The iDude said no need to change the unlimited data plan w/ATT, but to be careful if ordering via T to not select a new plan.
When I ordered, there was nothing about plans anywhere (nor was there anything in my confirmation). I'll ask them straight up at some point before it gets here.
 

NortheasternPJ

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When I ordered, there was nothing about plans anywhere (nor was there anything in my confirmation). I'll ask them straight up at some point before it gets here.
My brother has the same deal and inquired about this like 2 months ago. They told him unless he goes and pays the full freight of the phone he was going to lose his unlimited. He hasn't done it yet, so I'm not sure if that's true or some dumb AT&T people just saying what they think is right.
 

canderson

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Ordered the wife's 6S, delivery set for next Wednesdsy or Thursday.

What's the trick to look up order status and tracking on ups, anyone remember?
 

allstonite

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My order still says "processing" for my phone and it won't get here until 26th-28th. Anybody else have this or have much later dates before it actually went through? I ordered around 6:45am yesterday. I hope nothing is wrong but the only option for order issues is to call and I'd rather not spend an afternoon talking to a genius.

On the plus side the case I ordered for it should arrive Tuesday
 

Papelbon's Poutine

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When my wife ordered a refurb Mac, she had the delivery routes to the UPS store down the road for that reason.
It shouldn't be a big deal, my gf just took a new job which puts us on opposite schedules, so short of them coming in a one hour window between 4:30-5:30 on Monday, Tuesday or Friday, someone can be home, I was just want to plan accordingly.
 

bohous

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Yes it does make sense. Pretty much every pair of bluetooth earphones out there has this design. Now the problem is that you will have to remove the strap every time you need to charge them
 

johnmd20

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Functionally, those headphones appear to be so much more difficult to deal with (two pieces, a charging case, the way they look dangling out of the ear) than something like the Beats 2, which are priced the same.
 

Dan Murfman

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Not realizing the phones are delivered by FedEx I was excited to get notified that my package from Verizon had arrived and was being held at the post office. I picked it up and it was the packaging for me to return my iPhone 6. Checking the Verizon web site got the tracking number for the phone and its already been picked up but it says Per shipper instructions, package will not be delivered until the scheduled delivery date. Which is on Friday.
 

schillzilla

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Be careful out there, many reports of iOS 10 update bricking people's iPhones, iPads etc. might want to hold off on upgrading your existing phones OS for a few days to make sure everything is good to go