IT’S HERE. After almost 12 months of speculation, Apple has unveiled the iPhone 6S, along with the larger-screened iPhone 6S Plus.
We've rounded up everything you need to know about picking up one of
Apple’s new iPhones, including release date details, price information
and where you can buy it. Be sure to keep this page bookmarked as we’ll
update it as soon as we hear more.
Release dateApple started taking pre-orders for the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus at 8am on 12 September, with the smartphones available to buy in-store from 25 September.
The launch was met with massive queues at Apple's flagship Regent's Street store in London and Apple has since announced it sold a record 13 million iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus handsets in their first weekend on sale.
Although it's now available in-store, online shipping times have been slipping since pre-orders began, with Apple boasting that it has already seen unprecedented demand for the two new models.
If you order an iPhone 6S model online now, you won't be getting it
any time soon. All models, including all storage versions and all
colours options, are now shipping in "one to two weeks" from Apple's
online shop. This suggests Apple has ramped up production however, with
the 128GB version previously having shown as shipping in 'two to three
weeks.'
It's worse for those after the 5.5in iPhone 6S Plus, which has sold
out across the board. All models are now shipping in 'three to four
weeks'.
PriceThe iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus have be been priced identically to their respective predecessors.
The iPhone 6S, available with 16GB, 64GB or 64GB of storage, is
available to order at £539, £619 and £699 respectively. Just like the iPhone 6 Plus before it, the iPhone 6S Plus is more expensive at £619, £699 and £789.
EEUK operator EE, which is promising to dispatch iPhone 6S orders within 14 days,
is recommending that buyers of the 16GB model opt for the £49.99
tariff, which comes with a £49.99 upfront cost and 4GB monthly data.
However, for an extra £5 a month and a lesser £29.99 charge, you can bag
yourself 10GB monthly data.
The 64GB model can be picked up with 10GB data for £69.99 on a £54.99
tariff, while the 128GB model will cost £149.99 on the same monthly
tariff.
The iPhone 6S Plus, which will despatch from EE within 28 days,
is more expensive. The 16GB and 64GB models can be picked up with 10GB
data for £69.99 and £149.99 on a £54.99 tariff respectively, while the
128GB model can be picked up for 10GB data for £69.99 on a £54.99
contract and the 64GB model costs £149.99 on a £59.99 tariff.
O2The 16GB iPhone 6S is available from £9.99 on a £54 per month O2 tariff,
complete with 20GB monthly data. It can be picked up for £19.99 on a
cheaper 5GB £49 tariff, or for £29.99 on a 3GB £46 tariff.
The 64GB model can be had for £9.99 on a £59 per month tariff with
20GB data, while the 128GB model will set you back an extra £20 upfront.
The iPhone 6S Plus is more expensive, and full pricing details are available on the O2 website.
ThreeUK network Three has been quick to start taking orders for the iPhone 6S.
The handset is available for £99 upfront on a choice of £38, £41, £43,
£45, £48 and £51 tariffs, which come with 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, 8GB, 12GB and
unlimited data.
These tariffs increase by £5 per month for the 64GB and 128GB models.
The iPhone 6S Plus is available to order at Three. Prices for the 16GB model start at £99 on a £43 tariff, while the 64GB and 128GB start on £48 and £53 tariffs.
Virgin MediaOver at the Virgin Media website, the iPhone 6S can be ordered
for free on a £34 per month contract that comes with 250 texts,
unlimited minutes and 250MB data. This goes up to £39 for 10GB monthly
data, and to £44 for 4GB. The 64GB model is more expensive with prices
starting from £39 per month.
Virgin Media isn't selling the highest-capacity 128GB model, nor has it yet to start taking orders for the iPhone 6S Plus.
VodafoneCrimson-coloured operator Vodafone has started taking iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S orders on its website.
The 4.7in iPhone 6S with 16GB storage can be picked up for free on a £49 tariff,
complete with 6GB monthly data. This increases to a £54 tariff with £19
upfront for the 64GB model, and £99 upfront for the 128GB version.
For those after the iPhone 6S Plus, Vodafone is recommending its 2GB Red bundle, with prices starting at £49 per month with a £69 upfront cost.
OthersCarphone Warehouse has started taking iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S orders, where prices start at £44 per month with no upfront fee.
SpecsThe iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus offer an
incremental upgrade over last year’s iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. A
bigger update is expected to arrive next year, likely in the form of the
iPhone 7.
The new iPhone sports a near-identical design to last year's model
with the same unibody aluminium chassis, curved edges and visible
antenna lines. There are more colour options available this time round,
however, and the iPhone 6S will come in gold, space grey, silver and
rose gold, and Apple boasts that the quality of the both the aluminium
and glass has also been improved.
The iPhone 6S might not offer much new in terms of design, but it’s the first iPhone with a 3D Touch, or Force Touch, display.
Described as "the next generation of multitouch", this technology
means the smartphones' displays, which measure 4.7in and 5.5in
respectively, can register degrees of pressure as well as movement. For
example, you can bring up more information from within an app by
pressing it lightly, or 'peeking' it, or you can move from one app to
another with a longer press, or 'pop'.
A new fingerprint sensor is included, which Apple claims is two times
faster than its previous offering. It uses an A9 chip that promises a
70 percent jump in performance compared to the A8 chip before it, and a
90 percent improvement for GPU tasks.
The iPhone 6S offer has seen a boost in the camera department,
ditching the 8MP camera on last year's model for a spanking-new 12MP
sensor. Apple claims the camera offers 50 percent more pixels than the
8MP camera on last year's iPhone 6S, and has been keen to big up its
faster autofocus and ability to capture 4K video.
Apple has also introduced a new feature called 'Live Photos', which
allows you to long-press on a photo to turn it into a moving image.
There's an improved 5MP front-facing camera on the front of the
camera, complete with a new 'flash' that sees the iPhone's Retina
display lighting up to illuminate selfies.
Of course, the new iPhones run Apple's iOS 9
software. The operating system brings a number of performance
enhancements, including a new 'Low Power' battery saving mode and
ad-blocking support in Safari, along with a number of new features,
including revamped Apple Maps and Apple's News application and a new
version of Siri that is now always-on and offers context-based
suggestion.
Beyond that, the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus offer support for 2x
faster WiFi speeds, support for more LTE bands and a bunch of new
accessories, including docking stations and cases.
Live updates from Apple's iPhone launch event
7.50pm: Phew. So what can you expect besides
3DTouch? Apple has been busy bigging up the improved 12MP camera on the
iPhone 6S, complete with faster autofocus and the ability to capture 4K
video. There's also a new A9 chip under the hood, promising a 70 percent
boost in performance.
7.40pm: As expected, Force Touch - or 3DTouch as
it's now known, is one of the standout features of the iPhone 6S and
iPhone 6S Plus, meaning the displays can now register degrees of
pressure as well as movement.
7.30pm: It's iPhone time, guys. Apple has given us a
glimpse of the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, so keep your eyes
peeled for all of the latest specs and details.
7.20pm: Yep, they are still banging on about the
Apple TV. It's the first iteration to offer Siri voice control, App
Store access and Nintendo Wii-style motion control.
7:00pm: There's a new Apple TV! Keep an eye on the site for all of the latest details.
6.55pm: The iPad Pro will be available in November,
and will be available to buy in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB configurations
priced at $799, $949 and $1,079 respectively. The Apple Pencil will be
sold separately for $99 and the Smart Keyboard for $169.
6:45pm: The iPad Pro is aiming squarely at
Microsoft's Surface Pro 3. Apple has also announced a Surface-style
Smart Keyboard add-on, along with its new 'Apple Pencil' stylus.
6:30pm: Yep, you guessed it, the iPad Air is here.
It features a 12.9in screen, Apple's A9X chip that the firm claims is
faster than "80 percent of portable PCs" and a ten hour battery life.
6.20pm: New Apple Watch straps are coming, along
with some new watchface options. We'll have a story with all the details
soon. Next up: iPad.
6:10pm: Jeff Williams is up, wearing an identical
outfit to Tim Cook. Brace yourselves, he's just announced that Facebook
Messenger is coming to the smartwatch, along with an app called Airstrip
that is now being demoed on stage.
6:05pm: Tim Cook is out on stage, looking pretty
swish. He's promising "monster announcements" across multiple product
lines. First up: Apple Watch.
5.45pm: We're just 15 minutes away from Apple's
long-awaited iPhone event kicking off. We'll be bringing you live
updates from the event, just give this page a refresh for all the latest
updates.
Cr : Carly Page - The Inquirer