Apple's iPhone 7 ditches traditional headphone socket
The iPhone 7 will not have a traditional headphone socket.
Apple said its lightning connector could be used instead, which would make room for other components. It will also promote the use of wireless earphones, and has released a set of its own called Airpods.
The firm said it had taken "courage" to take the step.
However, it risks annoying users who will now require an adapter for existing headphones.
The US company unveiled its latest handsets at an event in San Francisco following a year in which its phone sales and market share shrank.
Other new features include:
- the home button of the new phones can now detect how firmly it is being pressed and provide vibration-based feedback
- the handsets can be submerged in water up to depths of 1m (3.2ft) for 30 minutes at a time
- the larger iPhone 7 Plus model gets a two-lens camera on its rear, allowing it to offer a choice of focal lengths
The launch comes a week after the European Commission demanded Apple pay up to €13bn (£11bn) in back taxes to Ireland - a ruling the firm is appealing.
"The current difficulties with the EU will have little bearing towards the iPhone 7 at this juncture," predicted Ben Wood from the CCS Insight consultancy.
"But the dispute will drag on for years, and if sentiment turns against Apple that could have major implications for the brand.
"For now, there's a strong argument that the iPhone 7 is more than an iterative update.
"Upgrades are all important to Apple and for consumers coming from an iPhone 5S or iPhone 6, the iPhone 7 will feel like a considerable step up."
Airpods
The 3.5mm headphone jack was made popular by Sony's Walkman cassette players, but was first introduced in one of the Japanese company's transistor radios in 1964.
Apple has repeatedly been willing to ditch connectors and other ageing tech from its products earlier than its rivals.
But one expert questioned the benefit of the latest move.
"If you've been interested purely in the audio quality then a wired connection has always been best," said Simon Lucas, editor of What Hi-fi magazine.
"You have greater stability - there's no possibility of drop-outs. Wireless headphones also need to be charged, and the louder you listen to them the quicker they will run out of power.
"With regards to headphones with a lightning connector, there's only about eight pairs currently available and they will all have had to pay Apple a licence to use its proprietary connector."
Apple, however, suggests there are advantages to using its Airpods, which will cost $159 (£119).
It demonstrated that the wireless headphones could be paired with the phone much more quickly than is normally the case with Bluetooth sets.
The Airpods also contain infrared sensors to detect when they are in the user's ears. This allows them to automatically stop music when they are taken out.
Motion sensors in the buds also allow the firm's virtual assistant Siri to be activated for voice commands by double-tapping their sides.
Users will, however, have to get used to charging another device.
Apple said the Airpods would last "up to five hours" on a charge, and come with a recharging case that can extend their life up to 24 hours before a plug socket is required.
Another related change is the introduction of stereo speakers - one at each end of the handset - which Apple said meant the iPhone 7 could deliver twice the volume of the iPhone 6S.
| Manufacturer | Handset shipments | Year-on-yearchange | Market share at end of June 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 2015 - June 2016 | |||
| Samsung | 323.3 million | +4.3% | 23% |
| Apple | 214.4 million | -3.6% | 12% |
| Huawei | 120.3 million | +38.2% | 9% |
| Oppo | 68.2 million | +91.3% | 7% |
| Vivo | 53.7 million | +68.4% | 5% |
| Lenovo | 61.0 million | -28.5% | 3% |
| Xiaomi | 60.5 million | -10.6% | 4% |
| LG | 57.6 million | -6.9% | 4% |
| Source: IDC | |||
One company watcher said removing the 3.5mm socket would still annoy some users, but added that their frustration might be short-lived.
"Apple changed the charger port a few years ago and people got upset," said Francisco Jeronimo from the research firm IDC.
"But it didn't stop people from buying the iPhone. Removing the headphone jack won't either.
"What's more important is whether a consumer likes Apple's ecosystem or Android's, because at this point Windows and Blackberry phones have an extremely low market share."
Two cameras
The iPhone 7 Plus has both a wide angle and telephoto lens on its back, both using their own 12 megapixel sensor.
This allows the owner to quickly switch to a tighter shot without sacrificing image quality, and also allows the device to offer 10x zoom - double the amount than before - by digitally cropping the photo in the camera app.
A similar feature is already available on LG's G5 phone.
But Apple says it will also be able to combine data gathered by both camera sensors to simulate an effect associated with larger DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) cameras.
It said software would be able to automatically pick people's faces out from the background, keeping the humans in focus while blurring the rest of the shot in order to enhance the portraits.
The feature will not, however, be available at launch but will rather be provided as an update later on.
Analysis: Dave Lee, North America technology reporter
The room went silent upon seeing Apple's adapter for using normal headphones in the iPhone 7's lightning port.
It's purposefully irritating and clunky, because Apple of course wants you to invest in wireless headphones.
But a big cheer rang out for the Airpods themselves. They look cool, and relatively discreet - but could be a bit prone to falling out of your ears. Charging them could also become a hassle.
Stereo speakers for external sound is a nice new touch - but Apple is really slow to this compared to rivals like HTC and ZTE. And, the grumpy man in me hates anything that encourages phone audio to be played out loud in public.
It also feels like Apple has had a slight rethink with the Apple Watch. The device is clearly a fitness device first, fashion statement second - no longer is it pushing a $10,000, gold-plated model.
Now the poster people of Apple Watch are the likes of Serena Williams, not Beyonce.
New Watch
Apple also unveiled a new version of its smartwatch, which it described as the "ultimate fitness device".
It also introduces:
- a built-in GPS location tracker, letting running routes be tracked without carrying a paired phone
- a more powerful processor, letting it show more detailed graphics in apps than its predecessor
- a brighter screen
The original Watch is the best selling smartwatch on the market, but shipments of the device dropped more than 50% between the April-to-June quarter of 2016 and the same period the previous year, according to IDC.
"That's a challenge for Apple as well as for Samsung and other tech firms selling feature-rich smartwatches."
Apple said it thought the device would have particular appeal to runners, and may be able to stoke interest through a partnership with Nike.
The fitness brand has created an app that lets its owner share details of their runs with others, and has also launched its own bands for the timepiece.
Super Mario
Video game character Mario's creator, Shigeru Miyamoto, appeared to announce that Nintendo's plumber would appear in his first iPhone video game before the end of the year.
Mr Miyamoto confirmed that the running-themed adventure would be an iOS exclusive at launch.
It follows the success of another Nintendo franchise, Pokemon, on the platform.
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