Apple usually releases its products with pomp and circumstance, with CEO Tim Cook taking to the presentation stage and detailing each new gadget’s best features. But today, Apple dropped a new version of the iPhone 7, a revised iPhone SE, a new line of cheaper iPads, and a new app for social media, without the usual fanfare. Here’s a quick look:
Red iPhone 7
Apple’s iPhone 7 and 7 Plus will both be available in a red matte finish starting March 24. The new iPhone color is a part of Apple’s longstanding partnership with (Product)Red, a charity to fight AIDS, which started with the iPod Nano in 2006. Apple design head Jony Ive later even built a (RED)-branded desk that sold for $1,650,000.
The red iPhones will come in 128GB and 256GB storage sizes.
iPhone SE
Apple is finally killing its 16GB phone. The iPhone SE, the last phone model that Apple created with a tiny 16GB storage, is now only available in 32GB and 128GB models. Users previously complained about Apple’s 16GB base model storage not being large enough to handle the typical load of photos and videos accumulated over a phone’s lifespan, forcing people to either pay more for more storage or buy Apple’ iCloud service. The new SE phone will start at the same price, $399.
iPad
The iPad Air 2 is being replaced with a more simply-branded update: the iPad. The new 9.7″ tablet is cheaper, starting at just $329, and packs an upgraded A9 chip (from an A8X) and again has a Retina display. The base model comes with 32GB of storage, and is available March 24.
Clips app
Clips is a new video-focused app by Apple. It can automatically caption videos (a feature called Live Titles), apply filters and contextual information like time of day, edit clips together, and add music. It’s not meant to be the app you use to share videos with friends, but the place where you create those videos (before uploading to Instagram or ideally sending through iMessage). Clips will be available in April.