By Bryan Kelleher
Web Manager
The new iPhone 7 was released on Sept. 7 at Apple’s annual conference event.
Each year their new products are released and continue to dominate the market. However, more recently this is not the case.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple’s revenue decreased from the previous year by 14.6%. Apple’s iPhone sales in 2015 reached $231.5 million where as the predicted 2016 iPhone sales, according to Business Insider, was around $205 million.
By looking at Apple’s new products you can see the lack of differences between the current and past models which is highlighted by their newest release, the iPhone 7.
The iPhone 7 flaunts a couple new features that separates it from its predecessor, the iPhone 6. A few features include new color ways, improved cameras (front and back), extended battery life, added water resistance, removed headphone jack and a new click-less home button. These features are complemented by an improved processor, the Apple A10 Fusion chipset, Quad Core CPU, Six Core GPU and 2GB of RAM according to Forbes.com.
After shattering my iPhone 6 last week I decided to upgrade my phone to the iPhone 7 which was just recently released. Other than the improved battery life and camera, I must say I am not impressed with Apple’s use of an upgrade.
Since the release of iOS 10 applied to the iPhone 6, there was no major difference in software between the 6 and 7. It was a little disappointing knowing I would be paying more for a weak upgrade, but if I did not get the new phone, I would quickly become out of date.
Ultimately, I am indifferent about my new phone thanks to the lack in variation that it has from the older model. Yes, the new matte black color doesn’t smudge with finger prints, and its water resistant capabilities may be a life saver down the line, but I feel like it was a waste of an upgrade.
The 128GB iPhone 7 costs $749 which is typical for a medium size iPhone.
When I look at this number however I must think, was it worth it? Next year for Apple’s tenth anniversary of the iPhone, large things are expected.
So with this upgrade, you can pay $750 for a phone which can possibly become technically obsolete within the next year. For this reason, Apple users have been holding off on their new upgrade. In my case however, I was forced into a new phone briefly after the 7’s release, otherwise I would have been content with my iPhone 6.
Overall, I feel as if the release of the iPhone 7 was relatively worthless and this can be seen in Apple’s decrease in iPhone sales compared to previous releases. The lack in variation from previous models is not compelling enough for users to utilize their upgrades, resulting in the drop in sales and revenue. If Apple continues to disappoint with their improvements to the newer model phones, Samsung will gradually begin to take back some ownership in the cell phone market.
