Although Apple’s ‘Wonderlust’ event was jam-packed with information about the Apple Watch, iPhone 15 and 15 Pro, and the USB-C AirPods Pro, the company still left out a lot of useful information in the keynote. If you’re wondering what else is worth knowing about, here’s a quick list to help you catch up.
Faster data transfer
The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max both support USB 3.0, which can reach data transfer speeds up to 10 Gbps. This is a welcome improvement over USB 2.0 speeds we see in the iPhone 15 and iPhones before it. Copying photos using a cable will be much faster, as will backing up your iPhone. Of course, the caveat is you’ll need a USB 3.0 cable that supports 10 Gbps speeds like this one to make the most of this feature, so make sure to look for that spec when making your purchase.
HEIF Max shots are coming to iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max
The new 48MP HEIF Max photo mode is not limited to the iPhone 15 Pro series alone. With a software update, these will be available on the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max as well. Apple says this new codec shoots in up to 4x the resolution of ProRAW.
Your iPhone has new ringtones now
iOS 17 has refreshed the ringtones on your iPhone. If the older ringtones were feeling a bit stale after ten years, update your iPhone and give the new tunes a shot. Fortunately, this feature doesn’t require you to buy a new iPhone. As long as your iPhone supports iOS 17, you’re good to go. Go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics once running the new OS to check out these ringtones.
iPhone 15 can charge USB-C AirPods Pro and Apple Watch
Yes, the iPhone 15 series’ switch to USB-C means you can use your phone to charge both AirPods Pro and Apple Watch over USB-C. Your AirPods Pro (2nd Generation) can be charged with a USB-C to USB-C cable, and for the Apple Watch, you can use a USB-C charger. Apple made a brief mention of this feature at the keynote, but it’s important enough to highlight for those who may have missed the announcement.
AirPods Pro has improved dust resistance
The USB-C AirPods Pro and its charging case are both IP54-rated for dust and water resistance. The new thing here is improved dust resistance, which is indicated by the first digit in the IP54 rating. Light contact with dust should be safe for your USB-C AirPods Pro.
Thread networking radio on the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max
While Apple didn’t advertise it much, the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max are enabled with the Thread networking radio. This could imply better support for smart-home hardware in the future, but at the moment, this feature doesn’t mean much.