Apple Products for Fall 2021: iPhone 13, Apple watch 7, etc...

[iacrenter]

Anyone else disappointed in the new Apple products that were announced on September 14th?

iPhone 13 was more of 'S' year upgrade. I was really hoping for under the glass or power button touch ID. I'll wait till next year for bigger changes -- notchless screen and wartless camera.

Apple watch 7 was also a bust. No significant design change or compelling feature.

[irvinehomeowner]

I'm waiting for the 2022 iPhone SE and SE+... hopefully they keep the home button.

[iacrenter]

Here are the iPhone 14 rumors:
6.1 and 6.7-inch sizes
No notch
Hole-punch camera
Under-display Face ID
No rear camera bump
A16 chip
Qualcomm X65 modem

https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/iPhone-14/

[momopi]

I kept my iPhone 6+ for almost 7 years but it was time for an upgrade.  Support for this model stopped at iOS 12 (the 6S is still supported by iOS 15) and I'm unable to update many apps to current version.  Also my daughter dropped the phone one too many times and the touch screen would sometimes become unresponsive & required reboot.

For T-Mobile customers the old iPhone 6+ is worth $100 in trade-in, but I opted to keep mine as backup.  If you choose to order from T-Mobile web site you'll need to wait until end of Oct for delivery.  But if you call around to local T-Mobile stores some have the new iPhone 13's in stock.  Selection is limited -- my local store only had the gold colored iPhone 13 Pro Max 128 GB ($1,100).  I'd preferred to pay $100 more for the 256 GB model, but didn't want to wait 5-6 weeks for it.

If you're upgrading from an old iPhone, the improvements in screen display, app speed and camera photo/video is significant.  The larger camera lens produce much brighter photos/videos in higher quality.  Physically the iPhone 13 Pro Max is about the same size as the iPhone 6 Plus, except the larger display screen covers the almost the entire surface area.

If you currently own an iPhone 12, there's little reason to upgrade to the 13 -- it's basically a slightly upgraded iPhone 12.  If you're visiting T-Mobile store you can also play with the new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3.  The larger fold-out display looks great, but I would not recommend paying $1800 to be a beta tester for this product (like I did with the original iPhone in 2007).  Give it a few months to read owner reviews.  I expect to see cheaper fold-out phones from other companies next year.

If you want to save money, T-Mobile has its own house brand "REVVL".  The REVVL V+ 5G with 6.8" display is only $200, and the OnePlus Nord N200 5G for few dollars more with better display.  These are great bargains, with microSD card expansion to add a lot of storage, and unlike Apple iPhone (cough) they come with the plug-in charger.

[Cares]

Verizon offers iPhone 13 basically for free with trade in and 24 month commitment.

[eyephone]

Some reviews say skip this version.

[momopi]

Verizon offers iPhone 13 basically for free with trade in and 24 month commitment.

https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/buy-a-free-iphone-13-with-trade-in-at-verizon-t-mobile-and-at-t-all-you-need-to-know/

For Verizon, they accept iPhone 6/7/8/SE trade-in with up to $400 credit.  To get the $800 credit you need to trade in iPhone X and up.

For T-mobile, they only credit $100 for iPhone 6 trade-in toward purchase of iPhone 13.  Higher credit $ for more recent iPhone models.

[momopi]

Some reviews say skip this version.

For those who already own a recent model iPhone, I would agree with this.

[eyephone]

Does Verizon offer free mobile hotspot?

[iacrenter]

Verizon unlimited plans above the starter plan offer mobile hotspot. 15-30gb of 5G/4G LTE per month, then 600Kbps after cap is reached.

[eyephone]

I hear Verizon works “better” in Irvine.

[Cares]

Verizon offers iPhone 13 basically for free with trade in and 24 month commitment.

https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/buy-a-free-iphone-13-with-trade-in-at-verizon-t-mobile-and-at-t-all-you-need-to-know/

For Verizon, they accept iPhone 6/7/8/SE trade-in with up to $400 credit.  To get the $800 credit you need to trade in iPhone X and up.

For T-mobile, they only credit $100 for iPhone 6 trade-in toward purchase of iPhone 13.  Higher credit $ for more recent iPhone models.

I only got $200 credit for my trade in. And then if you do 24 month payment plan they give you an additional $600 over 24 months or something like that making the phone effectively free.

You can price it out on Apple.com and tell them you have a trade in to see.

[Cares]

I hear Verizon works “better” in Irvine.

Yes I had T-Mobile a few years ago and it was horrendous. My neighborhood is a full on dead zone and WiFi calling was a must and it wasn't even that reliable. Verizon has been great for me.

[iacrenter]

Another Apple event scheduled for October 18th: Unleashed

https://www.apple.com/apple-events/

Mac Rumors youtube summary of product release:

[momopi]

As much as I'd like to replace my old MacBook, I think I'm going to buy a Win/Intel gaming laptop for New World.

Currently looking at Costco's MSI offerings.