When Can You Pre-Order Everything Apple Announced Today?
It’s apple day! And just as I started to wonder if the world still has the opportunity to be in awe of watch product announcements. At the Spring Loaded event, Apple jumped out of the gate announcing some pretty nasty updates to its Mac and iPad product line. Thank you, microcircuit M1. I do n’t really need a new iPad, but do I?
Let’s start small and start big. If you’ve been bitten by the Apple Fever, here’s how you can get everything Apple announced today.
(Some) Purple iPhone 12s
All versions of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini (but not the iPhone 12 Pro) now also have a lovely purple color. It’s a bit of a shame that power users can’t get their hands on magenta, but I suppose the metallic tones are what separates you from the plebs. Enjoy your beautiful iPhone, but heck, this purple looks really good. Pre-orders for the new color device will begin on Friday, April 23rd, and shipments will begin on April 30th .
Find your belongings with AirTags
The rumored Apple tracking devices are finally here – well, almost. Starting Friday (April 23rd), you will be able to pre-order AirTags powered by Find My, and they will officially launch on April 30th. Each AirTag starts at $ 29 , and a $ 99 pack of four will give you a slight discount. There are also Bougie Hermès versions available starting at $ 299.
Naturally, this $ 29 (or $ 99) investment will only get you AirTag ; accessories like small holders that you can attach to your keys, backpack, or whatever will cost the same (or more) than the AirTag itself.
But the biggest question is: can I put one of them in my wallet, or is it too ambitious?
How to calibrate your TV for Apple TV 4K
Apple has added the A12 Bionic chip to Apple TV 4K. That means high frame rate HDR for all supported content, an updated AirPlay that can handle such high quality streaming from your various devices, and a brand new remote control. Just look at this remote control. I can finally see which buttons I press! The touchscreen touchpad even supports swivel gestures for scrolling through content. Careful.
But what I love the most is the new feature that reminds me a bit of the self-calibration mode on my home entertainment receiver: your Apple TV 4K will now use your iPhone’s ambient light sensor to gauge the color balance of your TV. If it’s off, Apple TV will make adjustments to display the best picture possible – just for what you’re watching on Apple TV, of course. I dream of the day when I can just pick up my smartphone and make my TV look great, no matter what I watch. A thoughtful sigh.
Pre-order the new Apple TV 4K on April 30 and shipping will begin in the second half of May .
Transform your office into an iMac rainbow
I love the new iMac colors. And I’m not the only one, because that’s what pretty much dominated my text and Facebook Messenger conversations during today’s talk. My friends have actually morphed into a version of “omg the colorrrrssss” that will surely make some Apple hardware engineers take a deep breath as they pour themselves a drink and contemplate all the work they’ve already put into the M2 chip. What can I say; people like colors.
And I? I, too, will drool over the iron. Creating an iMac based on M1, Apple chip was able to reduce the depth of its 24-inch display to the absurd 11.5 mm. What a view. You also (finally) get an upgrade to the FaceTime 1080p camera, an all-new three-microphone system that supposedly does a better job of isolating your voice from loud environments, and a six-speaker setup that allows for (ideally) decent-sounding virtual surround sound.
Most importantly, Apple’s slim iMac comes with a magnetic power connector (thank goodness) with an Ethernet port that plugs into a power supply. This means that you basically only need to deal with (up to) 4 USB-C ports and a power cable, no other cables are needed.
On the front of the accessories, multi-colored keyboards, mice, and trackpads continue the iMac signature; More importantly, the Magic Keyboard now has a dedicated button for Touch ID – authenticate your purchases or switch users with a tap of your finger.
The iMac comes in three basic models, shown below:
And, yes, that means you have to pay a little more if you want to access the full range of iMac colors. To be honest, I think the $ 1,499 iMac is the best place to be. I wouldn’t pay $ 1,300 for a desktop PC without Gigabit Ethernet in 2021, and unfortunately (and two additional USB-C ports and those colors) will set you back $ 200 extra.
If you’re already paying $ 1,300 for a new iMac, you might want to spend a little more on one that’s a lot more filling (and comes with that Touch ID keyboard, not just the regular Magic Keyboard). This $ 1,300 iMac looks like a bum. Hell, buy a cheaper Mac Mini and use the money you save to get a great (albeit thicker) monitor and a can of bright spray paint.
And yes, the frequently rumored 12-core iMac M1 is not destined to come true – at least not yet. I fully expect Apple to release a 27-inch iMac (or larger) with an even higher performance M1 at a later date. If you want this screen size or maximum speed, you will have to wait a little longer.
Pre-orders for Apple’s iMac begin on April 30th, with desktop shipments starting in the second half of May .
The iPad Pro is basically a portable iMac.
Rounding out Apple’s announcement is an all-new iPad Pro update, in which the M1 chip is inserted right into the tablet. Yes, the grand convergence of your tablet and desktop / laptop continues, and the iPad Pro basically gets the same 8-core processor and GPU as the Apple M1 desktops. As Apple advertised, this means that the CPU is 50% faster than the previous generation iPad Pro and up to 40% faster than the GPU.
Apple’s latest iPad Pro supports USC-C and Thunderbolt (USB 4) connections, delivering up to 40 Gbps of bandwidth, enough to power the 6K Pro Display XDR. Incidentally, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro features an all-new Liquid Retina XDR display that delivers the same absurd levels of brightness and contrast as Apple’s professional top shelf display.
The all-new 12MP ultra-wide front camera allows you to take advantage of the new Center Stage feature, which always tries to keep you in the center of the frame when you walk over a wide area. (Aspires to Binging with YouTube Babes Chefs will love this, no doubt.)
The iPad Pro also fully supports 5G (including mmWave), as long as your carrier and / or location gives you decent speeds . You can also buy the 2TB iPad Pro now if you need that much storage space and you can use the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 DualSense controllers with your iPad Pro while you play.
Pre-orders for Apple’s iPad Pro begin on April 30, with tablet shipments starting in the second half of May . Two versions are offered:
- 11-inch iPad Liquid Retina: From $ 799
- 12.9-inch iPad Liquid Retina XDR: From $ 1,099