Apple unveils iPhone 14 with camera upgrades, satellite feature

Apple unveiled the latest installment of its flagship product, the iPhone 14, which offers camera upgrades and a new feature that offers satellite connections for emergencies.

The company debuted the models Wednesday at a presentation dubbed Far Out, an event that also spotlighted Apple’s new watch line and AirPods earbuds. The standard iPhone 14 models look similar to the iPhone 13 from last year, but with a twist: Apple has dropped the mini version and added a model with a larger, 6.7-inch display.

Camera improvements include a new Action mode for video that helps stabilise action shots. And the device embraces the eSIM standard, which dispenses with a physical SIM card, and offers crash detection.

“We’re constantly challenging ourselves to raise the bar and make it better,” chief executive officer Tim Cook said during the presentation.

The iPhone remains Apple’s most important product by far, generating roughly 50 per cent of the company’s sales on its own and helping fuel additional revenue from services like the App Store and Apple TV+. It also coaxes customers to buy accessories like AirPods and the Apple Watch.

The bulk of the iPhone upgrades are coming to the Pro line. The new high-end devices are expected to include a screen that’s capable of always staying on in a low-power mode, similar to recent versions of the Apple Watch. That will let the new phones show widgets with bits of information – weather, calendar appointments and stock tickers, for instance – on the lock screen while the rest of the screen remains off.