Apple’s big iPhone event has finally come and gone. We now know what the next iPhone will look like and what’s new and a few extra tidbits to boot.

Apple spun through some interesting facts and figures (did you know OSX Lion has been downloaded 6 million times? or that the iPod touch is not just the biggest selling music device but also the biggest selling portable gaming device?) which i’ll gloss over for the time being.

 New apps:

Cards

Remember post cards? Yeah there’s now an (another) app that lets you send custom designed cards, through the mail.

For $2.99 in the United States and $4.99 in the rest of the world, Apple will print a message on ‘high-quality 100% cotton paper” and include Apple-designed postage.

Remember iCards from the iTools era? It’s just been reborn.

 

Friends and Family

Want a way to stalk your friends and family members who own and iDevice? Well Apple just answered your request. Users can easily set privacy controls including only sharing location during certain times of day and more.

“At the end of the day, location sharing stops automatically. Easily locate friends and family, temp sharing options, simple privacy controls…”

Both Apps will be available 12th October.

 

iOS 5

Apple Spent a fair bit of time going over iOS 5 and iCloud, but added nothing new to the mix. But we do have one important bit of information: It will be available for free on the 12th October.

 

iPod

Again nothing really new to add to the iPod line, the shuffle and classic remain untouched (and still alive). The iPod touch line saw a new member of the family in a new white fronted version and it now comes in a 64GB version – oh and a small price drop:

8GB – £169, 32GB – £249 and the 64GB – £329.

The Nano has also seen a small software update which includes: bigger icons, more clock screen designs (check out the Mickey Mouse design in true time keeping fashion here:) and fitness apps right out of the box. We also have a small price drop:

8GB – £115 /16GB – £129 available in 7 colours.

 

iPhone

Pretty much what we’ve all been waiting for, the rumours, the suspense all came down to this announcement. And it’s pretty much as I called it on Monday.

We now have 3 iPhone models starting with the 3GS as a base model, the iPhone 4 as a mid range model and the iPhone 4S as the new high tier model.

No iPhone 5.

The iPhone 4S is to the iPhone 4 what the 3GS was to the 3G. Upgraded internals, camera and few extra features. In side the 4S we have the Apple A5 processor, Which Apple touts as 7x faster than the processor found in the iPhone 4.

The camera is something to behold, 8MP camera with a completely redesigned lens which includes a hybrid IR filter and sports apertures down to f/2.4. This also means the iPhone 4S i capable of capturing full 1080p video.

The new A5 processor allows for eight hours of talk over 3G, and 14 hours of 2G, while web browsing over 3G cuts off at six hours.

Apple have also announced a completely redesigned antenna to quell the issues arising from last years antenna gate. The iPhone 4S now includes intelligent switching between two antenna’s, which means even if you’re covering up one you’ll get signal through the second. Not only that but Apple have some how managed to squeeze the whole worlds worth of radio standards into the phone, meaning it can be used anywhere on any network.

However the big announcement is the introduction of Siri, Apple’s new voice activated personal assistant. Siri is capable of understanding questions and request, you can ask it what the weather is like, or direction to work or home. Siri will even type your SMS or email replies. It is a truly remarkable bit of technology, and I highly recommend checking out Apple’s demo video here:

Conclusion

I wouldn’t call this event disappointing, average perhaps but not disappointing. We got what we were promised: the next step in iPhone technology.