We're about 72 hours out from Apple's huge 'Wonderlust' event (did Apple ever explain what it meant by that?), and I'm still buzzing from the experience. It's not just the breakneck pace of product and technology reveals; it's being on the sprawling and beautiful Apple Campus, and inside the wonder that is the Steve Jobs Theater, and then the mad scrum of media and analysts in the demo room, where I was able to get up close with all the new products Apple had unveiled just moments before.
This year Apple split the difference between an almost static refresh and wholesale redesign, making noticeable changes inside and out that still left the iPhone 15 (as well as 15 Pro, 15 Pro Max, and 15 Plus) utterly recognizable.
For my consumer friends, the biggest change, and one I think they're still adjusting to, is Apple's retiring of the venerable Lightning port (and cable) and adoption of USB-C across the board. Change is hard, but this is a net positive, I promise.
While I was on the ground running around like a tech-obsessed madman, Team TechRadar was covering the heck out of the event, and has masses of insightful and useful takes on all the new phones, how you should think about them, and how to choose your next phone – even if it's not the iPhone 15.
This week was not all about phones, though. Apple also launched updates to its wearable line with the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2: they both feature a new S9 processor, and a really cool 'double-tap' feature (I kind of loved it). Apple also made a very big deal about the watch going "carbon neutral" (although we're not convinced that's the case), and all the other efforts it's making in the eco-friendly space.
Believe it or not, Apple was not the only game in town this week. Al Griffin checked in on CEDIA to give us a glimpse of our microLED-TV future, Tim Coleman went shooting with Fujifilm's powerful new medium-format camera, and Tom Power reported on a potentially seismic shift in the streaming world.
I know I say this a lot, but this was a seriously busy week. Let's look back on the biggest stories.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max is Apple's new top-of-the-line iPhone, and we got to spend some quality time with it backstage at Apple's Wonderlust event. Click through for our first impressions of the Action button, 5x optical zoom, and other new features and upgrades.
The benchmark scores for the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max are in, and they might just convince you to splash out on one of the more expensive models: Geekbench listings suggest that these two phones are the most powerful on the planet.
At first blush, the Apple Watch 9 doesn't look like much of an upgrade, but it does come with a new double-tap 'air gesture' that's supported on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 as well, and we're seriously impressed by how well it works in practice.
Away from Apple, the TechRadar team has also spent some hands-on time with the Fujifilm GFX100 II. While it might not look like a huge upgrade on paper, there's lots to like about it – and it might just be the most versatile medium-format camera yet.
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The Week in Entertainment
Shows like Foundation have helped Apple TV Plus become a force in streaming (Apple TV Plus)
Is Netflix losing its magic touch? It's long been seen as the undisputed king of the streaming services, but according to new research, viewers rate Apple TV Plus as the top streamer when it comes to original shows. Paramount Plus scores highly too.
The CEDIA Expo is the custom home theater installation industry's annual trade show, which means lots more lovely tech for us to take a peek at – and we've picked out some of the most interesting and intriguing products that are worth keeping tabs on.
