Maybe it’s because we’ve been glued to our screens courtesy of lockdown but the anticipation of the new Apple iPhone 13 feels even more intense than usual. Finally, after what feels like a decade (it’s been 12 months since the iPhone 12) the latest iPhone has been announced.

While the rest of us were still groggy from the combined hedonism of the MTV VMAs and Met Gala, tech fans were glued to events taking place on the other side of US continent in Cupertino, California.

Apple iPhone 13
The new Apple iPhone 13. Image: Apple

The announcement of the Apple iPhone 13 revealed four new models confirmed to the lineup – the iPhone 13, a 13 Mini, a 13 Pro and a 13 Pro Max all available in four different colourways.

During the presentation, big focus was, as always, on the camera in the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. Apple have cottoned on we live our life through pictures and didn’t hold back on capitalising our desire for crystal clear selfies. 

Both the 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max copped a Super Retina XDR display plus ProMotion, with an adaptive refresh rate up to 120Hz that makes the touch experience faster and much more responsive. Also in the mix are the new Ultra Wide, Wide, and Telephoto cameras, powered by an A15 Bionic.

Apple iPhone 13
Four styles, four colours in the new iPhone 13. Image: Apple

The Wide and Ultra Wide are particularly exciting for their improvement in capturing better shots in low-light scenarios. The new Ultra Wide camera for example features a much wider ƒ/1.8 aperture and a new autofocus system, bringing a 92 per cent improvement for low-light environments, producing images that are brighter and sharper. You might not win any competitions for full moon photos just yet but it’s definitely getting there.

More customisation and personalisation capabilities for photo editing have also been introduced. Rather than filtering post-photo, Photographic Styles feature allows users to bring their personal photo preferences to every image beforehand. Preset and customised preferences work across scenes and subjects, and unlike a simple filter, intelligently apply the right adjustments to parts of the photo to ensure the important elements, like different skin tones, are preserved.

There’s also a bigger battery to give you longer usage between charges. But the company’s other primary announcement came in the form of its A15 Bionic – the iPhone 13’s processor, a chip with 15 billion transistors and new graphics and what Apple are describing as AI abilities. Who has Sarah Connor’s number?

Made up of two high-performance processing cores that focus on the most important work and four high-efficiency cores that help operate background tasks smoothly and without taking away primary battery power, the A15 is Apple’s most powerful and efficient chip yet.

According to a spokesperson at Apple, the 16-core Neural Engine is capable of 15.8 trillion operations per second, enabling even faster machine learning computations for third-party app experiences. 

Apple iPhone 13
You read correct, it’s only been 12 months since the last iPhone even though we’ve aged 10 years. Image: Apple

It’s also all part of the matrix that will make iOS 15 a faster and more intuitive user experience with more in-device intelligence.

FaceTime calls will feel more natural and in-person, with spatial audio and a new Portrait mode and a new Focus feature to help users reduce distraction. Notifications have been redesigned, and Live Text uses on-device intelligence to recognise text in a photo.

This might be just me being a map geek, but one of the most interesting details is a new three-dimensional city-driving experience and walking directions that are now available in augmented reality.

As of today, all four phones will be available for pre-order from Friday September 17  – which is this week folks! – and an official release date of September 24.

Pricing wise, the Phone 13 Pro kicks off at A$1699 and the iPhone 13 Pro Max A$1849.