Positions the compass.
✔ Proximity sensor: Turns the touchscreen off when you hold the phone close to your ear, so you don’t accidentally tap the mute button or call another number while you’re in the middle of a conversation. As soon as you move iPhone a few 16ths of an inch from your head, the screen is activated.
✔ Tilt sensor: Senses motion, which is particularly useful when playing games that involve driving or flying.
✔ Accelerometer: Allows for landscape display.
✔ Bluetooth: Connects to other Bluetooth 4.0–enabled devices.
✔ Ambient light sensor: Adjusts the screen when you’re using your iPhone in low- or bright-light situations.
✔ Fingerprint identity sensor (models with Touch ID): Recognizes authorized fingers pressed to the Home button to unlock iPhone and make purchases in the iTunes and Apps Stores, as well as iTunes U and Newsstand. Third-party apps may use this sensor to authorize actions, too.
✔ NFC antenna (iPhone 6 and 6 Plus): In conjunction with Apple Pay, this antenna allows you to use your iPhone to charge purchases to a credit card already associated with your iTunes account, or another card you add, simply by pointing your iPhone at an NFC reader, and then authorizing the purchase with Touch ID.
✔ Barometer (iPhone 6 and 6 Plus): Measures relative elevation, so, for example, the Health app can tell you not only the number of steps you took but the distance you ran and how many flights of stairs you climbed.
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Other stuff in the box
Your iPhone comes with a few nice accessories, too. Here’s what you’ll find when you open the box:
✔ EarPods: Stereo headphones with a built-in microphone and volume control buttons.
✔ USB cable connector: Connects your iPhone to a USB port on your computer, in your car, and on the USB power adapter. iPhone 5 and later models have the 9-pin reversible Lightning connector, whereas iPhone 4s and earlier have a 30-pin, one-way Dock connector.
✔ USB power adapter: Connects to the USB cable connector and plugs into an outlet to charge your iPhone’s battery.
✔ Finger Tips guide: Apple’s quick guide to iPhone functions and features.
✔ Product info: Legal and technical information.
Considering iPhone Carriers and Configurations
In the United States, four national carriers support iPhone – AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon – as well as smaller regional carriers. That’s made a situation that is both competitive and confusing for the consumer. In Europe, Vodafone is popular, although many countries also have country-specific carriers with competitive pricing.
Unlocked iPhones (iPhones you purchase outright without a service contract) work with carriers that use the GSM standard (see the following paragraph). In the United States, AT&T, T-Mobile, and 30 or so regional carriers use GSM, as do most of the carriers outside the U.S. Although Verizon CDMA phones are unlocked for international use, a Sprint customer in good standing can request that his CDMA carrier unlock his iPhone so it can access the GSM networks overseas, but nonetheless remains tied to the national and roaming costs associated with the cellular service contract.
With so many different plans available from multiple national and regional carriers, we can’t take responsibility for advising you on which to choose. We can, however, give you some things to think about – and questions to ask prospective providers – when choosing. Here are a few things to consider so you can compare plans from different carriers and make an informed decision:
✔ How much time do you spend on the phone? Most plans offer unlimited calling, so this question is almost moot. If you’re considering a plan that offers a set number of minutes, consider how you use your phone: Do you make many calls or just check in now and then? Three hundred and sixty minutes for a month is 12 minutes a day, whereas 1,000 minutes is just over a half-hour a day. If you’re thinking about replacing your landline with a cellphone, an unlimited calling plan may be a better choice.
✔ Who do you call? Some plans offer a you-and-me or family discount for one number, or a group of numbers, that you call more than any other. Some offer unlimited mobile-to-mobile calls, even to other carriers.
✔ Where do you use your phone? If you travel around the country, you probably want a call plan with nationwide coverage.
✔ Do you travel overseas? If you do, shop around for the best roaming rate or, if you frequently go to the same country, consider getting a local, rechargeable SIM card and using that in your iPhone when you’re out of the United States.
✔ Do you send text messages? Again, most plans offer unlimited texting (SMS), however, text messages may be billed at a per-message rate or your plan may include a limited number of messages or kilobytes and you pay a per-message or per-kilobyte rate if you exceed the limited number. iMessage lets you send text messages over the Wi-Fi or cellular data network to other iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users (as well as users of Macs running OS X 10.8 or later) without incurring SMS charges.
✔ How much cellular data usage do you need? Wi-Fi is widespread in the United States. Even the smallest one-café town seems to offer free Wi-Fi if you buy a cup of coffee, which makes cellular data less necessary. Most plans these days offer unlimited Internet access, although 50MB is the file size limit for downloading over a 3G or LTE cellular network.
The Winning Combination: Hardware and Apps
Your iPhone is more than just a phone. It’s your online communications tool, personal digital assistant, GPS navigation system, entertainment source, camera, and flashlight. With each new generation, iPhone has added more functions and features. iPhone itself is the hardware, and the iOS and apps are the software that let you do so many things. Here we take a look at all your iPhone has to offer.
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