iPhone 7 UK release date, specs and price: Apple and (RED) raise over $30 million to fight AIDS

iPhone 7 specs

iPhone 7 processor, storage and RAM

In terms of hardware, the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus use a new A10 system-on-a-chip (SOC), the successor to the A9 SOC that powers the iPhone 6s, 6s Plus and SE.

The A10 is 40% faster than the A9 and is twice as fast as the old A8, while it boasts 3.3 billion transistors and four cores.

While the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have 2GB of RAM, the same as the 6s and 6s Plus, Apple has overhauled its storage tiers. Starting by axing the 16GB and 64GB models, the 7 and 7 Plus double the storage capacities of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. Instead of 16GB, 64GB and 128GB, the 7 family comes in 32GB, 128GB and 256GB sizes. The Jet Black colour iPhone is only available in the last two sizes.

iPhone 7 battery life

Apple believes the 7's battery life is two hours longer than that of the 6s, and the 7 Plus offers one hour longer than the 6s Plus.

By the tech giant's count, the 7 offers up to 14 hours talk time on 3G, compared to the 7 Plus's 21 hours. The iPhone 7 offers internet use for 12 hours on 3G and 4G and 14 hours on Wi-Fi; the 7 Plus can do 13 hours on 3G and 4G, and 15 hours on Wi-Fi.

Standby time is up to 10 days on the 7 and 16 days on the 7 Plus.

iPhone 7 casing and headphone jack

iPhone 7 chassis by Jan Willem Reusnic

We'll get to the headphones in just a moment; one important, less-talked-about improvement on the iPhone 7 is the much-hated antennae bands that covered the top back of the chassis on previous models.

These were included to allow radio waves to penetrate the new metal chassis design, but Apple has improved its technology and design to do away with them on the iPhone 7, hiding them away inside the chassis instead.

Headphone jack

Apple has killed the headphone jack on the iPhone 7. Yes, that's right, the 3.5mm port for headphones is no more. Instead, Apple is shipping EarPods with each iPhone 7 sold - these connect through the Lightning port instead of the jack. If you're attached (forgive the pun) to your own set of headphones, though, don't worry: Apple also includes an adaptor in the box, so you can plug your own headphones into the Lightning port instead.

But, of course, Apple hasn't stopped there. Always intent on surprising people, the tech giant also revealed the AirPods (pictured above). These wireless earpieces rely on Bluetooth to connect to your iPhone, and use infrared to detect when they're in your ears - they won't play when they're just in your pocket. In a neat touch, you can also double tap them to speak to Siri.

Continue reading for iPhone 7 colours, versions, accessories and to find out if it will be a success

Zach Marzouk

Zach Marzouk is a former ITPro, CloudPro, and ChannelPro staff writer, covering topics like security, privacy, worker rights, and startups, primarily in the Asia Pacific and the US regions. Zach joined ITPro in 2017 where he was introduced to the world of B2B technology as a junior staff writer, before he returned to Argentina in 2018, working in communications and as a copywriter. In 2021, he made his way back to ITPro as a staff writer during the pandemic, before joining the world of freelance in 2022.