iPhone to iPhone 6: History in specs
The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are the latest in a line of Apple phones stretching back to the original in 2007. Year after year, release after release, they've grown bigger, faster, more powerful, and better. You can see it in the specs and feel it in the experience. Now, some people believe specs mean everything. That you can sum up any phone, any device, by the rows on a spreadsheet. Other people believe specs mean nothing. That it is experience and experience alone that defines a device. The truth, as is often the case, lies smack in between. Specs matter in that they're needed to deliver an experience. If the specs aren't sufficient, the experience will suffer. If they specs aren't utilized, then they don't matter. Since Apple uniquely controls everything from the chipset to the software and services, they're best positioned to wring every ounce of experience out of their specs. So, with iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, what are those specs?
Header Cell - Column 0 | iPhone | iPhone 3G | iPhone 3GS | iPhone 4 | iPhone 4S | iPhone 5 | iPhone 5c | iPhone 5s | iPhone 6 | iPhone 6 Plus |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Row 0 - Cell 0 | Row 0 - Cell 1 | Row 0 - Cell 2 | Row 0 - Cell 3 | Row 0 - Cell 4 | Row 0 - Cell 5 | Row 0 - Cell 6 | Row 0 - Cell 7 | Row 0 - Cell 8 | Row 0 - Cell 9 | Row 0 - Cell 10 |
Code Name | M68 | N82 | N88 | N90/N92 | N94 | N41/N42 | N48/N49 | N51/N53 | N61 | N56 |
Model Name | iPhone 1,1 | iPhone 1,2 | iPhone 2,1 | iPhone 3,1 | iPhone 4,1 | iPhone 5,1 | iPhone 5,3 | iPhone 6,1 | iPhone 7,2 | iPhone 7,1 |
Launch OS | iPhone OS 1.0 | iPhone OS 2.0 | iPhone OS 3.0 | iOS 4 | iOS 5 | iOS 6 | iOS 7 | iOS 7 | iOS 8 | iOS 8 |
Screen Size | 3.5 inches | 3.5 inches | 3.5 inches | 3.5 inches | 3.5 inches | 4.0 inches | 4.0 inches | 4.0 inches | 4.7 inches | 5.5 inches |
Screen Resolution | 480x320 (163ppi) | 480x320 (163ppi) | 80x320 (163ppi) | 960x640 (326ppi) | 960x640 (326ppi) | 1136x640 (326ppi) | 1136x640 (326ppi) | 1136x640 (326ppi) | 1334x750 (326ppi) | 1920x1080 (401ppi) |
Screen Type | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | IPS LCD | I PS LCD |
System-on-a-chip | Samsung S5L8900 | Samsung S5L8900 | Samsung APL0298C05 | Apple A4 | Apple A5 | Apple A6 | Apple A6 | Apple A7 | Apple A8 | Apple A8 |
CPU | ARM 1176JZ(F)-S | ARM 1176JZ(F)-S | 600MHz ARM Cortex A8 | 800MHz ARM Cortex A8 | 800MHz dual-core ARM Cortex A9 | 1.3GHz dual-core Swift (ARM v7s) | 1.3GHz dual-core Swift (ARM v7s) | 64-bit 1.3GHz dual-core Cyclone (ARM v8) | 64-bit 1.38Ghz dual-core (ARM v8) | 64-bit 1.38Ghz dual-core (ARM v8) |
GPU | PowerVR MBX Lite 3D | PowerVR MBX Lite 3D | PowerVR SGX535 | PowerVR SGX535 | PowerVR dual-core SGX543MP4 | PowerVR triple-core SGX543MP3 | PowerVR triple-core SGX543MP3 | PowerVR G6430 | TBD | TBD |
Co-processor | none | none | none | none | none | none | none | M7 Motion | M8 Motion | M8 Motion |
RAM | 128MB | 128MB | 256MB | 512MB | 512MB | 1GB | 1GB | 1GB | 1GB | 1GB |
Storage | 4GB/8GB/16GB | 8GB/16GB | 16GB/32GB | 16GB/32GB | 16GB/32GB/64GB | 16GB/32GB/64GB | 16GB/32GB/64GB | 16GB/32GB/64GB | 16GB/64GB/128GB | 16GB/64GB/128GB |
Cellular Data | EDGE | 3G 3.6 | HSPA 7.2 | HSPA 7.2 | HSPA 14.4 | LTE/DC-HSPA | LTE/DC-HSPA | LTE/DC-HSPA | LTE Advanced | LTE Advanced |
SIM | Mini | Mini | Mini | Micro | Micro | Nano | Nano | Nano | Row 14 - Cell 9 | Nano | Nano |
Rear Camera | 2MP | 2MP | 3MP/480p | 5MP/720p, ƒ2.8, 1.75µ | 8MP/1080p, ƒ/2.4, BSI, 1.4µ | 8MP/1080p, ƒ/2.4, BSI, 1.4µ | 8MP/1080p, ƒ/2.4, BSI, 1.4µ | 8MP/1080p, ƒ/2.2, BSI, 1.5µ | 8MP/1080p 60fps, ƒ/2.2, BSI, 1.5µ | 8MP/1080p 60fps, ƒ/2.2, BSI, 1.5µ OIS |
Front Camera | none | none | none | VGA | VGA | 1.2MP/720p, BSI | 1.2MP/720p, BSI | 1.2MP/720p, BSI | 1.2MP/720p, BSI | 1.2MP/720p, BSI |
Bluetooth | Bluetooth 2.0+EDR | Bluetooth 2.0+EDR | Bluetooth 2.1+EDR | Bluetooth 2.1+EDR | Bluetooth 4.0 | Bluetooth 4.0 | Bluetooth 4.0 | Bluetooth 4.0 | Bluetooth 4.0 | Bluetooth 4.0 |
Wi-Fi | 802.11b/g | 802.11b/g | 802.11b/g | 802.11b/g/n (2.4GHz) | 802.11b/g/n (2.4GHz) | 802.11b/g/n (2.4GHz, 5GHz) | 802.11b/g/n (2.4GHz, 5GHz) | 802.11b/g/n (2.4GHz, 5GHz) | 802.11a/b/g/n/ac | 802.11a/b/g/n/ac |
GPS | none | aGPS | aGPS | aGPS | aGPS, GLONASS | aGPS, GLONASS | aGPS, GLONASS | aGPS, GLONASS | aGPS, GLONASS | aGPS, GLONASS |
Sensors | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope, infrared | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope, infrared | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope, infrared | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope, infrared, fingerprint | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope, infrared, fingerprint, barometer | Ambient light, accelerometer, proximity, compass, gyroscope, infrared, fingerprint, barometer |
Mic | Single | Single | Single | Dual | Dual | Triple | Triple | Triple | Triple | Triple |
Connector | 30-pin Dock | 30-pin Dock | 30-pin Dock | 30-pin Dock | 30-pin Dock | Lightning | Lightning | Lightning | Lightning | Lightning |
Height | 4.52 inches (115mm) | 4.55 inches (115.5mm) | 4.55 inches (115.5mm) | 4.54 inches (115.2mm) | 4.54 inches (115.2mm) | 4.87 inches (123.8mm) | 4.91 inches (124.8mm) | 4.87 inches (123.8mm) | 5.44 inches (138.1 mm) | 6.22 inches (158.1mm) |
Width | 2.40 inches (61mm) | 2.43 inches (61.8mm) | 2.43 inches (61.8mm) | 2.31 inches (58.6mm) | 2.31 inches (58.6mm) | 2.31 inches (58.6mm) | 2.33 inches (59.2mm) | 2.31 inches (58.6mm) | 2.64 inches (67.0mm) | 3.06 inches (77.8mm) |
Thickness | 0.46 inches (11.6mm) | 0.48 inches (12.3mm) | 0.48 inches (12.3mm) | 0.37 inches (9.3mm) | 0.37 inches (9.3mm) | 0.30 inches (7.6mm) | 0.35 inches (8.97mm) | 0.30 inches (7.6mm) | 0.27 inches (6.9mm) | 0.28 inches (7.1mm |
Weight | 4.72oz (135g) | 4.69 oz (133g) | 4.72oz (135g) | 4.83oz (137g) | 4.94 oz (140g) | 3.95oz (112g) | 4.66oz (132g) | 4.30oz (122g) | 4.55 oz (129g) | 6.07 oz (172 g) |
Battery | 1400mAh | 1150mAh | 1219mAh | 1420mAh | 1440mAh | 1440mAh | 1510mAh | 1560mAh | 1810mAh | 2915mAh |
Colors | Aluminum | Black/White | Black/White | Black/White | Black/White | Slate/Silver | Blue/Green/Pink/White/Yellow | Space gray, Silver, Gold | Space gray, Silver, Gold | Space gray, Silver, Gold |
Launch Price | $499/$599 on contract (no subsidy) | $199/$299 on contract | $199/$299 on contract | $199/$299 on contract | $199/$299/$399 on contract | $199/$299/$399 on contract | $99/$199 on contract | $199/$299/$399 on contract | $199/$299/$399 on contract | $299/$399/$499 on contract |
Release Date | 6/29/2007 | 7/1/2008 | 6/19/2009 | 6/24/2010 | 10/14/2011 | 9/21/2012 | 9/20/2013 | 9/20/2013 | 9/19/2014 | 9/19/2014 |
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Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.