News

Everything Apple Announced At Yesterday’s iPhone 15 Event

Most of the circulating rumors proved accurate, but despite any major surprises, the new iPhone lineup still looks stunning.

Published

3 years ago

September 13, 2023

Nour Nasir

everything apple announced at yesterday's iphone 15 event

Yesterday, Apple held its yearly iPhone event, where the Cupertino company revealed four new smartphones, along with updates to its line of Apple Watches and a new version of iOS.

Most of the rumors about these hotly anticipated devices proved to be accurate, with upgrades ranging from USB-C ports to titanium frames. Let’s check them out:

The iPhone 15 & 15 Plus

Like the iPhone 14, the base model of Apple’s smartphone comes in two screen sizes: a standard 6.1-inch version and a larger 6.7-inch plus model.

Broadly speaking, the base iPhones are now comparable to last year’s Pro models, with improved cameras, better performance, and the novel Dynamic Island that does away with the dreaded notch.

However, the handsets now sport USB-C ports, along with a slightly tweaked chassis featuring rounded edges that look a little like those of the Apple Watch. In addition, color options have been changed for this model, which now ships in blue, green, yellow, pink, and black.

The iPhone 15 starts at $799, while the Plus starts at $899.

iPhone 15 Pro & Pro Max

For the Pro versions of the iPhone 15, Apple chose to use titanium for the chassis, resulting in a lighter handset that comes in natural, blue, white, and black metallic hues. The screen now sports a smaller bezel, while the frosted glass back remains.

The two Pro handsets have 48-megapixel cameras with larger sensors for improved low-light photography. In addition, the 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera remains but is now joined by a game-changing 5x optical zoom on the Pro Max. Last but not least, the Pro model cameras gain the ability to record spatial video that can be viewed on Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro headset.

One final feature worth noting is that both Pro iPhones have ditched the mute button and replaced it with an “Action Button”, which is customizable via the Shortcuts app.

The iPhone 15 Pro starts at $999, while the Pro Max starts at $1,199.

iOS 17

Apple gave few details about updates to its mobile operating system but did announce that iOS 17 would arrive on Monday, September 18, presumably to tie in with the iPhone 15.

Apple Watches

Both Apple’s Series 9 and Ultra smartwatches received an update, too. The series 9 is now carbon neutral, comes in new colorways, and sports a touch-free feature called double tap. Meanwhile, the premium Ultra watch has an upgraded processor, improved battery life, and more accurate health readings.

News

Microsoft Plans $10 Billion-Plus Gulf Expansion Despite Iran Conflict

Security is shaping Microsoft’s approach, from resilience work with governments to what it will say about how the money splits by country.

Published

4 days ago

September 24, 2026

Nour Nasir

Microsoft

Microsoft is planning more than $10 billion of investment across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait through 2030, Vice Chair and President Brad Smith told Reuters, calling the spending schedule aggressive. The Iranian conflict that began on February 28 has not persuaded the company to scale back.

“We’re sustaining all the investments we planned to make before this conflict started, and we are in fact adding to them,” Smith said. The $10 billion-plus total does not, however, show how large those additions are.

The investment, which Smith described as part of Microsoft’s continued infrastructure expansion, is aimed at cloud and AI infrastructure and at the company’s growing regional operations. Microsoft also intends to put more than $400 million into subsea and terrestrial connectivity across the Middle East by 2030.

The spending fits the region’s own ambitions too. Gulf governments have been investing heavily in AI infrastructure as part of a push to diversify their economies beyond oil and gas and turn themselves into global technology hubs. Major cloud and AI providers have been drawn in part by the land and relatively low-cost energy on offer.

Microsoft is widening its partnerships with regional AI companies, though not on identical terms. In 2024, it invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi-based G42 for a minority stake, and Smith currently sits on G42’s board. Saudi Arabia’s Humain and Qatar’s Qai are working with Microsoft on selected priority areas, but Smith said the company does not plan to make capital investments in either.

Also Read: Egypt’s Mobile Wallets Are Booming, But Cash Still Has Power

The conflict has added another strand to Microsoft’s work in the region. Since it began, Smith said, the company has supported regional partners with digital resilience assessments, and it is now working with Gulf countries through a digital resilience initiative focused on preparedness and the protection of critical data.

So far, the company has given no country-by-country breakdown of the investment, citing security among other factors. So while the headline figure is public, how Microsoft divides the spending among the four countries is not.