IPhone 7 Plus Shipping Issue, Is It Worth It?

If you belong to the Apple cult and awaiting its latest iPhone idol to be worship, then you are in for a big surprise.  Guess what? The iPhone 7 Plus does not ship until October 7-14, 2016 if you want the 32 GB version and November 28, 2016 if you want the 256 GB version!

Thankfully the I Phone 7 32 GB, 128 GB and 256 GB versions are scheduled to be on time, and pre-orders will be honored on September 16, 2016.  If you're wondering if it is worth it to wait at least another month before you purchase the $900+ smartphone, then here are a few options to leverage to test your decision making skills and vindicate your judgement. Source of information below is attributed to Forbes.com.

Cameras – Main Selling Points

There’s no denying Samsung is outshined Apple 720P low quality cameras in recent years, but the new iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus may steal it back:

• iPhone 7 – Rear: 12 megapixel sensor, f/1.8 aperture, Focus Pixels, Optical Image Stabilisation, quad-LED (dual tone) flash, 4K video recording. Front: 7MP sensor, f/2.2 aperture, 1080p recording
• iPhone 7 Plus – Rear: Dual 12MP sensors (f/1.8, 28mm & f/2.8, 56mm), Focus Pixels, OIS, 2x optical zoom, quad-LED (dual tone) flash, 4K video recording. Front: 7MP sensor, f/2.2 aperture, 1080p recording

iPhone 7 Plus, but first the iPhone 7 as it has made some significant improvements with a much larger f/1.8 aperture to let in more light (better for low light snaps in particular), a new 6-element lens and the long awaited addition of OIS. There’s also wide color capture for more color accurate photos and a new Apple-designed image signal processor which does the hard-work optimizing images after they are captured.

But it is the iPhone 7 Plus which will capture all the headlines as it is the first iPhone to use a dual camera setup. One camera is identical the wide-angle lens in the iPhone 7, but the second is a telephoto lens enabling 2x optical zoom and far greater depth of field (something Apple pointed out is particularly good for portrait shots).

In addition to this both phones get an upgraded four-LED True Tone flash which is 50 percent brighter, but uses warm and cool lights to produce more natural results. Both phones also have an upgraded 7MP front camera with 1080p video recording, though disappointingly this camera has a slower f/2.2 aperture (the same as last year’s models) so it waits to be seen how it performs in low light.

Storage And Price – The 16GB Curse Is Lifted

Far better news comes with storage and value for money, however, as Apple has at long long last ditched its useless 16GB of base level storage. In fact the company has double storage capacities at every tier so 16GB, 64GB and 128GB have been replaced with 32GB, 128GB and 256GB.

Consequently while prices are unchanged from last year this look better value for money:

• iPhone 7 – 32GB ($649), 128GB ($749), 256GB ($849)
• iPhone 7 Plus – 32GB ($769), 128GB ($869), 256GB ($969)

Needless to say that hardcore iPhone fans will grab the 256GB model, but I suspect many buyers of the previous 128GB flagship may now be happy to save $100 and opt for the same storage as a mid tier option.

Battery Life And Charging – Minimal Improvements

Apple failed to disclose the exact capacities of the batteries in either of its new iPhones, but it did say iPhone 7 owners could expect up to two additional hours of usage compared to the iPhone 6S while iPhone 7 Plus owners will get one additional hour compared to the iPhone 6S Plus.

Displays 

The much marketed 3D Touch is carried over from the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, but wasn’t name dropped once during the entire keynote.

Meanwhile on paper the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus look identical with OLED panels missing yet again and native resolutions moored far behind their flagship 2K (2560 x 1440) Android counterparts:

• iPhone 7 – 4.7-inch LED-backlit IPS LCD, 1334 x 750 pixels (326 ppi), 65.6% screen-to-body ratio
• iPhone 7 Plus – 5.5-inch LED-backlit IPS LCD, 1920 x 1080 pixels (401 ppi), 67.7% screen-to-body ratio

Apple is loudly proclaiming improvements to the quality of both displays highlighting a 25% brighter “cinema standard” Retina HD display. There is also a wider (P3) colour gamut and improved color management, though Apple stopped short of labelling them ‘True Tone’ displays like that on the iPad Pro.

Performance – Major Speed Upgrades

According to some metrics, the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus are still the fastest smartphones on the market one year on, but Apple has not stood still:

• iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus – Apple A10 Fusion chipset: Quad Core CPU, 2GB of RAM (3GB rumored for Plus, but unconfirmed)

I Phone 7 will be the first iPhones to be equipped with quad core processors. Apple claims they will deliver 40% faster CPU performance and up to 50% faster graphics performance than the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.

Some will bemoan that the iPhone 7 Plus hasn’t got the 3GB of RAM many had predicted, but new iPhones will still deliver performance that even 2017 Android flagships may struggle to live with. Update: some leaks are claiming the Plus will have 3GB but Apple has not confirmed that yet.

 

Design & Size

Apple has made virtually no changes to the external design. Apple fitted both the new iPhones with just a single Lightning port. Adaptors are bundled in the box, but users will now not be able to charge their iPhones and listen to music with wired headphones at the same time. This decision to going to divide a lot of users.

While the practicality of this decision is questionable, elsewhere the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are the most durable iPhones Apple has ever made. They add IP67 dust and water resistance (good for full submersion in up to 1 metre of water for 30 minutes) for the first time while still retaining the rigid Series 7000 Aluminium introduced last year with the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.

Also aiding durability is the replacement of the physical home button on both models with a touch sensitive surface which provides haptic feedback to mimic the feeling of a click. App developers can also harness the haptic feedback for custom vibrations, which could prove interesting.

Apple has also tidied up the antenna bands, removing them from the back of the phone so they only now appear at the top and bottom edges. Meanwhile the eagled eyed among you will have spotted a small physical change:

• iPhone 7 – 138.3 x 67.1 x 7.1 mm (5.44 x 2.64 x 0.28 in) and 138 g (4.87 oz)
• iPhone 7 Plus – 158.2 x 77.9 x 7.3 mm (6.23 x 3.07 x 0.29 in) and 188 g (6.63 oz)

The answer? While the dimensions are identical to the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are both fractionally lighter at 5g (0.17 oz) and 4g (0.14 oz) respectively. Then again they are still notably heavier than 2014’s iPhone 6 (129g) and iPhone 6 Plus (172g).

Sound Quality

Both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus gain dual speakers for the first time. Interestingly this is not from what seems like dual speakers at the bottom of the new iPhones (one side is the mic for phone calls), but through upgrading the speaker earpiece so it is loud enough to be an external speaker in its own right. Better external audio is a long awaited iPhone catchup.

As for finishes, you’ll get a wider array of options this year with Rose Gold, Gold, Silver, Black and (for just 128GB and 256GB options) Jet Black but wave goodbye to Space Grey.

Iphone 7: All You Need to Know About What is New and Changed in Less than Minute

What's new with the I Phone 7?

If you're like me, and your I phone  is on it last leg and you're waiting on the I phone 7, then you're in for a big surprise!

Both the 4.7-inch iPhone 7 and 5.5-inch 7 Plus come in the usual array of colors, with the added additions of the super glossy Jet Black and the slightly more ordinary Black. They have a 25 percent brighter display, with a wider color gamut for better color management and reproduction. This time around, the antennas are built right into the chassis, getting rid of those ugly lines from the previous two versions of the phone. Internally, the new phones get stereo speakers and a brand new A10 Fusion chip. And, possibly most importantly, the devices are water- and dust-resistant. But we get it: you want to drill into the big changes. Take a look below.

First of all lets get the big topic out of the way. There is No longer a Headphone Jack for your earbuds. To make the transition away from analog audio easier (if more expensive), Apple developed its own standard to allow wireless headphones to connect to the new iPhones seamlessly. Using its own W1 chip, Apple designed AirPods — or EarPods without wires — that connect to the iPhone without needing to pair like you would with Bluetooth. Beats has also developed two new headphones running on the W1 chip.

Second,the home button is gone. One of the iPhone’s most constant, iconic features is gone: the clicky physical button at the bottom of the phone. In the iPhone 7, the Home button is still there, but it’s no longer mechanical. Instead, like Apple’s new MacBook trackpads, the iPhone will provide touch feedback with the Taptic Engine.

Third, there is a better double camera.  The bigger version of the iPhone 7 comes with two rear-facing cameras, but it’s not going to let you capture your favorite moments in 3D. Instead, each camera has a different focal length, allowing for users to pick between shooting photos with a wide-angle or a telephoto lens. The iPhone 7 Plus will also be able to do some software tricks using those two different focal lengths. One is called "software zoom," where you’ll be able to "zoom" in the camera app between (and beyond) the two different focal lengths. The other is called "depth," and it uses the differences in the lenses to enhance the blur of the background behind your subject — similar to what phones like the recently released Honor 8 are capable of.

Fourth, the water resistant Apple Watch 2. Apple is back with what it calls the Apple Watch Series 2. It has all the requisite specs bumps: it has the brightest screen Apple’s ever shipped — supposedly twice as bright as the last Watch — and its new S2 chip has a dual-core processor that’s supposed to be 50 percent faster than its predecessor. On the outside, you’ve got the same square shape and side buttons, but it now comes in white ceramic along with aluminum and stainless steel. It also includes some snappy-looking new bands, including a custom design from Hermès, and there’s a Nike watch model that’s aimed specifically at guilting runners into regular exercise.

The Series 2 watches will start at $369, and just like Apple has done for iPhones and iPads, it’s keeping the original Watch around as a cheaper alternative. The Series One line, as it’s being called now, will be upgraded with the same S2 chip and sold for $269. Preorders will start September 9th, with the watches coming in late October. And watchOS 3, which was announced earlier this year, will be coming to current Watch owners on September 13th.

Fifth IOS 10 is coming out. iOS 10 is officially coming out on September 13th, bringing the next major iOS update to users after spending the summer in beta. This release represents one of the biggest iOS has ever seen. It means particularly big things for Siri, which has gotten smart enough to handle image searches and handle transcribing voicemails. But iOS 10 shows Apple becoming much more open, with Siri and iMessage now opening up to developers. Users will also see more widgets and better notifications, and Apple has extended Continuity to include Universal Clipboard, which lets you copy text and images on your phone and paste them on your Mac.

Availability?

The I Phone 7 will be available for purchase on Sept. 16, 2016.  You can start pre-ordering the phone on Sept 9, 2016. 

Fallout 4 Nuka World DLC: All Endings

"From here on out we're stuck together because what it took to get where you are now, the burned bridges, the salted earth, there is no going back.  Like it or not you're one of us.  A cut throat, a killer...A Raider. As luck would have it.  It seems this was the life you were meant for.   Sorry boss.  Take it from experience.  There is no point in fighting who you are.  You can only either let nature consume you, fall to booze and chems like the rabble around this place or you can embrace it.  Let it drive you.  With that in mind, I hope you appreciate the earnestness when I say...welcome home Boss!  Here is to a bright future."

     - Mags, Operators Leader

If you thought you were going to have a fun censored DisneyLand knockoff  DLC, then obvious you aren't used Bethesda irony and sarcastic metaphors.  In Fallout 4 last DLC, Nuka World, you challenged with being leader of 4 gangs that run a corrupt amusement park where innocent travelers are tricked by a lie of helping those in need and forced to fight to the death or become a slave to the bandit anarchy crime syndicates.

In Nuka World there are 4 Factions that run this sadist paradise:

Raiders

• The Pack
• Disciples
• Operators

Hubologists
Traders
Gunners

If you accept the challenge of managing in Hell hole full on disloyal, disrespectful, degenerates and anarchist then this is the add-on for you.  The DLC opens with you trying to defeat a Mad Max like maze of traps and blood thirsty upstart bandits looking to prove something or make a name for themself by gunning you down. After you overcome their challenges and prove your the alpha male or female in charge, then all the factions bow down to you and "let you" take charge of the place.

When I say "let you" take charge of the place, I mean they really only let you have political power to act as a non-bias leader that governs all bandit factions, and not let anyone faction have more leverage over the other. 

This DLC has real gang mentality and organized crime done with a mafia like twist.  At one point you're asked to make a tough choice of living the rest of your life sleeping with a gun under your pillow for safety or putting a bullet in head of the 4 faction leaders, Nisha, Mason, Mags, and William, then restore Nuke World to the peaceful free trading post that all assume it would be. The problem with putting a hit one leader of Disneyland causes all their followers and NPC to turn on Walt Disney. 

""Free and in charge today, tomorrow you'll be somebody slave.  Ain't life somethin.  After everything we done for them, they turned on us. Ungrateful shits! I expect more from Nisha at least. "

        - Porter Gage

Well Boss, you have to decide what direction you want to take.  The old saying you can't please them all, so decide which ones you value the most and which ones you want to screw over...holds weigh here.  

Picking your ending and bonus begins with how you plant flags at the amusement park during the Grand Tour Quest. You should give control of the park sections to the two you like (based on the perks below). Give them both at least 2 spots of land. One faction is going to betray you, and you'll lose favor and face them in the last quest. The more land you give a faction, the better they'll like you.

There are 5 spots to give out, but 3 factions - so even if you try to be fair, someone's getting shorted. You can guarantee you'll end up with the two you want by splitting the land at the Nuka World park 3 to 2, and leaving the other out. Also, bring the raider groups that you like to raid with you during quests after Grand Tour in order to gain more favor with them. See the Perks you gain for each of the raider factions under "Power Play Rewards" below.

"What should we do? We keep going! We take over more settlements in the commonwealth. We take what we want, and we keep taking until we own everything. Oh, and let me make something clear. I appreciate what you've done, but don't go thinking we're friends. We ain't. I'd still happily kill you if enough caps were involved."

- Mason, Pack Leader

Home Sweet Home and Consequences of Going Full Raider

You must build up three Raider Outposts in the Commonwealth during the Home Sweet Home Quest - which should be easy if you're familiar with the game's Settlements system. You will talk to Shank and get to select a Settlement from a few places, as well as which faction you'll bring along to do the raid (it's better to do that to gain more favor with one you like). You will lose control over that Settlement permanently (in terms of connecting it to your other Settlement supply lines and being able to build there), so choose wisely. You'll then be building it for the raiders.

You can choose to talk to the Settlers to get them to walk away or to actually raid it, which is really easy even though Minutemen show up. If you attack Minutemen, Brotherhood of Steel or other factions in the process (even if they're defending) you will permanently damage your reputation with that faction.(A reader warned this happened to them below.) You should make a backup save if you're unsure you want to go this route. You're going full raider if you attack, and it's impossible to finish the Nuka World content without the following consequence - permanent loss of standing with the Minutemen.

"It's like dealing with some rotten little kids, lashing out for attention. Better to die in a fight, then live with the consequences of the own stupidity"

      - Nisha, Disciples 

Losing Standing with Minutemen

Peaceful Bullying
This 100% requires speech checks and or paying off the Settlers. I tested this a lot and determined that for each stage of the quest you complete, Preston Garvey will get more upset. There's 0 impact until you start to take Outposts for the Raiders in Home Sweet Home. He'll gradually come to disown you and accept 0 orders, though he won't attack at first. This will stop endless Settlement quests, for sure! If you go the peaceful route and simply bully the Settlements, you'll reach the tipping point with him alone when you set up the second and third Raider Outposts. Again this is even with simply bullying and 0 violence.

Killing Minutemen & Settlers
If you go with violent actions, ALL Minutemen will hate you as you must kill them when they show up to defend the Settlements you raid (including Ronnie Shaw and named NPCs belonging to that particular faction). Keep all this in mind. You're helping raiders, and that goes against everything the Minutemen stand for, so there's no way around it.

Raid On
However, as Kris says below, you will not have an unkillable Preston Garvey attacking you forever. It only lasts a few days. This means the Minutemen could still be used to finish the game. Preston will never be your follower again, and you cannot get his companion Perk. It is a good perk, but so too are the raider perks. You could of course get his first.

Power Play Rewards - Nuka World Ending

You'll only get this far if you actually go all out as a Raider. During Power Play, you'll get to enable the park's power and allow some additional exploration that wasn't possible with everything off. However, you have to fight off the faction that backstabs you because they feel jilted.

As I said above, you can pick which Raider Factions will stick with you by favoring them in land division and bringing them along to raid. What dictates which faction you should side with and who gets to claim what land in the Nuka-World Park is largely taste, but many players will do it based upon the Perks the Raider Factions have to offer. Here's a rundown, copied from my page about the new SPECIAL and Faction perks offered in the Nuka World DLC:

• Disciples Faction - Chosen Disciple Perk. Any kills made with a melee weapon will restore 25% of yourAction Points.
• Operators Faction - Ace Operator Perk. All guns with a suppressor attached will get a 25% damage boost, permanently. Additionally, your character gains a 10% boost to sneak abilities when in the shadows.
• The Pack Faction - Pack Alpha Perk. Gives a +25% boost to melee and unarmed damage. Its additional function is to reduce damage/energy resistance by 25%! This is a further reduction to damage aside from your normal DR/ER and is certainly useful on a ranged character as well.

You'll Get Two Perks and Additional Rewards

After completing the 'Power Play' Quest, you'll be rewarded with the perks of the two factions that did not turn against you and may give the defeated faction's land to another group. There won't be another betrayal, you've unified the raiders and established a dominant group in the Commonwealth. The two Perks are a great reward, and from there you can accept radiant quests from the two factions remaining. Since my character is a Sniper, I naturally went with Operators and the Pack. A pure melee build would probably prefer Disciples/Pack.

Tribute Chests

Another nice reward are the tribute chests from each of the five zones of the park. Since you're the Overboss, you deserve a cut of what the raiders under you make - this is kind of how your Settlers give you supplies. Only since they're raiders, they will give you chems, money, and weapons/armor directly. Of course, plenty of Nuka Cola as well. Each of the three factions has a set loot table for what they'll give in the tribute chests, but it's hard to track it all down - it doesn't offer end-game gear, just different types of weapons and armor you'd inevitably sell. Nothing amazing, but it certainly helps and you're able to fast travel to the various zones and pick up your loot every so often.

Raider Outposts and Settlements you've convinced to supply the raiders will also pay tribute. This goes in your Overboss chest back in Nuka World. It's yet unclear how often Settlements and Raiders pay tribute to you but is likely related to time played.

You CAN have Settlements and Raider Outposts after Home Sweet Home

You'll have to give up 3 of your Settlements to Raiders to finish the DLC. As far as I'm currently aware, none of this will affect the others. No one has to know you're the notorious leader of a raider gang. When it comes time to setup Outposts, you should just use Settlements you care little about and use them to supply the settlement you raided.

Good Ending: The Open Season Quest

Very early on in the DLC, you can speak to Doctor Mackenzie in the Market in Nuka-Town and get theOpen Season quest. She'll point out how the merchants are all slaves and that you could save them all by killing off the leaders of the three raider factions, which will aggro literally every Raider in Nuka World. This is just a shortcut ending. You can still do a good bit of what Nuka World has to offer in terms of exploration as the whole land mass will still be there, but you'll ruin some of the potential quests and the ability to grant land to the raider gangs. Read the linked guide to see how far you probably should go - hint: at least finish The Grand Tour!

The Last Guardian is No Longer on Hold

I know I've been waiting on this day. Finally after many set backs, excuses, and announcements...The Last Guardian has an official release date.

On October 25, 2016 Playstation 4 owners will face unknown dangers in a strange and mystical land, an ordinary young boy and his gigantic feathered friend must rely on each other to survive in this harrowing story of friendship and trust.

In an interview by theguardian.com with Fumito Ueda, the creator of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus talks, about his hotly anticipated game and his nerves over its release.

When asked about the way in which intimate relationships have figured highly in his three PlayStation games, he shrugs and smiles. “It’s interesting,” he says. “From our side, we didn’t have a strong intent to portray relationships as a theme of our games. We actually tried not to do that. But as a lot of people played through Ico and Shadow of Colosuss, they said, ‘Oh, these games are about building a bond, they’re about trust.’ From my perspective, I just say, here, go ahead, play it – then at the end, the player can come to their own conclusion about what the game is trying to tell them. I don’t like to force feed themes.”

Indeed, it’s surprise about how players have interpreted his past work that led to the pairing at the centre of Last Guardian – the boy and the beast. “Once we were done with Shadow of Colossus there was a moment when I reflected on what we really wanted to communicate and portray in that game,” he says. “For me it was the main relationship between Wander and the girl, but after the release, I read a lot of feedback from players who were touched by the game, and they said that the relationship between Wander and the horse was the most important and appealing – we got the sense that this was what most people felt. I thought OK, if that’s the case, there are a lot of mechanics from that relationship that we could heighten and expand on. That’s where The Last Guardian came from.”