LOOKING at it from the outside, it appears not a lot has changed with the new iPhone 6s.
But appearances can be deceptive.
The addition of 3D touch, a much better camera with 4k video capability, and a faster engine means the Apple experience has risen another notch.
3D Touch, using Apple's clever taptic engine, offers a new way to interact with your phone.
Press icons on your screen harder and you are given quick options, whether it be directions home from your map, sending your location or searching for things nearby.
Do the same with in your email app and you can have a peak at what's inside an email without having to open it.
Hard click on your calendar and you can quickly add an event or be reminded of what's coming up in the next couple of days.
Do the same with your camera icon and you can quickly take a selfie, record a video, a slo-mo or just take a normal photo.
The benefit of Peek and Pop as Apple calls it, is that you can quickly delve into things without losing your place. It's something that will appeal to those who get lost in the maze of apps.
A better camera and 4k video
One of the coolest new features of the iPhone 6s is 4k video capability - about four times the resolution you would see on your average HD TV screen.
We shot some video on the beach and then played it back on a new 27 inch iMac. The results were pretty amazing - a 'take you there' video experience. You literally could see through the water as it washes over the rock.
Even on the iPhone itself you can notice the difference - particularly as you are now able to pinch and zoom on your video on the phone itself to reveal the high level of detail.
The 4K video supports video stabilisation, continuous autofocus, face detection, and the ability to take an 8MP still while recording.
The slo-mo feature now allows 1080p at 120fps or 720p at 240 fps.
The time-lapse video mode offers new video stabilisation - something which will appeal to those who hands are not so steady.
The large iPhone 6 Plus offers optical image stabilisation which uses both hardware and software to capture beautiful low-light photos and videos.
The newest version of iMovie allows you to edit 4k video and share them on YouTube at 4K resolution. The app is super easy to use and offers a great variety of templates - including cool movie trailer formats for punchy family productions.
Apple says the 6s is powerful enough to edit two streams of 4K video to create effects like picture-in-picture and split screen-a challenge for many home computers.
The new 12 megapixel iSight camera promises less noise and truer colours while the 5 megapixel Facetime HD camera offers a much better flash for selfies.
The iSight camera features a new signal processor and advanced pixel technology.
The camera works better in low light while in bright light it uses 'multi-band noise reduction' to de-noise smooth areas while preserving textures and edges.
On the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, you can take amazing panoramas, up to 63 megapixels in size. They look stunning on the big screen iMac.
One of the coolest features is Live Photos which captures the moments just before and after a photo is taken.
You can catch your child making silly faces just before the family photo or the sound of the waves breaking on the beach as the tide comes in.
Powering the iPhone 6s is the third generation A9 chip with 64-bit architecture which Apple says improves overall CPU performance by up to 70% compared to the previous generation.
The graphics performance is said to be up 90%, something which should appeal to gamers.
Overall, there's a lot to love about the new iPhone, especially if you're an Apple devotee.
- The Chronicle (Australia)