When Apple holds its annual launch event for the iPhone 13 in 2021, starting with a playful video featuring jazz dancers celebrating California’s natural beauty (which can be captured with the iPhone camera, of course).
Voice of Apple launches iPhone 14 This week is more bleak. After zooming in on Apple’s headquarters from space, it begins with a video highlighting users who wrote to Apple CEO Tim Cook saying they nearly died – but were saved thanks to Apple Watch calling 911.
“Dear Apple: My father was flying our small plane to Vermont. I was sleeping in the back seat. I woke up when we hit the treetops. The plane broke into six pieces and we were far from civilization. miles in the freezing cold. Then, all of a sudden, my Apple Watch started ringing,” said a character named Hannah.
Other characters in the short narrated video fall into freezing water, get trapped inside a garbage compactor, and witness a heart-pounding scene in a restaurant.
Saving lives in emergency situations is main topic about Apple’s launch this year, and many of the most notable new features the company announced are geared toward safety.
The most important capability of this year’s new iPhone is called “Emergency SOS via satellite“can send messages for help even without cell service for miles around. Users can also share their location with family or friends in the Find My app.
Apple’s example of how the feature works shows a hiker with a broken leg on top of a mountain calling for a helicopter. Then Apple referred to the zigzag roads as another place where iPhone users can stay out of range.
But this feature can be useful in the wild outside. Wildfires, hurricanes, and other disasters that can cut cellular service and your ability to contact emergency services or let your family know where you are can really be a lifesaver in these situations. there.
Another example: Apple’s Ultra Watch $799 and up, has an 86-decibel siren that can be heard 600 meters away, and compass features that allow users to retrace their steps without need internet.
Just like the satellite feature, Apple has advertised it as for remote explorers, but it can also be useful in more mundane settings. Imagine sounding an alarm as a deterrent to an attacker, or use video recording to find your way back to your car after a local disaster disrupts cellular service.
Apple also announced this week that iPhones and Apple Watches can now call 911 if they detect a car crash using motion sensors.
“We really hope you never need it, but you’ll feel a little safer every time you get in the car,” said an Apple presenter, shortly before filming another commercial. where a driver crashes the airbag in slow motion after a collision.
Apple launch events are designed to do one thing: Increase demand for new Apple products. Apple wants to make the iPhone more “essential” for their users despite the safety features, giving users a reason not to switch to competing Android devices.
Will these features significantly increase iPhone adoption and sales? As it turns out, Apple has at least considered this possibility in the past.
In a reveal with the ESG group CDP published in January 2019An Apple representative wrote about potential business opportunities stemming from climate change, citing the previous version of the “SOS” feature as an example of Apple’s work to build features for the emergency situation.
“As extreme weather events become more frequent, consumers can appreciate the immediate and ubiquitous availability of reliable mobile computing devices for use in extreme situations. Traffic, power, and other services may be temporarily disrupted,” an Apple representative wrote.
Apple cited the events of 9/11 and hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, and Harvey as “extreme weather events” that are occurring more frequently.
“Over time, as people begin to experience extreme weather events with greater frequency, we expect an increasing need for confidence and preparedness in the area of personal safety and happiness of loved ones,” Apple wrote in the disclosure.
Apple isn’t the only consumer electronics company developing safety features for its devices. But Apple devices also have a host of powerful health features, like fall detection for the elderly and heart monitoring, that make the overall safety even stronger.
“iPhone is here when you need it most,” said one presenter at the launch event. “That confidence is especially important in times when your safety is at risk.”
We could see the beginnings of a new messaging strategy at Apple: Apple devices are the ones you want when things don’t go your way.
