Apple iPhone 7 Review

Another year, another new iPhone and this time, it’s the iPhone 7 and it’s had a number of upgrades, including an improved camera that now features optical image stabilisation, a bright f/1.8 lens and a 12-megapixel sensor. The front camera has also been upgraded, and is now a 7-megapixel camera, with an f/1.8 lens.

Apple iPhone 7 Features

The lens in the iPhone 7 has seen a big improvement, with a new f/1.8 aperture lens, compared to f/2.2 on the 6s/6s Plus. Optical image stabilisation is also built-in which will further help in low-light. The sensor has been confirmed as being made by Sony (by Chipworks), and is a 12 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor, with built-in phase detection focus pixels, for quicker focus speeds. You can also shoot raw images with iOS 10 which comes with the iPhone 7, and the flash system has been updated to include 4 LED lights instead of 2.

There are a number of shooting modes available, including time-lapse, Slo-mo, video, photo, square photo, and panoramic. In the photo mode there are 8 different effects available, and you can switch on the self-timer, HDR (on/off/auto), and flash (on/off/auto). There is also the option to shoot "Live" photos, which records 1.5 seconds of video before and after taking a photo to animate the photo. Live photos can only be shared with other iPhones (or iPads), and you'll need a Mac to view them on a computer, although it is possible to share them to Facebook.

The screen remains the same at 4.7 inches with a resolution of 1334x750 pixels and is now a wide colour gamut display (DCI-P3). The camera also takes wide colour gamut images.

The phone is water-resistant*, has stereo speakers, runs iOS 10, and does not feature a headphone socket instead, providing an adapter for the lightning port, so that you can use standard headphones.

^* iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are splash, water and dust resistant, and were tested under controlled laboratory conditions with a rating of IP67 (up to 1m) under IEC standard 60529. Splash, water and dust resistance are not permanent conditions and resistance might decrease as a result of normal wear. Do not attempt to charge a wet iPhone; refer to the user guide for cleaning and drying instructions. Liquid damage not covered under warranty. (from Apple)

The camera records 4K video, and with built-in optical image stabilisation, your video will also benefit from optical image stabilisation, helping keep video steady.

Apple says that the phone has improved battery life, and a new processor to make the phone quicker.

Key Features

• 12mp BSI CMOS sensor with focus pixels (phase-detection)
• f/1.8 aperture, 28mm equivalent, 6 element lens
• Optical Image Stabilisation (3 stops)
• 4.7inch wide colour gamut screen (1334x750, DCI-P3)
• Wide colour gamut / CINE quality photographs, beyond sRGB
• New True Tone Flash (4 LEDs) with flicker sensor
• 4K video recording at 30fps with OIS
• Apple design image signal processor (new)
• Raw image capture
• 7mp f/2.2 FaceTime HD (Selfie) BSI CMOS sensor with wide colour capture and auto image stabilisation
• Aluminium body - Black, Gold, Silver, Rose Gold or Jet Black
• Water and dust resistant (IP67)
• Improved battery life
• Basic model comes with 32GB

Apple iPhone 7 Handling

You can press the home button or lock button when the phone is locked, and swipe the screen left to quickly access the camera. The home button isn't actually a button, but now uses “haptic feedback” and doesn’t actually press down, but certainly feels like you are pressing something due to the vibration of the phone. The home button can be used for a number of things, including unlocking your phone with the fingerprint sensor built into it, press it once to get to the home screen and press it twice to get to different apps that are running. You can use the volume buttons on the side of the phone to take photos if you don’t want to use the touch-screen.

To shoot raw images you’ll need a 3rd party app, and Adobe Lightroom mobile lets you shoot Adobe DNG raw files, as well as adjust additional settings such as white balance, but not ISO. You can use VSCO Cam for free which lets you manually adjust the shutter speed, ISO and white balance. Camera+ is another app that will let you shoot raw, and change more settings, but is £2.29 at current prices.

The screen looks very good, and although the resolution may seem low, at 1334x750 pixels, compared to Android phones FullHD and QuadHD displays, it still looks good. Although whites don’t look as pure white as some phones and screens, for the most part, you won’t really notice unless you’re comparing one phone next to another. Visibility is very good both indoors and outside, and there’s a night mode designed to make the screen less likely to keep you awake at night.

The back of the phone is very slippery, and a case is definitely recommended to give additional grip, as well as additional protection to the phone, particularly as you'll want to protect your investment. 

The phone is extremely well-built, and we were hard pressed to find another phone built as well as the iPhone 7. The water resistant rating of the phone is also particularly useful to give extra protection for accidentally dropping the phone in water, or alternatively to let you use it for some underwater photography.

The menus and options are easy to use, and the whole operating system is easy to pick up, whether you're used to an Android or other smartphones. The four icons on the bottom of the screen can be customised, so you could replace one of them with the Camera app, as we have done.

Battery life - Battery life is improved compared to previous versions of the iPhone, and we were able to get a full day's use out of the phone, over 17 hours in total before we needed to charge the phone again. This is reasonably good, although the battery life will change depending on what you're doing with the phone, and a separate battery charger is recommended as you can't change the battery in this phone.  

Speed - Getting to the camera from the phone being locked or on standby is reasonably quick at under 4 seconds, and focus is quick at under 0.3 seconds (including shutter response). The phone performs quickly and is Apple's fastest smartphone to date, so shouldn't have any problems running any of the latest games or apps. The phone takes less than 30 seconds to switch on from being off. If you hold the shutter release button, the camera can shoot at up to 12fps.