This article is from WeChat official account:Tencent Technology (ID: qqtech), author: Zhongwen Ze, original title “exclusive interview, vice president of Apple: iPhone 5G features and 12 other phone What is the innovation? “, the head picture comes from: Visual China

Apple released the 2020 new flagship iPhone 12 series at the autumn new product launch conference. This time, the iPhone 12 series went uncharacteristically and launched four models. The screen sizes of the four machines range from 5.4 inches to 6.7 inches, and the A14 bionic chip is used on the processor, and they all support the 5G network functions that users expect.

The 5G network can achieve a theoretical download speed of one gigabit. Whether it is downloading audio, video or high-definition video calls, the experience can be improved through 5G networks.

As of the end of September this year, my country has opened 690,000 5G base stations, fulfilling the goal of 500,000 base stations this year ahead of schedule, and has achieved 5G network urban coverage in cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hangzhou. According to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the production index of my country’s information transmission, software and information service industries increased by 10.1% in the first three quarters.

Many consumers are very concerned about the changes in user experience after Apple enters the 5G market this year, as well as the experience and challenges in the process of cooperating with Chinese operators. Tencent Technology started a dialogue with Kaiann Drance, Apple’s vice president of marketing, on these issues.

1. Apple is now entering 5G and is confident in the development of 5G

In this interview, I first mentioned Tencent Technology’s interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook last year. In that interview, facing the time when 5G is just emerging in the Chinese market, the iPhone 11 series did not support 5G network. In this regard, Cook once said that the iPhone 11 series does not support 5G networks because 5G networks were not mature at that time and could not bring users a better experience.

With the release of iPhone 12, Apple finally supports 5G. Does this imply that Apple’s attitude towards 5G has changed and that the 5G market is mature? In response to this, Apple’s vice president Kaiann responded that Apple remains very optimistic about the 5G market, especially the iPhone’s support for 5G networks. Apple will continue to cooperate with operators to improve the daily 5G experience.

In the past 2020, domestic users should feel deeply about the emergence of 5G from scratch. Taking Tencent Technology’s experience in Beijing as an example, the 5G signal in Beijing has basically achieved full outdoor coverage. More indoor environments can also receive 5G signals. Kaiann told Tencent Technology that Apple is full of confidence in the continuous development of 5G, making the network faster and faster and laying signals more and more perfect.

2. The embarrassment of 5G at this stage: there is no explosive application support

Although 5G is gradually expanding in China, especially in large cities, the 5G packages of China Mobile, China Unicom and China TelecomIt is also becoming more people-friendly, but I have to admit that the current 5G network does not have a popular application developed for 5G.

This also allows most domestic 5G users to use 5G only in the direction of “speed measurement”. Regarding this situation, Kaiann said that in fact, 5G has begun to gradually penetrate into the lives of users. For example, before the plane takes off, or before the trip, you can quickly download an entire TV series; when you use the mobile phone network to upload videos to social platforms, you can complete the upload faster; you can even use the 5G network to download the app store Of large applications. In these areas, 5G has actually begun to quietly change the user experience.

For third- and fourth-tier cities where 5G is not yet fully developed, Apple has also upgraded the iPhone 12. When using the now fully mature 4G network, the iPhone 12’s LET network connection speed is higher The generation has doubled. From the previous 1Gb data transmission per second to the current 2Gb per second, users can get a better experience even if they use the iPhone 12 on the LTE network.

3. Will Apple’s entry into 5G promote industry development? Developer is the key

As the world’s most valuable technology company, Apple has always been the most influential manufacturer in the industry for its related technology promotion in the technology field, mainly due to its software, hardware and ecological integration capabilities. Previously, there were no 5G-related explosive applications in the mobile application field. To a certain extent, developers still lacked a huge market impetus.

For the development of 5G applications, Kaiann told Tencent Technology that Apple has actually been helping developers. Take this year’s autumn new product launch event as an example. At the launch event, Apple invited several developers to the stage to showcase new applications developed by using the new features of iPhone 12. Apple is continuously updating the API interface and expanding the system architecture so that more developers can better use 5G to achieve more functions. At the same time, Apple will continue to optimize the power consumption of 5G so that developers can Under the 5G high-speed network, get a longer experience.

4. The iPhone’s 5G support is one year late, bringing new features and thinking different from other manufacturers

In the second half of 2019, the 5G network was officially commercialized in the Chinese market, and domestic mobile phone manufacturers began to follow up with 5G in large numbers and launched a variety of 5G models. By the second half of this year, domestic Android mobile phone manufacturers support 5G models It is already blooming everywhere. And has the iPhone 12, which has just released 5G capabilities, brought a new 5G experience in the past year?

For this issue, Kaiann said, Although Apple only added support for 5G networks on the iPhone this year, it has actually been developing internally for many years. In the process of cooperating with operators and partners, Apple has been working hard to find problems and actively communicate with operators to solve them, such as improving data throughput, call quality and battery life.

For example, in the iPhone 12 series, from the application level to the system-level framework, the entire software stack is analyzed and optimized to give full play to the potential of 5G. Many apps can enjoy the benefits of 5G without More power consumption. Apple has introduced a smart data mode to help save battery power. Unlike current Android phones that support 5G networks, the smart data function can intelligently determine user usage scenarios, and actively adjust back to 4G network when 5G network is not needed, thereby extending the phone Battery life. These new features are also the self-innovation thinking of the 5G network of the iPhone, which launched the 5G function a year later.

5. For the best experience of 5G, close cooperation with operators is king

As the world’s leading 5G market, China’s three major operators, China Mobile, China Unicom, and China Telecom, are all proactive in the construction of 5G base stations. According to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, as of the end of September, the number of 5G terminals in my country has exceeded 100 million.

For the cooperation with operators, Apple’s vice president Kaiann said that Apple has done a lot of cooperation and line testing with Chinese operators. In order to test the signal performance of 5G, Apple has traveled 100,000 miles around the world, and China is one of them.

In many fields, including data backhaul, network testing, etc., Apple and Chinese operators cooperated to complete the work. In the process of upgrading 5G, Apple will also encounter many network problems. At this time, simply upgrading the network configuration will significantly increase the difficulty, and cooperating with Chinese operators will solve the problem more easily.

In the continuous development of 5G, operators such as China Mobile will continue to update frequency bands and spectrums. This also requires Apple to continuously debug and cooperate with the software to allow domestic users to get the best 5G network experience.

The following is the original interview:

Tencent Technology: I interviewed Tim Cook last year. In an interview, he said that the iPhone 11 series did not support 5G because the market is not yet mature. So does the 12 series support 5G because the market is mature? How to judge?

Kaiann: We are very excited about the arrival of 5G on the iPhone, and we continue to cooperate with operators to make the 5G experience better and better. We believe that 5G will continue to develop, making its network faster and faster, and at the same time, the signal laying will become more and more perfect. Operators are also continuing to expand the area of ​​network coverage. We believe that the current 5G technology and market are exciting, so Apple will continue to cooperate with operators to make the 5G experience the best.

Tencent Technology: In large cities like Beijing and Shanghai, 5G network deployment has been quite complete. However, the core problem facing 5G is the lack of 5G application support. Apart from testing the speed to show that the 5G network is fast, there seems to be nothing else that can be done. Then after purchasing a 5G iPhone, what experience changes can consumers get? Make them feel that it is significantly different from the 4G iPhone? For cities with slow 5G development, is this phone worth upgrading?

Kaiann: We think the biggest difference is naturally the speed brought by 5G.

For example, you can use 5G to quickly download an entire TV series before the plane takes off, or before the trip, so that you can watch the series during the journey; or upload content on the mobile network, compared to the past The speed of mobile phone network will be significantly improved; now you can quickly download large applications in the App Store using 5G network; uploading videos shot on your mobile phone will also increase the speed. In these daily activities, users will get a better experience.

For those urban users whose 5G deployment is not yet mature, the iPhone 12 series has also upgraded their experience. Apple doubled the LTE network connection speed from the previous 1Gb data transmission per second. With the current transmission of 2Gb per second, these users can use the iPhone 12 to wait for the 5G network to mature.

At the same time, it needs to be said that the 5G support frequency band of the iPhone 12 series is the most abundant among global manufacturers, so users can use 5G networks in more countries and regions without restriction.

Tencent Technology: We have always heard a voice saying that Apple’s entry will bring great development to the 5G field. From Apple’s point of view, are there any developments in 5G applications? Incentive policies to drive the development of 5G? Are there any clear directions for the promotion of 5G functions?

Kaiann: The advantages brought by 5G are not only our devices and users, but also the possibility for developers to implement many new features.

At the autumn new product launch conference, several developers have already taken advantage of the new features of iPhone 12. For developers, Apple will continue to update the API and expand the system architecture. So that developers can use 5G to achieve more possibilities like us, and we will continue to optimize the power consumption and performance of 5G so that they can continue to maintain faster speeds.

We also look forward to the fact that developers can bring more innovations in the 5G field. We will continue to support developers and help developers to develop apps in the 5G field. We will also promote to provide developers with a better economy.

Tencent Technology: iPhone support for 5G was released a year later than Android phones. In the past year, have you developed different features from Android 5G? What are the specific advantages?

Kaiann: In fact, we have been researching and developing 5G for many years. Although this is the first time everyone has seen 5G come to the iPhone, we actually started research and development very early.

Apple has been working closely with operators and partners. In the process of cooperative research and development, we have been working hard to find problems and then solve various problems through communication with operators.Such as improving data throughput, call quality, battery life and other aspects of the experience.

In the process of cooperation, we also saw the enthusiasm of our partners to promote the development of 5G, which allowed us to set ourselves a higher standard for 5G and bring a better 5G experience to the consumer market through the iPhone .

Tencent Technology: What cooperation does it have with Chinese operators to ensure that Chinese users have the best 5G experience?

Kaiann: We have done a lot of cooperation and ground testing with Chinese operators. In order to test the signal performance of 5G, Apple has traveled 100,000 miles around the world, and China is one of them. One, to ensure that our testing and verification can be carried out in the real world.

When these data are returned to our devices, we can see the best performance of the network. These are all done in collaboration with partners including Chinese operators.

In the process of improving 5G capabilities, we will also encounter some network problems. If we simply improve the network configuration, we will often encounter greater difficulties. In cooperation with operators, we and operators will adjust the software to solve problems together.

In the continuous development of 5G, operators will continue to update the spectrum and frequency bands. In this process, we will also adjust the software to solve the uncertainties encountered, and obtain 5G through continuous cooperation with Chinese operators. The best experience.

Summary

Through my recent use of iPhone 12, the iPhone after supporting the 5G function has indeed significantly improved the user experience. The intuitive experience is reflected in the operations of downloading videos, applications and uploading videos. I also hope that after entering 5G, Apple It can better promote the development and improvement of the 5G industry, bring more applications developed for 5G, and allow more users to experience the true power of 5G.

This article is from WeChat official account: Tencent Technology (ID: qqtech) , Author: Zhongwen Ze