Hands-on with 3D Touch and new cameras on the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus
The iPhone 6s is almost the same size as the iPhone 6 … Andrew Grush / Android Authority : Would you like to see an Android OEM directly offer its own upgrade program? Karl Bode / DSLreports : Apple's New iPhone Upgrade Program: $32 a Month for a New iPhone See also Mediagazer
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple's 2015 'S' refresh keeps the iPhone 6's dimensions but adds two headline changes: a pressure-sensitive 3D Touch display and upgraded cameras. On launch day The Verge put it directly against the Galaxy S6, Note 5, Moto X Style, and Nexus 6, framing this as a spec fight with Android flagships rather than an incremental bump.
The commercial backdrop matters as much as the hardware: alongside the phones, Apple rolled out a $32-a-month iPhone Upgrade Program (reported by Karl Bode), which later extended to the online store — shifting how customers buy iPhones at the exact moment Android OEMs were asked whether they'd follow with their own programs.
First-order effects
- Buyers choosing between the iPhone 6s and Android flagships now weigh 3D Touch and the new camera system against Samsung's Galaxy S6/Note 5, Motorola's Moto X Style, and Google's Nexus 6 — same-day comparisons made the trade-offs explicit.
- The $32/month Upgrade Program gives would-be upgraders a direct-from-Apple path that bypasses carrier subsidy math entirely.
Second-order effects
- Android OEMs face pressure on two fronts: matching pressure-sensitive input and camera gains at the flagship tier, and answering whether to offer their own device-upgrade subscriptions — a question Andrew Grush put directly to readers.
- If the Upgrade Program takes hold, carriers lose their role as the default financing channel for iPhones, weakening subsidized-handset economics across US retail.
Third-order effects
- The 'S' pattern — keep the design, add input and camera capabilities — becomes the template Apple repeats with the iPhone 7, whose hands-on notes it still looks like the 6s while the camera again carries the story.
- Feature stratification hardens: the cheaper iPhone SE ships with 6s-class power and camera but omits 3D Touch, signaling that flagship-only inputs become the way Apple tiers its lineup.
The trend: Smartphone differentiation is migrating toward new interaction layers (pressure touch) and camera systems, while Apple converts annual upgrades into a direct subscription business outside carrier control.