iApprecation

Another year, another iPhone.

If all the speculation proves to be true, Apple will unveil the next generation of the iPhone, tentatively dubbed the “iPhone 5S” and the “iPhone 5C,” at a press conference-esque event next Tuesday, Sept. 10.

Widely accepted rumors suggest the “5S” could include a better flash, updated camera, more power under the hood, a fingerprint sensor under the home button, and it could come in black, white, gold and possibly even a new graphite.

The new kid on the block this year is the iPhone “5C.” It’s a slightly dumbed down version of the “5S” with a plastic back and a price slash. It’s coming in a litany of colors, hence the “C.”

It’s all going to be great, classic Apple fare.

But so many people don’t even know. They haven’t been following the rumor mill or the competitors’ technology updates.

Many iPhone owners don’t even know that a pretty huge software update is coming their way this week. iOS7 was announced this summer. It’s pretty. Go check it out.

We’ve become apathetic to the technology we use because we take it so heavily for granted.

When Steve Jobs first unveiled the iPhone in 2007, it was hailed as the “Jesus phone.”

The iPhone had it all. It had the first truly user-friendly majority touchscreen interface, it had the best-looking music player we’d ever seen, it had as elegant a design as a cell phone can have, and above all, it put the entire world of information in our hand in a way no other device had been able to do before.

But at this point, all that’s old news. We’re jaded.

It’s understandable. We don’t marvel at how incredible the motorized engine is every time we get in a car.

My iPhone has become an extension of my hand. Every Tweet, every Instagram and every text has become not just second nature, but part of my first nature.

Used responsibly, the smartphone truly is one of the most invaluable technologies of all of human history.

And we can all thank the iPhone for bringing the smartphone to our collective mind’s forefront. The iPhone was the first one that really mattered.

So, next week, don’t be the person who just happens to see a little red “1” pop up on their “Settings” icon— you know, the same person who finds out about the new “gold” iPhone when they see someone using one.

Be the person who sits down and watches the livestream of the Apple press conference. Enjoy all the bravado and enigma of an Apple launch event. Revel in the elegance of the iPhone.

But above all, appreciate the technology you’ve got in your very own pocket. It’s pretty cool.

­— ihajinaz@indiana.edu
Follow columnist Ike Hajinazarian on Twitter @_IkeHaji.