Apple’s most necessary occasion of the 12 months takes place on Monday, when the corporate will roll out its newest iPhones and set the stage for a brand new synthetic intelligence platform.
The occasion kicks off at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, California, on 9 September at 10am native time (7pm SAST). Apple doesn’t sometimes maintain this occasion on a Monday, however the earlier timing lets the corporate get out forward of an eventful Tuesday: there’s a US presidential debate that day, and the European Fee is slated to announce a choice on whether or not Apple has to pay US$14-billion in taxes stemming from a longstanding settlement with Eire.
Probably the most vital product announcement would be the iPhone 16 line, however the firm can also be making ready main updates to each the Apple Watch and AirPods. Apple Intelligence — a brand new suite of AI instruments that features an up to date Siri digital assistant — additionally will characteristic prominently. The theme of the occasion, “It’s Glowtime”, is a reference to Siri’s new interface.
The stakes are excessive for Apple, which appears to be like to show to each shoppers and Wall Road that it’s now a serious participant in generative AI. However the firm’s AI expertise continues to be a piece in progress. Apple Intelligence has confronted quite a few delays, and lots of key options received’t arrive till subsequent 12 months. For now, the expertise is concentrated on summarising messages and notifications, relatively than matching the dazzling interactivity of rival methods.
Even so, Monday’s updates will breathe new life into merchandise that sit on the coronary heart of the Apple gadget line-up and generate roughly 60% of the corporate’s annual income. In addition they drive shopper spending on providers, an more and more very important supply of gross sales. Apple’s funds might use the enhance. The corporate has solely simply begun to emerge from its longest gross sales hunch in a long time.
Right here’s all the things that’s anticipated to be introduced at Monday’s presentation…
iPhone
- In step with the previous a number of years, Apple will introduce 4 new iPhone fashions: the iPhone 16, 16 Plus, 16 Professional and 16 Professional Max.
- Like in 2023, the modifications to the non-Professional iPhones shall be minor. The iPhone 16 and 16 Plus will appear like final 12 months’s variations, together with 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch display screen sizes and aluminium circumstances. They’ll acquire quicker processors and embody a complete of 8GB of reminiscence (up from 6GB). That reminiscence will assist assist Apple Intelligence and different options.
- These lower-end telephones will get the identical Motion button at present featured on the Professional fashions, in addition to vertically stacked rear cameras that assist spatial video recording — the 3D clips that may be considered with Apple’s Imaginative and prescient Professional headsets.
- The iPhone 16 Professional and Professional Max, in the meantime, will retain the iPhone 15 Professional line design save for one noticeable change: the shows. The display screen sizes are growing to six.3 inches on the smaller mannequin (up from 6.1 inches) and going to six.9 inches from 6.7 inches on the Max model. Whereas the modifications characterize a rise of lower than 5% on each fashions, the shift will include bezels that are actually a few third slimmer. That ought to make for a sleeker general look.
- Just like the iPhone 15 Professional line, the 16 Professional fashions will assist Apple Intelligence with the inclusion of 8GB of reminiscence. They’ll additionally get speedier chips with an enhanced neural engine that Apple will say is optimised for AI.
- Each of the iPhone 16 Professional fashions will get digicam upgrades as nicely, together with a transfer to a 48-megapixel lens from a 12-megapixel one for the ultrawide-angle digicam. That may match the megapixels of the usual, wide-angle digicam on final 12 months’s mannequin. The smaller iPhone 16 Professional will even acquire 5x optical zoom on the telephoto lens, up from 3x, to match the Max model.
- Probably the most vital digicam enhancement coming to each fashions: a devoted, touch-sensitive button on the precise facet of the telephone for taking images and video. This button would be the largest promoting level for the brand new iPhones, aside from AI. It’ll work equally to a shutter button on a DSLR digicam, permitting a consumer to flippantly press it to deal with a topic after which press more durable to take an image. It’ll even be capacitive, permitting a consumer to swipe throughout it to maneuver between nonetheless and video modes and zoom out and in.
- Whereas the telephones will all look largely the identical as final 12 months, Apple is shaking up its color palette. The Professional fashions will now are available in a gold titanium to exchange blue titanium, whereas the black, white and pure choices will nonetheless be accessible. The non-Professional variations will commerce in yellow for white and get new shades of inexperienced, pink and blue.
AirPods
- Apple is making ready two new AirPods fashions to exchange the entry-level, second-generation earbuds and mid-tier, third-generation mannequin. Each new variations will look just like the AirPods Professional and embody a brand new case, USB-C charging and improved audio high quality.
- Apple will distinguish the 2 fashions by giving the brand new mid-tier model a higher-end case with a speaker — making it simpler to find with Apple’s Discover My characteristic — in addition to noise cancellation to match the AirPods Professional.
- Just a few weeks in the past, Apple found a bug within the upcoming AirPods that made the earbuds rapidly drain battery life. This difficulty was decided to be software program associated and resolved previous to factories delivery out the merchandise.
- One main new characteristic is an even bigger push into listening to well being. Apple has been working to show the AirPods right into a alternative for listening to aids in addition to a tool for conducting listening to exams. The corporate is making ready to announce the enhancements — codenamed Yodel — however they’ve suffered some delays and might not be accessible till later.
- A brand new model of the AirPods Professional stays within the works, together with an upgraded design and improved noise cancellation. It’s due as early as subsequent 12 months.
- And Apple has been engaged on up to date AirPods Max headphones that may are available in new colors and change the Lightning connector to USB-C to adjust to the most recent legal guidelines from the EU. However there’s nonetheless loads of present AirPods Max stock available, suggesting that the replace may very well be coming later.
Apple Watch
- For the primary time in two years, the corporate is making ready to replace all of its Apple Watch fashions without delay. There shall be a brand new low-end Apple Watch SE, a mid-level Collection 10 mannequin and an Extremely 3.
- The Apple Watch Extremely will solely get minor tweaks, specializing in inner upgrades relatively than exterior modifications.
- The most important improve to the Apple Watch line shall be with the Collection 10 mannequin, which marks the last decade anniversary of the product’s introduction in 2014. For the primary time for the reason that Collection 7, the flagship Apple Watch mannequin will get an up to date look.
- The general design shall be just like the Apple Watch Collection 9, however the firm will now supply barely bigger screen-size choices and the watch case itself shall be noticeably thinner.
- Although new AI options are coming to the iPhone, iPad and Mac, don’t count on the watches to get main Apple Intelligence capabilities. Any AI expertise will in all probability be tied particularly to a future well being coach service.
- In the beginning of the 12 months, Apple was compelled to take away blood-oxygen sensing from new watches because of a lawsuit with Masimo over patents. There’s been no proof that the characteristic is returning in time for the most recent fashions, and that will have an effect on whether or not customers need to improve their current watches to variations that received’t have the perform.
- A serious new well being characteristic is coming, although: sleep apnea detection, which is able to construct on the present sleep monitoring. This characteristic will try to find out if a wearer has sleep apnea after which recommend additional testing with a medical skilled. Whereas Apple has been making ready to announce it, the enhancement might not be accessible on day one of many new mannequin occurring sale.
- However, whereas Apple aimed to deliver hypertension — or hypertension — detection to the Apple Watch this 12 months, indicators level to that characteristic being delayed and not within the playing cards for an instantaneous launch.
Different merchandise
- Apple is engaged on transitioning its whole Mac line to M4 chips, beginning with the MacBook Professional, Mac mini and iMac. However any Mac upgrades are prone to come at a follow-up launch — no sooner than October — relatively than on the September occasion.
- Whereas the corporate has been engaged on an replace to the Apple TV set-top field for as early as this 12 months, no new mannequin has come to fruition and steady stock of the gadget suggests a brand new model isn’t on the instant horizon.
- A brand new iPhone SE with an OLED show, edge-to-edge display screen and no dwelling button is in superior testing, however a launch isn’t deliberate till subsequent 12 months. A recent AirTag can also be in growth, although Apple isn’t planning a launch till subsequent 12 months both.
- There are additionally new iPads within the works, together with an upgraded mini model. They’re on deck for Apple’s October occasion alongside the M4 Macs. — (c) 2024 Bloomberg LP
