We're a day away from the biggest Apple event of the year. And it looks like we could see at least three new products announced, including the new iPhone 13 lineup.
The live stream kicks off 10 a.m. PT, 1 p.m. ET, and 6 p.m. BST, and it's there that we'll finally get to see the much-rumored iPhone 13. We're also expecting the Apple Watch 7 and AirPods 3, but the jury is still out on whether we might see new iPads.
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While we expect the iPhone 13 to steal the limelight, the other Apple devices are certainly exciting. And we'd not be surprised if Apple gives us a hint at what other new products we could expect to see from it before 2021 comes to an end.
So here's what to expect from the Apple Event on September 14.
Apple event: iPhone 13 what to expect
The iPhone 13 rumors have accelerated over the past few months, and the first thing to expect is a smaller display notch. This has been rumored for a while, and despite a few hints that there'll be no notch, we feel the realistic move is for Apple to have shrunken it down so it takes less of a chunk out of the OLED display.
And speaking of the display, we’re really hoping that Apple uses a dynamic 120Hz refresh rate display that uses an LTPO panel across all four predicted iPhone models: the standard iPhone 13, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. Unfortunately, its rumored that the 120Hz display will be kept for the Pro handsets. That would incentivize Apple fans to go for the more expensive phones.
Speaking of the iPhone 13 Pro, an alleged dummy unit shows off the "final" design of Apple's flagship handset. Going by the images you can clearly see there's a smaller notch and a trio of rear cameras; it's very much an evolved take on the iPhone 12 Pro rather than a major change.
Larger batteries have also been tipped for all four iPhone 13 models, which would be welcome. The iPhone 12 Pro Max performed well on our battery test but in general the iPhone 12 Pro battery life results were disappointing.
Another display feature we feel is very likely to make it into the iPhone 13 is an always-on display. We’ve seen this in plenty of Android phones, so it’s about time Apple caught up, as being able to see certain information at a glance is very handy.
Another upgrade that seems certain for the new iPhone is the A15 Bionic chip; we’d expect a solid boost in overall performance and graphics power, as well as an AI performance uptick to help make Siri and image processing faster.
We’re also expecting to see improved 5G connectivity for the iPhone 13 facilitated by a new modem chip. Satellite connectivity has been tipped for the iPhone 13, too, but it may be for emergencies only and with limited availability at first.
And finally, another sure-fire bet is improved camera capabilities and performance for the iPhone 13 models. Across all four new iPhones, we’re expecting to see an astrophotography feature and portrait mode video. And sensor-shift stabilization has been tipped for all the next-gen iPhones.
Furthermore, Max Weinbach through his PineLeaks Twitter account claimed that: "all sensors across the board now receive at least 15% more light." We're taking that take to mean the sensors on cameras across all four expected iPhone 13 models, though there's a chance it just refers to the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max.
The Pro models are expected to have an improved 6-element ultrawide-angle lens, as well as autofocus. But beyond that, we’re not convinced there’ll be any huge changes; certainly not a fourth lens.
Apple event: AirPods 3 and Apple Watch 7
We’re also expecting the September Apple event to show off the AirPods 3 and Apple Watch 7.
The AirPods 3 are tipped to look a lot like the AIrPods Pro by dropping the stalks on the current buds, and could come with active noise cancellation, though the jury is out on that. Flexible eartips are also expected, and would seem like a realistic upgrade to us.
However, the AirPods 3 could be more expensive than the AirPods 2, and Apple could decide to keep the older AirPods around in order to have a budget option.
The Apple Watch 7 could offer a rather notable upgrade over the Apple Watch Series 6. The Apple Watch 7 display is also tipped be flat and a little larger by running closer to the edges. Cupertino’s next smartwatch is also rumored to come in two new larger sizes: 41mm and 45mm. A new double-sided S7 processor is also expected, and combined with the larger size, could see the Apple Watch get a battery boost.
There were rumors that the Apple Watch 7 could be delayed due to manufacturing problems. But they are now tipped to have been solved and the Apple Watch 7 is apparently back on track for a September release.
Apple event: What we probably won't see
We're expecting to see the iPad mini 6 make its debut this fall, updating the rather tired-looking iPad mini 5. But we're not sure when it'll arrive. The same thing goes for the new iPad 9.
Relatively reliable tech tipster and Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman has the next-gen iPadsi tipped to be shown off at the same event as the rumored MacBook Pro 2021 14-inch 2021 and new MacBook Pro 16-inch 2021.
The compact tablet has been tipped to get a new design that makes it look a lot like a shrunken iPad Pro 2021, albeit supposedly without a mini-LED display. So there's still a chance it could be revealed on September 14.
Speaking of pro machines, the aforementioned MacBook Pros are expected to come with a new design, likely incorporating a mini-LED display, as well as the M1X chip, which appears to be a dramatically boosted take on the Apple M1 chip.
Gurman has these new MacBook Pros tipped to be released within the "next several weeks." So tomorrow's Apple event could soon be followed by another Mac-centric showcase, likely around early October.
All these rumors and information tidbits seem fairly realistic to us. But we’ll find out more soon. So be sure to check back with Tom’s Guide as we’ll bring you all the latest Apple news from the event on September 14.
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