Ready to shine! iPhone, Apple Watch and everything you can expect from Apple's event

Fall can be used for many things: the baseball playoffs, the changing of the leaves, the emergence of pumpkin spice, and of course, new iPhones.

This year, Apple is holding its annual special event on a rare Monday (presumably to avoid conflicting with a presidential debate on Tuesday), and the company is expected to make a number of announcements.

In the past, Apple’s phone events have ranged from those where it felt like we’d heard rumors about everything that was going on to those where it felt like we knew nothing at all. This year, it falls somewhere in between: rumors are flying, but there’s enough of a “is that it?” feeling that it’s hard not to imagine that Apple has something something else up his sleeve.

Ahead of the “It’s Glowtime” presentation next week, here’s a look at what to expect (and not) when the video begins streaming.

Sweet 16

A new iPhone is of course the safest thing to expect at an Apple event in September. The smartphone still accounts for the lion’s share of the company’s revenue, so it’s not ready to stop releasing a new one every year. As usual, expect iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max options in the same physical sizes as last year’s models.

While the iPhone 16 lineup isn’t expected to look radically different from its predecessor, it will feature a few new features. In addition to last year’s Action button making the jump from the Pro to the standard iPhone models, there’s reportedly a dedicated “Capture” button designed for instant access to the camera, with possible added features like touch control for zoom and the ability to half-press the button to focus. The camera bump on the back is also expected to change on the standard models, with two vertically aligned lenses that could provide better support for spatial imagery when shooting in landscape orientation.

Processors have also been upgraded as usual, with the A18 expected to debut across the lineup, unlike last year when the iPhone 15 Pro got the A17 Pro and the iPhone 15 got the A16. Apple is also expected to increase RAM across the board to better support Apple Intelligence features (more on that in a moment), with 8GB being the new standard.

There are also some minor changes under the hood that are reportedly on the way, including stacked battery technology for longer battery life, the latest Wi-Fi 7 standard, and slightly larger displays on the Pro models (with no change in chassis size). Plus, striking new color options for the iPhone 16 — including green, blue, and pink — as well as a new rose gold titanium and decidedly “gunmetal” brown finish for the iPhone Pro models. Learn more about the possible features of the iPhone 16.

Chris Martin / Foundry

Overall, this feels like a modest upgrade for the year, which means a lot of the time will likely be spent talking about… software.

Intelligence agency

Apple often devotes a good portion of its iPhone announcement event to talking about software announcements, and this year will likely be no different. The company unveiled its iOS 18 update back in June at the Worldwide Developers Conference, but since that event is primarily focused on developers, Apple will likely take the opportunity to show off all the features to the wider audience tuning in to see the new iPhone.

The star of iOS 18 is undoubtedly Apple Intelligence, the suite of AI-powered features the company is rolling out across its various platforms, including text rewriting and proofreading tools, automatic summarization, and an improved Siri experience.

But one complicating factor is that the first of these features are currently part of the beta version of iOS 18’s first update, iOS 18.1, and so likely won’t be available until the new iPhones are released. Some of these features will take even longer: many Siri improvements aren’t expected to arrive until next year. Still, don’t expect that to stop Apple from talking about them, especially if it sees these capabilities as its best chance to sell new phones: In particular, the only existing phones that will be able to run Apple Intelligence are the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, so the iPhone 16 lineup will expand those options considerably.

Apple

Apple also often offers at least one or two new software improvements that it bundles with its latest hardware. We don’t know what that will look like this year, but if the rumor about the Capture button is anything to go by, I wouldn’t bet against some new camera features.

Pay attention to your ears

While the iPhone event is primarily about the iPhone, that’s often not the only announcement we get at these events: some of the company’s iPhone-adjacent products are likely to have their moment in the spotlight.

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch’s launch (although it didn’t actually launch until early the following year), and Apple is likely to unveil its Series 10 version of the smartwatch. Both sizes are rumored to get slightly larger displays and a thinner design, as well as a redesigned magnetic attachment system for the watch bands, which could be controversial, as it would be the first time the old bands wouldn’t work with the new watches. While the company has also been hard at work on new health sensors for the wearable, it’s been hit with some challenges that have slowed it down — including a patent dispute that means this year’s models won’t feature the previously available blood oxygen measurement system — so it could be a rather dry year for Apple Watch health features.

New versions of the AirPods could also be expected this year, with two versions of the AirPods 4 aiming to replace both the AirPods 3 and the still-selling AirPods 2. The higher-end version is said to feature active noise cancellation, previously only available on the AirPods Pro, as well as better audio performance thanks to the same H2 chip found in the Pro. The lower-end model could forgo noise cancellation and some of the other features to appeal to a broader market with a lower price point.

One thing not to look forward to? New Macs. While the company is reportedly preparing to launch several computers powered by the same M4 processor found in its latest iPad Pro, those aren’t expected to appear in September, but rather at a separate event in October. Still, it’s always nice to have something to look forward to.