If you’ve been dealing with a decrepit, dying iPhone all year, your time is almost here — Sept. 7 to be exact.
Yes, Apple’s keynote iPhone event is locked in for early September, which means it’s just about time for the company to announce a boatload of new products, chief among them being this year’s lineup of new iPhones. As always, the rumor mill has been swirling around this hotly anticipated iPhone 14 line, so let’s take a few minutes to brush up on what Apple will probably show off next month.
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Apple’s next iPhone event is set for Sept. 7
RIP iPhone mini
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It’s an annual tradition in the tech world to turn to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman for trustworthy iPhone leaks, and that hasn’t changed in 2022. Gurman has a handy guide for what to expect from the iPhone 14 line and possibly the biggest change this year is a shakeup to Apple’s phone sizing conventions.
The expectation is that Apple will launch four new iPhones this year — same as last year but without a sub-6-inch mini model like the one we loved. Instead, there will be two 6.1-inch and two 6.7-inch models, one of each for the regular iPhone 14 and the iPhone 14 Pro lines. Here’s how we expect it to shake out:
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6.1-inch iPhone 14
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6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro
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6.7-inch iPhone 14 Max
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6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max
Yes, that means there could be an iPhone 14 Max with a giant 6.7-inch screen and no Pro-level price point. Excited yet?
See ya never, notch!
According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 14 Pro models will replace the much-loathed notch with a hole-punch front-facing camera. The Pro models are also said to feature a new pill-shaped cutout, per Gurman, that will house the iPhone 14 Pro’s Face ID sensors.
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You may be wondering why anyone would shell out for a 14 Pro if the 14 Max exists. Well, according to Gurman and Kuo, that’s because the iPhone 14 Pro will come with a 48-megapixel main rear lens, a sizable upgrade over the 12-megapixel lens said to be included on the iPhone 14. It’ll also come with Apple’s new A16 chip on the inside, while the non-Pro iPhone 14 models will be powered by last year’s A15. Of course, the normal Pro upgrades like a telephoto lens and upgraded battery will also be present in the more expensive models.
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As for design changes, Gurman says to expect something broadly similar to the iPhone 13. The Pro phones may have a new notch replacement, but aside from that, a more substantial redesign may have to wait for 2023.
Regarding pricing, we won’t know for sure how much these phones cost until Apple tells us on Sept. 7, but Kuo said in August he expects iPhone 14 Pro pricing to rise about 15 percent above the $1,000 starting price of the iPhone 13 Pro.
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Apple Watch could go ‘Pro’
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To no one’s surprise, Gurman is also a reliable source on the other new product we expect to see during the Sept. 7 Apple event: the Apple Watch Series 8. In a July edition of his “Power On” newsletter, Gurman laid out the three new versions of the Apple Watch that he expects will be shown at the event.
To start, we could see a default Apple Watch Series 8 in 41mm and 45mm sizes with a new S8 chip powering its performance and, as Kuo also reported, a body temperature sensor to add even more health tracking functionality, including specific features for women’s health. According to Gurman, expect around a $400 starting price for that one.
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There may also be a new $280 Apple Watch SE, which would replace the current SE model that already sits at that price point. The SE would likely include the new S8 chip for improved performance, but per Gurman, it won’t include the body temperature sensor.
The iPhone 13 Pro’s cameras are too good to be true
The really interesting one is the third Apple Watch model, which, for all intents and purposes, we can call Apple Watch “Pro” for now. This one is aimed squarely at outdoors enthusiasts who need a durable watch that can handle more health measurement metrics, so it would have a bigger display and a titanium casing. Improvements to battery life and tracking for hikes and swims were also noted in the newsletter.
Sounds great, right? Well, that’s until we get to pricing. Gurman said it could start for as much as $900 to $1,000 or, in other words, as much as some iPhone models. For a watch. Hopefully anyone who spends that much gets what they paid for.
Given that Apple has recently taken to doing a later fall event for iPads and Macs, most rumors point to this one being all about the iPhone and Apple Watch.
