Apple is expected to use Wednesday’s “Surprise and Shine” event in Cupertino as the public debut of new CEO John Ternus and one of the company’s most ambitious hardware slates in years, according to reporting from Bloomberg News’ Mark Gurman.
The centerpiece is a foldable smartphone Apple has named the iPhone Duo. Gurman reported that Apple settled on a starting price of about $2,000 after absorbing extra memory costs, with storage configurations reaching 2 terabytes and a top price near $3,000. The device is slated to ship in October, support Apple Pencil, and launch in dark blue and white. Apple is positioning the expensive foldable as both a status product and a bid to reassert itself as a hardware innovator.
The event, scheduled for 10 a.m. local time, is also expected to include the iPhone 18 Pro lineup, new Apple Watches, and updated AirPods. Gurman said the five biggest storylines are Ternus’s first major product showcase, the $2,000-and-up Duo, camera upgrades on the iPhone 18 Pro models, Watch and AirPods refreshes, and higher iPhone prices. He separately listed expected Pro colors as black, light blue, silver, and burgundy.
The Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 are expected to add a privacy-focused AI “recaps” feature that uses the microphone, GPS, and other sensors to summarize a user’s day, including conversations. Gurman reported that the system is not designed to store audio recordings or produce transcripts. Users would be able to run it all day or only in selected locations, with summaries living in a new Siri app. The feature is aimed at competing with always-listening AI wearables while emphasizing on-device processing and tighter privacy controls. New Watch chips are expected to handle that processing.
AirPods 5 are also expected, in versions with and without a wireless charging case and with stronger noise cancellation. Camera-equipped AirPods that Apple had considered for this cycle were delayed, Gurman has reported.
The Duo’s long development path has been a decade-plus effort.
Pre-orders for the new iPhones are widely expected to start Friday, September 12th. Supplies of iPhone Duo are expected to be extremely tight for many months. As with any pre-event report, Apple can still change names, prices, colors, or feature details on stage.
MacDailyNews Take: iPad mini hardest hit.
As for Apple Pencil support, we can see it for specific use cases, but mostly not:
Oh, a stylus, right? We’re going to use a stylus. No. Who wants a stylus? You have to get them and put them away and you lose them. Yuck. Nobody wants a stylus. So, let’s not use a stylus. We’re going to use the best pointing device in the world. We’re going to use a pointing device that we’re all born with — we’re born with ten of them. We’re going to use our fingers. We’re going to touch this with our fingers. And we have invented a new technology called multi-touch, which is phenomenal. It works like magic. You don’t need a stylus. – Steve Jobs
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“iPad mini hardest hit” => an iPad mini is one-third the price, so I highly doubt it
No HomePods? Screwed again?….