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Apple held its biggest event of the year Monday: its annual iPhone event at the Steve Jobs Theater in the company’s California headquarters.
This year, the tech giant unveiled its iPhone 16 lineup, upgrades to Apple Watches and AirPods, and gave a first look at what its new artificial intelligence features will actually look like on its upcoming devices — and when they can be expected.
Here are the highlights from the annual Apple event.
Apple Intelligence
Apple’s new suite of AI tools, known as Apple Intelligence, was center stage at Monday’s event. The long-awaited features were first unveiled by Apple in June at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference.
“It puts powerful generative models right at the core of your iPhone,” Apple chief Tim Cook said.
The slate of new tech includes new capabilities within Safari, Notes, Calculator, and, most notably, Siri for the iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia. (This year’s tagline, “It’s Glowtime,” is a nod to the new interface for Apple’s voice assistant, Siri, which is getting an AI-powered makeover.)
The tech will understand and create images and language, edit, change tone, and proofread text, and even create new emojis using a typed description, said Apple’s senior vice President of software engineering Craig Federighi.
Federighi also highlighted a more natural, relevant, and personal Siri, which has richer language understanding and personalized responses. IPhone users will also be able to access ChatGPT directly from their devices.
But the phone will have a rare staggered rollout: Early features, which will only be available on iPhone 15 Pro models or higher, will launch as a software update in beta in October, with more features rolling out in the following months.
Software developers, however, could get their hands on Apple Intelligence for early testing as soon as this week via iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1 betas, according to Bloomberg.
Analysts have expressed high hopes for the fresh tech, which is one of the biggest operating software advances that Apple has introduced in years. Goldman Sachs analysts led by Michael Ng said in a research note in June that the AI-capable features will be a catalyst for strong upgrade demand for its latest models.
Beyond the rush for consumer AI, Wedbush analysts said Apple’s AI technology could add between $30 to $40 per share to the company’s market capitalization, resulting in more than $4 trillion in added market value for the tech giant.
iPhone 16
Apple shared what everyone wanted to know about its latest iPhone lineup: How much the phones will cost. Here’s the price breakdown for the new models:
- iPhone 16: $799
- iPhone 16 Plus: $899
- iPhone 16 Pro: $999
- iPhone 16 Pro Max: $1,199
IPhone 16 models will be available on Sept. 20.
The biggest physical difference between the new Pro models and their most recent predecessors will be screen size. The iPhone 16 Pro will have a 6.3 inch screen, up from 6.1 inches in the prior model, while the new Pro Max will feature a 6.9 inch screen, an increase from 6.7.
There are three new colors for the iPhone 16: ultramarine, teal, and pink. The phone will feature a ceramic shield screen that is 50% tougher than the previous screen, according to Apple. The iPhone 16 Pro has one new color: desert titanium. These will have the “thinnest borders on any Apple product” and the “best iPhone displays ever,” Apple said.
All models also have customizable action button to create shortcuts and a side camera control button, which allows users to open and control the camera with their finger.
But the more significant changes will be on the inside. The complete iPhone 16 lineup will feature Apple’s new A18 and A18 Pro chips — the core processors and engines behind Apple Intelligence. The company said it’s the first iPhone to have been built from the ground up for Apple Intelligence.
This means the new phones will be noticeably faster and will have an enhanced battery life and a crisper camera.
Wedbush analysts led by Dan Ives said in a research note Sunday that the iPhone 16, with its AI capabilities, could kick off Apple’s “biggest upgrade cycle in its history,” including growth in China, where sales have lagged. According to their estimates, Apple could sell upwards of 240 million iPhones worldwide in the next fiscal year thanks to this AI-driven upgrade cycle.
“We believe the demos at the event in Apple Park will be eye opening and speaks to the broader strategic vision for consumers looking to upgrade to iPhone 16,” the analysts said. “In a nutshell, this is a historic week for Apple and we believe kicks off the next leg of the Apple growth story for [Apple CEO Tim Cook] and Cupertino.”
Watches and AirPods
Apple also announced an updated slate of its Watches and Airpods.
The Apple Watch Series 10 will have the “biggest display and thinnest design ever.” Apple COO Jeff Williams introduced the new model, which has 30% more screen area than the previous version. The watch also features more rounded corners and a wider aspect ratio for a softer and sleeker design.
The watch also has an 18-hour battery life and a new titanium finish option that weighs up to 20% less. It will also be able to alert users to sleep apnea, a new health-oriented feature that Apple has been seeking to introduce to its devices.
The new Apple Watch will be available on Sept. 20, and starts at $399, or $499 with cellular. The Ultra 2, Apple’s “most rugged and capable” watch, starts at $799 and is also available Sept. 20.
The fourth generation of Apple’s AirPods will have an H2 chip, making them the “best sounding AirPods ever,” the company said. These wireless headphones will be Apple’s first with a USB-C charging case, and will have 30 hours of total battery life. Apple has also made a second model of this design with active noise cancellation, including conversation mode, which lowers volume when you speak, and returns once you’re done.
AirPods 4 are priced at $129, or $179 with active noise cancellation.
As for the over-ear AirPods Max, Apple has introduced three new colors: purple, orange, and starlight. These still cost $549 and are available Sept. 20.
The AirPods Pro 2, meanwhile, will have new health features, including hearing protection (actively reduces louder, intermittent noise), a five-minute hearing test, and a hearing aid feature that will help listeners with hearing loss.