On September 9th, Apple will be hosting an event in San Francisco to unveil its latest products. Cupertino’s infamous secrecy has been hard to maintain with so many links in the production chain, so enough information leaks ahead of time that we normally know the broad strokes of what Apple has planned. Even so, don’t take anything here at face value. Widely believed rumors have been wrong before, and they’ll definitely be wrong again. With that said, here’s what we think Apple has up its sleeves.September is upon us, and that means a major Apple event is right around the corner. What, exactly, does that entail? In recent years, the September and October timeframe has come to signify new iPhones, iPads, and new operating systems. But given the fact that the Apple TV has received so much attention in the rumor mill this year, we might just see a major announcement for the living room as well.
iPhone rumors
By and large, the next versions of the iPhone are being referred to as the “6s” and “6s Plus.” Given Apple’s previous use of the “tick-tock” model, that certainly makes sense. This revision will probably serve as a minor update to the existing hardware without a drastic change in design. 7000 series aluminum seems to be the alloy of choice here — potentially the exact same material used in the Apple Watch Sport. After the minor backlash over bendgate, we might be in for a slightly thicker and heavier chassis.
After some poking around with the latest Apple software, developer Hamza Sood discovered some evidence that force touch is coming to iOS devices. Apple shipped this implementation of pressure sensitivity earlier this year on the Apple Watch, so it’s a no brainer on the iPhone.
Unsurprisingly, the cameras will likely be upgraded as well. 9to5Mac is reporting that the rear-facing cameras on the next iPhones are being upgraded to 12 megapixels, and they will be capable of recording 4K UHD video. But considering that the low-end model might still only ship with 16GB of flash storage, you won’t be able to record for very long. However, the front-facing camera will also be getting an upgraded sensor and a flashbulb of its very own.
It’s always safe to bet on slightly improved internals. We’re bound to see an Apple A9 system-on-a-chip with a faster CPU and GPU. Alongside, expect to see another iteration of the motion co-processor. Apple has been continually adding more sensors to their devices, so having a newer chip dedicated to handling the increasing amount of data makes sense.
While an Apple patent for wireless earbuds with bone conduction popped up recently on the USPTO website, I wouldn’t expect those to ship with the new iPhone. If Apple does ever sell wireless earbuds like this, I anticipate them being sold separately at a premium price. After all, you can already buy $200 Beats wireless headphones from the Apple Store.

iPad rumors

iPad rumors are flying fast, but we don’t know if we’ll see an iPad refresh during the September event. Last year, Apple held a separate event for the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 3, so we may see the same events playout this year.
By far, the biggest rumor here has revolved around the introduction of a 12.9-inch iPad Pro. Not only is this giant iPad slated to sport a 2048×2732 resolution, but it will also have a pressure sensitive stylus to boot. If the rumors are true, this premium device will clearly be targeting the professional market.
Supposedly, production will be starting soon. Estimates range anywhere from one to five million iPad Pros shipping in this calendar year. However, the Pro might not even begin shipping untilthe release of iOS 9.1 sometime later this fall.
Apple TV rumors
The rumor mill seems positive that we’ll see a new Apple TV set-top box this go around. Specifically, some outlets seem sure that the new Apple TV will cost $200 or less, support Wii-like motion gaming, and offer a TV service similar to Sony’s PlayStation Vue.
Of course, we heard similar rumors ahead of this year’s WWDC, but all we got was a price drop on the existing hardware. It’s been about two and a half years since the Apple TV has been refreshed, so it’ll be no surprise if Apple does finally deliver new hardware. However, it’s possible that they’ll ride out the current model until the 4K market penetration goes up.
As for an actual Apple-branded television, don’t bet on it. It’s always a possibility, but only for high-end consumers. I have a hard time believing Apple will ever get into the budget end of the market.

Apple Watch rumors

The Apple Watch launched just four months ago, so the odds of seeing new hardware are slim. We may see some new bands or colors, but you definitely shouldn’t expect to see a refresh this year. Apple could theoretically add a fourth “collection” based on the same internals, but it would be absolutely unthinkable for them to burn early adopters this early in the game.
watchOS 2, however, is definitely coming this fall. New watch faces, a refined UI, and the addition of native applications will make the Apple Watch significantly more palatable. The barrier to entry is still too high for mass adoption, but Apple is laying the groundwork here for wearables that are actually worthwhile. It’ll just take a few revs before it gets there.

iOS 9 & OS X El Capitan

Earlier this year at WWDC, Apple showed off the new versions of both of its major operating systems. We know the majority of what’s being added, but Apple typically throws in a little something extra right before going gold. Most notably, rumor has it that iOS 9 will offeranimated wallpapers similar to the Apple Watch’s motion faces.
While features like real side-by-side multitasking and new trackpad motions are certainly nice additions, I’ll bet that the most important improvement here is extension support for Safari. While many people are concerned about the ramifications from easier ad-blocking, this could also lead to privacy-focused extensions like NoScript and PrivacyBadger making their way to the iPhone someday.