Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), the world’s most highly-valued listed company, is set to unveil new products on Wednesday, and as usual media attention is zealous.
Apple is good at keeping its new products under wraps, apart from when beta versions are left, some might say suspiciously, in Silicon Valley bars or coffee shops.
Such acts of forgetfulness have not happened this time, which means media pundits have had free range to speculate on what Apple might reveal at its carefully orchestrated press conference.
Top of the list appears to be new models of the iPhone and given that this remains Apple’s flagship product and chief money-spinner, this seems like a safe bet.
Some Apple fanatics – the word seems more appropriate than “fans” – are so sure a new iPhone is on the way that they have already arranged to trade in their old iPhones ahead of the announcement.
Apple’s form in this regard is to release two models: one expensive and the other even more so.
The worry for Apple shareholders is that, as new iPhone releases become more frequent, users will begin to suffer from upgrade fatigue.
There is talk on Apple-focused web sites the new model(s) will feature a 12 megapixel camera, which may be a massive improvement on the current eight megapixel camera but is not necessarily one that is enough to persuade people to upgrade.
A faster processor is almost a given in any model upgrade, while there are strong rumours of the new models featuring Force Touch, a souped-up form of haptic feedback, i.e. a more responsive screen. Force Touch is already present on Apple’s new MacBook and Apple Watch.
Slimmer is always better, except when your brand new expensive iPhone slides down the drain after falling out of your pocket, but we might have reached the stage where users might actually tolerate a thicker model if it conveys some tangible benefit, such as longer battery life.
Wednesday’s event could also see the release of a new Apple operating system, IOS 9.
An even bigger iPad than the standard size 9.7” jobbie could also be on its way, measuring 12.9” from top left to bottom right of the screen.
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was famously against the 7” & 8” tablet computers that have become the norm, arguing that users would have to have their fingers sharpened in order to effectively use the smaller-sized tablets.
Even in those parts of the world where fingers tips carved into a sharp point would probably be regarded as a conservative fashion statement, Jobs’s grounds for objection have proved to be wide of the mark, but nonetheless, with the increasing popularity of consuming media content on the move, a bigger tablet screen makes some sense, as does the rumoured Bluetooth-enabled stylus (for those of us with fat fingers).
Not everything Apple has touched this millennium has turned to gold, and among its “meh” product releases has been Apple TV, a media streaming device.
Technology web site TechCrunch reckons Apple has been working on a wireless motion controller that would enable developers to build games especially for the Apple TV, which could see the company make a belated entry into the gaming consoles market.
Industry pundits are also expecting the next generation of Apple TV to have voice activation functionality via Apple’s virtual personal assistant, Siri.
This would not exactly be ground-breaking, as the likes of Samsung and LG have long had voice control built into their TV software, but because it is Apple it will still be regarded as a big thing.
The event, titled “Hey Siri, give us a hint”, will take place at 10.00am Pacific Daylight Time (6.00pm UK time). It will be streamed via Apple’s web site and can even be viewed on non-Apple devices.