Far Out Bingo
Rumoured to focus on the iPhone & Apple Watch, the next long-anticipated Apple Event is finally here.
Another Apple Event means it's time to play along with another round of Bingo featuring some of the products and features rumoured to be announced at this year's Far Out September event.
Board
This board features some of my picks for the Apple event on September 7, 2022. This list represents my picks as of Saturday, September 3, and things could always change between now and Wednesday with any last-minute leaks.
The board is available below as a PNG & PDF file to download.
Picks Explained
A Larger "Apple Watch Pro" Announced: Rumblings online leading up to this event suggest that Apple is planning on releasing a new tier of Apple Watch that some have taken to calling the Apple Watch Pro. This Pro version of the Apple Watch is said to come with a larger display (estimated at ~47mm), featuring a redesigned chassis/screen (potentially flat), and come in a premium finish (titanium?) that may help market it as a more rugged, durable Apple Watch. In addition to the new form factor, this new Watch is rumoured to offer qualities (better battery life, for example) that can help it compete with more pro-tier sports watches. If this rumour turns out to be accurate, it wouldn't surprise me to see the discontinuation of the Apple Watch Edition following the event.
iOS 16 Released on September 13, 2022: At every recent iPhone event, we get the release date for the latest version of iOS. Sometimes it's the following Tuesday, sometimes the following Wednesday, and once it is the next day, which gave developers less than 24 hours to test and submit their apps for launch day debut. This year, I'm taking my shot that iOS 16 & watch OS 9 will be released on Tuesday, September 13, 2022.
The iPhone 14 Pro Gets a New & Exclusive Camera Mode: One of the tentpole selling points of the Pro-line of iPhones is they do a little bit of extra camera-wizardry that the regular iPhone doesn't. On the iPhone 12 Pro, Apple's ProRaw photography was the differentiator, while macro mode & ProRes 4K recording were the main camera attractions on the 13 Pros. This year, I'm betting Apple continues that trend, offering another feature exclusive to the iPhone 14 Pro. I'm betting it'll have something to do with Astrophotography.
Apple Watch Pro Gets an Exclusive New Type of Band: Apple's bound to refresh the bands, but this prediction is geared towards the idea that the larger Apple Watch may get a band style exclusive to it. More than just a unique colour, the band would only be available on the larger size watch - either bundled with the watch or sold exclusively to fit the larger case.
The iPhone 14 Pro Receives an Always-On Display: Another exclusive feature rumoured to be debuting on the iPhone 14 Pro is the addition of an always-on Display. Always-On gives people the benefit of seeing the time and a few iOS 16 complications from their Lock Screen without needing to interact or unlock their device. There will probably be some talk about how the display achieves this by reducing its refresh to 1Hz (like the Apple Watch) and intelligently turns off if it detects its face down or inside your pocket.
Apple Previews New AppleTV+ Content: Apple's biggest product is its iPhone, so it stands to reason that the iPhone event is, publically, the most significant Apple Event of the year. Given that, I think Apple will take the opportunity to flex some of the new shows coming to the TV+ platform this fall and into 2023. A peek at the next season of Ted Lasso or Severence would be golden!
iPhone 14 Released in a Larger 6.7-Inch Size: The people have spoken and want bigger phones. They don't want mini phones (sadly); they want big, bold, beautiful panels. They also don't want to spend several hundred more on a Pro Max when they just want that bigger display. This year, people predict that Apple will do away with the mini in favour of a 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Plus that'll have all the features of the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 but come in a form factor previously reserved for the Pro Max.
iPhone 14 Keeps the A15 Chip: There have been rumours that while the iPhone 14 Pro will get a new A16 chip, the iPhone 14 will keep the current A15 silicon. Whether this is a cost-cutting measure, a supply-chain issue, or something else, it'll be interesting to hear how Apple markets the A15 on the new iPhone 14. But honestly, the A15 is so ridiculously powerful as a 'base model' chip (on a phone, no less) that this decision will go unnoticed by folks buying this phone.
Gaming on the iPhone Demo'd: Apple loves a good ol' gaming demo to highlight both its App Store & the iPhone's processing power. I imagine we'll have some preview of a new or exclusive game highlighted during the event.
AirPods Receive an Update: It's been over 1,000 days (1045 by the time the Apple Event rolls around) since the AirPods Pro launched and 631 since the release of the AirPods Max. Surely Apple has to be holding on to an AirPods announcement of some kind, and September's Apple event is undoubtedly as good a time as any. AirPods Pro 2 have long been rumoured, and I've been longing to see if Apple does anything to update the AirPods Max with new colours or technologies to enable full lossless audio to play wirelessly across its devices.
Keynote Runtime: Under 85 Minutes: The COVID era has given us shorter Apple events than in the past. The past half-decade of iPhone events have ranged from 71-116 minutes, with both sub-80-minute events being virtual. Given that this year's Apple Event remains virtual despite having an audience present and that I'm not expecting any in-person/video stagecraft, I guess this event will be similar in length to previous virtual events.
For interest stake, here is the past half-decade of Apple iPhone event lengths:
2021 Apple Event was 79 minutes
2020 Apple Event was 71 minutes
2019 Apple Event was 102 minutes
2018 Apple Event was 107 minutes
2017 Apple Event was 116 minutes
Next iPhone Pro Color is Called Twilight: This pick comes from the conversation during the latest episode of Upgrade, where a Discord member suggested that the next iPhone colour could be named Twilight. I like the idea, and it fits the haze surrounding the iPhone 14 Pro coming in a new purple or blue variant. We already have Starlight and Midnight, so we might as well add a deep blue with dark aubergine-toned iPhone called Twilight.
iPhone 13 mini Remains on Sale Along with the iPhone 13: It pains me to write this, but nearly every rumour (except that short-lived wildcard report) has indicated that Apple is not refreshing the iPhone mini this year. Despite it being Apple's cheapest top-tier iPhone offering, people (as a collective) don't care for small phones. Like the HomePod, its discontinuation may help people see the error of their ways, and we'll see an iPhone mini return in the future. However, I think that Apple will keep the iPhone 13 & 13 mini in the lineup, replacing the iPhone 12 (& mini) as the tier below the iPhone 14.
Apple Watch SE Updated (& Series 3 Discontinued): No tears will be shed when the Series 3 is discontinued. Nearly five years old, the device remains on sale even though it will not be receiving Apple's latest watchOS this fall. But more than that, the device is painfully slow and probably a pain in the ass for developers to continue supporting.
I think Apple intends to drop the old SE to the coveted $199 price point, and releasing a new model (SE 2?) updating it to the S6 SiP, an Always-On display, and maybe adding a few other bells and whistles for good measure.
We Visit the Apple Chip Lab: Because I'm expecting Apple to release an A16, it's also safe to predict that we'll take a trip down to the chip lab for a rundown of everything the A16 offers.
Apple Watch Pro Gets an Exclusive Watch Face: New Apple Watches have often been bestowed with new Watch faces (Explorer on the Series 3 w. Cellular, Infographics on the Series 4, Contour on the Series 7), so I imagine that the larger Apple Watch Pro will also get at least one custom face that utilizes it's a larger screen, perhaps also geared towards whatever narrative Apple tries to create around it.
Obligatory iOS 16 Feature Recap Feat. Craig Federighi: Who better to integrate the new hardware announced at this year's event with a recap of the features in iOS 16 than Mr. Hair Force One himself?
An Apple Watch Gets Temperature Measurement: Apple loves adding new health features to the Watch, and it's been rumoured that something in-and-around temperature measurement may finally be coming this year. My understanding is that this won't be as specific as the ability to check your temperature on a minute-by-minute basis (like heart rate); instead, the Watch may notify you of changing trends in your temperature. This might be helpful to nudge you that you may be running a fever or for fertility tracking.
The Event Features 'One more thing...': The last time we got the infamous 'One more thing...' product was when the iPhone X was announced in 2018. I don't think Apple is planning on previewing their VR strategy/hardware at this event, though perhaps the iPhone 14 Plus or newer Apple Watch might warrant this surprise announcement.
A Secret Location is Accessed Via Whimsical Transition: In addition to the expected drone footage around Apple Park, at some point, we'll transition from one place to the next via some fancy corridor, portal, or secret underground tunnel accessed via the fountain inside the courtyard of Apple Park.
Enhancements/Workouts added to Fitness+: Maybe this is new workout types, instructors, or fitness programs, but the Apple Watch event seems the best time for Apple to take a beat and share some of the enhancements that may be coming to its Fitness+ service.
An iPhone Gets Satellite SOS Connectivity: Another rumour that has resurfaced this year is that Apple may enable satellite functionality for sending emergency calls or texts when a user is outside service areas.
Apple Watch Pro Starts at $999: A new larger Apple might merit a new larger price. If an Apple Watch Pro is released with a refreshed design, larger display, and a titanium body, I imagine it'll also start at a new premium price. The current 45mm Apple Watch Edition starts at $849, so I expect an even larger watch with more features to get bumped up to the $999 price point.
iPhone 14 Pro Receives a 48MP Camera: Another safe-seeming rumour is that Apple will update the primary camera on the iPhone 14 Pro to a new 48MP sensor. This would mark the first-pixel bump since the iPhone 6 camera increased from 8MP to the current 12MP with the iPhone 6S. There are rumours that Apple will bin these pixels, still maintaining a 12MP image size but allowing that extra resolution to capture more light and potentially be able to do more fancy neural wizardry in low-light conditions (faster shutter low light images, astrophotography).
BONUS: Apple Increases base iCloud Storage from 5GB: If Apple announces an increase to its base 5GB iCloud storage (even if that change comes in the form of 5GB per device), then an instant BINGO is declared.
These are just 24 possible picks, and only a few folks inside Apple really know how Wednesday will unfold. Will we get a preview of Apple's realityOS strategy? Will the AppleTV be updated? Will the iPhone subscription plan finally be unveiled? Could Apple sneak a new product update or service into the event? Is this even an iPhone event?!? Excited to be watching the event with everyone on Wednesday!
Edit: Apple’s November 2020 event, when it launched the first three Apple silicon chips, was titled ‘One more thing’ and began with Tim Cook uttering the phrase before the Macs were announced.
