Apple Tracker: Gearing Up For The Big Reveal

Get The Goods

Apple has finally confirmed its big, annual reveal event for Sept. 12 at the new Steve Jobs Theater on Apple’s San Francisco campus, but plenty of questions remain.

What will the new iPhone look like? For that matter, what is Apple even calling it? People are saying it’s the iPhone X, iPhone Edition or simply iPhone 8. Whichever it is, rumor has it that the new version will have wireless charging, a bezel-less display and will retail for $999.

For those unwilling to pay such a steep price, what surprises will the iPhone 7s and 7s Plus hold? Will the Apple Watch Smart Bands really be able to monitor things like blood glucose levels? And what are the company’s intentions toward augmented and virtual reality?

Hopefully, Apple will answer all these questions on Sept. 12. The event airs at 10 a.m. PT, 1 p.m. ET, 6 p.m. BST or at 3 a.m. AEST.

Tune in to the event on Apple TV or via Safari on your iDevice (running at least iOS 7) or Mac computer (running OS X 10.8.5 and Safari 6.0.5 or later). If you’re on Windows, make sure you’re running Windows 10. Then, run the Microsoft Edge web browser to livestream the event from Apple’s webpage. Or just download the VLC media player.

Third Is the Charm

Apple was knocked down a peg from its second-place position in the global smartphone sales market. With Samsung still reigning, China’s leading smartphone maker Huawei has edged its way up past Apple and has remained in second place throughout the summer.

Huawei’s heavy investments in research and development, manufacturing and creative marketing drove it to success, although analysts don’t expect its victory lap to last — partly due to Huawei’s weak presence in South Asian, Indian and North American markets, and partly due to the imminent release of the new iPhone (though analysts have differing thoughts on how that could turn out).

One Way or Another

Normally, the release of a new iPhone gives Apple stocks a nice lift, but some analysts are saying that may not be the case this time. Shares have been climbing all year in anticipation of the forthcoming iPhone 8, which could portend a pullback once the product actually hits the market. Apple analyst Gene Munster says that shares could pull back as much as 10 percent over the next three months.

Options traders, on the other hand, are predicting Apple’s stock could rise to $177 per share by next month, landing it at a total value of $906 billion and propelling it toward that $1 trillion market cap.

Beta

The iOS 11 has entered its tenth beta version, and the mobile operating system is now available for developers to download and test. The update will overhaul the iPad system entirely, adding a systemwide dock, a new app switcher and a Files app to simplify app launch and document management. For iPhone users, the biggest visible changes will be to the Control Center, but there’s a lot going on under the hood that will prepare the device to run augmented reality apps created with the company’s ARKit framework.

The finalized version of the iOS 11 will be revealed at Apple’s Sept. 12 event at the Steve Jobs Theater.

Bond Bid

Apple is in a bidding war with Amazon for distribution rights for a James Bond film. Well, Warner Bros. wants it too, but Apple and Amazon have both indicated they’re willing to spend more than Warner. MGM and Eon Productions co-own the film rights but don’t distribute and have been hearing pitches from studios ever since Sony Pictures’ distribution rights expired after “Spectre” in 2015.

It’s only a one-film deal, but even one James Bond film would make a difference for either Apple or Amazon in the saturated streaming market. The Verge noted that Apple certainly has the money to burn, but Amazon may have the better bid, due to its stronger résumé of existing programming.

However, with Eon focused on “theatrical movies,” the two streaming services might be disqualified before they can even place a formal bid.