Apple’s September 12 iPhone Event: What To Expect

BY Jason

Published 11 Sep 2012

Last week, Apple sent out invites for the media event to be held tomorrow with the tag line “It’s almost here“.

With just over 24 hours to go, here’s what we can expect from Apple’s iPhone event tomorrow, based on all the rumors and speculations we’ve heard so far.

Stats and Numbers:

Apple tends to reveal key numbers during quarterly financial results and at special media events. So we expect Apple’s CEO Tim Cook to be the first to take the stage and reveal a lot of stats and numbers related to the entire ecosystem of Apple’s products. Things like the number of times the OS X Mountain Lion was downloaded, the number of MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs it has sold and lots more.

iOS 6:

Apple gave us a preview of the iOS 6 at the WorldWide Developer Conference (WWDC) 2012 in June where it showcased major features such as all-new Maps app, improved notification center, improvements to Siri and Facebook integration and call management features coming to the phone app.

We expect Scott Forstall – the Senior Vice President of iOS Software at Apple to briefly talk about the new features that will be available in iOS 6.

Forstall should also announce the release date for iOS 6, which should tell us when iPhone 5 will be available.

iCloud and iTunes:

We then expect Eddy Cue – Apple’s Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services to take the stage and talk about the new iOS 6 related features coming to iCloud.

There have been rumors that Apple plans to launch a redesigned iTunes application. It remains to be seen if Apple will release a new version of iTunes 11. If it does, Cue will be doing the honors.

New iPods:

Apple is widely expected to unveil the next generation iPod Touch, along with the tweaked version of fourth generation iPod Touch, new iPod nano and a tweaked iPod shuffle. If it does, Phil Schiller – Apple Apple’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing will unveil the new iPods.

The screen-less iPod shuffle may get a minor update, retaining its $49 price point, with the number of available colors going up from the current five to eight.

iPod nano could sport a new design and revamped internals. Rumors point to an iPod nano with a taller body and WiFi support, enabling it to tap into the huge amount of content available in the iTunes Store. Like the shuffle, the iPod nano is rumored to be available in eight colors with only one model being sold at a price of around $169.

Apple may retain the fourth generation design for the entry-level iPod touch, which may come with tweaked internals. Apple is also likely to unveil a redesigned next generation iPod Touch, which will reflect the changes coming to the iPhone, namely a larger screen and a smaller dock connector.

New iPhone:

After about an hour into the event, Phil Schiller will most likely show us the hotly anticipated next generation iPhone, which will most likely be called iPhone 5.

If rumors are to be believed and all signs seem to suggest that the leaks so far are accurate, Schiller will talk about the following new features and improvements coming to iPhone 5:

At this point, Forstall may take the stage and talk about the new iOS features that will be available in the new iPhone (if any). Last year, Apple introduced Siri – the personal assistant feature, which was exclusively available on iPhone 4S.
Schiller will then come on stage and announce the pricing (same price points as iPhone 4S) and the release date for iPhone 5 and in which countries it will be available. Apple is also likely to introduce the 8GB iPhone 4S that will be available for $99 with a two-year contract.
Check out our detailed roundup of all the rumored features and improvements coming to iPhone 5 here.
Wrap Up:
Tim Cook will likely take the stage to review the day’s announcements and thank everyone for making it for the event.
Please note these are speculations based on the past iPhone events, but that’s been the ritual for the last four years so we don’t expect Apple to change it.
We’ll be live blogging the event so don’t forget to join us at 10am PT or 1pm ET or 6pm GMT tomorrow.
What would you like to see announced at tomorrow’s event? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.