In a note to clients — as noted by MacRumors — analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says release several new products in the first half of 2020, the follow-up to the iPhone SE 2, new iPad Pros, 13-inch MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs with new keyboards,“Apple Tags,” high-end headphones, and … an AirPower Lite?
The 4.7-inch “sequel” to the iPhone SE probably won’t be dubbed the “iPhone SE 2.” Kuo expects it to sport: an A13 CPU; 3GB of RAM; 64GB and 128GB options; and no 3D Touch feature. Look for it to be offered in will silver, space grey, and red options.
Kuo expects refreshed 13-inch MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs to ditch the controversial butterfly keyboard and replace the scissor-switch based keyboard introduced with the 16-inch MacBook Pro.
Kuo says “Apple Tags,” expected last year, will finally arrive. They are a tracking device that will compete with the Tile, a tiny Bluetooth tracker and app combo. After you have purchased your Tile, download the app to iOS device, and y pair your Tile to your device. Once your device is paired use your app to find your item; just listen for the ring.
Kuo predicts that Apple will release high-end, over-the-ear headphones. The tech giant is supposedly working on noise-canceling, over-ear headphones “that rival headsets from market leaders like Bose and even the company’s own Beats by Dre brand.” Personally, I don’t see the logic in having Apple-branded AND Beats-branded over-the-ear headphones since Apple owns Beats. Will the company simply abandon the Beats trademark/logo and puts its own brand on all the audio products? Makes sense to me.
Finally, Kuo anticipated Apple releasing a small, wireless charging mat. I’m a bit dubious about this. The AirPower was originally announced in September 2017 alongside the iPhone X. It was supposed to be able to charge a Qi-compatible iPhone, an Apple Watch, and a pair of AirPods (in a special wireless charging case) at the same time regardless of where they were placed on the pad.
However, there was constant rumors of production, engineering, and manufacturing difficulties. Seems those rumors were right, as Apple announced in March 2019 that work on the device was being canceled as, in Apple’s words, “will not achieve our high standards.”
