The rumor mill is abuzz this morning with talk of products that may or may not be introduced at the October 13 “Hi, Speed” Apple event. Here’s a roundup of the rumors and the Sellers Research Group’s (that’s me) take on them.
Noted Apple leaker Jon Prosser tweets that we won’t see the rumored “AirPods Studio” announced next Tuesday. However, the Sellers Research Group still thinks they’ll be unveiled, though they might not ship until October.
The rumored “AirPods Studio” (shown in a mock-up) will be over-the-ear, Apple-branded headphonemainly targeted to pro users, who will be able to unlock custom equalizer settings. User convenience features could include automatically detecting the orientation of the headphones on a user’s head are also discussed, as well as various power-saving features and sensor configurations.
Prosser also says that the “AirTags,” Apple’s planned tracking tiles (pun intended) won’t ship until March 2021. Again, the Sellers Research Group disagrees and thinks we’ll at least see them previewed next week.
Chinese leaker “Kang” tweeted info about the upcoming iPhone 12 line-up, which looks accurate. As noted by MacRumors, he forecasts:
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iPhone 12 Mini (5.4-inches)
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Price: from $699
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Camera: dual lens (f/1.6)
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Storage: 64GB/128GB/256GB
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Colors: Black, White, Red, Blue, Green
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Preorder date: November 6/7
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Launch date: November 13/14
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iPhone 12 (6.1-inches)
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Price: from $799
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Camera: dual lens (f/1.6)
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Storage: 64GB/128GB/256GB
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Colors: Black, White, Red, Blue, Green
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Preorder date: October 16/17
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Launch date: October 23/24
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iPhone 12 Pro (6.1-inches)
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Price: from $999
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Camera: triple lens (LiDAR + wide angle with 7P lens, f/1.6, 52mm focal length telephoto, 4x optical zoom)
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Storage: 128GB/256GB/512GB
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Colors: Gold, Silver, Graphite, Blue
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Preorder date: October 16/17
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Launch date: October 23/24
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iPhone 12 Pro Max (6.7-inches)
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Price: from $1099
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Camera: triple lens (LiDAR + wide angle with 7P lens, f/1.6, 65mm focal length telephoto, 5x optical zoom)
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Storage: 128GB/256GB/512GB
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Colors: Gold, Silver, Graphite, Blue
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Preorder date: November 13/14
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Launch date: November 20/21
Kang also says that a new HomePod mini will be announced next week, but won’t ship until November. Sounds about right to me. A smaller, lower priced HomePod has been rumored for two years. The general gist of the speculation is that a “HomePod mini” would cost US$150-$200.
Finally, Kang says that also claims that Apple will announce a new magnetic iPhone case with “MagSafe” and two official Apple wireless chargers called “MagSafe Charger” and “MagSafe Duo Charger,” one or both of which will have a 15-Watt power output.
The Sellers Research Group thinks there’s a 50% chance that this will happen. The charging devices could be a revision of the abandoned Apple AirPower project, which has been rumored to return.
It’s interesting that, if Kang is correct, the chargers will be dubbed “MagSafe,” note “AirPower.” MagSafe was an adapter for Mac laptops. With the 2016 MacBook Pro line, Apple ditched the MagSafe connector, which disengaged with the slightest amount of pressure. This saved many Mac laptops from a disastrous plummet when someone accidentally snagged the power cable.
Be sure and join us at Apple World Today next Tuesday for full coverage of the “Hi, Speed” event.
