Apple’s iPhone 15 launch event has now come and gone. Which means that as exciting as the arrival of the new iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro is, the big question now is: when is the next Apple launch event? And what will be announced?
As attention shifts from the highly-anticipated iPhone 15 launch to the future, there are rumors that we might be getting one more Apple event before 2023 is over.
This makes a lot of sense. In a typical year, Apple holds three to four events. So that’s usually an event in the spring in March, the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June, an iPhone and Apple Watch launch event in September and sometimes there’s an October event that tends to focus on a refresh of iPad or Mac models.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at what we can expect from the next Apple launch. But remember, none of this is official. Apple is notoriously secretive about its upcoming events, after all. And, historically, some years have panned out a little differently to others.
October Apple event: The headlines
- When is it? Nothing has been confirmed yet, but rumors hint at a smaller Mac event or even a new model announced via a press release sometime in Fall 2023.
- Expected announcements: New MacBooks, iPads or desktop Macs. Essentially any devices not mentioned in the September 2023 iPhone 15 event, but it’s not looking likely.
Stephen is iMore’s news expert, and tracks each and every snippet of detail that relates to Apple. He’s been tracking Apple events throughout the year, and is perfectly placed to give you the best picture of the Apple calendar.
October Apple event: What will Apple announce next?
In some years, Apple has followed up its new Apple Watch and iPhone launch in September with another October event. This is historically much smaller and is when new Macs or MacBooks are sometimes unveiled. So will we be getting an Apple October event this year? Maybe not.
According to Mac Rumors, the supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said he doesn’t think that an Apple event in October 2023 is looking likely and that we shouldn’t expect the release of any new MacBooks or iPads before the year is out.
However, according to the same report, Ming-Chi Kuo didn’t say that we shouldn’t expect new desktop Macs. This means the new iMac with an M3 chip could be heading our way sooner than expected. But it might not be announced at an event with the usual fanfare. Instead, it could be unveiled via a press release from Apple.
We could expect any devices not mentioned in the September 2023 iPhone 15 event to land. But specifically we’re looking forward to a new 13-inch MacBook Pro with M3 chip, updated 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models and the M3 Mac mini.
But let’s remember that the Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro have all been updated already this year.
March Apple event: What will Apple announce in 2024?
Apple usually holds a spring launch event, which will likely land sometime in March 2024.
What can we expect from this March 2024 event? This is when updated versions of both the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro with M3 chip could be launched. We also might see a refreshed iPad Air, HomePod mini, Apple TV, AirTag or even AirPods Max update could land – but there’s a good chance we’ll have to wait until later in 2024 for most of these.
Although Apple’s highly-anticipated Vision Pro headset has already been announced, that could officially go on sale in early 2024 too, and might coincide with this spring event.
When is WWDC 2024?
WWDC took place from June 5th to June 9th in 2023 and June 6th to June 10th in 2022 so we anticipate a very similar date for 2024.
WWDC 2023: What was announced at WWDC 2023?
The last Apple event was WWDC 2023, where we saw some big updates and hardware, much of which we now have in our hands. Software-wise, iOS 17 and WatchOS 10 were unveiled alongside macOS 14 and iPadOS 17, all with big updates that we’ve been playing around with in Beta form.
If you want to play with the Betas as well, their public versions are out now in the form of the watchOS 10 public beta or the iOS 17 beta.
We also finally got to see the Vision Pro headset, Apple’s entry into the VR and AR space. We got a glimpse of the device itself, as well as the software behind it. There was also a new 15-inch MacBook Air, which we’ve subsequently given a five-star review, and the latest Mac Pro and Studio models for those looking for a new Mac.