Nothing on this world is definite, apart from dying, taxes and the reveal of a brand new iPhone yearly. Since receiving our invitations to attend Apple’s “awe-dropping” iPhone 17 occasion, we have been exhausting at work deciphering what the enigmatic Apple brand heatmap might imply. Whereas that’ll stay a thriller till Tuesday, we have seen a number of the anticipated product lineup via leaked pictures and rumors from trade analysts.
Along with the base mannequin, you’ll be able to count on an iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max and a slim model, nicknamed the iPhone 17 Air, to be revealed in the course of the occasion. We’re additionally prone to see an Apple Watch Sequence 11, Apple Watch Extremely 3 and perhaps an Apple Watch SE, which was final up to date in 2022. The AirPods Professional 3 may also make their debut.
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iOS 26 and its minimalistic Liquid Glass function tie the entire lineup collectively. The latter was showcased at WWDC 2025 and needs to be launched shortly after the occasion.
Listed below are the largest rumors and leaks about Apple’s new {hardware}. We’ll proceed updating this piece forward of the iPhone 17 occasion tomorrow. Whether or not you propose to observe the stream or simply verify in with the massive bulletins, CNET specialists are bringing the most recent stay Apple occasion protection to you earlier than the keynote begins.
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This is what the iPhone 17 might appear to be, in an array of various colours.
What’s the ‘Awe Dropping’ Apple occasion on Sept. 9?
If you happen to’re excited concerning the new iPhone’s debut, you will not have to attend lengthy. Now that invitations have gone out, we will formally verify that Apple is planning its occasion for Tuesday, Sept. 9 at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.
It seems the leaks and rumors surrounding the occasion date have been correct. We are able to count on to see a full slate of product launches on the Awe Dropping Apple occasion, beginning with the iPhone 17. The heatmap Apple brand included within the occasion invitations hints at a brand new function, however we do not know what that might be.
iPhone 17
The usual iPhone is the cornerstone of Apple’s September presentation, and the iPhone 17 needs to be no totally different. All in all, this yr will not mark a groundbreaking shakeup for the iPhone. That is supposedly coming subsequent yr, for the iPhone’s twentieth anniversary. However there are nonetheless new options to get excited over within the meantime.
The most important alteration to the design is rumored to be the telephone’s digital camera bump, which can extra intently resemble the pill-shaped design of Google’s Pixel. Analyst Jeff Pu additionally believes that the selfie digital camera might be 24 megapixels — a strong improve from the 12-megapixel front-facing digital camera current within the iPhone 16 lineup.
There are conflicting rumors concerning the iPhone 17’s inner specs. Pu stated that the brand new telephone may have the identical A18 chipset used within the iPhone 16, whereas leaker Mounted Focus Digital steered that the telephone might be upgraded to the A19 chip. It is unknown whether or not the iPhone 17 will get a bodily battery improve, however the Adaptive Energy function included inside iOS 26 ought to assist prolong the telephone’s battery life nonetheless.
Distinguished leaker Majin Bu posted pictures of the purported iPhone 17 lineup on X, and in the event that they’re correct, the system will are available black, blue, silver, purple and inexperienced.
Primarily based on the Sept. 9 occasion date, we will count on preorders for the brand new Apple {hardware} to start on Sept. 12, with a launch date of Sept. 19.
The iPhone Plus may be changed with a sleeker iPhone 17 Air on this yr’s product lineup. This is a rendering of what which may appear to be.
iPhone 17 Air
The iPhone 17 Air might change the Plus mannequin within the lineup. Its key function might be an ultra-thin design, like Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge. It will likely be attention-grabbing to see if the slim design comes with a sacrifice to battery life, like with the S25 Edge. A Bloomberg report states that the Air might be as skinny as 5.5mm. Pu notes that the Air will doubtless have a 6.6-inch show, with a decision of 1,260×2,740 pixels.
There’s a mixture of rumors concerning the Air’s chip, with trusted sources equivalent to Bloomberg reporting that it’s going to have the usual A19 chip. Extra just lately, MacRumors reported on a leaker’s assertion that the telephone will comprise the A19 Professional chip, however there is not any substantial proof pointing towards both declare.
In accordance with MacRumors, the Air has a 2,800-mAh battery — although it may be the primary Apple telephone to make use of a high-density silicon battery, which might enhance precise battery capability by between 15% to twenty%. Be aware that the Adaptive Energy function delivery with iOS 26 may assist with the battery life.
Judging by the quite a few leaked pictures and renders, it is also extraordinarily doubtless that the Air may have just one wide-angle rear digital camera, just like the iPhone 16E. The entrance digital camera may additionally be moved to the left of the Dynamic Island cutout (that digital camera sensor bar on the high of the telephone’s show) to keep up its type.
Whereas the iPhone 17 is predicted to remain on the baseline 8GB of reminiscence, the Air might have 12GB of RAM, which is identical reminiscence that the Professional and Professional Max telephones are rumored to incorporate.
A CNET mock up of the iPhone 17 Professional.
iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max
Whereas the Air is predicted to make sacrifices to attain its design, the iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max are probably the most premium fashions within the lineup. Latest pictures substantiate rumors that the Professional’s chassis will change from titanium to aluminum, making it lighter than earlier fashions.
The largest rumored upgrades coming are the cameras. MacRumors reported that the iPhone 17 Professional fashions may have an 8x optical zoom telephoto lens, up from the 5x one on the 16 Professional. Pu wrote that the Professional telephones will function a 48-megapixel telephoto digital camera, which is a considerable enchancment over the 16 Professional’s 12-megapixel sensor. He equally studies that the selfie digital camera might be upgraded to 24 megapixels, up from the 12-megapixel front-facing digital camera on the 16 Professional.
As reported on by MacRumors, one leaker claimed the iPhone 17 Professional Max may have the largest battery in any iPhone up to now — and the Professional will doubtless have a equally sized battery. Bu claimed that each telephones may have a vapor chamber cooling system, which might assist hold these batteries from overheating on the sunniest summer time days.
The Professional telephones will include the A19 Professional chip, however whereas the iPhone 17 Air might doubtless have a five-core GPU, the Professional and Professional Max may have a six-core GPU, guaranteeing higher efficiency throughout the board.
For folk who care about displaying off their new telephone, you will be completely happy to know that one supposed leaker on Weibo claimed that one of many shade selections for the iPhone 17 Professional and Professional Max is said to the slick iOS 26 Liquid Glass design, whereas we have seen leaked mockups of the Professional in black, silver, darkish blue and orange.
It is time for an improve to the Apple Watch and its premium version. The price range sensible watch may also get a brand new iteration this yr.
Apple Watch Sequence 11, Extremely 3 and SE
The Apple Watch Sequence 11 might get key enhancements to its core options, battery life and efficiency.
We’d not see a drastic change in design from the Apple Watch Sequence 10, however MacRumors studies that the Sequence 11 might get a extra energy-efficient display screen with greater decision and higher brightness settings (which might enhance battery life). Preserving with the development of upgrading the processor in every new Apple Watch, we must always see an S11 chip current within the Sequence 11.
Gurman reported in March that Apple has been testing blood stress monitoring for future Apple Watch fashions, but it surely’s unclear how far alongside in growth that function is and whether or not it is prepared for launch with the Sequence 11.
What’s extraordinarily prone to debut at this occasion, however, is the Apple Watch Extremely 3, since MacRumors discovered imagery for the smartwatch buried inside the iOS 26 beta. The pictures present an Extremely watch with a barely bigger show, clocking in at a 422×514-pixel decision. The Extremely 3 would doubtless share an S11 chip with the Sequence 11. Whereas the Extremely 2 already boasts the longest battery lifetime of any Apple Watch, an S11 chip might see even better returns on a single cost for the Extremely 3 — it might final three or 4 days in low-power mode.
Probably the most distinctive function that might come to the premium new Apple Watch is satellite tv for pc connectivity. In accordance with Gurman, Apple has been exploring including this function to the subsequent Extremely mannequin — if carried out, it might allow emergency messaging and placement sharing in areas with out cell service. Google’s new Pixel Watch 4 is the primary smartwatch to assist satellite tv for pc connectivity.
There are some hints that we would see a brand new SE mannequin. For starters, there hasn’t been an SE since 2022, which suggests Apple might be primed for a launch this yr. A report from Gurman additionally said {that a} next-gen SE might be within the works. In accordance with Gurman, the subsequent SE design might largely concentrate on an improved exterior, but it surely’s additionally doubtless that the price range watch might get an improve to Apple’s S9 chip.
The WatchOS 26 AI-powered Exercise Buddy function can even be normal for any new Apple Watch launched at this occasion, although it’ll should be paired with an Apple Intelligence-enabled iPhone.
It has been a few years since a brand new AirPods Professional mannequin has been launched — however we would simply see a brand new iteration come September.
AirPods Professional 3
It has been a scorching minute since Apple up to date the AirPods Professional, in keeping with CNET’s resident headphone reviewer David Carnoy. The second iteration of the premium wi-fi earbuds was launched in 2022, and the corporate has been radio silent concerning the AirPods Professional 3 regardless of releasing new AirPods fashions yearly since 2019.
That is prone to change very quickly, as MacRumors contributor Steve Moser discovered references to the AirPods Professional 3 within the underlying code for iOS 26’s first beta.
Bloomberg’s Gurman predicts that the product announcement will occur in the course of the iPhone 17 occasion. He additionally reported that the brand new design will doubtless function heart-rate monitoring as a key function, equally to the Powerbeats Professional 2. Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo additional reported that the corporate is seeking to add infrared cameras to future AirPods, however this {hardware} won’t be prepared till the AirPods Professional 4.
It is also rumored that the AirPods Professional 3 might have an interactive touchscreen show within the charging case, doubling as a distant management. It is also doable that the brand new wi-fi earbuds may have an H3 chip, an enchancment over the AirPods Professional 2’s H2 chip that might enhance battery life, improve sound high quality, present higher lively noise cancellation and carry out higher throughout voice calls.
If you happen to’re uninterested in gentle and darkish mode, the brand new “all clear” Liquid Glass mode in iOS 26 may be simply what you are in search of.
Announcement, beta and iOS 26 launch
A brand new technology of Apple {hardware} calls for brand new software program as nicely, and iOS 26 is altering excess of the working system’s naming conference. The iOS 18 successor — which was introduced at WWDC — is on its fifth public beta, which fixes a variety of bugs from the earlier replace and brings the software program extra in step with the latest developer beta model.
We all know what lots of the major options of iOS 26 will appear to be earlier than its full launch. The design is basically minimalist, with a heavy emphasis on Liquid Glass, which presents a colorless “all clear” different to the sunshine and darkish mode interfaces. This unobtrusive design will make dynamic adjustments to the lock display screen, the place the time and date will change to suit your photograph, and Safari, the place unused tabs will gravitate towards the highest of the display screen.
The Digicam, Pictures and FaceTime apps are additionally going again to fundamentals with simplified designs, whereas the Messages app is getting extra colourful. The largest options for iOS 26 are name screening for unknown numbers, stay translation for calls and texts, a devoted Video games app and lyrics translations on the Music app.
For an in-depth breakdown of the entire iOS upgrades Apple has revealed (in addition to the updates the corporate did not point out), take a look at the roundup from CNET’s Jeff Carlson right here.
We’ll proceed to replace this piece as extra particulars for the Sept. 9 Awe Dropping iPhone 17 occasion are confirmed. Test again for extra details about launch dates and upcoming Apple {hardware} because it turns into accessible.
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