Apple event 2024: What to expect at the iPhone 16 keynote in September

The biggest day of the tech world’s autumn calendar is nearly here: Apple’s iPhone 16 event will take place on September 9 at 1PM ET. We'll be live-blogging the news, and you can watch it live via the company’s website or on YouTube. The biggest news from the Apple event will almost definitely involve the forthcoming lineup of iPhone 16 handsets. As with all recent Septembers, we also expect to get a new Apple Watch or two — maybe even three, if Apple squeezes in a new SE.

Beyond that, rumors have been swirling about a refresh of the standard AirPod earbuds, along with updates to Apple's other product lines. Until Tim Cook takes the (virtual) stage, however, everything is pure speculation. With that said, let’s get into the most likely leaks and rumors ahead of the Apple event.

iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro

No matter what else happens, these new handsets will take center stage during the Apple event. That’s good news for people ready for an upgrade. The bad (ish) news? The vast majority of leaks and rumors indicate that this will be another year of iterative improvements, so don’t expect a game-changing new hardware feature.

There’s likely to be four new models announced at the event, which is similar to what Apple did last year. The new phones will allegedly be called the iPhone 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max, according to industry analyst Mark Gurman. This is the exact same naming convention as last year’s iPhone 15 reveal, so the rumors of Apple adopting an “iPhone Ultra” moniker seem to have been greatly exaggerated.

Even if Apple doesn't use the Ultra naming, the Pro models might be getting slightly larger screens, which is always nice (if you like big phones, that is). The regular Pro is likely to move to 6.3 inches from 6.1 inches, while the Pro Max should hit 6.9 inches, an increase from 6.7 inches. Finally, there will likely be a new color or two, as always. Bloomberg’s Gurman suggests that Apple is ready to ditch the blue model in