Five Devices I Expect Apple to Announce on Wednesday

Apple has a big event scheduled for tomorrow. On Wednesday, Sept. 9, at 1 p.m. ET, the company will take the virtual stage to announce a series of new products. Exactly what those products are, only Apple knows for sure. But thanks to leaks and rumors, we generally know what some of those updates are going to be. I'm confident we'll see these five devices announced tomorrow, though Apple may have other updates in store for us as well.

iPhone Ultra announcement

The defining product announcement for Apple tomorrow will be the iPhone Ultra. The Ultra is Apple's first foldable iPhone, undeniably the biggest update to the iPhone line in years (or, perhaps, ever). Like other foldables, the iPhone Ultra will feature a "smaller" display when closed (perhaps 5.5 inches), and will open to reveal a larger display within (rumors suggest 7.8 inches). Leaks suggest the devices will have two rear cameras in addition to a selfie cam, though it may use Touch ID rather than Face ID.

Apple will likely debut its new A20 chip with all its new iPhones this year, Ultra included. The company may pack in 12GB of RAM and a larger battery to accommodate the dual displays-perhaps 5,000 mAh or 5,500, per the rumors. While we won't know for sure until we see it, leaks suggest Apple has managed to reduce the appearance of the Ultra's "crease," or where the display folds in. If so, the Ultra could have one of the better-looking foldable displays on the market, but, again, we won't know until tomorrow.

While most of the iPhone Ultra's specs are exciting, one thing is anything but: its price. A foldable iPhone was always doomed to be expensive, but thanks to the ongoing memory crisis, all tech is pricier than ever. Rumors suggest the iPhone Ultra will start at more than $2,000. As of this article, Apple's most expensive iPhone is the $2,000 2TB iPhone 17 Pro Max, but even it has a starting price of $1,199 for 256GB.

iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max announcement

Apple isn't doing away with its traditional iPhone design. On the contrary, the other iPhones Apple is expected to announce tomorrow, the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, will be small updates from last year's iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. (As an owner of the latter, I'm happy I don't have much pressure to upgrade.)

Here's what's new from last year: According to the rumors, the iPhone 18 Pro line may ship with slightly smaller Dynamic Islands than before. While you'll still see the camera cutout, it won't be quite as prominent as on the iPhone 17 Pro series, which gives you a bit more screen real estate to work with. In addition, the new devices may get cameras with variable apertures, as opposed to the fixed apertures in the 17 Pros. That would allow the 18 Pros to take in more light in dark environments, like how many traditional cameras work. Like the iPhone Ultra, the iPhone 18 Pros will likely get the A20 chip, so unless Apple has made any major breakthroughs here, expect the usual slight increase in performance and efficiency. The 18 Pro could also ship with Apple's C2 modem, which may offer more privacy benefits in addition to cellular performance.

Rumors also suggest the 18 Pro and 19 Pro Max batteries could be larger and more efficient, but since Apple is private about its battery specs, we'll have to wait for independent teardown videos to know for sure. What most of us will be happy to see, however, are the new colors. While the 18 Pro should look almost identical to the 17 Pro, you'll have color choices like dark cherry and sky blue, and likely at least one more option: either black, light gray, or both. Like the Ultra, the 18 Pro will likely cost more than ever this year. The base model may ship at $1,299, while the 18 Pro Max may start at $1,399. Once you start bumping up the storage, the price may only increase.

That's it for iPhones, at least if the rumors can be believed. Apple may push other iPhones, like the iPhone 18, 18e, and iPhone Air 2, into the spring of 2027, but if they do, it isn't clear whether they'll punt the entire announcement or simply share that these phones will be available next year. (My money's on the latter.)

Apple Watch Series 12 announcement

Apple's next-generation Apple Watch is likely coming tomorrow, too. The Apple Watch Series 12 might not change much from the Series 11, but rumors point to three key updates. First, as expected, there's a new "S-series" chip, the S11. While there isn't much out there on performance, it will be Apple's first Apple Watch chip released during its big AI push, so, presumably, it will help power some of those new features. Turning to health, the Series 12 may bring an "always-on" heart-rate sensor, similar to what you can find from WHOOP, which could give you more health data than the current watches.

Finally, Apple may bring back the ceramic watch option this year in two colors: white and dark gray. We don't have much pricing info yet, but when Apple released the ceramic Series 5, it started at $1,299, so that option could get quite expensive in our RAMaggedon era.

Apple Watch Ultra 4 announcement

The Apple Watch Ultra 4 is also light on rumors. From what I see, leakers expect an Ultra that looks much like the Ultra 3, with similar upgrades to the Series 12. That means the S12 chip and an always-on heart-rate sensor. While I expect to see the Ultra 4 tomorrow, I don't expect it to be an overhauled device.

Apple might announce these products

While the above five products are almost guaranteed to debut tomorrow, other devices aren't so locked in. As MacRumors highlights, Apple has some other products in the works that may or may not make it to its big September event. They include a new Apple TV 4K with an upgraded chip, a new HomePod mini with a faster processor, and, most notably, the "Home hub," which would be Apple's first smart-home display. That device could come with a seven-inch screen, a camera, motion sensors, and more, capable of running Siri AI, making video calls, and streaming content. Apple could also release fifth-generation AirPods with the H3 chip, but we'll have to wait until tomorrow to know for sure.

Apple will also likely take tomorrow to confirm release dates for its upcoming slate of software updates, including iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, and watchOS 27. If you have a compatible iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Watch, you'll be able to install the updates for free whenever Apple drops them.