???? Good morning! Paula with you today — Tristan’s back at the helm tomorrow, and we’ve got a big day ahead: It’s the start of Apple’s WWDC, running from June 6-10.
What to expect from Apple’s WWDC
Things kick off today with the keynote at 10 AM PDT. You can watch on YouTube, via the Apple TV app, in the Apple Developer app, or on your PC here.
Though the event is aimed at developers creating apps for Apple’s platforms, there’s plenty of interesting stuff for consumers too. Most of the big news will likely land on Monday during the keynote. So what can we expect?
What we’re not expecting:
We likely won’t see Apple’s mixed-reality headset (The Verge) make its debut this week, though it’ll probably still be the talk of the WWDC as excitement continues to build. We could get a few more hints as to what’s coming, though…
OS updates
What we definitely will see this week are significant updates to Apple’s core OS: iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and macOS:
- iOS 16’s set to get a new lock screen with widgets (macrumors), plus “significant” improvements to notifications, and we could see support for the buy now, pay later Apple Pay feature in development. We might also see support for the hardware subscription program that will let customers pay a monthly fee for iPhone, iPad, or Mac.
- We’ll see watchOS 9 (CNET), with upgrades to watch faces, a new low-power mode, and more health features (including medication reminders).
- iPadOS is being revamped (Bloomberg) to focus on pro users, with new multitasking features to make iPads more laptop-like.
- We haven’t heard much about tvOS 16, but it’s rumored to include new smart home tie-ins, meaning you could do more with your smart home products through Apple TV.
- According to Mark Gurman’s PowerOn, we should also expect to see notable upgrades to Apple’s apps for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac. This could mean fresh fitness apps for Apple Watch, updates to Messages and Health for iPhone, and revamped Mac System Preferences.
How about hardware?
It’s not yet clear if we’ll see a new MacBook Air or 13-inch MacBook Pro at WWDC this year, mostly due to the supply issues caused by China’s Covid-related lockdowns.
- If a new MacBook Air does make an appearance, it might get a non-immediate release date or we could see a long wait time (The Verge) due to shortages.
- The MacBook Air will see its biggest changes in over a decade: A new design that looks like the MacBook Pros, new colors, including a dark blue and champagne gold, plus a 13-inch display, MagSafe charging, a pair of USB-C ports, Touch ID, no Touch Bar, and maybe a Pro-like notch.
There’s also every chance we could get a faster 13-inch MacBook Pro too, but again, the lockdowns in China might have thrown that launch off course, so we’ll need to wait to find out.
Roundup
???? Now the Pixel 6a has been listed for sale on Facebook Marketplace way before its release on July 28 (Android Authority).
Paula Beaton, Copy Editor.
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