Apple’s annual September showcase returned a few hours ago. The keynote promised what is the company's most “awe-dropping” product lineup yet... so is it? Of course, the iPhones receive the usual upgrades (longer battery life; tougher exterior) but being thinner wasn't on our Bingo cards. (We lied. We have heard long-gestating rumours of Apple working on an iPhone Air. Maybe, we can expect foldables soon?)
It's not as "awe-dropping" as expected but it did leave us a little gobsmacked. As we sacrificed sleep from watching the keynote live, here are what was announced.
The latest generation of Apple's best-selling earbuds. With a slightly newer design and vastly improved ANC (eight hours of listening with ANC enabled), the earbuds also boast a surprising feature: heart-rate sensing. Pushing the AirPods Pro 3 into the health realm, the in-built heart rate sensor uses a photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor (advanced infrared light magic) to track heart rate. Capitalising on the AirPods Pro's accelerometers, gyroscope and GPS (yeah, I wasn't acutely aware of how much shit goes into their earbuds), users can effectively use the AirPods Pro 3 like a health tracker and close their rings.
Another feature we can't wait to try out: Live Translation. While other brands have already used live translation in their devices, it'd be interesting to see how Apple would work this. It's purported that users can "understand another language and communicate with others by speaking naturally with AirPods". Apparently, the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 can also utilise the Live Translation feature.
Now thinner, with a more comfortable design, 5G cellular connectivity, the Watch Series 11 also comes with an expanded array of health tools, like sleep score (it measures sleep quality). What we are most chuffed about is the battery life. Now the Series 11 delivers up to 24 hours on a single charge, with a 15-minute charge providing up to eight hours of usage. Durability also sees an improvement. Aluminium models now feature Ion-X glass that’s twice as scratch-resistant; a new ceramic coating process adds strength to the model, while titanium editions continue with ultra-hard sapphire crystal displays.
There will be a watchOS 26 update. Apple's Workout Buddy will level up and provide personalised audio motivation during runs, rides, and gym sessions, drawing on metrics like heart rate, pace, and Activity rings. Expect two new watch faces with the update like Flow (animated colour swirls) and Exactograph, a modern take on the regulator clock. There are aluminium models in jet black, space grey, rose gold, and silver, and titanium in natural, gold, and slate. Sizes are 42mm and 46mm, with a refreshed collection of bands, including new Nike designs and Hermès “Faubourg Party” knit band paired with an exclusive matching animated watch face.
For the Watch with the bare necessities, the Apple Watch SE 3 brings more of its flagship features to the table without the premium price tag. The SE 3 now has Always-On display thanks to its new S10 chip and a new grade of Ion-X glass that’s four times more resistant to cracks. Battery life is still 18 hours of usage but fast charging gets you up to eight hours of use from a 15-minute top-up. Like the Series 11, the SE 3 will have a Workout Buddy (when you upgrade to a watchOS 26) and a 5G cellular feature. It's available in 40mm and 44mm cases in midnight and starlight aluminium.
The sporty big brother in the Watch ecosystem now has up to 42 hours of battery life (or 72 in Low Power Mode), 5G connectivity, and the most accurate GPS for a sports watch. The Ultra 3 debuts Apple’s most advanced display technology, with LTPO3 wide-angle OLEDs that are brighter, more efficient, and deliver the thinnest borders ever on an Apple Watch. Its Always-On display now refreshes at 1Hz and a new Waypoint face adds a live compass and instant Night Mode for low-light navigation. A 15-minute charge can now provide up to 12 hours of runtime.
On the health side, you've sleep score and the usual Workout Buddy, oh, and watchOS 26 brings a refreshed Liquid Glass design and smarter notifications. Coming in natural or black titanium, aside from the Milanese Loop, the Ultra 3 comes with new band options including a reflective Trail Loop, Ocean Band and colourful Alpine Loop. Of course, there's the Hermès En Mer and Scub’H Diving straps.
It's the iPhone 17, and it has a new Centre Stage front camera, which offers up to 18MP resolution. And because of the new square camera sensor (apparently, the conventional camera sensors are rectangular—3:2 or 4:3), users can take portrait or landscape selfies while holding the phone vertically. When there are group shots, Apple Intelligence automatically expands the frame. Stabilised 4K HDR video with Spatial Audio recording makes this Apple’s most advanced front-facing system yet.
On the rear, the cameras now feature 48MP sensors. The Fusion Main camera uses an optical-quality 2x Telephoto and the Ultra Wide captures expansive shots or detailed macros with four times more resolution than before. You get new Photographic Styles that include a Bright mode, which makes it easier to tailor photos in real time while keeping skin tones natural. When it comes to the display, it's larger and brighter with a 6.3-inch Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion. Peak brightness reaches 3000 nits outdoors.
(The iPhone 17 series will run on iOS26, which includes Liquid Glass, a more integrated Apple Intelligence that uses Live Translation and a vibrant lockscreen. All iPhone 17 models have Ceramic Shield 2 coating on the front, which is triple the scratch resistance of the previous model and is anti-reflection.)
Powered by the A19 chip, the iPhone 17 has souped-up performance, efficiency, and the next wave of AI features. You get up to 30 hours of video playback, plus an Adaptive Power Mode that predicts usage patterns to conserve energy when needed. Fast charging now reaches 50 per cent in 20 minutes thanks to the new 40W Dynamic Power Adapter. Available in black, lavender, mist blue, sage, and white, the iPhone 17 starts at 256GB of storage.
Ah, this is the product that we've been waiting for: the iPhone Air, the thinnest iPhone ever at just 5.6mm. Made from grade 5 titanium with a high-gloss mirror finish, the phone weighs an impossible 165g and has a redesigned internal structure to adapt to having a bigger battery (we're unsure of the mAh but Apple says the iPhone Air delivers "all day battery life", so make of it what you will) while meeting Apple’s highest bend strength standards. There's a precision-milled plateau at the back that houses the cameras, speaker, and Apple silicon.
At 6.5 inches, the Super Retina XDR display delivers ProMotion up to 120Hz, the usual peak 3000 nits brightness for outdoor use. Again, this has the same camera features as the iPhone 17 (18MP Centre Stage front camera, 48MP Fusion Main camera, etc).
What sets the iPhone Air apart from its siblings is the use of eSIM, which frees up internal space while making international travel easier with seamless global connectivity across more than 500 carriers. Powering the iPhone Air are a trio of chipsets: the A19 Pro, N1, and the all-new C1X modem; respectively, you get better processing, connectivity and energy efficiency. The iPhone Air comes in four colourways: space black, cloud white, light gold, and sky blue.
Lastly, the powerhouses of the iPhone 17 series: the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. The models have a new brushed aluminium unibody that is forged from aerospace-grade 7000-series aluminium alloy. The new redesign is meant for durability to house a laser-welded vapour chamber filled with deionised water to whisk heat away from the A19 Pro chip. This means that you can play AAA-level mobile games with ray tracing or edit videos without the device burning up.
A troika of 48MP Fusion cameras—Main, Ultra Wide, and an all-new Telephoto—elevate the photography experience. The Telephoto introduces a next-gen tetraprism sensor, where you can have 4x optical zoom at 100mm and an 8x optical zoom at 200mm; digital zoom now goes up to 40x. Like the rest of the iPhone 17 series, you also have the 18MP Centre Stage front camera, stabilised 4K HDR video, Dual Capture features and so on.
Like the iPhone Air, the 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max are eSIM-only models. Both phones also have Apple’s new 40W Dynamic Power Adapter, which supports fast charging up to 50 per cent within 20 minutes. The Pro models come in deep blue, cosmic orange, and silver colourways.
Pre-orders are open for all the products that were announced. Meanwhile, watch the Apple Event below:
