Are you ready for Apple’s Spring 5G iPhone SE3 event?

Media and analysts arrive at Apple’s iPhone event in the olden days

Apple has yet another pocket full of stories to share in 2022, beginning with its spring launch event which is expected to take place by April. The company typically hosts four major launch events each year, including WWDC in June, the annual iPhone introduction in September and an October Mac event.

What can we expect this spring?

Given the continued challenge of Covid-19 and the viruses continued capacity to reinvent itself, it seems inevitable that Apple will hold its spring event virtually once again.

At time of writing the biggest items on the radar include the introduction of the 5G iPhone SE 3 and new AirPods Pro earbuds (though the latter may not appear until Q4, so wait and see). There has been speculation also of an iPhone SE Plus.

With its eyes on the back-to-school season, there’s a strong possibility Apple intends introducing a new iPad Air model. There has also been speculation spring may see Apple launch a new larger iMac equipped with an M1 Pro or M1 Mac chip and a new Mac mini equipped with the same processor.

We don’t know if Apple will attempt to cram all of these systems inside one Apple event, but it does seem probable it will want to introduce at least one Mac model at the same time as the iPhone to help keep the Apple Silicon storyline rolling forward as it preps for its next M-series chip iteration in Q4.

[Also read: Apple gathers the building blocks to invent tomorrow’s tech]

What about later this year?

We can make a few predictions around what to look forward to across the rest of 2022.

Apple’s own AR/VR headset (with a chip as powerful as a Mac, and energy needs to match) is expected later this year and will pack two processors – one chip to handle incoming sensor data of various kinds, the other to create the experience and transact supported tasks. This isn’t expected to arrive until Q4, though it seems plausible to expect some information about it at WWDC, as Apple woos developers to work with the new platform.

Also at WWDC, Apple will introduce new iterations of its operating systems, allegedly code-named as follows: iOS 16 (Sydney), tvOS 16 (Paris), macOS 13 (Rome), and watchOS 9 (Kincaid). As expected, WWDC also seems certain to be a virtual event, according to recent coverage from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman.

Upgrades across the entire line

Also on the slate, incoming products include an iMac Pro, a brand new MacBook Air and, of course, the iPhone 14 with what everyone is calling a “hole-punch” cutout for the camera and Face ID. That all-new A16-powered iPhone may appear in the following sizes, with the abandonment of the lovely iPhone mini (for shame): 6.1-inch iPhone 14, a 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro, a 6.7-inch iPhone 14 “Max,” and a 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max.

The Apple Watch 8 is also in the pipeline.

I think Apple may want to push something interesting into this device, as it seems to be losing momentum. Will blood glucose monitoring at last make an appearance, or, following the closure of Beddit, will we see more sophisticated sleep tracking? Will that be enough?

There has been speculation around a rugged version of the device, for adventure sports like commuting on crowded trains with a cough. The year should finish with flourish in the form of the long-awaited multi-processor M1 Max-powered Mac Pro.

That’s not all, of course. We have a gentle hubbub of more speculative rumor, such as whispered plans of a Books+ subscription service. The year seems set to rush by once again, at least in the Appleverse.

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