Apple’s developer conference, WWDC (acronym for Worldwide Developers Conference) will begin tonight (Monday). At the main event, the company is expected to present its latest developments in the field of software for its various devices: iPhone, Mac, iPad, watches and television.
Live updates from Apple’s announcement event at 20:00 Israel time, here in Globes.
As in the last two years, this time too, the developer conference will be virtual and the main event will still be pre-recorded and broadcast. In contrast, this year Apple invited hundreds of software developers, journalists and students down its headquarters in Cupertino, California, to watch the announcement, get on-campus tours and talk to people head-on. It’s not like the thousands who would have come to San Jose before the Corona, but things seem to be starting to get back to normal.
Between operating systems and smartwatches
Apple will announce its overall strategy for the various arenas for the coming year. How the various operating systems will be upgraded and what the company thinks needs to be deepened. Tonight the company will announce the new generations of operating systems for the various devices, and according to a report in Bloomberg, iOS 16, the new operating system of the new iPhones, is expected to include new designs and new developments for the various applications.
Apple generates up to $ 20 billion a year from software sales in its app store, and tonight’s announcements are important to its financial performance. For the company, third-party software developers should choose Apple as the most preferred platform, and an event designed for developers is especially important. If its public value has dropped, its sales will also plummet.
Among the rumors that are running, Apple is expected to incorporate an always-on feature, meaning a document that is constantly lit up like on Android. In addition, in the watch division we will probably get some new fitness and health features, alongside new watch designs.
In the hardware division, there are some rumors about two important matters: First, Apple is expected to announce the next generation for its M1 processor, which will most likely be called M2. Second, we sometimes hear at events of this kind about hardware products as well, most often the special and expensive ones aimed at programmers (similar to the 2019 announcement in which they announced the $ 6,000 Pro and a $ 5,000 computer screen). The current rumor is that Apple will introduce at least two new computers “around the middle of the year”. The Bloomberg report says there is a complete list of computers that Apple is working on, including a new Mac Pro, and that it is expected to announce. Alongside this, there are rumors that MacBook Air will get a new design and also a new Mac Pro with a standalone Apple processor.
Apart from these, Apple’s mixed reality glasses are also on the agenda. However, rumors indicate that they will not be arriving tonight, despite reports that about two weeks ago, Apple’s board of directors tried them out. To be sure, the event is a preparation for the company’s huge fall event, in which Apple will launch new iPhones and who knows – maybe even augmented reality glasses.