When to Expect Apple's Next Event: 16-Inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro Refresh, and More?

[RiderXTC]

One thing to keep in mind is Apple's return policy is unofficially extended if you purchase any device and a new one launches shortly thereafter. In the past, I have purchased a new MacBook Pro within about a month of a new model being released. I was able to return the MacBook Pro and exchange it for the new model.

This unofficial policy still exists. I just ordered a customized MacBook Pro and was aware that a new model is going to possibly be released. I inquired in person at three different Apple stores about the return options if a new model is released. After speaking with managers at each location, they confirmed that as long as it is within about 30 days, they would accept the return. I even noted their names just in case I need to take them up on their offer.

 

[Pro7913]

That's just a chicken and egg problem. A lot of software will be made compatible only after an ARM system ships.

There's tons of macOS software written using standard Xcode tools and high-level languages (e.g. zero x86 asm). The vast majority of those macOS applications can be simply recompiled for ARM with very little extra work, if any. The vast majority of Linux apps already run on ARM systems (Raspberry Pi's, et.al.), and a lot have already been ported to macOS as well. A lot of Microsoft and Google software also already runs on various ARM based systems. iOS applications could also be easily ported to macOS, both x86 and ARM, using Catalyst on Catalina.

But no developer is going to do that small amount of work until some macOS product ships (or is about to ship) that requires it.

ARM is a whole new area since most professional software is base on X86. Adobe seems to hate to change their software for a long time.

It's up to developers who wanna develop for ARM based Mac. It's not about how many ARM apps are already available. So tell me. How many professional app or software available for ARM?

 

[Newvideo]

I suspect the NewMacPro and possibly the 16in MacBook Pro will make their shipping debut at or near the FCP X Creative Summit in Cupertino November 7. Apple has used the Summit in the past as a vehicle to do hands-on demos of the latest hardware for the types of Media Users that will likely become their primary target market. That also sets things up for creative companies looking to solidify their 2020 budgets.

 

[Peperino]

There should be a lot of new Mac stuff, the Mac Pro launch, the Macbook Pro 16in launch could be a refresh on the Mac Mini and the iMac Pro and iMac. It should be Mac month. I am getting a new 16in macbook pro or if they update the Mac mini might do that. Should be a exciting month for Mac. You can not say that Apple is ignoring the Mac community this month

I believe it when I see it. So far all the latest hardware refreshes have been extremely disappointing.
All Macbooks 2016+ are a lemon. Still waiting for a decent Macbook to upgrade.
Although the new iPad is nice, it still has lighting instead of USB-C and is compatible only with Pen V1.
iMacs, 10 year old design and entry level still ships with 5400rpm HD. Pathetic.
New Watch V5, it is very similar to the previous version.

 

[pipis2010]

With last month's iPhone 11 and Apple Watch Series 5 event in the rearview mirror, and several more products in the rumor mill, it is fun to look ahead and speculate about if and when Apple might host an October event this year.

Apple has several rumored products in its pipeline, including a 16-inch MacBook Pro with a scissor keyboard and an all-new design, refreshed iPad Pro models that will possibly sport triple-lens rear camera systems, a refreshed Apple TV, and just maybe the so-called Apple Tags items trackers if they are ready.

Apple has also yet to reveal a release date for its redesigned Mac Pro, having only teased that it is "coming this fall."

To be clear, there is no guarantee that Apple will host another event this month, but there is certainly a chance given that Apple has done so in five of the past seven years. All of those October events focused on the Mac, iPad, or both, and all took place within the second half of the month.

Last year, for example, Apple hosted an event on Tuesday, October 30 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and it wouldn't be a stretch of imagination to think that an October event this year could take place around the same time.

Apple analyst Neil Cybart shared an interesting observation on Twitter today, noting that Apple has reported its quarterly earnings results on a Tuesday for five out of the past six quarters. For the quarter just ended, however, Apple will report its earnings on Wednesday, October 30.

​

On the same day of Apple's earnings reports, CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri join analysts on a conference call to discuss the results.

The above might seem insignificant, but the last time Apple's earnings did not fall on a Tuesday was nearly a year ago, when it shared results on Thursday, November 1. This is likely because on the Tuesday prior, Apple was busy hosting its Brooklyn event, unveiling new iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini models.

Naturally, this leads to the idea that Apple could be planning to host an event in the final week of October.

Cybart speculates that Monday, October 28 could be the date of the event, presumably given the two-day gap between Apple's event and earnings call last October, but Apple typically holds events on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday. Tuesday, October 29 is probably a better guess for a potential Apple event this month.

If so, the final week of October could include Apple's event on Tuesday, Apple's earnings on Wednesday, and Apple TV+ launching on Friday.

Of course, Apple could surprise us with invites to an event on a different day of this month and render all of this moot. This is merely speculation for the sake of discussion, and nothing is official until it is official.

Article Link: When to Expect Apple's Next Event: 16-Inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro Refresh, and More?

It will be 1 week before the earnings call, guessing 22-23rd

 

[JustForward]

iMac Redesign anyone?

Agreed. It's unquestionably very bad that the  designer unable to come up with a new design for 7 years and unwilling to implement a touch-bar for the accessory.

 

[JustForward]

There should be a lot of new Mac stuff, the Mac Pro launch, the Macbook Pro 16in launch could be a refresh on the Mac Mini and the iMac Pro and iMac. It should be Mac month. I am getting a new 16in macbook pro or if they update the Mac mini might do that. Should be a exciting month for Mac. You can not say that Apple is ignoring the Mac community this month

It’s undoubtedly long overdue for a major update on the Mac lineup and it make sense that U1 chip also come to newer model of Mac.

 

[Rainshadow]

Yet, the base model storage has steadily increased.

I wonder why some people always feel the need to defend Apple's choice here, esp. when we already know the base storage increases over time.

A "Pro" iPad with "Pro" pricing but only 64 GB storage is a sad joke in 2019. And using your logic, we'd still be stuck with 16 GB iPads and iPhones. It was more acceptable 2 years ago and when the pricing was much lower to have a 64 GB iPad Pro, but that time has passed.

I get what you’re saying... but I tend to use my wife as a guide here. She could easily use a 16 gb device in those days. Now, she could probably get by with 32 if she tried but 64 is more than enough for her. I think she is like most people more so than I who needs min 128. I think it’s a good idea for Apple to have start cheaper at a lower storage option. The pro model though? I could go either way. To some it’s a pro device. They get higher storages. For another - it’s a quality machine for daily computing... doesn’t need much space. Want more space? There are additional options. need less space - there are none.

 

[JustForward]

I believe it when I see it. So far all the latest hardware refreshes have been extremely disappointing.
All Macbooks 2016+ are a lemon. Still waiting for a decent Macbook to upgrade.
Although the new iPad is nice, it still has lighting instead of USB-C and is compatible only with Pen V1.
iMacs, 10 year old design and entry level still ships with 5400rpm HD. Pathetic.
New Watch V5, it is very similar to the previous version.

The supervisor of mac hardware division is under scrutiny for allegations of professional incompetence and high potential risk of losing its job.

 

[polbit]

I really have high hopes for the 16" MBP. My 2017 has been my worst Mac and Apple experience so far, and after owning so many Apple products over many years, I'm slowly migrating away as I find the current Apple very different from what made them what they are. If the 16" is another miss like the current MBPs, it will mark an end of an era for me.

 

[jonnysods]

There was definitely news on here about the laptop back in early spring for sure.

I agree with you there - problem is it’s always speculation, then when they launched the new laptops my conclusion was that it couldn’t be this fall if they launched new ones now etc...

 

[imdropbear]

I'm really hoping for an iPad Pro refresh since I accidentally damaged the screen of my 2018 model (no AC+ so the repair is almost as much as a new one, ...) and it just doesn't feel right to pay the same as I did last year again for a year old model even though the device is amazing and worth it.

I don't expect one though. What's there to upgrade?
- The A12X is still insanely fast and too much for most users anyway
- RAM could certainly be higher but Apple isn't even advertising RAM so I doubt that would enough ground for an upgrade (especially since they are really hesistant to give us more RAM for some reason)
- The bending issue would require a material change which I doubt we will see since the other chassis is barely a year old and a chassis change would probably take more than just a few months so they would have had to develop a new one before the old one even released

So... what is left? The camera? Is the triple lense camera in an iPad that barely anyone uses to take photos anyway *really* a feature that justifies a new model from Apple's perspective? I mean, as stated above, I would really like a refresh but I just can't imagine we get one.

 

[guzhogi]

The supervisor of mac hardware division is under scrutiny for allegations of professional incompetence and high potential risk of losing its job.

Interesting. Source?

 

[xyz01]

What could they even update the Apple TV with at this point beyond just a new processor?

Better remote, 802.11ax, bluetooth 5 in addition to better CPU/graphics/ML. They could update the HDMI version and max resolution too, although there'd currently is little benefit in that - even though 8k TVs are coming down in price now, there is no content.

 

[guzhogi]

Although the new iPad is nice, it still has lighting instead of USB-C and is compatible only with Pen V1.

Yeah, I'd like Apple to make the iPad (and, by extension, iPhone) line more consistent. Same connector, same level of pencil support, etc. Pro line differentiation could be better CPU/GPU, more RAM, and bigger battery.

iMacs, 10 year old design and entry level still ships with 5400rpm HD. Pathetic.

I agree on the HD thing. All other Macs have done away with them, and gone all SSD. When will the iMac? I fear a future release of macOS will be available for all current, 2019 Macs except iMac due to that.

However, what's wrong with the design? Personally, I don't care if the design stays the same for 10 or 10,000 years, as long as it works. Not much of a fan of change for the sake of change. Yet, to be fair, I would like a return of an iMac G4 or Microsoft Surface Studio moveable screen, with touch support. I like drawing & photo editing as a hobby & a large touchscreen would help.
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Better remote, 802.11ax, bluetooth 5 in addition to better CPU/graphics/ML. They could update the HDMI version and max resolution too, although there'd currently is little benefit in that - even though 8k TVs are coming down in price now, there is no content.

I could see that. Especially with Apple Arcade now, the CPU & graphics stuff could help with gaming. As for 8K, I haven't seen any TVs yet (though I don't really look), nor content. Though I have to wonder what kind of hardware would be required to run games at 8K at a decent quality.

 

[fathergll]

iMac Redesign anyone?

I wish. I feel like the Mac Pro is going to problematic for that in some ways unless there is a possibility Apple makes the next iMac extremely slim...almost like a giant Macbook Pro on a stand and have it completely segmented performance and port wise compared to the Mac Pro.

 

[Putzytart]

iMac Redesign anyone?

PLEASE, enough with the one-inch bezels and that...CHIN.

Give me THIS:

iMac 2019

 

[BGPL]

Dang, I was expecting news on the charging mat and the (PRODUCT) Red Apple credit card.

 

[PestoBalsamic]

Honest question: what about the Touch ID experience on MacBook Pro don’t you like? I think it’s fantastic personally and am curious where the pain points are for others?

Touch ID is meant to be a convenience layer that makes security more convenient. It is supposed to be easier than entering your password. On iPhone this worked, because the Home button and Touch ID sensor were one in the same. So the very act of picking up your phone and waking it up by pressing the button simultaneously authenticated.

On the Mac, this is not the case. Reaching for the Touch ID sensor is a bad user experience. You should not have to take your hands off the keyboard or the trackpad. As it is, I've eschewed unlock with Touch ID in favor of unlock with Apple Watch, because the latter is automatic and effortless.

The worst, however, is Autofill in Safari.

On a Mac without Touch ID (like my iMac), when you click inside of a form field and your Autofill options appear....the correct and natural behavior is to click one, and it gets inserted into the fields.

On a Mac with Touch ID, if you try to do this you've done it wrong. The "correct" way is to mouse over and highlight the Autofill selection, but whatever you do, don't click it! Stop there is the right selection highlighted, then reach up and touch the Touch ID sensor. Now it gets filled. This. Is. Terrible. They thought they were saving a step, but all they did was make it completely unintuitive. So unintuitive that you will continuously do it wrong forever.

Face ID is the way forward here. The MacBook has the ideal design for Face ID...plenty of space around the FaceTime camera, which is always pointing toward the user's face during normal use. Just like when looking at iPhone, Face ID would just work any time it needs to, and it would not disrupt your workflow.

I'm also in favor of more Apple Watch authentication, but I realize that is not a built-in solution.

 

[polbit]

The only problem with Touch ID on an MBP is that it's not used in more places. I'm tired of having it available, yet having to type in a password for something most of the time.

As far as Face ID vs Touch ID? Yeah, it s a bit more convenient, but c'mon it's not as extreme as you make it sound. Either is a much better solution than having to remember and type in password, or worse yet, have the password pre-filled.

 

[am2am]

There is one big advantage of Touch ID over Face ID. If you need to have multiple accounts for one user on a MacBook it is easy with Touch ID - just register different finger for your second account. Not possible with face id.
I see no problems with Touch ID - one of the best apple invention in recent MacBooks.

 

[plind]

iMac Redesign anyone?

Oh, man, this one is so long overdue. I really need a new "family Mac" to replace our 10+ years old iMac, but I really cannot look at the current iMac's bezel without thinking I'm looking at an outdated machine. Many manufacturers have released monitors with thin bezels the last 3 years. Apple's design is lagging behind severely here.

 

[Peperino]

However, what's wrong with the design? Personally, I don't care if the design stays the same for 10 or 10,000 years, as long as it works. Not much of a fan of change for the sake of change. Yet, to be fair, I would like a return of an iMac G4 or Microsoft Surface Studio moveable screen, with touch support. I like drawing & photo editing as a hobby & a large touchscreen would help.

It is a 10 year old design. You cannot even adjust it vertically. As you clearly mention, look at the Surface Studio how it is fully touchscreen and you can even tilt it. Although you might not like the design of the Surface Studio, the functionality is way ahead of the iMac.

That proves that Apple design is so behind that it is pathetic. Hardware innovation in the computer line up has been quite lame in the past few years.
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The supervisor of mac hardware division is under scrutiny for allegations of professional incompetence and high potential risk of losing its job.

I truly wish that was actually true ;-)

 

[powerslave12r]

Anyone hoping for a matte screen option on the 16" MBP?

 

[head_bigg]

Oh, man, this one is so long overdue. I really need a new "family Mac" to replace our 10+ years old iMac, but I really cannot look at the current iMac's bezel without thinking I'm looking at an outdated machine. Many manufacturers have released monitors with thin bezels the last 3 years. Apple's design is lagging behind severely here.

Completely agree. The iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch all look like they've moved on with the times yet the iMac....still lives in that era where the 'i' still stands for "internet" 😂