Live Updates From Apple’s ‘Surprise and Shine’ iPhone Event 🔴

Who copied whom? Before Apple had the chance to debut its iPhone Duo, several other companies, including Samsung with its Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Xiaomi with its Xiaomi 18 Fold, both sported the same passport-sized foldable phones that bear a striking semblance to Apple’s final design. In an interview with Tom’s Guide and TechRadar, Apple’s marketing head Greg ‘Joz’ Joswiak said, “People knew from leaks” that it was working on this scale of foldable design. He added that “Unfortunately, they got the aspect ratio, and a lot of coincidental instances of people finding that an interesting aspect ratio.”

What he doesn’t mention is that Samsung is likely the company that made the iPhone Duo screen, so there may be less industrial espionage going on if your competitor is literally tooling its screen-making business to make your size of flexible display.

At the very least, Apple managed to keep its matte display filter on the inner display a secret. —Kyle Barr

There were some rumors before Apple’s “Suprise and Shine” event that the company may be preparing to launch a revised version of its iPad mini with an OLED screen. Then, the iPad Duo arrived and made us question what the point of a tiny tablet would be when a foldable iPhone provides much of the same capabilities. My thought is that Apple could use this opportunity to make the iPad mini truly special, with the addition of a nested Apple Pencil or some unique form of Magic Keyboard to provide a better typing experience on an 8.4-inch display. The ball’s in your court, Apple. —Kyle Barr

Hold the new Watch Ultra 4 up next to last year’s Watch Ultra 3 and you’ll have trouble deciding which is the newer one—but the Ultra 4 definitely beats the Ultra 3 in its capabilities. Thanks to a new chip, the Ultra 4 has longer battery life, better overall performance, and can access Apple Intelligence features. Just be sure to turn off the always-listening mode if you’re not into that sort of thing. —Matt Wille

What a week! I’m flying home, and the only thing on my mind is that I really want to play with the iPhone Duo more. A few minutes was just not enough. The buzz I’ve been hearing has been overwhelmingly positive despite its $1,999 starting price. People seem very willing to sell a kidney to finance Apple’s foldable. All jokes aside, I look forward to seeing the iPhone Duo again next month when it launches on Oct. 23. For now, it’s time to get back to the comfort of my own home and cats. I’m done being on planes, in Ubers, and on Caltrains for the time being. Thanks for reading our live blog and until the next one! Oh, and don’t forget to read my hands-on for the iPhone Duo below if you haven’t already! —Raymond Wong

Don’t get too upset by any headlines you read that say the new Apple Watch Series 12 screen is smaller than previous models. However, MacRumors pointed out that the Series 12 specs page lists the screen surface area as 1,196 sq mm. The Apple Watch Series 11 watch face was 1,220 sq mm on the 46mm version. The 42mm version has dropped from 989 sq mm to 970 sq mm. That’s about a 2% difference for both versions of the Series 12. The casing is now also slightly larger, resulting in an almost imperceptible growth in the screen borders. I don’t imagine most users would be able to spot the difference, though I may be more intrigued to see screen size shrinking instead of growing, for a change. —Kyle Barr

the Apple tiktok team is once again killing it (last one is insane tho 😭) pic.twitter.com/HFAGJnzWiG

— Dylan (@DylanMcD8) September 10, 2026

Apple’s new Instagram and TikTok scrolling promos for the iPhone Duo are tongue-in-cheek in the way I find surprising for the Cupertino tech giant. One of the ads shows somebody at a coffee shop with their laptop and a large cup of joe, while somebody with a Duo sits next to them and receives a proportional, Alice in Wonderland-sized coffee. Another ad shows an iPhone having a nice dinner date with an iPad mini. As one of the shrinking number of tiny tablet fans, I feel almost like the crochety father who does not want my precious child mingling with the likes of iPhone. —Kyle Barr

If you were wondering what the difference is between this generation of AirPods and the last generation, I got you. Spoiler alert: AirPods 5 are improved in pretty much every way. —James Pero

The iPhone 18 Pro is a very similar phone to the iPhone 17 Pro, from the screen to the shape and everything in between. However, the biggest differences are more than skin deep, with some promising improvements to the iPhone’s cooling and chip design. It’s also the first iPhone with a mechanical aperture, something that will only get a few people excited. Luckily for Apple, I’m one of those people. —Kyle Barr

The new Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra and their new audio recording features have people talking, and let’s just say people keep bringing up always-recording smart glasses in the same sentence. Siri Recap is supposed to listen to you throughout the day and offer a summary of what you did and who you talked to. Live Rewind is a user-activated feature that can summarize conversations you just had.

Apple’s support document detailing Siri Recap and Live Rewind mentions that they’re exclusive to the S11 processor inside the new watches. That’s partly because they have a “secure exclave” that processes this audio on-device. The document reads, “Data that is processed and analyzed in the Secure Exclave cannot be accessed by watchOS, apps, the user, or Apple.” The data in the exclave is not stored or transcribed, but the encrypted file is processed for transcription on your iPhone’s own secure exclave. Users can choose to save these summaries on their iCloud accounts.

You can read the full explanation for yourself here. Apple seems to know this is a sore spot for privacy-centric users, so we’ll see how well they take to it when the Series 12 watches hit the scene later this month. —Kyle Barr

Both the exterior and interior displays of the iPhone Duo rely on a 1:1.4 aspect ratio. That’s very different than what you’re used to with most candy bar-style phones, but it also means these devices are much, much better for watching content you don’t get on TikTok. Apple showed the device playing games at its full-screen height without any black bars around the content. For movies, it’s going to get interesting. Despite some dubious X post you may have seen, IMAX films use either a 1.90:1 or 1.43:1 aspect ratio. Sure, that fits the Duo’s screen better than you would on a regular mobile phone, but it would still require some black bars to make it fit. Did Christopher Nolan ever want you to watch The Odyssey on your phone? I imagine the very idea would give him a migraine. —Kyle Barr

BREAKING: Apple's Polishing Cloth is compatible with the iPhone Duo, iPhone 18 Pro, and the Apple Watch Ultra 4/Series 12 pic.twitter.com/0yxMME2qur

— Aaron (@aaronp613) September 9, 2026

Okay, everybody calm down. It’s official, your Apple polishing cloth (which recently had its price slashed to $9) is indeed compatible with both the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone Duo. Go ahead and feel free to smooth that folding phone until it’s as smooth as glass. Oh wait, it’s already made of metal and glass. Whatever, just keep scrubbing. Apple commands it. —Kyle Barr

How much are you willing to pay for the return of the Ceramic Apple Watch? A Series 12 ceramic model starts at $809 at the 42mm size in either pearl white or night blue colorways. The watches come with both GPS and cellular connectivity, but they’re easily the most expensive version of the Series 12. Meanwhile, an Apple Watch Ultra 4 starts at $719. —Kyle Barr

Burgundy happens to be my favorite color, which means, of course, I’m very smitten with the iPhone 18 Pro. Burgundy is also a modern region in France that’s today known for its wine-making. During the Medieval period, it was a duchy that proved to be one of the most important regions for the late Medieval political field. In the 15th century, Duke Charles the Bold tried his damndest to create an independent kingdom of Burgundy through diplomacy and war. He was a known patron of the arts, and his nascent kingdom also became a center of chivalric etiquette.

Unfortunately, Chrales’ dream of a revived Burgundian kingdom died at the Battle of Nancy against the Swiss Confederation. Still, Burgundy lives on thanks to Charles’s epic motto, “Je L’ay Emprins,” which translates to “I have dared it.” —Kyle Barr

It’s THIN.
It’s VERSATILE
It’s DURABLE.
It fits in your pocket.

And it FOLDS.

Meet iPhone Duo. pic.twitter.com/lVpBmC36hx

— Greg Joswiak (@gregjoz) September 9, 2026

All the videos showcasing the iPhone Duo include this slick-looking animation where it seems the exterior screen bleeds over into the interior display. I want to believe this is how it will look in-person, but there’s another side of me that wonders if the look of this animation will depend on whether you’re staring at the device straight-on. Also, I want to know if it works on other apps, not just the home screen. —Kyle Barr

Netflix made a special version of its app for the iPhone Duo that makes use of both the exterior and interior displays. On the outside, you’ll scroll through clips from some of the streamer’s shows, and then opening it up, you’ll be greeted with a larger screen-filling video. Apple does want you to use its device for watching shows and content, though it’s also partnered with Zoom and Slack for making use of the larger 7.58-inch interior display. —Kyle Barr

Apple imagines you’ll treat your iPhone Duo like a miniature, pocketable tablet. That makes sense, given the Apple Pencil compatibility and the consistent bezels. To that end, Apple’s also making a Folio case for the Duo with a built-in gumstick kickstand. It also covers up the exterior screen in this mode, but you weren’t looking at it anyway. The Folio case is only available in a tan taupe color and navy blue. —Kyle Barr

iPhone Duo prices. $3200 for 2TB model. pic.twitter.com/aopePNw1nx

— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) September 9, 2026

Foldable phones are expensive—there’s no doubt about that—but if you want the top-of-the-line iPhone Duo, you’re going to have to really shell out. The iPhone Duo with 2TB of storage costs $3,200 before tax, which is a ton of money (but somehow less than a Vision Pro). Still, I think I speak for most wallets when I say… ouch. —James Pero

Apple says that, starting Sept. 14, you’ll be able to download the next OS update to all your Apple devices, including iOS 27, macOS 27 Golden Gate, watchOS 27, and so on. Just know that all the new Siri AI capabilities are still listed as a “beta,” which is how Apple plans to wash its hands when the chatbot inevitably makes a mistake. Additionally, some anticipated features, like the Apple Watch “Audio Intelligence” features, won’t be available until later. —Kyle Barr

The new Apple Watch doesn’t seem all that different from the Series 11, at least on the surface. Beyond a whole slew of new health metric tracking, the big additions are all in how these watches now include extra AI features that use audio capture. The most important ones you’ll get to know are “Siri Recap” and “Live Rewind.” Siri can use your data and combine that with your audio to give you a rundown of what you did that day. Live Rewind can enable users to see a summary of what somebody just said to you when you weren’t listening. Those specific features won’t be available until a beta comes out this October. —Kyle Barr

That foldable iPhone won’t be available until Oct. 23, more than a month after the iPhone 18 Pro hits the scene. Preorders start Oct. 16. Here’s the big news: the iPhone Duo will start at $1,999. At the very least, $2,000 is a lot less than the $2,500 rumors originally suggested. —Kyle Barr

Apple’s new C2 modem supports 5G mmWave. For reference, previous modems, the C1 and C1X, both in-house products, didn’t have that. Apple says the C2 also allows for 50% faster uploads, which is nothing to scoff at. —James Pero

The iPhone Duo is using a special screen layer that Apple promises is doing a few things, but the most important aspect is how it may reduce the chance you’ll see the crease. We’ll have to see that for ourselves, considering the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts life with minimal crease, but it becomes more apparent the more you open it up. —Kyle Barr

Naturally, multitasking on the iPhone Duo looks very iPad-esque. You can stack apps vertically or horizontally, and it looks like there’s some intuitive dragging and dropping. In a way, Apple has been making foldable phone software for years, just not on a foldable phone. —James Pero

Apple says using the iPhone Duo won’t be restricted to your digits. You’ll be able to use an Apple Pencil with USB-c on the interior or exterior screen. However, Apple makes no mention of the more versatile Apple Pencil Pro, which may remain only usable on an iPad. —Kyle Barr

Apple’s first foldable phone also has a FaceTime camera built into the screen on the right side when it’s opened up. This means you can have your phone open and have multiple people take up different parts of the screen. What we really want is to take video calls while—hopefully—being able to keep using your device. —Kyle Barr

There’s a whole lot of new features coming to Apple Watch Series 12, but at least it doesn’t cost any more than before. It starts at $399 and now—finally—comes with ceramic options. —Kyle Barr

Apple has two new versions of AirPods 5. Both have better ANC, but only the more expensive model has swipe controls and wireless charging. You’ll also have to shell out more money for one more hour of battery life. The base model gets four hours with ANC on, and the more expensive model gets five hours with ANC on. —James Pero

Look at those specs. As you might’ve expected, the Watch Series 12 is better in basically every way imaginable, with better sensors, of course. —Matt Wille

Apple’s updated AI will now synthesize all your health information, like sleep data, exercise, and heart rate, and give you a “Health Age” score. What if I don’t actually want to know that much about myself? —Matt Wille

The new Apple Watch will take your heart rate up to 24x more than its predecessor. Apple says it’s now the “most accurate heart rate sensing” available in a wearable. —Matt Wille

The AirPods 5 now feature better ANC, which promises around five hours of battery life thanks to a reengineered power cell. And despite everything getting more expensive, they still cost the same $129 as the AirPods 4. The AirPods 5 with a wireless charging case will now cost $149. —Kyle Barr

That’s right, RAMageddon has come for the iPhone. The new iPhone 18 Pro will start at $1,200, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max will ask for $1,300. That’s both $100 more than the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, respectively. Let’s just admit that—considering today’s memory prices—it could have been way worse. —Kyle Barr

Apple’s planning to support Google’s SynthID watermarks for AI-generated images, but it’s now also trying to beat deepfakes with a reference photo future. Essentially, Apple will host an original image in its Private Cloud Compute servers that doesn’t have any modifications. —Kyle Barr

The iPhone Pro’s camera is getting more professional with additional controls. Now, with Pro Camera controls, you can adjust things like aperture, white balance, shutter speed, and more. The Pro controls also work with video, allowing you to adjust shutter speed for more motion blur. You can also maintain focus on moving subjects with AI. For anyone who takes iPhone photography seriously, I assume these will be pretty rad. —James Pero

But it’s still pretty damn cool. Apple has added a mechanical aperture to its 48-megapixel main “fusion” camera lens, which means that you’ll have much more control over depth of field for your shots. It’s going to be a very pro-centric feature, but at least it’s one of those features that will potentially make amateur photogs more willing to reach for their phone instead of their camera in a pinch. —Kyle Barr

The iPhone 18 Pro is supposed to offer much better performance, and a big reason for that is because the iPhone should be much better at keeping cool. Apple said the phone now has a 3X larger vapor chamber, which is important because the redesigned A20 chip now has its silicon die placed next to its memory, which means the 2nm chip can seat closer to the thermal system. All this means that, maybe—finally—the iPhone 18 won’t be as toasty as usual. —Kyle Barr

The A20 Pro is Apple’s newest high-end iPhone chip and comes with two “neural engines.” That equates to quite a few improvements, according to Apple, including “2x more compute.” There’s also a 50% increase in memory bandwidth. Whether you really feel the results will depend on what you’re doing, of course, but it looks impressive on paper. —James Pero

Apple mentioned that some of Siri’s capabilities may be rate limited but didn’t offer more details during its event. We’ll just have to find out for ourselves if Apple wants us to buy into an iCloud subscription to get the most use out of AI. —Kyle Barr

Siri’s AI enhancements are finally here. They were in the latest betas, but if you’ve been waiting for the full release, know that Siri has more “personal context” that allows it to understand what you’ve been posting in your emails or messages, and it can take some actions on your behalf. Siri also has several “expressive” options for voice, but only on the more recent iPhone models. This has all been well-established since WWDC, but we’ll see how well it performs on the millions of iPhones that can use it. —Kyle Barr

There it is: Burgundy is the new color for the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max. Other colors for the iPhone 18 Pro: Deep Black, Glacier (light blue), and a new silver.

The glass panel on the backside is also color-matched to the aluminum frame. —Raymond Wong

iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max

Check out the new color with color matched back.

Burgundy is the new color#appleevent pic.twitter.com/1maaD28lsw

— Ray Wong (@raywongy) September 9, 2026

John Ternus really had us going there for a second. “Intelligent Personal Hub?” I mean, come on, we were all thinking smart home hub, right? —James Pero

While the folks in Cupertino, California are greeting John Ternus, the rest of us plebs watching the livestream are greeted with a very Apple-ish opening trailer, or perhaps multiple trailers. And suddenly, Tim Cook’s voice, then Tim Cook, who reveals he’s no longer the head honcho. It’s John Ternus, y’all. They’re really making a big deal out of this. —Kyle Barr

Ternus didn’t say the signature “Good Morning,” like Tim Cook always did. Guess he’s doing things his own way. He said Apple has been doing a lot of imagining and we’ll see some of those things today. —Raymond Wong

John Ternus is out on stage and attendees gave him a loud ovation. So much love for the new guy. —Raymond Wong

Standing ovation for John Ternus! #appleevent pic.twitter.com/kXPDk3NLNt

— Ray Wong (@raywongy) September 9, 2026

New Executive Chairman Tim Cook sighted! Where is John Ternus? Probably behind the stage getting ready to hop on and “Good Morning” us all. —Raymond Wong

New Apple Executive Chairman Tim Cook sighted! #appleevent pic.twitter.com/KMQXtQWqMs

— Ray Wong (@raywongy) September 9, 2026

Thanks to the iPhone 17 Pro’s 8x zoom, I was able to scope on Apple’s head of marketing Greg Joswiak and chief of software engineering, Craig Federighi. Dude’s hair still still looks incredible. Gotta find out what conditioner he uses to get that kinda volume. —Raymond Wong

I spy Craig Federighi and Greg Jozwiak at the #appleevent pic.twitter.com/QAW9wUSz64

— Ray Wong (@raywongy) September 9, 2026

I’m seated inside of the Steve Jobs Theater. If you’ve never been here, know this: the theater has plush leather (?!) seats, outlets for each one, and the speaker system is one of the very best I’ve ever experienced. —Raymond Wong

15 minutes until the #appleevent keynote! pic.twitter.com/Cpjopg4iIT

— Ray Wong (@raywongy) September 9, 2026

Apple’s new leader woke up super early and shared this teaser to his X account. But what is it? The variable aperture for the iPhone 18 Pro Max? Some glimpse of a close-up of the foldable iPhone? Make your guesses in the comments. —Raymond Wong

pic.twitter.com/CLu9eRDP5b

— John Ternus (@johnternus) September 9, 2026

Here’s my food review of the breakfast for invited media: B. I’m wolfing down this mini chocolate croissant and an apple tart. I’m going to need the sugar to power me through the long day. The coffee is mid, too. Edible, but nothing special. I’m old enough to remember when the food and drinks situation was amazing. Of course, this was in the early days when the Steve Jobs Theater had just opened. —Raymond Wong

We just picked up our badges and have arrived at the Steve Jobs Theater. The current temperature is 72 degrees Fahrenheit in Cupertino, and it’s supposed to reach a high of 96 degrees by the late afternoon. I’m definitely feeling a bit antsy, but I can’t wait to see the so-called iPhone Duo. Is this the foldable that will make foldable phones mainstream? We shall see. —Raymond Wong

Got my #AppleEvent badge! Ready to see the foldable iPhone pic.twitter.com/vhcDNwJoVH

— Ray Wong (@raywongy) September 9, 2026

Maybe I should have stuck to my prediction that Apple will call the foldable iPhone the “iPhone Duo.” Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said on X last night that he believes Apple has decided to call it the iPhone Duo, with the device starting at $2,000 and shipping in September. A storage option with 2TB could cost around $3,000 he said. The Apple sleuth also said that the iPhone Duo will support Apple Pencil and launch in dark blue and white colorways.

John Ternus could do the funniest thing ever and not call it the iPhone Duo just to screw with Gurman, though. That would be pretty funny. —Raymond Wong

Well, no regular iPhones, that is. Rumor has it Apple will only be announcing the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone 18 Pro Max today, with no iPhone 18 in the mix. It’s an interesting choice from Apple, a company that usually hopes to offer something lower-end for users who aren’t ready to shell out $1,000+ on a new phone.

But hey, we are expecting to see the foldable iPhone today. That’s basically two phones in one, right? —Matt Wille

Apple has just released a firmware update for a product that does not exist yet

Beats 360 Firmware 4A203 is out.

It confirms the Beats 360 name and the 4 colors: Black, Pink, White, Cloud

It also includes HD images of the upcoming products pic.twitter.com/a24FDZcu1m

— Aaron (@aaronp613) September 8, 2026

AirPods aren’t the only audio product that should be on your Apple radar right now. According to leaks, Beats has a new pair of wireless headphones in the works called the Beats 360. There are even some HD images leaked along with them, and they look… very Beats-y.

Whether these are announced at today’s event is another story, but the timing of the leak is certainly interesting. —James Pero 

Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max are likely going to cost at least $100 more, according to Bloomberg’s ever-consistent Apple leaker Mark Gurman. So what kinds of hardware upgrades will Apple try to suggest are worth the ballooning cost of memory? Gurman says there should be some big camera upgrades this year that will include a mechanical aperture on at least one of the new lenses. This grants more fine-tuned control over your photos, and it may be my main reason for personally opting for the bar-style phone instead of the upcoming foldable.

The other big upgrade may be Apple’s downsizing of the Dynamic Island. It could appear smaller on your phone without any content on it, but Gurman suggested users will be able to toggle between up to three live activities at one time. Compared to something like the relatively pointless Camera Control switch, the Dynamic Island has proved itself a worthwhile feature over time, and it’s nice to see it with more usability. —Kyle Barr

It’s looking like AirPods with cameras in them are a long shot on today’s laundry list of releases, but AirPods 5 might make an appearance. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, AirPods 5 will bring a few perks over the last generation, including better active noise cancellation (ANC).

There will be two models, according to Gurman, and one of them will have wireless charging in the case while the other won’t. Sure, it’s not as mind-blowing as wireless earbuds that can remember where you left your keys, but it’s something. —James Pero

You shouldn’t expect any massive hardware update from Apple’s wearables this year. Instead, the main reason Apple wants you to be excited may be for new software updates—and of course that means AI. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggested The Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 will have a feature that summarizes your day, and that may include conversations.

This AI Siri-enabled feature may be called “Recaps,” according to Gurman. The big question is whether Apple will have it run all the live-long day or if you can set it to only start recording at certain times or in certain locations. Apple will, of course, try to emphasize how it will keep your data secure, but I don’t imagine many users are still that enticed by more self-surveillance features. Also, don’t expect this feature to come to any past Apple Watches, which is especially annoying considering how many recent Apple Watch models can’t even get watchOS 27. —Kyle Barr

One of the less-anticipated product reveals for the “Surprise and Shine” event on Wednesday may be a new version of the Apple TV 4K set-top box. It’s a good thing too, since the old one was looking a little long in the tooth. A new box necessitates a new processor upgrade, and MacRumors claims—based on some pre-release code—that we may see an A19 or A19 Pro chip. This six-core SoC was first built for the iPhone 17 generation, but that means Apple may also be upgrading the RAM spec from 4GB to 8GB or more. We’d hate to see what that does to the price. A current-gen Apple TV 4K went from $130 to $200 in Apple’s big across-the-board price hike back in June. —Kyle Barr

We’ve been reading purported details about the foldable iPhone, iPhone 18 Pros, Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4, and AirPods 5 for months now. Here are all the major rumors on what to expect from John Ternus and company tomorrow. Spoiler alert: it’s full of spoilers! —Raymond Wong

Guys, I’ve been in Cupertino for 24 hours, and let me tell you, it’s dry out here. I’m very excited to see Apple’s first foldable iPhone. Can’t say the same about my skin drying up. Today is a planning day with the Consumer Tech Team. We’re gonna be working like maniacs to bring you all fast and accurate coverage of everything that Apple announces tomorrow. —Raymond Wong