What to expect at Apple’s WWDC 2018 event: New iPhone, iPad and MacBook rumoured

Apple kicks off its 2018 Worldwide Developers Conference today, and its expected to make a number of major announcements.

Rumours suggest the Cupertino firm could unveil a new budget iPhone, an updated iPad Pro and a revamped MacBook Air at the event.

The conference, which begins at 6:00pm BST (1:00pm ET) with a keynote from Apple chief executive Tim Cook, is also expected to feature a first look at new versions of the software that powers the Apple Watch, Apple TV and its Mac computer line.

Apple will kickstart its 2018 Worldwide Developers Conference later today, with the technology giant tipped to make a number of major announcements. Pictured is a logo posted to Twitter by the company ahead of the event, which starts at 6PM GMT (1PM ET) today

It will be livestreamed on the company’s website, though you’ll need either Safari or Microsoft Edge to watch it on your desktop.

Hosted in San Jose, California, Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) draws in software developers from around the world.

Tickets for the event cost $1,599 (£1,197) and are distributed in a lottery due to high demand.

Apple typically announces new software at WWDC, while it saves its major hardware announcements, like the latest iPhone, for a separate event in September. 

But the firm has announced major new gadgets at the conference before, unveiling its HomePod smart speaker, as well as new iPad and iMac models at last year’s event.

Here’s everything to expect at WWDC 2018, which runs this week from June 4 to June 8 at San Jose’s McEnery Convention Centre.

New iPhone

It’s widely rumoured Apple is building a follow-up to its hugely-popular 2016 budget handset, the iPhone SE.

Despite its success, Apple hasn’t updated the handset since it first launched two years ago, leading many to believe that a second-generation is in the works. 

Though nothing is confirmed at this stage, a number of leaks have suggested the phone will drop the 3.5mm headphone jack and feature a ‘notch’.

Rumours suggest the Cupertino firm could unveil a new budget iPhone, an updated iPad Pro and a revamped MacBook Air at the event. Reports have suggested for months that Apple is working on a new version of its 2016 budget handset the iPhone SE (pictured)

Rumours suggest the Cupertino firm could unveil a new budget iPhone, an updated iPad Pro and a revamped MacBook Air at the event. Reports have suggested for months that Apple is working on a new version of its 2016 budget handset the iPhone SE (pictured)

The notch, first seen in the iPhone X, would give the phone FaceID capabilities, which allows users to unlock the handset with their face.

While it seems likely Apple will release a new version of the SE, fans will probably have to wait until the company’s September event to catch a glimpse of the latest iPhone.

iOS 12

Today’s WWDC keynote is likely to include a first look at iOS 12, which will be the next version of the software that powers the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

Apple will likely release the operating system as a beta shortly after the event, before rolling out a final version to users after its September hardware event.

Reports in the US suggest Apple will introduce a tool to help users better manage their time on their smart devices as part of efforts to improve digital well-being.

Apple announced its 'most affordable iPad yet' at its education-focussed Spring 2018 event in March, but some speculate the firm could unveil another at WWDC. Earlier this year, it was mooted Apple would debut two new iPads before its annual September event (stock)

Apple announced its ‘most affordable iPad yet’ at its education-focussed Spring 2018 event in March, but some speculate the firm could unveil another at WWDC. Earlier this year, it was mooted Apple would debut two new iPads before its annual September event (stock)

Called Digital Health, the tools will help users keep track of how much time they’re spending on their devices, as well as on certain apps.

According to Bloomberg, the new Digital Health features will be housed in the Settings app in iOS 12.

‘We need to have tools and data to allow us to understand how we consume digital media,’ Tony Fadell, a former senior Apple executive told Bloomberg.

‘We need to get finer-grain language and start to understand that an iPhone is just a refrigerator, it’s not the addiction’.

WHAT IS APPLE EXPECTED TO ANNOUNCE AT WWDC 2018? 

Apple opens its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in California on June 4 and is expected to make a number of major announcements.

Among the hardware and software the company could announce is:

– A new budget iPhone SE handset

– iOS12 including new Digital Health features

– An upgrade to the Macbook Air computer

– Updates to TVOS including increase Apple HomePod speaker support

– A new iPad Pro

– Upgrades to MacOS security

– Updates to WatchOS and new Apple Watch face customisation options

A substantial update is also expected for Apple’s augmented reality (AR) platform, ARKit, Bloomberg reported last week.

As part of the update, ARKit 2.0 will reportedly let users play augmented reality games against one another in a shared simulated environment.

It will also allow people to save and share the location of users and AR objects. It may also include several new Animoji.

ARKit 2.0 will serve as a teaser for what may be coming in Apple’s AR headset, which experts say could hit the shelves as early as 2020.

New iPad Pro

Apple announced its ‘most affordable iPad yet’ at its education-focused event in March, but some industry watchers believe the firm could unveil another at WWDC.

Earlier this year, it was mooted Apple would debut two new iPads before its annual September event.

Apple is purportedly planning an iPhone X-style redesign of its flagship iPad Pro line.

This would allow the company to increase the size of the display, without expanding the physical footprint of the tablet, and would bring FaceID security features.

It would also help differentiate between the £319 ($329) iPad launched in March, and the iPad Pro range, which starts at £619 ($649) and maxes-out at £1,249 ($1,279).

WWDC is also expected to feature a first look at new versions of software that power the Apple Watch. For its latest upgrade the operating system could see enhancements to sleep tracking following Apple's 2017 acquisition of sleep-monitoring firm Beddit (stock)

WWDC is also expected to feature a first look at new versions of software that power the Apple Watch. For its latest upgrade the operating system could see enhancements to sleep tracking following Apple’s 2017 acquisition of sleep-monitoring firm Beddit (stock)

WatchOS 5

WWDC is also expected to feature a first look at the next version of the software that powers the Apple Watch.

Apple is widely-tipped to bring sleep tracking to the operating system, following its acquisition of sleep-monitoring firm Beddit last year.  

WatchOS 5 is also expected to expand the wrist-worn gadget’s health and fitness tracking functions, although the precise details are still murky. 

There’s also rumours of more watch face customisation, and the introduction of a  watch face store where users can buy designs created by third-party developers.

Rumours hint that Apple could announce a new Macbook at WWDC 2018. The tech giant's lighter MacBook Air (pictured) is long overdue an upgrade with the last significant design update coming in several years ago

Rumours hint that Apple could announce a new Macbook at WWDC 2018. The tech giant’s lighter MacBook Air (pictured) is long overdue an upgrade with the last significant design update coming in several years ago

New Macbook

Apple is rumoured to be gearing up to announce a new Macbook at WWDC 2018.

The tech giant’s MacBook Air range is long overdue an upgrade, with the last significant design update almost six years ago.

Since then, Apple has rolled-out a shiny redesign to its MacBook Pro range, and introduce a new 12-inch MacBook notebook which is thinner and lighter than the Air. 

Some have speculated that Apple will drop the MacBook Air from its line-up entirely, while others believe it will be redesigned and marketed towards education customers.

Apple is also expected to add the latest eighth-generation Intel processors to all its MacBook computers, however, this announcement might be saved until later in the year.

The event, which opens at 6:00pm BST (1:00pm ET) with a keynote from Apple chief executive Tim Cook (file photo), is also expected to feature a first look at new versions of software that power the Apple Watch, its Mac computer line and Apple TV

The event, which opens at 6:00pm BST (1:00pm ET) with a keynote from Apple chief executive Tim Cook (file photo), is also expected to feature a first look at new versions of software that power the Apple Watch, its Mac computer line and Apple TV

TVOS 12

Apple is expected to reveal a number of small changes to the software that powers its Apple TV digital media players.

It remains unclear what changes the firm will introduce, but it is likely to involve increased support for hooking up your AppleTV to a HomePod speaker.

MacOS 10.14 

At WWDC, Apple will likely also reveal some incremental updates to Mac software, making it more integrated with iOS. 

This could possibly include a secretive project, referred to internally as ‘Marzipan’, which would allow iOS apps to run on Macs.

Apple is widely-tipped to unveil a redesign for the App Store on macOS, like the company did for iOS last year. 

A system-wide dark mode, which replaces the white spaces usually seen in the desktop software with darker colours to save users’ eyes while working at night, is also rumoured to make an appearance.

Developer Steve Troughton-Smith uncovered references to the new mode hidden in the latest version of Apple’s own Xcode, which is used to build apps for iOS. 

Troughton-Smith also unearthed code which hinted at the Apple News app making its way to Mac computers later this year.

It is also expected that Apple will unveil a host of new security features in response to the colossal security flaw found by researchers back in November 2017.

The bug allowed hackers to log in to almost any Mac laptop or desktop without a password.



Read more at DailyMail.co.uk