Apple’s “California Streaming” event was packed with announcements, from the iPhone 13 and forthcoming Apple Watch Series 7 to a sixth-gen iPad Mini. We expected much of this, yet, there were a number of things we had anticipated that Apple might announce but didn’t, including new MacBook Pros and next-gen AirPods.
However, it looks like there’s still hope they may make an appearance soon, especially given that October is historically when Apple will showcase new Macs. According to Bloomberg’s reliable Apple-watcher, Mark Gurman, Apple will likely hold at least one more online event within the next “several weeks,” which means Apple may still reveal the no-shows from today before the end of 2021. Here are some of the more noteworthy omissions we expect to see in the months ahead.
New MacBook Pros
The redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros powered by a new M1X chip — the rumored name for an enhanced variant of Apple’s M1 chip that made its debut last year — could make an appearance as early as next month, Gurman predicts. Rumor has it the new laptops will reportedly feature a flat-edged redesign and the return of the magnetic MagSafe charger, as well as the reintroduction of previously excised inputs like the HDMI port and SD card slot.
New Mac Minis, iMacs, and Mac Pro workstations
After Apple unveils the MacBook Pro, Gurman also speculates we may see an upgraded Mac Mini, a bigger iMac, an updated Mac Pro workstation, and even a “new low-end MacBook Pro.” Each machine will also be reportedly powered by the next generation of Apple’s in-house chips, which will “will greatly outpace the performance and capabilities of the current M1 chips,” according to Gurman’s anonymous sources. Still, there’s no guarantee Apple will unveil these before the end of the year.
Next-gen AirPods
It was heavily rumored that Apple would unveil the third generation of AirPods during its iPhone 13 event, so it was a huge surprise when the company didn’t. It’s possible, however, that we could still see these make their debut before the holiday season starts.
When they do arrive, the new AirPods will reportedly boast some of the most significant changes in form since their 2016 debut. It’s likely the new pair will mirror the AirPods Pro in design, with a new case and shorter stems. However, that may be where the similarities between the two end — noise cancellation, for example, may remain exclusive to the Pro model.
The new AirPods are expected to retail anywhere between $150 and $200, and it’s not clear yet whether Apple will sell two different versions — one with and one without a wireless charging case — like it does with the current non-Pro AirPods.
macOS Monterey
During Tuesday’s keynote, Apple announced that the next iteration of its smartwatch operating system, watchOS 8, will launch alongside iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 on September 20th. macOS users, however, are still in the dark as to when, exactly, they might see the official release of macOS Monterey, the successor to macOS Big Sur.
macOS Monterey — which was first introduced as a free update during WWDC 2021 and has been testing in public beta since July — is still presumingly set to arrive in the fall, which what’s listed on Apple’s website. The update brings improvements to FaceTime, Safari, and a slew of other apps. Monterey will also introduce features such as Live Text and Universal Control, a feature that allows you to control and quickly move files across multiple Apple devices.
Given the lack of Mac updates during Tuesday’s event, it seems possible that Apple could announce the release date of Monterey during the rumored event in October.
