Apple just did something rare that signals big September event

Apple’s ‘Surprise and shine’ event is set for September 9, but the company already surprised us this week by launching new products in late August. Here’s why that rare move could signal big things coming at the September event.

August product release signals September event that’s already jam-packed with new products

If you follow Apple closely, you start to notice patterns in the company’s calendar year.

New products typically launch around March, then June brings WWDC and software unveilings, followed by a big September event, and often some October launches too.

While it’s not unusual to see smaller products debut via press releases throughout the rest of the year, one thing is exceptionally rare: a late August product launch.

Over the past 10 years, Apple has only once launched new hardware in August. That lone product was the iMac in 2020—but it debuted early in the month on August 4.

Why don’t late August launches happen? Because having a September event right around the corner means new hardware would typically be held until then.

In fact, the 2020 iMac isn’t even a fair example of defying this trend. Due to COVID, Apple pushed its iPhone event that year to October instead of September.

And yet, despite a wealth of evidence that August product launches don’t ever happen, this week Apple surprised us by launching new Mac mini and Mac Studio models just two weeks before its September 9 event.

We know this isn’t because Apple needed to get them in users’ hands sooner. How? Because the products don’t ship until September 22.

The most obvious reason Apple would launch these Macs early is that the ‘Surprise and shine’ event is already jam-packed with other products to unveil.

Here’s everything Apple might launch at September 9 event

Rumors indicate we should see at least five, and as many as nine or more new products launch on September 9.

All-but-confirmed for the event are the following:

But there’s also a high likelihood of additional products coming, such as:

If Apple overhauls its whole Home product line, we might also see the HomePod 3 debut, and potentially a rumored home security camera.

AirPods 5 are especially likely to debut, per Mark Gurman. He has also hinted that the new Home products are September launches.

These products would add up to make September 9 one of the most packed Apple events in some time. And it would explain very well why Apple chose to pull forward the Mac mini, Mac Studio, and M6 and M5 Ultra debuts into August.

What do you expect Apple to announce on September 9? Let us know in the comments.

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