Featured: Apple’s ‘Surprise and Shine’ event preview, John Ternus takes over, and more

After years of rumors, the highly anticipated foldable iPhone is almost here, but that’s not all we expect to see at next week’s big event, and we have full coverage of what to expect for the “Surprise and Shine” event.

Beyond the event, this week also saw John Ternus succeed Tim Cook as Apple’s CEO, while we learned a little more about what’s new in iOS 27 and how Apple has attempted to meet the massive demand for its desktop Macs amid the rise of AI computing, so read on below for all the details!

Featured

iPhone Ultra, iPhone 18 Pro and more: Apple September 9 event preview

Apple’s September event will take place on Wednesday, September 9 at 10:00 a.m. PT. At the event, Apple will announce its 2026 iPhone lineup, and this year will be a big one. Alongside the slab-style iPhones we’ve been using for years, Apple will launch its first foldable device. We’ll also get new Apple Watches, a new set of AirPods, and possibly other surprises.

Everything we expect to see at the ‘Surprise and Shine’ event is rounded up in our event guide and walkthrough video, so be sure to take a look.

Read John Ternus’s first memo to Apple employees as CEO

This week marked the end of an era, with Tim Cook stepping down as Apple CEO after 15 years and hardware engineering chief John Ternus taking the reins. Cook will remain active at Apple as executive chairman.

In his first note to employees as CEO, Ternus thanked employees for their warm welcome, expressed thanks to Cook for his contributions to Apple and helping with the transition, and shared his excitement for the future, including “a huge launch” next week.

iPhone 18 Pro pre-orders may start at an unusual time

After next Wednesday’s event, pre-orders for new iPhone hardware could start at an unusual time. Pre-orders for new iPhone models usually begin at 5 a.m. PT on the Friday immediately following the event, but this year it falls on the 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Like in 2015, when pre-orders also reportedly dropped on the 11th, Apple will push things back this year and start accepting pre-orders at midnight PT on Saturday, September 12th.

iOS 27 introduces new “iPhone Handoff” feature

Back at WWDC in June, Apple made the briefest mention of iOS 27 offering the ability to share a phone number between devices, and now we know how this feature will work.

Woozad forum member pdfu This week, it shared a video showing how users will set up the feature, dubbed iPhone Handoff, from the Cellular section of the Settings app. iPhone Handoff will require carrier support, with the user’s primary eSIM remaining on their primary phone and a complementary eSIM being sent to another iPhone. Once enabled, a single phone number will be used on both devices, with the phone number automatically switching to the currently unlocked device.

Foldable iPhone Ultra likely to feature MagSafe charging

In addition to the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, next week’s event will also see the long-awaited introduction of Apple’s first foldable iPhone. The device will sacrifice a few features in order to enable its ultra-thin profile, and until recently it was thought that MagSafe charging might be one of those things.

In a recent interview with Tom’s guideHowever, BloombergMark Gurman of , claims that “all indications” point to MagSafe support being included on the phone.

Apple caught off guard by AI demand for Mac Mini and Mac Studio

Apple’s unusually timely announcement of new Mac mini and Mac Studio models last week was driven by a surprisingly strong enterprise appetite for AI hardware, according to The information. Apple normally releases new Mac models in the fall, closer to October or November, but Apple made its Mac announcements ahead of the expected arrival of new iPhone models as it sought to meet strong demand for its desktop Macs.

Apple highlighted the shift of the ‌Mac mini‌ and ‌Mac Studio‌ to business buyers in June, with a “Business at the Park” event involving executives from major companies Ford, Disney and Anthropic. The ‌Mac mini‌ was considered the “darling” of the event.

A surge in demand for Mac hardware to run AI models has coincided with the global memory shortage, leaving many ‌Mac mini‌ and ‌Mac Studio‌ configurations out of stock for months and making new models a priority to allow Apple to deliver improved performance and higher production volumes.

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