Later this morning (at 10 am Pacific) in San Francisco Apple is expected to introduce its widely anticipated, interim-generation iPhone, the 6s, as well as a revamped Apple TV and a larger iPad. You’ll be able to watch a live-stream of the keynote here.
The iPhone 6s will substantially resemble the bestselling iPhone 6 but is supposed to come with an improved camera (including 4K video) and a faster processor. Apple is also expected to bring “Force Touch” to the 6s. It was first introduced on the MacBook trackpad roughly six months ago.
At the top of the keynote we’ll probably get lots of stats about device sales and other metrics. It will be interesting if the company gives us any sales data on the Apple Watch.
According to Localytics the iPhone 6 is now the dominant Apple smartphone in the market, with a 30.1 percent share of all active iPhones. The 5s is next with 24 percent. The 6 Plus has a 9.1 percent active device share.
Today Apple is also expected to deliver an always-on “Hey Siri,” capability. You can invoke Siri this way currently but the device needs to be plugged in to a power source. Android devices have had a hand-free “Ok Google” hotword capability for some time now.
The news for Apple TV will be the opening up of the device to third-party developers. Analysts also expect a new UI and integration of Siri for navigation and search. There may also be set of gaming announcements. Currently Apple TV costs $99 but the new device is supposed to cost $150, which will make it more expensive than many competing set-top boxes and streaming plug-ins.
Apple has also been working on content and programming packages but it’s not clear whether there will be any announcements today related to programming.
A long-rumored “iPad Pro” may make its appearance today. It will feature a larger screen than the current iPad and start at roughly $800. The iPad Air 2 model starts at $499.
Marketers are nervously anticipating iOS 9, which will allow third party ad-blocking apps. Indeed, AdBlock just released a browser for iOS and Android yesterday. Consumer survey data indicate that a majority of consumers are interested in ad blocking. The question is whether they’ll go the extra mile and download apps and software to make it happen.
A report from PageFair and Adobe argue that that nearly $22 billion in global ad revenues have been blocked/lost in 2015 as of early August. I would guess that ad blocking in iOS 9 won’t much discussion (perhaps a mention) from the stage during the keynote.
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