- Apple’s iPhone 9 (iPhone SE 2) is one of the most highly anticipated products of the first half of the year, a device rumored to cost $399 and have the same powerful A-series chip as the iPhone 11.
- Apple was rumored to be planning to unveil the iPhone 9 and other new products during a media event in March, which is now said to be canceled due to coronavirus concerns.
- The good news is that Apple will supposedly unveil new products this month even without a proper press conference, though release timing is now unclear.
- Visit BGR’s homepage for more stories.
Apple had planned a March media event for the iPhone 9, several reports said in the past few months, but mounting coronavirus fears may have convinced the company to cancel the press conference. That’s not to say that the new affordable iPhone will be tabled alongside other rumored Apple products. But Apple may do everything via regular press releases just like it does with lower-profile products instead of hosting an event.
The iPhone 9, also informally known as iPhone SE 2 or even just “iPhone,” is an iPhone 8 successor featuring the exact same design as the iPhone 8, Touch ID button included. The device is expected to feature the same chip as the iPhone 11 series, however, which should make the iPhone 9 even more powerful than most Android flagship phones this year, including the Galaxy S20 or the Pixel 4. The best thing about the iPhone 9 is the rumored price, $399. That’s an excellent price point for a device that’s as good as the more expensive iPhone 11 models, although Apple is yet to confirm it.
Apple is also rumored to unveil a bunch of other new products this spring on top of the new affordable iPhone, including a new iPad Pro generation, an updated 13.3-inch MacBook Pro, the Powerbeats4 wireless earphones that leaked today, and a new
FrontPageTech frontman Jon Prosser, who recently said the iPhone 9 will be called just “iPhone” and leaked several unreleased Apple products that showed up in Target’s internal system, said on Twitter that Apple’s event might be canceled.
According to a source within Apple:
Apple’s March event is officially cancelled / not happening.
Let me confirm this with a few more sources. Stay tuned…
— Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser) March 8, 2020
That’s according to a single source, and Prosser said he was seeking confirmation. In a follow-up tweet, he said that new products will still be announced and released either way.
Keep in mind – products will still be announced / released either way.
— Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser) March 8, 2020
Prosser did prove he may have access at genuine inside Apple information by posting Tim Cook’s coronavirus memo to employees, a message that appeared in other reports about Apple’s response to the coronavirus outbreak.
As originally reported by @markgurman, Tim Cook sent a memo to employees telling them they can work from home this week. Calls Coronavirus situation “challenging” and “unprecedented”.
Thanks to one of my sources, here’s the full memo, dated 3/07/2020: pic.twitter.com/cp2zcmkqQd
— Jon Prosser (@jon_prosser) March 8, 2020
Announcing new products is one thing, but shipping them is quite another. The COVID-19 outbreak might further delay the iPhone 9 and even the iPhone 12 later this year, according to a Bloomberg report, as the virus may impact parts manufacturing as well as travel to and from China. Apple is likely to unveil the new iPhone series in September as usual, but in-store sales might see delays of a month or even longer.
