Apple announced the iPhone 14 press conference even earlier than we had expected, sending out invites two weeks before the September 7th keynote date. The iPhone 14 launch will take place at the Steve Jobs Theater, which signals Apple’s return to in-person events. Like all other Apple events, the iPhone 14 launch invite comes with a teaser image and a tag (“Far Out”) that might contain mysterious references to the upcoming events.
A few recent rumors claimed that Apple will unveil the iPhone 14 series on September 7th, a date that Apple has now confirmed.
Using that purported launch date, we explained that iPhone 14 preorders will start on September 9th, two days after the keynote. Furthermore, the iPhone 14 release date is September 16th. Apple will confirm them during the show. But we’re reasonably confident in those dates now that Apple released the iPhone 14 event invite.
However, the teaser holds no clues about the iPhone preorders and release date. And it doesn’t even look like a teaser for an iPhone event. We’re looking at an Apple logo out in space that features the animation seen above. On top of that, there’s an AR experience on devices that support it. That’s another detail we expect from any Apple press conference, not just the iPhone 14.
The AR experience places the same Apple logo in the center of your room, and you can resize it on the screen as you see fit. The starry Apple logo appears inside a circular opening whose size you can manipulate. Is that a teaser for the iPhone 14 Pro’s pill-and-hole screen design?
Also interesting is the “Far Out” tag line. The iPhone 14 is the most sophisticated iPhone Apple can manufacture today, especially the Pro variants. Is that what “Far Out” is about?
Apple is also expected to launch the Apple Watch Series 8 at the event, including a brand new Apple Watch Pro model. The AirPods Pro 2 are also supposed to drop during the iPhone 14 launch event.
But you know what would be pretty far out? Some sort of “one more thing” teaser for a future Apple AR/VR headset event reveal. That’s the “Far Out” tech that Apple might be teasing. Or it’s just wishful teasing.
The teaser could also refer to much simpler things. Like improved camera performance for astrophotography. Or the iPhone 14 event teaser might be about wallpapers and always-on screen displays coming to the Pro models. The rumored satellite connectivity for SOS calls might also be related to the space reference, but the feature isn’t going to be as big as it might sound.
Whatever the iPhone 14 event teaser is about, we know one thing for certain. The iPhone 14 will be the show’s main star, as the iPhone remains the most important product in Apple’s lineup.
More iPhone coverage: For more iPhone news, visit our iPhone 14 guide.
