Apple to unveil iPhone 15 today

Muscat: Apple will on Tuesday unveil its new iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro, updating last year’s iPhone 14 handsets besides upgrading the Watch lineup.

The iPhone maker will host its launch event, called Wanderlust, at the Steve Jobs Theatre at Apple Park in California.

Apple is expected to launch two iPhone 15 Pro models – one regular-sized iPhone 15 Pro with a 6.1-inch display and a larger iPhone 15 Pro Max model with a 6.7-inch screen – and two slightly less powerful smartphones – the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus.

Supply chain analysts have suggested the release of the iPhone 15 Pro Max could come a little later than the others, perhaps in October.

The new iPhone 15 is likely to be an upgrade compared to previous generations of the iPhone, which was first introduced in 2007.

While rival phone makers have brought back fingerprint sensors by embedding them in the phone’s screen or on the back of the phone, Apple is not expected to follow suit.

The iPhone 15 range will also come with an upgraded microchip, the A17 bionic. The chip is expected to be a cutting-edge 3-nanometre processor manufactured by Taiwanese company TSMC, according to a report in Japan’s Nikkei newspaper. The more efficient chip should also boost the phone’s battery life.

The Pro models of the phone will be built with a titanium frame, instead of stainless steel, which should make them more durable as well as lighter, according to Bloomberg.

Analysts now expect all of Apple’s iPhones to come with its so-called “dynamic island” screen design. This does away with the “notch” at the top of older models since the iPhone X. Instead, it will have an adaptive display around a punch-hole camera at the top of the phone.

Analysts at Nomura believe the cameras on the entry-level iPhone 15 and 15 Plus models will feature significant upgrades, including a more powerful wide camera with 48MP.

Apple is expected to switch to a universal charger set to become mandatory in Europe next year. The tech titan has revealed nothing about what is in store at a "Wonderlust" event at its spaceship-like headquarters in Silicon Valley.

Apple's iPhone sales have been declining in the past few quarters as higher prices encouraged customers to delay switching out to newer models. While rumors swirl ahead of any iPhone launch, most agree that Tuesday's event will see Apple adopt a universal USB-C port, begrudgingly switching from its unique Lightning connectors for charging and data transfers. The charger change would put iPhones in compliance with a European Union law requiring USB-C to be the single charger standard for all new smartphones, tablets, and cameras from late 2024.