Apple’s March announcements aren’t even close to done

Last week, Apple boss Tim Cook promised it would be a “big week” of product announcements, and the company wasted no time getting the ball rolling. So far, we’ve covered the iPhone 17e (pros: MagSafe and an A19 chip; cons: MagSafe doesn’t get max charging speeds and the A19 is being scrapped) and the 8th-gen iPad Air (different inside, same outside), and we’re only a few hours into the week.

In fact, based on leaks and sources at Apple and its supply chain, we’ve barely scratched the surface. Last week, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman insisted that we would have at least five new products by midweek, spread across press releases on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. That leaves us with a minimum of three more reveals over two more days, and potentially more.

The biggest and surprising omission today was the upcoming base iPad, which was expected to appear alongside the Air. Rumors indicate that the 12th generation iPad will be just as functional as its more expensive sibling, sporting an A19 chip, Apple Intelligence, and some minor iterative spec updates, so it’s unclear why the company would hold it off for a later day. Does Apple have something big up its sleeve? Are we at least going to have a laminated screen? Probably not, but it’s something to keep an eye on.

The biggest story of the week will almost certainly be Apple’s new budget MacBook (and arguably its first). Gurman says it’s the only product this week that will actually look new, which may sound harsh on the iPhone 17e and its new Soft Pink color, but should be justified by a whole range of fun finishes. The artwork on the invitation to this week’s “experience” features the Apple logo in yellow, green, and blue, so it’s safe to assume that several of those colors will soon adorn an aluminum machine. Of course, price is much more important than color, which we discuss in depth here. (Spoiler alert: It might not be as cheap as you hope.)

And that’s just the start of potential Mac launches coming this week. There are new MacBook Airs coming out (with the M5 chip) and new MacBook Pros (with the M5 Pro and M5 Max). There could also be a new Mac Studio, and if we’re really lucky, it will come with a new Studio Display.

The week is still young and Apple still has a lot to tell us. At least three additional products will be announced by Wednesday, and there could be as many as six. To stay on top of the hype and excitement, bookmark our March announcements live blog, which will run all week.