It’s fall, once again. And fall in the Apple world means a hefty drop of releases and updates—often including but not limited to a highly-anticipated new iPhone, a new series of Apple Watch and newfangled colour buzzwords to name-drop in conversations. As excitement surged last week with the Keynote taking place in Apple Park, the announcements proved to have been buzzier than ever before. Perhaps it was because a few famous faces—from Ateez’s Yunho to Travis Scott—were part of the tech cognescenti that got an exclusive glimpse at the fleet of new tech, but ultimately, we credit it to the outstanding gadgets. For the first time in a long time, a new iPhone is crowned. Mimicking the nature of the well-loved Macbook Air, the iPhone Air sits in its own smartphone category, amid Apple’s releases of the iPhone 17 and 17 Pro.
iPhones aside, a sizeable lineup of Apple Watches awaits health enthusiasts, with the Series 11 boasting 24-hour battery life. This means it’s able to fulfill sleep tracking for the entire day, without missing a beat to get it charged. Add to that, a better and more powerful Apple Watch SE for those on a tighter budget as well as the Apple Watch Ultra 3. And here to switch up our listening experience, the AirPods Pro 3 steps in as a game-changer. Cutting through the noise to enhance every bass and beat from your favourite music tracks with new ultra-low-noise microphones. And beyond a satisfying auditory experience, its next revolutionary update lies in the earphones’ live translation feature. Breaking through language barriers in daily conversation, which could mean hopeful prospects for our future travel plans.
There’s a long list of products to sieve through, but we have a shortlist. Below, see the newest Apple releases and features to covet.
1 / 5
A new look for the iPhone 17 Pro
The most powerful iPhone to date, unleashing the It colour of the season (as repped by Dua Lipa)—Cosmic Orange—into the fore. It also debuts a new look for the Pro models—with an added plateau holding the three 48MP Fusion cameras that comprise main, ultra wide and a new telephoto. In sum, you have eight lenses to shoot and capture content with—perfect for any industry professionals. In place of titanium, a new aluminium unibody design and an Apple-designed vapor chamber enhances thermal performance, as well as a layer of Ceramic shield that sheaths the front and the back for complete protection. Its design shift is also said to make space for battery capacity, with this model offering up to three more hours of use compared to the 15 Pro. In built with the A19 Pro chip, this iteration will deliver better sustained performance, across the realms of video editing and gaming.
2 / 5
Fun camera updates that go beyond resolution
There never fails to be a better, sharper camera experience with the new iPhones. But what’s neat about all the releases this time around—the iPhone 17, iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max—is that they all come with the intuitive Center Stage experience for the front cameras. It goes up to 18MP for photos and even taps on AI to recognise the number of subjects in the selfie, in order to expand the field of view and switch from portrait to landscape. With the new front camera, one can also have a lot of fun with Dual Capture, to simultaneously record a video from the front and the back. All the more real-time reactions and experiences to make memories with your handy device—no matter which one you choose.
3 / 5
AirPods Pro 3 goes the extra mile
Exceptional sound quality and a better job at obliterating noise and chatter while you’re plugged in to your favourite artist—that comes naturally with each AirPods Pro upgrade. But what’s innovative about this pair comes with its ability to measure heart rate while you’re working out, with a simple tap on the Fitness app from your iPhone. Add to that, a game-changing Live Translation feature, that adequately surmises your foreign counterpart’s speech just by looking at the person. For now, only languages in Europe are available so we’re eagerly waiting for more regions in Asia to be added to the list.
4 / 5
Sleep better with the new Apple Watches
Health has always been a winning metric for Apple Watches, and its latest fleet serves the same purpose. Something new to try out is Sleep Score, which accurately breaks down how you are sleeping. Which includes one very important factor: the quality of sleep. It’s a feature available in the new watch OS26, but the latest Series 11 will grant more ease, with its 24-hour battery life. That being said, the Watch SE 3 also comes way more powerful and bang for buck—built with the S10 chip, offering wrist temperature data, ovulation estimates and 5G cellular capabilities.
5 / 5
iPhone Air
The iPhone Air comes as a surprise for any loyal follower of the annual keynotes, and it proves to be well worthy of the hype. True to its name, it’s impossibly thin at 5.6mm yet impossibly strong with a titanium frame that withstands any chance of bends. The sheer weight of it comes as a swanky bonus—gloriously encased in Ceramic Shield. On the back, you’ll be well sated with a single 48MP Fusion Main camera, which sufficiently delivers the quality of four lenses, as well as the 18MP Center Stage front camera. It also houses plenty its thin body—namely the powerhouse A19 Pro, N1, and C1X—empowering it to be the most power-efficient phone Apple has ever made. We might have saved the best for last—but knowing the tech giant, the best is yet to come for this Pilot model.
Apple’s new releases are now available in stores and online.
