When should we expect the October event from Apple?

October 4, 2018

With the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and Apple Watch Series 4 released, we can now turn our attention to future Apple devices for this year. If the rumors are any indication, we'll likely be back in Cupertino this month for a new event.

Apple hasn't announced any events for October yet, but it's quite interesting to look for possible dates based on previous years. Apple has held an October event in six of the last eight years, with 2015 and 2017 being the exceptions.

All but one of the October events were focused on the Mac, iPad or both. The only exception is October 4, 2011, when Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S with Siri. Apple did not hold an event in September 2011, so the October 4 event can be considered the iPhone keynote for the year.

In 2011, the October events fell in the second half of the month, between 16 October and 27 October. This year, there is a good chance that any potential event will take place in the second half of the month.

A big reason is that Google is holding an event next Tuesday, October 9 in New York City, where it is expected to unveil its Pixel 3 smartphones. Apple usually ends events on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, but all of those days next week will be very close to the Google event.

Apple certainly doesn't need to play nice with Google, but it probably wouldn't want to cause travel chaos for the media, whose crews will be forced to fly from New York to Cupertino, some 3,000 miles away, on a tight schedule.

Therefore, we are probably looking at an event in the second or third week of October, making the following dates possible:

Tuesday, 16 October or Tuesday, 23 October
Wednesday, 17 October or Wednesday, 24 October
Thursday 18 October or Thursday 25 October

Apple usually invites media to its October events seven or eight days in advance, so invitations could go out as early as the following Tuesday.

It will be interesting to see how the iPhone XR will appear at the event. Apple already unveiled the colorful smartphone at its September keynote, but pre-orders won't begin until Friday, October 19, with devices available on Friday, October 26.

One possibility is that Apple will make its presentation on Tuesday 16 October and recap some of the iPhone XR's features to revive interest before pre-orders on Friday 19 October. Other new iPad Pro and Mac products announced could also be available for pre-order.

But with many other products expected to be announced, it's uncertain if Apple will have time to fit the iPhone XR into the presentation. In that case, Apple could hold its event on Tuesday, October 23, but in any case, the new iPads and Macs could steal a lot of the iPhone XR's glory.

In any case, the October event is expected to mark the introduction of redesigned iPad Pro models with Face ID and thinner screen bezels. Also expected are a range of new Mac computers, such as MacBook or MacBook Air, as well as refreshed iMac and Mac mini models.

Of course, Apple could have chosen to announce many of these products with press releases, but it redesigned the iPad Pro models and the Mac mini with updates to other product lines seeming to need some time on stage.

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There is also a lot of ambiguity about the October event. For example, Apple stated that AirPower would be released in 2018, before removing all but one mention on its website last month. Apple hasn't commented on AirPower since then, but it may be in store for us as a surprise.

If AirPower does eventually come, there's a good chance it will be accompanied by a new pair of AirPods with an optional wireless charging case, as Apple showed last year. And while it's less likely, we can't rule out a lower-priced HomePod or an updated Apple Pencil being made available at some point later this month.

Do you think we should expect an Apple event in October?