UPDATED 21:56 EDT / FEBRUARY 02 2016

NEWS

Report: Apple to launch new 4″ iPhone, iPad Air, something Apple Watch related March 15

New releases across Apple, Inc.’s range of devices could be coming sooner than expected with a report Tuesday that a launch event is currently scheduled for March 15.

9to5mac claims that the event will see Apple launch a new 4-inch the iPhone, a new iPad Air 3, and new Apple Watch band.

Rumors of a new 4 inch iPhone as a replacement to the iPhone 5c which was discontinued in September 2015 have been doing the rounds since mid last year.

The most recent coverage of the phone, dubbed the iPhone 6c by some but more recently speculated to be called the iPhone 5se (yeah, we don’t know why either) is said to include an A9 chip manufactured by both TSMC and Samsung, 2.5D cover glass with curved edges like on the iPhone 6s, NFC for Apple Pay, metal casing, but with the same camera specs to the iPhone 5s versus the current models: an 8-MP rear-facing camera and 1.2-MP front shooter.

Speculation on the iPad Air 3 has been significantly thinner on the ground, however, the device is expected to include iPad Pro features like enhanced speakers and smart connector to use with accessories like the Pro’s keyboard.

If it happens it would be the first update to Apple’s iPad Air range of 9.7-inch tablets since October 2014, so it’s definitely overdue.

Even less is known about the Apple Watch offering at the event, with 9to5mac saying sources claim it will focus on new bands and software; previous reports however have suggested that Apple could be using the event to launch the Apple Watch 2, which would include a FaceTime camera to enable video calls from the wrist, an improved Wi-Fi module to make the Watch less dependent on a connected iPhone, additional sensors to track sleep and health patterns, as well as new models.

Baby iPhone

The most interesting thing to see from the event is whether Apple does indeed launch a new iPhone, particularly given they traditionally launch them in September and it has only been 5 months since their last iPhone event.

Some Apple fans are said to miss the option of the smaller 4-inch screen, a screen that’s the same size as all earlier iPhone’s were, but while catering to these people would be a bonus for Apple, the real advantage of shipping an iPhone 6c or 5se, depending on what it ends up being called, is for the tech giant to have a cheaper entry point into the iOS ecosystem at a time where the company itself predicts that sales of iPhones are set to decline.

Add to this that due to the now infamous in reporting season anyway “foreign currency movements” Apple’s range of iPhone’s has become even less affordable in developing countries relative to the increasing strength of the dollar as the Federal Reserve as eased back on quantitative easing; people in places such as Asia still want to buy iPhones, it’s just that the price of them has in some cases nearly doubled in the past 12-18 months.

A cheaper iPhone may be just what the doctor ordered to turn Apple’s now declining smartphone business around.

Image credit: posterboynyc/Flickr/CC by 2.0

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