It’s September, so it’s time for Apple to roll out its latest range of iPhones. This year will be different, though, with a raft of changes compared to previous years. Here is what to expect.

What is Apple doing?

As is now tradition, Apple is holding its regularly scheduled product launch, titled Surprise and Shine. We are expecting to see new iPhones, including the highly anticipated foldable phone.

This is the first big iPhone redesign since its launch in 2007. While the company has increased the screen size and changed some aesthetics, a bendable display will be a first for Apple.

It will also be new chief executive John Ternus’s first product launch in charge, after Tim Cook stepped away to take on the executive chairman role at the start of the month.

So the stakes are high?

Start as you mean to go on. It won’t be the first time Ternus has been involved in a big launch – he was head of Apple’s hardware engineering before he was named Cook’s successor – but it will be the first time he is leading things.

As a result, people will be watching closely to see how prominent a role he plays in Apple’s regular product events, and if he can bring back some of the hype that used to accompany these launches.

Are foldable phones a big thing?

They are getting there. According to FDM CCS Insight, 25 million foldable smartphones were shipped in 2025. That’s an 18 per cent year-on-year increase, and was down to strong volumes from Samsung, Huawei and Motorola. That was about 2 per cent of the overall smartphone market.

But Apple’s entry – if it comes as anticipated – is expected to bring new momentum to the sector.

“Despite the overall challenges in the smartphone market, we expect the foldable segment to grow strongly in 2026 and 2027. Although we expect many players will see some volume decline because of market pressures, Apple’s rumoured entry is expected to offset the weaknesses and strengthen the category in the long run,” says FDM CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood. “We believe Apple will bring fresh attention to the category and increase acceptance of the designs despite high prices and still evolving uses.”

Having said that, it is expected to remain a niche category, accounting for just 4 per cent of the total market by the end of the decade, FDM CCS Insight says.

It sounds expensive

It probably will be. Rumours are that the phone will cost upwards of $2,000 in the US, putting it in line with Samsung and Google’s foldables.

What else is Apple expected to do?

We could see a new Apple Watch, plus camera-enabled AirPods. And Apple will also announce the full availability of iOS27, which includes an AI-enabled Siri. But not for the EU just yet, at least. We will have to wait until Apple’s discussions with the European Commission over access for third-party voice assistants have concluded.

There has been talk that Apple may split the launch of the new phones across two events, with the iPhone 18 Pro models launching at this event and the base model of the iPhone 18 coming in a few months’ time. That would give the company time to get demand for the Pro models bedded in.