Remember when Apple’s press events were so shrouded in secrecy, you needed to wait for the “one more thing” moment to faint from the greatness of Apple’s latest and greatest? Barely.
If the success rate of rumors over the last few years is any indication, the steady drip of leaks preceding Apple’s planned Sept. 9 event in San Francisco has largely taken the mystery out of what’s next.
The worst-kept secret is the arrival of the iPhone 6s, the incremental upgrade of Apple’s biggest moneymaker, which accounted for 63 percent of the company’s revenue in its June quarter. The company will have a tough time topping the blockbuster performance of last year’s iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, which propelled the company to record profits and helped it briefly claim the title of China’s top smartphone maker.
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, with their 4.7- and 5.5-inch screens, tapped into pent-up consumer demand for a larger-screen smartphone from Apple. The new generation of iPhone — likely to be christened the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus — is expected to keep the same dimensions but add modest new features including an upgraded, 12-megapixel camera; a display that uses Apple’s Force Touch feature, which provides motion feedback; and a speedier processor (manufactured by competitor Samsung). It’ll also get a modest cosmetic make-over. 9to5Mac reports that it’ll come in the same copper-colored rose gold found in the Apple Watch.
Will the changes be enough to keep iPhone sales growing? Research firm International Data Corp. forecasts iPhones sales will be down in the first quarter of availability, because of the difficult comparisons to the record 74.5 million devices Apple shipped in the December quarter after the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.
“They almost doubled quarter-on-quarter shipments in the fourth quarter [of the calendar year],” said IDC analyst Ryan Reith. “They beat every single analyst forecast. It’s tough to repeat that.”
Apple also is likely to update its Apple TV streaming media device, which got its last refresh in 2012. BuzzFeed has reported the new set-top box will feature universal search, which would allow users to hunt for content across multiple sources, access to the App Store and allow voice control through the Siri digital assistant. The update also is expected to employ video-guide technology developed by Matcha.tv, a startup it acquired in 2013.
The latest version of the Apple TV will likely boast a speedier processor and a new motion-sensitive remote control that would make it a great gaming machine.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.