Good news: There’s a yellow iPhone 14. Bad news: This likely means Apple has scrapped the idea of an Apple Spring 2023 event.
In fact, we have long suspected it. Apple originally planned to focus on its long-awaited AR headset at this year’s spring event, but the latest delay rumors mean that’s unlikely. (I say “last,” but that’s not entirely true: even more reported delays means the headset might not arrive until the fall.) In the absence of a headliner, there’s always been a strong possibility that Apple would cancel the event entirely.
However, the launch of a new iPhone color raises the no-event theory from “very likely” to “almost certain.” The last two spring events have made similar announcements, with the iPhone 13 Pro Alpine Green unveiled at the Peek Performance event in March 2022, and the Purple iPhone 12 debuting at the Spring Loaded event in April 2021. If Apple is still planning to host an event in spring 2023, it will be Certainly wait until it gets the world’s attention to show off the yellow iPhone 14. The only possible reason to launch it now is to trick pundits into thinking there won’t be an event… which isn’t an event. impossible a theory given Apple’s fondness for discrediting leaks, but unlikely.
After all, spring events do not happen every year. Of course, this was the case last year and the year before, but not in 2020 (although the start of the Covid pandemic could disrupt Apple’s plans for an event that unveiled the iPhone SE, 4th generation iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard). There were spring events in 2018 and 2019, but not in 2017. We get used to the routine, but that doesn’t mean it’s set in stone. And aside from the logistical hassle, hosting an event when you don’t have anything amazing to discuss can detract from your audience’s interest the next time you send out invites.
Mind you, there is a wild card that could make this whole theory moot. Apple is believed to have something pretty interesting up its sleeve, which could arrive as early as April. The “surprise” this spring, if you can use the term for a product that’s been so widely leaked, is the arrival of the 15-inch MacBook Air and the early arrival of the M3 chip, which was expected in late 2023 or early. 2024, but may well appear in April.
Just like the announcement of a yellow iPhone means there probably won’t be a spring event, perhaps the lack of a spring event means there won’t be a MacBook Air yet. Or is it just a bigger model and not as exciting as we hope. Or Apple is just mocking us.
But assuming our calculations are correct, you’ll probably want to start looking to WWDC for your next key fix. See you in June everyone.