Souped-up iPad, MacBook, iMac may be announced on 'iPhone 7' day

Yes, it's official. That would be on the same day but at 9pm here in the UAE.

In the wake of Apple's official invitation for the launch of the new iPhones on September 7, the "confirmation" that it will start selling them on September 16, and news of possibly and a new iPad mini and Apple Watch to be unveiled alongside it, more leaks have come out on what we could expect.
Aside from the widely-anticipated devices - expected to be called the "iPhone 7" - new versions for Apple's iMac desktop and MacBook Air laptop, and updates for the iPad are in play, according to a Bloomberg report, citing people familiar with the matter. Not only that; the company is also said to be collaborating with South Korea's LG Electronics for a new standalone monitor with a 5K display.
In a nutshell, here's what we know on what we could expect:
- iMac: New graphics chips from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). The current 21.5-inch iMac comes with Intel chips, either HD Graphics 6000 or Iris Pro Graphics 6200, while the 27-inch version is shipped with three AMD Radeon options - R9 M380, R9 M390 and R9 M395.
- MacBook Air: USB-C port(s) to be added. The present 11- and 13-inch MacBook Air units both come with two USB 3.0 ports, as well as a Thunderbolt 2 port (note that you can also use Thunderbolt for other connectivity cables, as long as you have the right adaptor).
- MacBook Pro: A report earlier this month says that a thinner version of the MacBook Pro is in the works. It said that the standout feature is a digital function key above the keyboard - internally code-named the "Dynamic Function Row" - which allows oft-used tasks to be done faster. This feature, however, will require the upcoming Sierra Mac OS, which is expected to be launched as early as September. The new operating system will also bring Siri to the Mac, support Apple Pay and an auto-unlock feature fort the Apple Watch, among others. The current Mac OS version is El Capitan.
- iPad: Updates included are a ramped-up Pencil, specifically with the ability to annotate objects on more apps including Safari, Mail and iMessage, pretty similar to what Samsung has on its Note devices; at present, the Apple Pencil is only tailored to specifically-developed apps. Expected new hardware for Apple's tablet include faster display technology. A new 10.5-inch iPad Pro is said to be released next year, after the original 12.9-inch and latest 9.7-inch models.
- Apple Watch: With the Weibo photo leak showing a battery, it is also seen that the new Apple Watch 2 will be unveiled. Furthermore, updates to the original Watch are also expected.
Apple's UAE PR team, as always, does not comment on speculation.
- alvin@khaleejtimes.com