Top 3 things to expect from Apple's rumored Spring Event

According to a recent report from Bloomberg, Apple is “targeting a date on or near March 8” for a virtual event that will highlight a variety of revised hardware including a next-gen iPad Air. The 2022 iPad Air will presumably play catch-up to the 2021 iPad mini which introduced enhanced performance and features not found on the current iPad Air. These features include the blazing-fast A15 chip, 5G antennas, Quad-LED True Tone flash on a new dual rear camera, and a 12 MP Ultra Wide front camera with support for Center Stage, which is a technology that uses machine learning to dynamically keep subjects centered in the frame during video calls.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman predicts that performance on the iPad Air could leap even further if Apple debuts a 3 nm A16 Bionic chip in this year’s model, though this decision would be subject to chip availability. According to Apple silicon manufacturer TSMC, its new 3 nm chipsets offer a 10% to 15% increase in performance and 25% to 30% greater battery efficiency. 

While many iPhone users were hoping that the iPhone SE 3 would adopt a new design, some of the more accurate leakers are suggesting that will not be the case this year. Featuring the same iPhone-8 era design language, the next generation of iPhone SE is expected to continue Apple’s tradition of slowly adopting higher-end features in its “budget model” devices, including the A15 Bionic chip from last year’s flagship iPhone 13 lineup and 5G support.

The inclusion of the immensely power-efficient A15 Bionic chip will surely improve battery life on the SE without forcing Apple to add bulk to the device by adjusting its design. Additionally, support for 5G would surely shake up the market by making the new iPhone SE one of the most affordable 5G phones available assuming it retains its current US$399 price tag. 

Earlier this week Apple listed three new Macs all running macOS Monterey in the Eurasian regulatory database. One of these models is classified as a laptop, while the other two computers are listed as desktop devices. Apple products typically appear in this database 1-3 months before release, however Apple has published model identifiers for products nearly a year before release in some instances. Rumors suggest the desktop model could be a refreshed Mac mini clad in space gray with M1 Pro/Max chip configurations slated for an early 2022 release.

Assuming it adopts the same silicon found in the latest-gen MacBook Pro lineup, a new “Mac mini Pro” could receive a 10-core CPU, double the memory, enhanced memory bandwidth up to 400 GB/sec, and up to quadruple the number of GPU cores. It is also safe to say that an updated Mac mini could follow in the footsteps of the MacBook Pro by resurrecting the SD card slot. Added support for 10 GB Ethernet, which was notably omitted from the first Mac mini with Apple Silicon despite being available on Intel models released back in 2018, is also expected to return.