What to expect at Apple’s ‘Peek Performance’ March 8 event | ZDNet

Apple on Tuesday sent out invites for its next keynote event, “Peek Performance.” The event will take place on Tuesday, March 8, with the keynote kicking off at 10am PT/1pm ET. It’s another all-virtual event that will be live-streamed on Apple’s website. 

There have been rumors and speculation surrounding the March 8 event, and judging by the invite, Apple clearly is going to show off something that has improved performance. Maybe an updated MacBook Air? iPad? Well, we have a few ideas.  

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is responsible for a lot of the information covered below, as detailed in his weekly “Power On” newsletter. In fact, it was Gurman who first reported the event would be held on March 8. 

New iPhone SE with 5G

The last time Apple updated the $399
iPhone SE

was in April of 2020, so the timing of an update to its low-end model makes sense now. According to Gurman, Apple will announce an

 that look similar to the current model — that means keeping the home button design — but will feature a faster processor, 5G connectivity and an improved camera. 

A more recent report claims Apple plans to keep the 2020

 in its lineup but drop the price down to $199 — making it the cheapest iPhone model to date. The move would be primarily aimed at emerging markets where low-cost Android phones are dominant. 

New iPad Air

We’ve seen some evidence that Apple is working on new
iPad

models thanks to regulatory filings, and that’s been backed up by Gurman’s reporting.

The
iPad Air

 currently is the only tablet in Apple’s lineup without Apple’s Center Stage front-camera feature that adjusts the zoom level to ensure you’re constantly in the shot, along with anyone else that joins or leaves a video call. The feature is enabled by software as well as a 12-megapixel FaceTime camera. 

The new iPad Air would presumably feature Apple’s A15 processor, along with the addition of 5G connectivity. 

The

 was last updated in Sept. of 2020, and even though Apple has gone much longer than roughly 18 months between updates for the iPad Air in the past, it makes sense that Apple would want to bring feature parity with the rest of the iPad lineup to the iPad Air. 

New Macs?

Apple has continued its plan to transition its entire Mac lineup from Intel to Apple Silicon processors over the last two years. While Gurman states we shouldn’t expect any major news about new Apple Silicon processors at the March event. 

Currently, there are two, arguably three, Mac models that use the M1 Apple Silicon processor — the
MacBook Air

,
Mac Mini

and
13-inch MacBook Pro

. However, Apple has transitioned its

 line to the M1 Max and M1 Pro, along with a refreshed design. 

With that in mind, it makes sense that the

 and

 will be updated with a new processor. Which processor? That part isn’t clear. We’ll have to wait for Apple to make that announcement. 

iOS 15.4 and iPadOS 15.4 released

Apple released the developer and public beta versions of iOS 15.4 and iPadOS 15.4 that includes several new features, primarily for the iPhone. For owners of a

 that has FaceID, you can now unlock your phone while wearing a mask or facial covering, no Apple Watch required.

There’s also Tap to Pay for iPhone that converts the iPhone into a payment kiosk that can accept payments from any NFC-equipped form of payment, including accepting Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay and contactless payment credit or debit cards. 

Along with the new hardware, Apple should release the latest software updates for all of its devices.