[OFFICIAL] The iPhone 6 Will Be Announced This 9 September. Here's What To Expect

Just as expected, Apple sent out invitations on Thursday for what's presumed to be its big iPhone event of the year. The invitation, which coyly says "wish we could say more," revealed that the "exclusive event" will be held on Sept. 9 at 10 a.m. PT. It will be held at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts in Cupertino, California, which is Apple's hometown.

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Apple sent out invitations to the press Thursday for a product launch event on September 9. It doesn’t take a genius to guess that it’ll be for the new iPhone. However, Apple may also surprise us by debuting its new wearable computer, the so-called iWatch, as Re/code’s John Paczkowski reported Wednesday.

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Apple on Thursday sent out invites for a press event on Sept. 9 in its hometown of Cupertino, Calif. The company provided few hints about what will be announced beyond saying "Wish we could say more." That could indicate something related to Siri, Apple's digital voice assistant. Generally, Apple is expected to introduce its newest iPhone, dubbed the iPhone 6. The company also could show off a wearable at the event.

In a short post re/code states: “Apple has scheduled a big media event for Tuesday, Sept. 9 — a date to which Apple numerologists will strain to attribute significance. As with September events past, the focal point of this one is to be Apple’s next-generation iPhones, which are expected to feature larger displays of 4.7 and 5.5 inches and run speedy new A8 processors. Apple declined to comment.”

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Much will be read into this final sentence. Silence often seen as an admission of fact, but Apple tends to give the cold shoulder to most journalist requests on any topic not to its liking.

Firstly in 2008 to unveil new iPods and secondly in 2009 for its ‘Only Rock And Roll’ event which produced more iPods and iTunes 9. Until now it has been iPhone-free, but with iPods fading into the background Apple may like this period for the run-up it allows to the Christmas period.

The world, its wife and even a Taiwanese pop star know the iPhone 6 will come with much larger 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch displays, but will both be unveiled at the same event? The 5.5-inch model is at the centre of delay talk but given Apple is unlikely to run a second event close afterwards so logic suggests both models will be announced, even if they have differing release dates.

In a welcome move away from glass, both new iPhone 6s are expected to sport a unibody metal chassis – most likely aluminium. Making sure the larger phones don’t weigh too much will be a key concern, but in combination with a sapphire display the new iPhones could be some of the toughest smartphones ever made.

The industry is heavily divided over this one. Seemingly nailed on a few weeks ago, much of the so-called ‘evidence’ in past reports has been undermined and Corning (maker of the Gorilla Glass used in the iPhone line) has been plain cocky in its future forecasts. That said other industry insiders seem convinced the move to sapphire is on and – given it would drive rivals to do the same – the move to tougher, more scratch and crack resistant screens would only be good for the industry at large.

Apple has avoided the megapixel war having stuck at 8 megapixels for some time, but with ever improving smartphone camera lenses it is viable to step up to a higher resolution. If Apple does make the move to 13 megapixels expect it to stay there for a generation or two.

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On a less positive note leaks suggest the two new iPhones will get proportionately small improvements in battery capacity. Coupled with their larger screens, an inevitably higher pixel count to go with them and an expected increase in processor performance Apple will have to pull some magic in iOS 8 to gain any significant increases in battery life.

Apple tried to keep this one under the radar, but when it submitted a specification to its MFi (Made For) developers program on how to make headphones use the Lightning port instead of the traditional 3.5mm headphone jack the secret was out. Whether official news on this will come in time for the iPhone 6 launch remains to be seen, but in Apple’s quest for minimalism doing away with a legacy port in favour of one which offers more functionality and a tasty licence fee just after buying the world’s largest headphone manufacturer suddenly makes a lot of sense.

iOS has already been unveiled to the world (arguably with one big flaw) and all eyes will be on it to see how comfortable it is to use one handed. This is of particular concern for iOS as much of the core navigation uses soft buttons in the screen’s top corners which are the most difficult areas to reach on a large phone (see below). Could Apple counter this by expanding the swipe gestures already in parts of iOS 7? It may have to if the user experience is to work as well when enlarged and previous ads aren’t to look ridiculous.

Apple has a long tradition of keeping the previous iPhone around (or at least the guts of it in the case of the iPhone 5C) as a ‘cheap’ option when a new model launches. With two new iPhones expected this time some may think three models is too many. I would suggest it is more necessary than ever before as Apple will not want to risk alienating users who may take time to come around to its move to bigger screen sizes.

Much like the phantom ‘Apple iTV’, rumours of an Apple smartwatch have been floating around for years but with the competition having already made their moves – most notably the Android Wear platform – Apple seems unlikely to let another product cycle pass without an answer. Up to now smartwatches have hinted at potential without fully convincing users they are a must buy. Apple famously disrupted the sleeping smartphone and tablet sectors with the iPhone and iPad and will be keen to repeat the trick one more time.

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No company enjoys more free press than Apple but with it comes unparalleled levels of expectation which nothing since the original iPhone has managed to match. With the iPhone 6 set to be the most radical iPhone to date expect just as many to decry the radical changes as to embrace them.

Android and Windows Phone users will obviously mock Apple’s belated move to bigger screens, but the key will be convincing iPhone owners it is for the best.