Apple today announced the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone Duo, AirPods 5, and new Apple Watches. Here are a few initial thoughts.

The Event

• John Ternus looked comfortable during his first product event as Apple CEO. And he got to introduce “one more thing” straight out of the gate.
• Apple has these video events down. They move fast and look beautiful. I still miss the tension of a live room. Million-dollar executives should have to sweat once in a while.
• There was a lot of “later this year” today. Some of that is understandable with an entirely new iPhone platform. I also expect they’ve had their hands full with Siri AI.
• Apple’s larger pitch was the iPhone as an “intelligent personal hub.” The iPhone does the thinking, the Watch senses what is happening, and the AirPods handle private input and output. I like that they are getting a bigger picture story around AI.
• Also, they said AI.

iPhone 18 Pro

• The new camera system is the selling point. A mechanical aperture that moves from f/1.48 to f/4 gives photographers real control over light and depth of field. Apple is also bringing aperture, shutter speed, white balance, and a histogram into its own Camera app. Third-party camera apps just lost some territory.
• Apple Reference Image may prove more important than it first appears. The idea is to make a signed record of what the sensor saw at the moment of capture. With synthetic images getting better every month, establishing the origin of a photograph is going to matter.
• Apple spent a surprising amount of time talking about cooling. That makes sense. Heat has become one of the main limits on phone performance. I’ll be curious to see how much difference the new vapor chamber makes. My theory is that Apple has a specific heat ceiling. Better thermal control gives it room to run the chip faster before reaching that ceiling.
• There is no regular iPhone 18 this fall. Apple’s least expensive new iPhone starts at $1,199. I am curious how that goes over once these phones move beyond the enthusiasts.

iPhone Duo

• Well, they got me.
• The hardware is impressive, but the software sold the device. The way apps move between displays, the new dock, the two-app layouts, and all the partially folded positions make this feel like a new kind of iPhone. It does not look like Apple took iPadOS and folded it in half.
• I’ve been calling this an iPad mini in your pocket, and that still feels right. When I travel, I often leave the laptop in my bag and write on an iPad mini with a folding keyboard. The Duo could give me that setup without carrying the iPad.
• The hard choice is the camera. If you want the best camera that you will actually carry, get the iPhone 18 Pro. The Duo gives up the Pro’s variable aperture and telephoto reach.
• There are plenty of other compromises. No Face ID. A smaller outer screen. A hinge with more than 100 parts. First-generation hardware that starts at $1,999. This thing screams AppleCare.
• I’m going to buy one. I will keep an eye on the return window, but I suspect it is staying. At this point I would probably say anything to justify getting a Duo, so discount my advice accordingly.

Apple Watch

• I started the day with an Ultra 3 and no good reason to replace it. Then Apple announced the new health sensors and Live Rewind. So much for discipline.
• Live Rewind is the Watch feature I care about most. My hearing isn’t so great. Asking someone to repeat themselves once is fine. Asking two or three times gets awkward. The ability to look down and read the last 15 seconds could be genuinely useful to me.
• That feature also deserves scrutiny. Apple says the audio is handled on the device and deleted, with a chime and full-screen notice when Live Rewind runs. I want to understand how it works around other people before deciding how often I would use it.
• The Apple Watch story has changed a lot. It began as a device for notifications and small apps. Apple now talks about it primarily as a health sensor on your wrist.

AirPods 5

• The $129 AirPods 5 look like the easy recommendation. Active noise cancellation is now standard, and people who dislike silicone ear tips get more of the AirPods Pro experience in an open-ear design.
• Apple did not make a strong case for the $149 version. Wireless charging, a volume gesture, and some additional battery life are nice. I am not sure they are worth the extra $20 for most people.
• I wonder why there are two tiers to this product. That $129 price point must be particularly effective for Apple.

What Did Not Show Up

• No new Apple TV. No HomePod mini. No screen-based HomePod device. None of those products belonged in an iPhone-focused event. I suspect we’ll see them all soon.

I am still inside the reality distortion field, so check back after these products ship. But yes, I am ordering the Duo.