iPhone 16 release date in Australia + all the rumours buzzing around

Set your alarms! Apple's dropping the new iPhone 16 in just a few hours and yep, it's all happening earlier than expected.

Apple's holding its much-anticipated product launch event on 10 September 2024, 3am AEST, in California.

It's shaking things up this time, ditching the usual early Wednesday morning launch for a Tuesday instead.

The event's theme, 'It's Glowtime', nods to the revamped Siri interface on Apple's newest devices.

It's tough to say if the logo hints at the phone colours this time since the hues are all over the place (lol), making it tricky to pinpoint specific shades.

What will Apple announce at its event on September 10?

We're anticipating the usual lineup of phones: the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max. Plus, the new Apple Watch 10 and a couple of AirPods.

With a fair few phone launches this year - like Samsung's Galaxy S24 series and Google's Pixel 9 lineup - Apple's got a high bar to meet.

There's added pressure on the tech giant, especially after its earnings report earlier this year showed sluggish sales in phones and wearables.

And let's not forget, the competition is heating up, particularly in the realm of Artificial Intelligence.

In June, Apple revealed a range of generative AI features for the iPhone at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference.

The tech giant introduced the first wave of "Apple Intelligence" tools, including personalised Genmoji (Apple's AI-crafted emojis) and an upgraded Siri that can now provide detailed answers about your schedule.

We expect the iPhone 16 to boast the full power of Apple Intelligence, and maybe some features will be made available in the iPhone 15 Pro models.

When will the iPhone 16 be available for pre-order and sale?

We'd initially said the pre-order date for the iPhone 16 would fall on a Friday, so 13 September.

However, according to a new rumour from a German blog called Macerkopf, Apple could surprise us yet again by moving up pre-orders a day earlier.

Last year, pre-orders kicked off at 10pm AEST from the likes of Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and other retailers such as Amazon.

Perhaps the timing will at least stay the same if not the day?

The phones should then officially go on sale around a week later so either 19 or 20 September.

Unless you see a fab deal for the older models floating around, we suggest waiting for the new iPhone 16 to drop.

That's usually when retailers discount the older models.

iPhone 16 rumours

The rumour mill is absolutely buzzing with the iPhone 16 launch just around the corner.

Here are some of the biggest tips we've heard so far:

1. Bigger screens: The Pro models are growing. We're expecting to see slightly bigger screen sizes and a new aspect ratio.
2. New capture button: Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, an Apple analyst, said Apple is replacing a new capture button across all 4 models. It will let you swipe to zoom in and out while capturing photos and videos, and press to activate autofocus.
3. Thinner bezels: The iPhone 16 Pro models are tipped to get even thinner bezels, surpassing the Samsung Galaxy S24.
4. Design changes: According to URedditor, the rear camera on the iPhone 16 and possibly the iPhone 16 Plus will be vertically aligned. We also expect them to include an Action button.
5. New camera technology: Based on a report from MacRumours, we can expect an improved 48-megapixel ultra wide lens in the iPhone 16 Pro models to improve image quality, especially in lower light settings. They're also tipped to both have 5 x telephoto lenses.
6. Desert Titanium: Apparently, Apple's ditching the Blue Titanium colour for the iPhone 16 Pro in favour of what seems to be a dark gold colour meaning we can expect the lineup to include white, black, gold and grey. This tip comes from a known leaker, Majin Bu.
7. Pricing: Surprisingly, it appears Apple will be keeping its starting pricing across all models the same this year. We really hope this rumour gets the green light on the day of the launch.

We'll keep updating the rumours list as we learn more so bookmark this page.

Otherwise, come back to Finder on 10 September at 3am AEST as we'll be updating everything Apple announces in real time.

You can also watch the Apple event live on their YouTube channel on the day.

UPDATED 9 September 2024:We've updated the intro to highlight that the Apple event is now just hours away.