Apple's avalanche of product launches to continue through October

Apple has already had a bumper launch season, introducing the iPhone Duo alongside the iPhone 18 Pro – but still has a lot more to come. First, there's an event said to be scheduled for 13 October where we're expecting to see an Echo Show rival launched.

That same event is expected to give us an updated HomePod mini and an Apple TV 4K, all with the proviso of strengthening Apple's smart home offering.

However, according to MacRumors, there's a second launch later in the final week of the month too. That's likely to be back on the computing side, with the launch of the MacBook Ultra – the touchscreen OLED model – as well as the new iPad mini.

Sandwiched between the two is the availability of the £2,000 iPhone Duo, which neatly bridges two launches and will see Apple dominate the next month of tech headlines.

The flurry of launches neatly aligns with the arrival of Apple's new CEO, John Ternus, although clearly the new devices were in development long before he took the helm.

With a wide selection of new launches, we see Apple making a move into the smart home that's been missing so far: Apple HomeKit struggled to get going while Alexa and Google Home raced away. But with dedicated home hardware – as well as Siri AI – Apple stands a better chance of making its mark on this segment of the market.

While a display-equipped HomePod has been rumoured for a long time, the most interesting thing will be how it interfaces with existing devices. Apple is a member of the Connectivity Standards Alliance, the organisation that manages Matter, which is expected to be core to the Apple's smart home experience.

But it's really the advent of Siri AI that's going to drive the segment along. Just as Alexa became a core component of smart home control over the past decade, Apple is likely looking to Siri to provide a seamless and intelligent smart home experience.

That's not the only change of direction that we're expecting from Apple. The subsequent launch of the MacBook Ultra will see the first touchscreen Mac, something that Apple had previously avoided.

While there will be a lot of new products to get excited about, the current component crisis is expected to push prices higher – especially for the new MacBook and iPad – meaning that some might have to temper their excitement this Christmas and decide exactly which new Apple device to buy.