What to expect from the Apple October Event: Macs and more

Apple might’ve only launched the iPhone 16 a few weeks ago, but whispers suggest that Apple isn’t quite done with its 2024 slate of releases. Instead, it’s said to be gearing up for a Mac and iPad-themed October event, and it could be a doozy.

The online rumour mill has been churning away, with claims that the yet-unconfirmed Apple October Event could see the reveal of M4-equipped MacBooks, iMacs and Mac Minis, while the iPad Mini and entry-level iPad could also get a much-needed refresh. 

Oh, and it’s rumoured to be an exciting one for iPhone 16 owners too, with signs pointing towards the announcement of the Apple Intelligence public release date. 

With that said, here’s everything you should expect from Apple’s October 2024 event. 

When will the Apple October Event take place?

While it’s seemingly obvious that the Apple October Event will take place in October, the question is, when in October? While Apple has yet to confirm the existence of the expected launch, we can look back at previous October events – of which there are quite a few – to give us a good idea.

Here’s a brief summary of Apple Events that took place in October:

• 30 October 2023
• 18 October 2021
• 13 October 2020
• 30 October 2018

Looking at previous release dates, it seems Apple prefers a mid- to late-October release, suggesting that the event will likely happen in the last two weeks of October this year – but we’ll update this section once we get confirmation. 

What should I expect from the Apple October Event?

Apple’s October Event is said to not only focus on Macs and iPads, but could possibly serve as a launchpad for Apple Intelligence after being absent at launch.

Public release of Apple Intelligence

While it wasn’t quite ready for the initial launch of iOS 18 (despite being the main focus of much of the iPhone 16 advertising campaign), Apple is expected to launch Apple Intelligence at the October Event. It’s already in beta testing, and you can even sign up for access via the public beta if you’ve got a compatible device, but it’ll officially roll out in October.

This is only the first of many iOS updates that’ll bring Apple Intelligence features to supported devices, however, with the initial release including features like an upgraded Siri, AI notification summaries, writing tools, object removal tools, Safari webpage summaries and more.

It’s worth noting that this release is expected to be exclusive to the US, with a wider rollout in the regions including the UK expected later this year. 

M4 MacBook Pro

A MacBook Pro refresh at Apple’s October event is seemingly a given, with both Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman and analyst Ross Young suggesting that a refresh is coming. 

Ross Young suggests that 14-inch and 16-inch panels were shipped in Q3 2024 and, based on usual timelines, suggests a launch in Q4 2024, while Gurman claims that the MacBook Pro would be the first laptop to get the M4 chipset in late 2024. 

However, it’s not just the M4 that’s said to be making its way to the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro range; depending on the configuration, you’ll also be able to get the M4 Pro and M4 Max.

Not much else is known about the new MacBook Pro, but given that the laptop was only given a design overhaul a few generations ago, we’re unlikely to see sweeping changes here. 

M4 Mac Mini

The M4 Mac Mini is an interesting prospect, with Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggesting that the portable Mac could get a redesign with this year’s release. Per Gurman’s sources, the new Mac Mini should have a smaller overall footprint, though it could be taller than the current model’s 1.4 inches, and describe it as “an iPad Pro in a small box”.

Elsewhere, rumours suggest that the new Mac Mini could be available in two configurations, one with the Apple M4 and another with the Apple M4 Pro, with configurable RAM and graphics, and it could come with up to three USB-C ports on the rear alongside the power cable and a HDMI port.

Considering the M2-powered Mac Mini was released at the beginning of 2023, an overhaul at the October event makes a lot of sense.  

M4 iMac

Along with the Mac Mini and MacBook Pro, the iMac is also expected to get a spec bump to the M4 – despite not getting a refresh to the M3 a little under a year ago, making its debut in November 2023.

Aside from the new processor, not much is known about the next-gen Apple desktop computer. It’s possible that Apple could finally ship the iMac in new colours, having kept the colour options the same since its M1 redesign, and new USB-C accessories would be a nice touch too, but we’ll have to wait and see for sure.

New iPad Mini

With no update in three years, Apple’s iPad Mini is expected to get a refresh at the October event. It makes sense, as Apple has bundled Mac and iPad announcements in the past, and the iPad Mini update is desperately needed at this point.

It likely won’t be as massive an update as the iPad Mini 6 was, sporting an entirely new design and support for updated accessories, instead most likely focusing on boosting the internals to something like the A18 or even M1 to support Apple Intelligence and offering support for new accessories like the Apple Pencil Pro. 

A fix for the display’s jelly-scrolling issue, which was covered extensively at launch, should also be at the top of Apple’s to-do list for the iPad mini 7. 

New entry-level iPad – maybe

This one’s a bit of a wildcard for the Apple October Event as, until just before Apple’s September Glowtime event, rumours were swirling that the entire iPad range would get an upgrade in 2024. We’ve already seen new models of iPad Pro and iPad Air, and if the reveal of the new iPad Mini at the October event is correct, that’d only leave the entry-level iPad.

However, in a more recent development, display analyst Ross Young – with a pretty good track record for display-related predictions – claims that panel shipments for the new entry-level iPad aren’t due to even ship until October, suggesting an early 2025 launch might be more likely.

Now, this could be because, like the iPad Pro and iPad Air, Apple is planning on releasing two sizes of entry-level iPad with one due for release now and the other in early 2025, but that does seem like a pretty sizeable gap between announcement and launch for something that’s not an entirely new product category like Apple Vision Pro.

But hey, we’ve certainly got our fingers crossed!