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What to expect from Apple's biggest event ever

tim cook
Apple CEO Tim Cook. Robert Galbraith/Reuters

Apple's annual event when the company typically unveils its new iPhones is on Wednesday. 

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A lot of details about the new products that Apple is expected to announce have leaked, but there could still be some surprises. 

It's going to be big too. The event takes place at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, a venue with 7,000 seats. That's larger than the venue where it announced the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, and Apple Watch a year ago.

It seems like Apple is going to pack all its fall announcements into one event instead of two like it normally does.

Here's everything we know about the September 9 event.

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iPhone

The star of the show will likely be the new iPhone models.

Apple is expected to announce an update to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. The phones likely won't change drastically in size or shape — they'll still have a 4.5-inch model, and a 5.5-inch one — but they'll have faster processors, improved cameras, and better fingerprint sensors.

The phones will likely have the "S" designation Apple has used in the past for these yearly updates, so the phones will probably be called the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.

The biggest update to the phone will likely be the addition of a pressure sensitive screen, which the Wall Street Journal reported on in May. This will allow people to interact with the phone differently, so taps and presses will do different tasks depending on how much pressure you apply. The Apple Watch and some Mac computers already have this feature, which is called Force Touch on those devices, though the new iPhone may be able to recognize three distinct levels of pressure. Apple may also pick a new name for the Force Touch feature in the new iPhones.

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According to 9to5Mac's Mark Gurman, the new iPhone cameras will be able to shoot video in ultra high definition 4K, and there will also be an additional color option called "rose gold."

9to5Mac's Gurman also reports that the front-facing camera will not only get an upgrade, but it will have a flash on the front, so say goodbye to those low-light selfies.

iphone 6s bend test vs iphone 6
The new iPhones won't bend as easily. Unbox Therapy/YouTube

Unbox Therapy's Lewis Hilsenteger, the guy who created the viral video last year showing how the iPhone 6 Plus bent when pressure was applied, reports that the phone's casing will be significantly stronger, presumably to prevent another "bendgate" fiasco.

Unfortunately, it seems as though the base model iPhone will again be configured with a storage capacity of 16 gigabytes, which is too small for most people. If you buy a new iPhone, you'll probably want to get the 64GB model, which will likely cost $100 more.

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Apple usually releases new iPhones the Friday of the second week following the event, so since the event is September 9, the new phones will probably be available to buy September 18.

Apple TV

Apple hasn't made a significant update to the Apple TV — the small black box that you plug into your TV to stream movies, music, and TV shows — in years, but BuzzFeed's John Paczkowski reported in July that it's finally getting a makeover, and Apple will unveil the new one on Wednesday.

apple iphone event invitation
Apple's invitation for the Sept. 9 event. Apple

The newly designed Apple TV, Paczkowski reports, will have an app store like the iPhone, which will allow third-party developers to create apps for it. This has the potential to increase the number of apps, or as Apple calls them, "channels," exponentially. It will also have Siri, so expect to be able to control it using your voice.

(The invitations to this year's event are emblazoned with "Hey Siri, give us a hint," solidifying that Siri will play a central role in the event.)

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The New York Times' Brian X. Chen reported in May that the Apple TV's remote, which has long been a thin and small stick with just a few buttons, will get the addition of a touch pad. People will use the touchpad to scroll, presumably through apps, TV shows, movies, and more.​

The remote will also have sensors that recognize movement, like the controller of the Nintendo Wii, allowing for it to pick up arm movements, according to TechCrunch's Matthew Panzarino. The motion controls also mean the Apple TV will double as a gaming machine, so expect Apple to talk a lot about new games that you'll be able to download to the device.

The company may also release two different versions of the updated Apple TV — a model with 8 gigabytes of storage for $149, and a $199 model that comes with 16 gigabytes of storage. You'll need that storage to store apps and games from the new App Store. All other content will be streamed.

A New iPad

We've heard reports for more than a year that Apple has been working on a larger-screened iPad, and Gurman reports that the company will use the event on Wednesday to unveil it.

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The press has dubbed the device, which Bloomberg reported last year will have a 12.9-inch screen, the "iPad Pro," and Gurman reports that's indeed what it will be called. The current iPad, the iPad Air 2, has a 9.7-inch screen, while the iPad Mini has 7.9-inch screen. 

Gurman reported Friday that the tablet will come with a stylus that will recognize how hard you're pressing, which will give people an entirely new way to interact with the iPad. And according to The New York Times, Apple is also developing a keyboard for the device.

iPadPro12
A mockup of the iPad Pro. Martin Hajek

We've been using the iPad pretty much the same way since it came out in 2010, and although many people find the tablets great for reading and for consuming video, it's not great for actually getting stuff done. An iPad with a stylus and keyboard could be the perfect tablet/laptop hybrid — something other companies like Microsoft have been trying to do for years with its Surface line of tablets — and give iPad sales a much needed boost.

Gurman also reported recently that Apple is expected to an updated version of its iPad Mini at the event on Wednesday.

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iOS 9

Apple earlier this summer announced iOS 9, the next update to its mobile operating system for the iPad and iPhone. Apple typically releases the new mobile operating system around the time it releases the new iPhones go on sale, so we'll get a date that we'll be able to download it.

As our colleagues at Business Insider reported, the refreshed OS will give us the new Apple News app, better search functionality, an updated version of Apple Maps, and a more powerful Siri, along with other updates. 

Mac OS X El Capitan

We already know about El Capitan, the next version of the Mac operating system, which will include updated versions of Apple apps like Mail, Safari, Notes, and Maps. Apple will likely give a final release date for El Capitan on Wednesday.

Apple Watch

We're not expecting too much news on the Apple Watch front, though MacRumors reported last week that the company may use the event to unveil a less expensive gold version of the device. Apple may also show introduce some new bands.

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Tech Insider will be at the event in San Francisco so be sure to follow along for all of the latest Apple news and analysis on Wednesday. 

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