Apple has revealed details of a whole host of new products and updates – including a new M2 chip, new laptops and iOS 16 – at its biggest event of the year that kicked off yesterday (6 June).

While the iPhone is about to get a big update later this year with iOS 16, Apple had something for everyone in its annual developer conference called WWDC 2022. This includes new hardware, software and even tools for developers.

Here’s a quick look at all of Apple’s latest updates hitting stores and devices soon,

M2 chip and two new laptops it powers

Beginning the next generation of Apple silicon designed for the Mac, M2 is an evolution of the M1 chip announced in November 2020 and the Pro version introduced last October.

The M2 chip is built on second-generation 5-nanometre technology that takes the performance of M1 even further with an 18pc faster CPU, 35pc more powerful GPU and 40pc faster Neural Engine, according to Apple.

With 50pc more memory bandwidth than the M1 chip, M2 comes with up to 24GB of fast unified memory – meaning that it can handle even larger and more complex workloads.

And displaying its power to the world is an all-new MacBook Air, with a thinner design, larger 13.6-inch display, 1080p HD camera and MagSafe charging. Available in four finishes – silver, space grey, midnight and starlight – it will be available next month at a price of €1529.

“Only with Apple silicon can you build such a thin and light notebook with a fanless design, and this combination of performance and capabilities,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice-president of worldwide marketing.

The M2 is also powering a new 13-inch MacBook Pro model, which will come with a Touch Bar, up to 20 hours of battery life, up to 24GB of RAM and 2TB storage. The 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 starts at €1629 and will also be available in stores next month.

Operating systems

Apple has also revealed a line of new software to run across its devices, including the macOS Ventura, iPadOS 16 and watchOS 9.

Powering Apple’s desktop system will be the all-new macOS Ventura, with a spate of productivity tools and features that aim to enhance user experience – including the ability to use your iPhone camera as a webcam for videocalls.

The new Continuity Camera comes with a Handoff feature that lets users use their iPhone cameras as the webcam, as well as pass on FaceTime calls on the phones to the Mac easily.

Stage Manager, a multitasking interface to manage app windows, helps Mac users stay focused on tasks while seamlessly switching between apps and windows – with the ability to share groups of tabs in Safari, and more.

The iPadOS 16 also comes with Stage Manager to improve productivity, along with a host of collaboration tools through Messages, a new Freeform app for brainstorming and improvements to Mail.

watchOS 9 will now have more watch faces – or front display style – to choose from, with “richer complications that provide more information and opportunity for personalisation”.

A new sleep stages feature is coming to the Sleep app, and a new FDA-cleared AFib History feature will provides deeper insights into a user’s condition. A new Medications app will also makes it easy for users to privately manage their medication through the watch.

BNPL and developer updates

Apple Pay is joining the ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) trend with a new option to split the cost of an Apple Pay purchase into four equal payments over six weeks without interest or late fees.

And finally, Apple also unveiled new tools and APIs designed to help developers create richer experiences for their users, including through the new widgets on the lock screen.

WeatherKit is an API that gives developers the ability to integrate Apple Weather forecast data directly into their apps. Apple also said that Xcode Cloud, its continuous integration and delivery service, is now available to every Apple Developer Program member to help them create apps faster.

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