Apple's virtual "Spring Loaded" event kicks off today at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time, with Apple expected to debut updated iPad models and perhaps some other hardware such as AirTags or iMac models based on Apple silicon.
Apple is providing a live video stream on its website, on YouTube, and in the company's TV app across its platforms. We will also be updating this article with live blog coverage and issuing Twitter updates through our @MacRumorsLive account as the keynote unfolds. Highlights from the event and separate news stories regarding today's announcements will go out through our @MacRumors account.
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Live blog transcript ahead...
9:03 am: Tim Cook tweeted earlier this morning in advance of today's event to share a photo from Apple Park.
9:23 am: As is typical for events, the Apple online store has been down since early this morning. Several readers have also noticed that the Discover tab in the Home app is offline, which is likely related to the store downtime.
9:31 am: Just under 30 minutes to go!
9:50 am: The stream is live on Apple's website with ambient music and animated ribbons of color in the theme of the event logo.
9:58 am: With just a couple of minutes until show time, the YouTube stream is now live.
10:00 am: Here we go!
10:01 am: We're zooming in to Apple Park with the colored ribbons chasing through the campus.
10:02 am: Tim Cook: Hello and welcome back to Apple Park! It's important that Apple makes a difference in people's lives. This week is Earth Day celebration. Today, we're carbon neutral for corporate, and by 2030, we'll be carbon neutral across end-to-end footprint.
10:03 am: Now some services updates, beginning with Apple Card.
10:04 am: Talking about fairness in credit scores. Now allowing spouses and partners to share and merge credit lines, allows both to build credit.
10:05 am: Now talking Podcasts. Biggest change since podcasts debut. Newly designed app. Every show has a beautiful page, channels for creators, recommendations. Podcast subscriptions to unlock additional benefits. Launching in 170 regions and countries next month. Will make listening easier and more enjoyable.
10:06 am: We're adding a new iPhone 12 color...purple!
10:07 am: Switching gears to Find My. Camera zooming through Apple Park to Carolyn Wolfman-Estrada for more.
10:08 am: Find My is an encrypted network available on nearly a billion Apple devices. Today, we're adding a new accessory to this ecosystem.
10:08 am: Playing a teaser video with a guy looking for his keys and getting lost inside his couch.
10:09 am: AirTag. The next time your couch eats your keys, AirTag will help find them.
10:10 am: Can be personalized even with emoji. Accessoriess for attaching to backpacks, luggage, and other items. Any U1 device like iPhone 12 uses precision finding to guide you right to the item. Visual, haptic, and audio feedback.
10:10 am: Privacy is important, and AirTag tracks items not people. We built in features like unwanted tag detection, audible alerts, and rotating identifiers. Priced at $29 or four for $99. Orders start Friday, available April 30.
10:12 am: Now back to Tim. Let's talk Apple TV. It brings you the very best cinematic experience. This starts with Apple TV+...Morning Show, Wolfwalkers, Billie Eilish, Oprah, Ted Lasso. Here's a sneak peek at season two of Ted Lasso.
10:14 am: Ted Lasso returns July 23.
10:14 am: Throwing it to Cindy Lin to talk Apple TV 4K.
10:16 am: Apple TV has powers smart TVs just don't have. Apple Arcade, late-night movies with AirPods, and more. Here's the next generation of Apple TV 4K, now with A12 Bionic chip. Dolby Vision, HDR high frame rate. We're working with global providers who are beginning to stream in high frame rate HDR. AirPlay enhanced to support it.
10:17 am: New color balance feature will work with iPhone to improve TV picture quality. Apple TV uses light sensor in your iPhone to compare your TV to standards and automatically compensate its output.
10:17 am: We completely redesigned the Siri Remote. New one-piece aluminum design with brand-new clickpad.
10:18 am: Circular gesture for jog control. Now has power/mute buttons for your TV, and Siri button is moved to the side. $179 for 32GB or $199 for 64GB. Order April 30, available second half of May.
10:19 am: Heading back to Tim. Now let's talk about the Mac. We recently said we were embarking on 2-year transition to Apple silicon and we're off to a great start. Response has been off the charts.
10:20 am: Mac continues to lead industry in customer satisfaction. M1 represents majority of Mac sales, and today we're going to take another exciting step forward.
10:21 am: John Ternus going over the first batch of M1 Macs with breakthrough performance and power efficiency. Developers have been busy building universal versions of their apps.
10:21 am: Thrilled to introduce new Mac built from the ground up for M1.
10:22 am: New iMac in rainbow colors. More powerful, personal, and capable than ever.
10:23 am: Wanted it to feel light and optimistic while brightening any space. Single sheet of glass on the front with subtle color. Rear has bold, saturated shades that bring a sense of joy.
10:24 am: Digging into the internals to show how M1 has consolidated everything into a smaller logic board and requires just two small fans. iMac overall volume reduced by over 50%, just 11.5mm thin.
10:25 am: 24-inch 4.5K display with narrower borders. Design is only slightly larger than previous 21.5-inch model. Comes with True Tone, antireflective coating, etc.
10:27 am: Navpreet Kaloty talking camera technology, now 1080p. M1 delivers computational video to analyze and enhance each pixel as you use the camera. Exposure and white balance are always perfect. This camera will make you look like a rock star.
10:27 am: Studio-quality three-mic array with beamforming to help ignore background noise to you come through loud and clear. Best mic system ever in a a Mac.
10:28 am: Increased speaker power with two pairs of force-canceling woofers to produce excellent bass response with mimimal vibration. 6-speakers system with a massive soundstage. Supports spatial audio with Dolby Atmos.
10:30 am: M1 performance is incredible. iMac wakes almost instantly, showing off Safari, Photos, etc. CPU performance is up to 85% faster than previous 21.5-inch iMac. GPU performance is up to 2x faster, even up to 50% than fastest discrete graphics available in 21.5-inch model.
10:32 am: Machine learning up to 3x faster with 16-core neural engine. As with other M1 Macs, you can run iPhone and iPad apps right on your iMac. And with iCloud and Continuity, it's easier than ever to use your iMac and your iPhone together...Handoff, universal clipboard, etc.
10:34 am: New color-matched keyboards, including one with Touch ID. Also available with numeric keypad. Color-matched Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad also now available.
10:34 am: Showing a promo video for new iMac.
10:36 am: With iMac, the possibilities are endless. And as with other products, Apple is touting environmental benefits.
10:36 am: Starts at $1299, and there's an upgraded $1499 model. Order April 30, available second half of May.
10:38 am: Video showing a burglar breaking into Apple Park and crawling through air vents trying to get his hands on an M1 chip.
10:40 am: Raja Bose talking about M1 in the iPad Pro. Big jump in performance for a high-performance ecosystem. Power efficiency has to be amazing, and M1 delivers.
10:40 am: Going over the 8-core CPU with 50% improved performance compared to previous generation. Performance is 75x the original iPad.
10:41 am: 8-core GPU offers up to 40% faster graphics than previous generation, and 1500x faster than original iPad
10:42 am: ProMotion display, four speakers, support for latest gaming controllers. New iPad Pro is yet again the fastest device of its kind, not even close, but it's more than that. Neural engine, image signal processor, and more make it more powerful than ever.
10:43 am: Up to 2x faster storage access, up to 2TB storage available. Faster connectivity as well...USB-C port now supports Thunderbolt and USB4. Offers 4x bandwidth for wired connections. Supports Pro Display XDR at full 6K resolution.
10:44 am: Ultra fast wireless with 5G cellular support to let people be productive wherever they are. Download speeds up to 3.5 Gbps, though it varies. With mmWave, can reach up to 4 Gbps. You can do just about anything, just about anywhere.
10:45 am: Fiona O'Leary to talk cameras. Built-in studio quality mics, and LiDAR scanner deliver new workflows.
10:47 am: Showing off new version of Clips that uses LiDAR to transform your living room into a studio. Smart HDR 3 support for improved quality. Front TrueDepth camera supports Face ID and portrait selfies, but there's a huge step forward with an all-new 12MP Ultra Wide front camera. New feature called Center Stage that automatically pans to keep you in the shot and zooms to fit people in the view as they come and go.
10:50 am: Heidi Delgado to discuss the XDR experience on iPad Pro. We went back to the drawing board. Uses an array of LEDs across the back of the display. These need to be incredibly small, and there are over 10,000 of these Mini-LEDs with over 2,500 local dimming zones.
10:51 am: All this fits in a design that's just 6.4mm thin and 1.5 lbs.
10:53 am: Recapping the specs of the new 12.9-inch Liquid Retina XDR display, and we couldn't wait to get it in the hands of developers. Video with fast-moving clips of high-profile developers talking about the incredible M1 iPad Pro.
10:55 am: We're always amazed by the capabilities developers put in the hands of our users. You also have to talk about accessories. Apple Pencil Scribble now has support for five more languages. Magic Keyboard is now available in a white color.
10:56 am: Even with M1, the 11-inch iPad Pro still starts at $799. The 12.9-inch model starts at $1099. Order April 30, available in second half of May.
10:57 am: Now showing a promo video for iPad Pro.
10:59 am: M1 takes iMac and iPad Pro to the next level. Now back to Tim.
11:00 am: Tim is recapping...Apple Card Family, Podcasts, purple iPhone 12 and 12 mini, AirTag, Apple TV 4K and redesigned Siri remote, new iMac, and the new iPad Pro .
11:00 am: Thank you for joining us, and we look forward to seeing you again soon.
11:01 am: Event has wrapped up. Check out our front page as we cover all of today's announcements in more depth!
