Apple's Back to School Promotion Might Hint at Date of October Apple Event

Apple will be hosting a virtual event tomorrow that is expected to revolve around the iPhone 13, Apple Watch Series 7, and third-generation AirPods. With new Mac and iPad models also rumored to be on the horizon, Apple reportedly plans to hold at least one additional event before the end of the year, and the company's annual Back to School promotion could provide a clue as to when the next event might take place.

Specifically, on September 15 of last year, Apple extended its Back to School promotion to run through Monday, October 12 in the U.S. At the time, the extension seemed insignificant, but Apple later announced that it would be holding an event on Tuesday, October 13, which happened to be just one day after the promotion ended.

This year, the Back to School promotion is set to end on Monday, September 27 in the U.S., but it's unlikely that Apple will hold two events in September. However, in Europe, the promotion ends Monday, October 11, which is perhaps more telling. This could point towards Apple's next event being on Tuesday, October 12, assuming that the event ends up being one day after the Back to School promotion ends for a second year in a row.

Of course, it's possible that the end of the Back to School promotion and Apple's October event falling on back-to-back days last year was merely a coincidence, so we'll have to wait for an official announcement from Apple.

It's also not entirely clear if Apple will be hosting two or three events this fall, which could affect the timing of an October event. Last year, Apple held its first-ever November event to introduce the first M1 Macs, but Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has suggested that Apple will hold two events this fall, with the latter focused on the Mac and iPad.

As a refresher, Apple has held an October event in three out of the last five years:

• Thursday, October 27, 2016
• Tuesday, October 30, 2018
• Tuesday, October 13, 2020

In the meantime, all eyes are on the iPhone event tomorrow. MacRumors will have full coverage of Apple's announcements on our website and across our social platforms, including @MacRumorsLive on Twitter, so be sure to follow along.