Expectations are high that Apple is planning a number of new product releases in the spring 2025 time frame, but will the company hold a spring event, and if it does, when will Apple’s spring event take place.
Apple doesn’t always hold a spring event, but when it does, it usually takes place in March or April. However, in 2024, when we had almost given up hope of a spring event, Apple surprised us by issuing invites to an event on May 7.
In this article, we explain what you need to know about Apple’s spring event, including when it might be held, how to watch it, and what products you can expect to be unveiled.
Will Apple hold a spring event in 2025?
In the past ten years Apple has held seven spring events, with the exception of 2023, 2020 and 2017 (and there would undoubtedly have been one in 2020 if it wasn’t for the pandemic).
Apple’s spring event is one of the three or four big events in Apple’s yearly cycle of announcements. There’s the big iPhone/Mac software announcements at WWDC in the summer, the iPhone launch in September, sometimes we see Apple make Mac and iPad announcements in October or November, and (most years) we get some hardware reveals at a spring event in March or April. At these events Apple executives hit the stage–whether real or virtual–and boast about some recent successes, before revealing what new products are about to launch. For more detail on Apple’s calendar of events, read When is the next Apple event?
But will there be an event in spring 2025? There was no second fall event in 2024, with Apple choosing instead to issue press releases regarding M4 series of MacBooks, iMac, and Mac mini. These announcements could certainly have been made at an event if Apple had wished: the new M4 Pro and M4 Max were worthy of attention, as was the new design of the Mac mini. But Apple settled on press releases spread over a few days.
Could this be the start of a trend to avoid the immediacy of an event, where smaller news gets dwarfed by the big stories, in favor of a more controlled, staggered release. Probably not, although such a release may be better suited to Macs, which don’t attract the same interest as iPhones do.
It’s because there is possibly going to be an iPhone related release in the spring that we think that Apple may hold an event. The new iPhone SE is expected to launch in that time frame and Apple is likely to want to attract as much attention as possible for that iPhone and its support for Apple Intelligence. (Here’s how to get Apple Intelligence on your iPhone if you have a compatible model.)
When is the Spring Apple event 2025?
We don’t yet know when (or if) there will be an Apple event this spring. But we can make some educated guesses based on when the event has been held in the past, and other events happening around that time.
It’s typical for Apple to hold events (other than WWDC) on a Tuesday or a Wednesday.
If Apple holds the event on March 11, 18 or 25 it could be selling the new products before its second quarter ends on March 30.
Alternatively, If Apple waits until April we wouldn’t expect the event to fall too close to the easter time frame, so April 8 or April 29 would be the most likely dates.
Apple held a Spring event on the following dates:
- 2024: Tuesday May 7: (“Let Loose”): 11 & 14-inch iPad Pro M4, 11 & 14-inch iPad Air M2, Apple Pencil Pro
- 2023: no event
- 2022, Tuesday March 8: (“Peek Performance,” virtual): New iPhone SE, new iPad Air, Mac Studio and Studio Display, and new iPhone color options
- 2021, Tuesday April 20: (“Spring Loaded,” virtual): New iPad Pro and iMac, Apple TV 4K, AirTags, new iPhone color options and iOS 14.7
- 2020: no event
- 2019, Monday March 25: (“It’s show time”): Apple Card, and the News+, TV+, and Arcade subscription services
- 2018, Tuesday March 27: (“Let’s take a field trip”): New iPad and education announcements
- 2017: no event
- 2016, Monday March 21: (“Let us loop you in”): iPad Pro, iPhone SE, and software updates
- 2015, Monday March 9: (“Spring Forward”): Apple Watch, a new MacBook, and iOS 8.2
- 2014: no event
- 2013: no event
- 2012, Wednesday March 7: (“We have something you really have to see. And touch”): 3rd-gen Apple TV and 3rd-gen iPad
What time will Apple’s spring event start?
Apple’s events generally start at 10 am in local (California, PT) time, but in May 2024 the event started at 7am PT.
Here’s what that time translated to in various locations around the world:
- U.K.: 3 pm (BST)
- Central Europe: 4 pm (CEST)
- U.S.: 7 am (PT), 8 am (MT), 9 am (CT), 10 am (ET)
- Canada: 7 am (PT), 8 am (MT), 9 am (CT), 10 am (ET)
- India: 7.30 pm (IST)
- Singapore and China: 11 pm
- Japan: next day at 2 am (JST)
- Australia: 11 pm (AWST), 11.30 pm (ACST), midnight (AEST)
- New Zealand: next day at 2 am (NZST)
If Apple holds the event at the usual time of 10am PT the timing will be as follows (allow for daylight saving time changes, which happen at different times around the world).
- U.S.: at 10 am (PST/PDT), 11 am (MST/MDT), noon (CST/CDT), 1 pm (EST/EDT)
- Canada: as above, and 2 pm (AST/ADT)
- U.K.: at 6 pm (GMT/BST)
- Europe: at 7pm (CET/CEST), 8 pm (EET/EEST)
- India: at 10.30 pm (IST)
- Australia: Next day at 1 am (AWST/AWDT), 2.30 am (ACST/ACDT), 3 am (AEST/AEDT)
- New Zealand: Next day at 5 am (NZST/NZDT)
Apple events generally last between one and two hours.
What will Apple announce at the spring event?
We’ve mentioned the iPhone SE a couple of times, but there are other Apple products due an update:
M4 MacBook Air
The MacBook Pro, iMac and Mac mini already have M4 chips so it’s time that the MacBook Air got upgraded to the M4. More here: MacBook Air M4 rumors.
11th-gen iPad
The 10th-gen iPad launched back in October 2022 and is the only model that doesn’t support Apple Intelligence, so an update to the same A17 Pro chip as the iPad mini seems likely. See: 11th-gen iPad rumors.
iPhone SE
It’s expected that the new iPhone SE will support Apple Intelligence, which means we will see a processor jump that takes it beyond the iPhone 14 and 15 models still on sale. Rumor has it that this will be known as the iPhone 16 SE. Read: iPhone SE rumors.
Other new products
We could also see some updates to the Home products. There have been rumors of a faster version of the Apple TV, a HomePod with screen, or a product that combines the two products.
We’ll probably be waiting until WWDC in June for the Mac Pro and Mac Studio updates.
What is the spring event tagline and what does it mean?
When Apple announces the tagline for the spring 2025 event there will be a lot of speculation as to what it might indicate about the product announcements.
For the May 2024 event the tagline was Let Loose, a phrase that suggested freedom and the idea that creativity will be let loose. The image accompanying the invite was of an Apple Pencil drawing. So when a new range of iPads and a new Apple Pencil were launched it was no real surprise.
Since an iPhone announcement is expected, a tagline relating to the iPhone and AI seems likely.
How to watch Apple’s spring event live
The best way to watch would be to get an invite to attend in person, but most of us won’t be so lucky. Fortunately, Apple will also live stream the presentation so everyone can watch along.
The first place to try is right at the top of this article where we will have embedded Apple’s YouTube stream. You can also watch on Apple’s events page, which will have the live stream on the night. Indeed, the main Apple.com home page usually shows the presentation while it is happening.
If you’ve got an iPhone, an iPad, an Apple TV, or a Mac–assuming the device has sufficiently up-to-date software–you can watch the stream on the TV app. PC owners can also watch, but will need to visit Apple’s site as mentioned above.
After the event is finished, it will also be available to rewatch in the Podcasts and TV apps, and on Apple’s website.
Finally, Apple has for certain events in the past held broadcast events in Apple Stores, so it may be worth contacting your nearest outlet to see if they have anything planned.
More information about watching the event here: How to watch Apple’s event.
Apple
What has Apple launched in past spring events?
Here’s what Apple has announced at previous spring events:
- 2024: Tuesday May 7
- 2023: no event
- 2022, Tuesday March 8: (“Peek Performance,” virtual): New iPhone SE, new iPad Air, Mac Studio and Studio Display, and new iPhone color options
- 2021, Tuesday April 20: (“Spring Loaded,” virtual): New iPad Pro and iMac, Apple TV 4K, AirTags, new iPhone color options and iOS 14.7
- 2020: no event
- 2019, Monday March 25: (“It’s show time”): Apple Card, and the News+, TV+, and Arcade subscription services
- 2018, Tuesday March 27: (“Let’s take a field trip”): New iPad and education announcements
- 2017: no event
- 2016, Monday March 21: (“Let us loop you in”): iPad Pro, iPhone SE, and software updates
- 2015, Monday March 9: (“Spring Forward”): Apple Watch, a new MacBook, and iOS 8.2
- 2014: no event
- 2013: no event
- 2012, Wednesday March 7: (“We have something you really have to see. And touch”): 3rd-gen Apple TV and 3rd-gen iPad
What happens at an Apple event?
Like most tech-company launch events, it will feature both fluff and substance. Expect some tedious bragging at the beginning; this may cover such topics as operating system adoption rates, hardware customer reviews, and eco-friendly manufacturing policies. But Apple wouldn’t hold an event if there wasn’t something worth hearing, and we should get into proper announcements within 10 minutes or so.
Generally, you can expect multiple separate announcements at an Apple event.
