Let’s talk Apple’s “Scary Fast” Mac event expectations! (CultCast #618)

Next week’s “Scary Fast” event came out of nowhere, a total surprise! And now we know... Apple’s preparing a BARRAGE of new Macs. Get your wallets ready — you’re going to like what’s coming next!

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This week‘s stories:

Apple plans ‘Scary Fast’ event for Halloween eve

• It’s official, a second Apple product-release event of autumn takes place the evening before Halloween — Monday, October 30 at 5 p.m. PT. Most folks expect some new Macs to shamble forth.

Apple drops big hint October event will be Mac focused

• Apple invited the world to a product-launch event on October 30. And the invitation strongly suggests that new Macs will be on the agenda.

Mark Gurman’s tweets:

• “Apple’s iMacs and MacBook Pros are in extremely short supply”
• “Apple has been testing M3 Max and M3 Pro 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros”
• “Apple has been planning an M3 iMac for a while […] No other major changes other than the chip”
• “Inventory of existing high-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros — as well as the all-in-one iMac desktop — has dwindled at Apple stores as well as retailers”

Monday’s ‘Scary Fast’ Macs could sport M3 chips after all

• After Apple invited the world to its Scary Fast product event Monday, speculation turned more seriously to the idea that newly announced Macs might sport faster new M3 chips rather than versions of the current M2 series chips.

MacRumors: OLED iPad and MacBook Rumored to Feature Specialized Display Materials

• Apple has apparently collaborated with LG Display to integrate new OLED material sets in some of its future devices, including forthcoming iPad Pro and MacBook models.

AirPods 4 could deliver active noise cancellation

• AirPods 2 and AirPods 3 will get the axe in 2024 to be replaced with a fourth generation that will come in two versions, according to an unconfirmed report from Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman. One AirPods 4 model will offer ANC and have a charging case that supports the Find My app. A cheaper version will not have either feature.

Apple raises rates for Apple TV+ and other services by up to 40%

• The cost of watching Apple TV+ series and movies just went up 40%. […] The price for Apple Arcade, Apple News+ and Apple One also increased. But the cost of other services, like Apple Music, remains the same.

Extra Ordinary: The CultCast ‘Scary Fast’ Predictions

• For (probably) the last time this year, Erfon, Lewis and I will be putting down our predictions for a surprise event on Monday.