Technologies

What Apple’s ‘Wonderlust’ Event Invite Could Tell Us About the iPhone 15

Commentary: By examining the title and graphic for the next Apple event, we can speculate about what’s coming to the next iPhone.

Apple’s «Wonderlust» event is set for Sept. 12, and the company’s invitation could be our first «official» clue hinting at the rumored iPhone 15. We’ve been collecting rumors about the gadget for months, but Apple sometimes drops an early hint about its September event into the invite. This doesn’t always mean there are true connections between what’s said and shown in the invitation and what actually emerges at the show, but the invite creates a jumping off point for discussing what we think Apple might spotlight.

Examining Apple’s ‘Wonderlust’ invite

Let’s start by thinking about the name: Wonderlust. With this tweak of «wanderlust,» Apple appears to be invoking a travel theme. And it’s no stretch to say phones are essential travel companions: We use them for photography, GPS, looking up where we want to eat — there are endless possible features that could be developed with just travel in mind.

Moving onto the invitation’s design, we get a disintegrating graphic that shows a blue-and-sand-colored Apple logo being blown apart by an invisible force — perhaps the wind? Or perhaps the pieces of the Apple logo are being pulled together via a magnetic attraction? Either way, an atmospheric element might be what we could extrapolate from this design choice, and phones by their very nature are wireless devices that create constant connections through the atmosphere.

(It’s also true that blue and gray have been iPhone colors in the past, and maybe this logo’s colors provide an early look at what a few of the iPhone 15 models might look like.)

I should reiterate that these thoughts are speculation, but they’re enough to warrant a closer look at how Apple could improve the iPhone 15. The following things all tie into the themes of travel and atmosphere, but they’re also areas in which Apple could demonstrate improvement where rival phones have already staked out territory, or they’re realms closely related to iOS 17 features we already learned about at Apple’s WWDC event.

An iPhone 14 showing a text conversation with emergency dispatchers

Even more satellite communication

Tying into both travel and the atmosphere, Apple could make new announcements related to the satellite connectivity features first launched with the iPhone 14 line. Right now Apple’s efforts are focused on its Emergency SOS feature, which lets people with a clear view of the sky use the iPhone to text emergency services where cellular service isn’t available. The iPhone 14 line comes with two years of free emergency satellite service.

Though Apple kicked off bringing satellite service to phones, it won’t be alone for long. Qualcomm, Samsung and other companies have announced plans to bring their own spin to satellite connectivity, including voicing their intention to allow for nonemergency communication over those airwaves.

On this year’s stage, Apple could announce new improvements to its satellite connectivity features, perhaps allowing for an iMessage service while in the wilderness, or limited voice calls.

The iPhone on a MagSafe charger in StandBy mode

Faster wireless charging and more MagSafe

Apple’s MagSafe made a splash when it debuted alongside the iPhone 12 in 2020, very literally snapping separate objects together for enhanced wireless charging and stackable accessories. The particle effect in our Apple event invitation — whether it means the logo is being pulled together or apart — could indicate MagSafe as well as the wireless charging feature that MagSafe supports.

And if so, it’s about time. Apple has room to improve the iPhone’s wireless charging speeds, especially when compared with those of rival flagship Android phones. Currently, Apple supports 7.5-watt wireless charging speeds with a regular Qi wireless charger, and 15W speeds with an officially certified MagSafe charger. Meanwhile, Google’s Pixel 7 can wirelessly charge at 12W on a Qi charger with an extended power profile, and that bumps up to 20W when using Google’s Pixel Stand that has a built-in fan. Previous OnePlus phones can get 15W charging from Qi wireless chargers with an extended power profile, and a ludicrously fast 50W on their official stand, thanks to the use of a split battery. All this leaves a lot of room for growth for Apple, and matching Google’s speeds, at least, would be a solid step in making wireless charging more useful on the iPhone.

A new Qi2 wireless charging standard is in the works though, and Apple is a member of the Wireless Power Consortium that’s developing it. Whenever that standard is ready, that might lead to faster wireless charging speeds on future iPhone models.

Regardless of charging, there’s likely even more room to grow MagSafe into a modular accessory platform. Maybe Apple could create a MagSafe dock that instantly starts an AirPlay session with a TV. Or create an attachable projector like Motorola once tried with the Moto Z phone line. How about a portable HomePod speaker that snaps right onto your phone, similar to a number of magnetic speakers that already exist on Amazon? There’s still a lot of untapped potential for MagSafe.

Two iPhones sharing contact information using NameDrop

NameDrop and new ways to share in person

Another atmospheric idea starts with an iOS 17 feature we already know: NameDrop. This feature lets you quickly share contact information with someone in person by bringing two iPhones together. But Apple could do so much more with local wireless sharing.

For instance, Apple already allows for sharing iPhone audio between two different sets of AirPods. What if this wireless sharing expanded SharePlay, allowing for simultaneously playing music and video across multiple phones at once — without being on a FaceTime call.

This could be instantly useful if you wanted to share a YouTube video with a friend without having to hand over your phone. Or if you wanted to create a quick surround-sound system by syncing five iPhones together to play music during a dinner party, since your phones are probably sitting on the table anyway.

These all could be natural extensions of other features we already know are on the way. For instance, FaceTime on Apple TV will use its own wireless magic to connect an iPhone’s camera and microphone for video calls. Why not think even bigger and let multiple iPhones share even more media, just by being right next to each other?

Using iOS 16's Visual Lookup to cut out a cat in an image

Using your camera to scan even more places

Returning to travel, Apple’s Visual Look Up is already capable of identifying landmarks, plants and pets, but you need to move over to the Photos app to take advantage of those features. Perhaps the next iPhone and iOS 17 could speed this, and let you start scanning these items directly from the camera app.

This would bring Visual Look Up into better parity with Google Lens, which quickly identifies items for you without the need to save them into your camera roll. Maybe you could scan a restaurant while you were standing in front of it, and then get its menu. Or scan a friend’s shirt, and then find it on sale to get it yourself. These scenarios are already possible with Google Lens, making this a very noticeable way for Apple to bring more features into its camera app.

Expanding safety features

When you travel in a vehicle, Apple’s new Crash Detection features could provide an essential lifeline in the event of an accident. As it stands, the feature can automatically contact emergency services should a supported iPhone or Apple Watch detect such an event. But perhaps Apple could augment this further by taking advantage of other sensors within the iPhone or a paired up Apple Watch to activate a heart rate sensor at the same time to provide a quick health check to the wearer.

Or maybe Apple could expand its Crash Detection feature so it shares your physical location with your emergency contacts. This could be similar to Apple’s new Check-In feature, which will proactively send alerts when friends or family make it home safely. And maybe it’s already worthwhile to expand this feature for emergency situations, like being unexpectedly taken to the hospital.

Other iPhone 15 rumors we’re watching

Though we don’t have any solid evidence that the above ideas are coming to the iPhone 15, these are all areas where Apple could improve.

The iPhone 15 rumor mill is a busy one though, and even without an invitation to pore over, we’re monitoring the possibility of a USB-C port arriving to replace Lightning, seeing if the new Dynamic Island will expand to every iPhone model after its debut on the iPhone 14 Pro, and wondering whether the iPhone 15 Pro will move toward solid-state volume and power buttons.

Whatever’s ultimately on the way to Apple’s iPhone 15, we’ll likely find out for sure when Apple’s event begins on Sept. 12.

Technologies

Headphone and Speaker Memorial Day Sales 2025: Save Up to $150 on Audio Gear From Top Brands Like Bose, Apple and More

Technologies

Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Breakneck Expansion Releases Are Stressing Me Out

Collectors who want to complete a master set are finding that it’s just too hard to keep up with the game.

Pokemon TCG Pocket’s next Alola-themed set is releasing on May 29. Extradimensional Crisis is a sister expansion to the recent Celestial Guardians set — and it’s introducing the wacky and weird Ultra Beasts to the game.

Every Pokemon from another dimension now has a special Ultra Beast tag displayed just under its health point total. And certain Pokemon abilities and Trainer cards from the new set will only work on cards with this tag. While there are always new cards that shake up the metagame, this expansion looks ike it will largely introduce cards that play well with others in the set.

Extradimensional Crisis is one of TCG Pocket’s smaller base set expansions. These companion sets are often released a month or so after a big expansion. Mythical Island released after the massive Genetic Apex launch set, and Triumphant Light was the supplement to Space-Time Showdown.

Normally, I’d love to rip into packs in order to hunt more than 100 new base set cards being added to the game. Buzzwole, Nihilego and Guzzlord are some of my favorite monsters from the seventh-gen Pokemon games and the art for their cards is gorgeous.

This time around, I’m just not able to get as excited about the new drop.

Pokemon TCG Pocket is releasing expansions too quickly for me

I’ve played Pokemon TCG Pocket every day since launch. With few exceptions, I’ve opened both of my free daily packs — even if I have to stay up past my usual bedtime to do so. Ripping these suckers open has become a part of my daily routine, and I’ve been largely content to do so (even when I pull five common base set dupes).

But these expansions are getting a little out of hand now. For most games, having too much content is a good problem to have, but struggling to keep up with a collectible game saps the fun. Extradimensional Crisis will be the seventh set released in the game over the course of eight months. Despite my diligence, I’ve only completed a single base set — Shining Revelry — and I’ve never completed a master set with all of the full art cards and shiny Pokemon.

To be clear, I don’t expect to be able to keep up with every expansion in the game. I don’t even want to collect all of the secret cards — I just want to put together the base sets. I’m a fully free-to-play TCG Pocket gamer, and developer DeNA Games needs to make money to keep the app running. New releases grease peoples’ palms and keep the money flowing.

Even still, these releases have been dropping at such breakneck speeds that I don’t feel like I can return to past sets to finish collecting the cards I’m missing. It’s disheartening to complete the majority of an expansion and then leave it behind with so many gaps.

This sentiment seems to be shared among at least some parts of the Pokemon TCG Pocket community. It’s probably not a great sign when a contingent of the top comments on the YouTube video of your next big reveal are asking you to stop revealing things.

«Crisis? [The only] crisis is the one I’m having with so few hourglasses,» said one commenter.

Another person put things more plainly: «Honestly, I’d prefer if they’d slow the rollout of the expansions a little bit. Let the sets take hold for a few months and then drop bigger, higher quality sets.»

The joking hides real frustration, as many free players haven’t been able to complete the game’s full base sets. I’m not asking for these releases to be spaced out too far apart, but a single month between expansions is starting to feel untenable. Double the downtime between sets and let people breathe — and maybe I’ll finally be able to finish up Genetic Apex.

Technologies

Tariffs, Schmariffs! An iPhone 17 Price Hike Is Overdue, Regardless of Trump’s Threats

Commentary: Follow the math, not the tariffs and politics.

US President Donald Trump wants Apple to manufacture the iPhone, its best-selling product, in the US. And on Friday, he threatened to place a 25% tariff on the phone if the company doesn’t make that happen.

«I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone’s that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,» Trump posted on Truth Social. «If that is not the case, a tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the US.»

Adding uncertainty to his ultimatum, Trump later said the tariff wouldn’t apply to just the iPhone but also to any smartphone made outside the US.

«It would be also Samsung and anybody that makes that product,» Trump told reporters in the White House on Friday. «Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair.»

Despite tariffs and politics, the price of the iPhone hasn’t changed. But the launch of the rumored iPhone 17 will likely come with a higher price no matter what Trump says or does. Apple is considering a price increase and could attribute the rise to new and updated features instead of tariffs, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

Since what Trump touted as «Liberation Day,» the iPhone and how tariffs might affect its price have been main focal points when it comes to this administration’s policies and pronouncements. Apple is the third-largest company in the US, and most of its products are manufactured in China. Clearly, the iPhone’s ubiquity has made it a symbol for the ongoing uncertainty of the US economy and politics.

But whether or not Apple gets taxed with tariffs, the iPhone hasn’t had a price hike in five years and is due for one. Historically, that’s the longest stretch of time the company has gone without an increase since the five years between the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 7, which ended with the iPhone 8 launching at a higher cost. We can learn a lot by looking at how the company has handled earlier price hikes (and a one-time drop) and what that means for the iPhone 17 (it’ll likely cost more).

In terms of my methodology, I grouped iPhone models into a few categories: the standard, the flagships and the behemoths. The standard includes models like the original iPhone, the iPhone 8, the iPhone XR and the iPhone 16. The flagships include variants like the iPhone X, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro. And the behemoths designation is for phones like the iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone XS Max and iPhone 16 Pro Max. There are other versions that Apple sold, like the iPhone 5C, the SE series, the iPhone Mini line and the current iPhone Plus line, that don’t factor into this analysis. Also, I use the US starting price for each iPhone before any carrier discounts are applied.

Standard iPhone prices

Since its debut in 2007, the standard iPhone has had four price increases and one correction. Many folks might remember paying $199 for the original iPhone, but in reality, the phone cost $499 off-contract. In 2008, Apple raised the price $100 with the launch of the iPhone 3G, to $599, where it would stay for four years. Then in 2012, the iPhone 5 was introduced with a taller, 4-inch screen and a higher, $649 price tag.

Fast-forward to 2017, the 10th anniversary of the iPhone, and the iPhone 8 debuted at a cost of $699, a $50 increase. Every year between 2017 and 2019, the price for the standard iPhone changed. In 2018, the iPhone XR launched at $749. The following year, the iPhone 11 came out, and the price dropped back to $699. And what makes that drop interesting is that the iPhone 11 was the first standard Apple phone with two rear cameras: a wide-angle and ultrawide. Up till then, all other standard iPhone models had only a single rear camera. From 2007 to 2019, when Apple increased prices it was in $50 increments, except between the first and second iPhone models.

Then 2020 happened. It was a wild year for the iPhone, and everyone, because of the pandemic. But Apple managed to launch the iPhone 12, which cost $829, marking the largest increase for the standard iPhone: $130. Subsequent models all had the same price: The iPhone 13, 14, 15 and 16 all cost $829.

If Apple follows its previous pattern, then the standard iPhone is due for a price increase. The last raise was in 2020, five years ago, and Apple has never gone six years without a price hike on the standard model. But will the company slowly raise the price over a few years like it did between the iPhone 7, 8 and XR? Or will it go all in like it did with the iPhone 12?

The standard iPhone is Apple’s most popular, and it’s safe to expect that the iPhone 17 will cost more (and would’ve even if Trump hadn’t been elected). Now we just need to wonder how much tariffs and politics might drive the price up even more.

The flagship: iPhone Pro model prices

Apple hasn’t always had an iPhone Pro variant, but it did starting in 2017 with the launch of the iPhone X, which had a starting price of $999. The phone debuted next to the $699 iPhone 8, making the 8’s $50 increase seem like nothing.

But here’s where things get interesting. Apple has never raised the price on the iPhone Pro model. The iPhone X, XS, 11 Pro, 12 Pro, 13 Pro, 14 Pro, 15 Pro and 16 Pro all cost $999. That’s eight years without a price increase!

What’s even more shocking is when you correct for inflation: the 2017 iPhone X’s $999 price would be $1,298 in 2025, according to the Consumer Price Index Inflation calculator. The iPhone Pro is overdue for a price hike, and expect the iPhone 17 Pro to cost more.

The behemoths: iPhone Plus, Max and Pro Max prices

Since 2014, Apple has sold a «big» version of the iPhone. Some of these were nothing more than a larger version of the standard iPhone with a bigger screen and battery as well as some minor differences, like the iPhone 6 Plus having optical image stabilization on its camera while the iPhone 6 didn’t. But beginning with the iPhone 7 Plus, the larger version started having «pro» features, like a second rear camera and portrait mode.

In terms of pricing, the iPhone 6 Plus debuted at $749, which was $100 more than the iPhone 6. And that $749 price stuck around for the iPhone 6S Plus and 7 Plus. In 2017, Apple had three iPhone models: the $699 iPhone 8, the $749 iPhone 8 Plus (a $50 increase from the 7 Plus) and the $999 iPhone X.

In 2018, Apple launched the $1,099 iPhone XS Max, which I consider the true successor to the initial iPhone Plus line. That means the big iPhone got a $350 increase in a single year, the largest Apple has ever made. I admit some people might not think the XS Max is a follow-up to the Plus and would deem it an entirely new iPhone variant. But this is my commentary.

Like the iPhone Pro, the Max and Pro Max would have the same price for years. In 2023, Apple raised the barrier of entry for the Pro Max model and didn’t offer a $1,099 version of the iPhone 15 Pro Max with 128GB of storage. Instead, you had to pay $1,199 for the 256GB variant, which technically cost the same as the iPhone 14 Pro Max with 256GB of storage.

The iPhone 17 and 17 Pro’s prices

Even without tariffs, it’s safe to assume that the iPhone 17 lineup’s prices will be higher for some models. But when you factor in everything that’s happened this year, it’s hard to gauge just how much the price will go up and whether that’ll affect just one or two models, or apply across the entire iPhone 17 line.

Earlier this year, Apple raised the price on its most affordable model. Though it lacks the SE branding of the previous low-cost iPhone, the iPhone 16E came with a $599 price tag, $170 more than the $429 iPhone SE (2022).

Apple doesn’t talk about unreleased products or their prices. But we do have an unusual-for-Apple clue as to how these tariffs could affect the company.

«Assuming the current global tariff rates, policies, and applications do not change for the balance of the quarter and no new tariffs are added, we estimate the impact to add $900 million to our costs,» Apple CEO Tim Cook said during a May 1, 2025, quarterly earnings call.

Obviously, that $900 million number wasn’t just for the iPhone, but for all Apple products. And that was three weeks before Trump threatened another tariff aimed purely at the iPhone. But $900 million is a lot for any company to swallow, and eventually that added cost will need to be made up for — unfortunately, that usually means higher prices (even if Apple is pressured by Trump to attribute the increase to «new designs and features.»)

If there’s one thing for certain, we’ll know exactly what those prices will be when Apple launches the next generation of iPhone models at its September event.

Apple didn’t respond to a request for comment.