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Apple ( AAPL ) likely to unveil slimmer iPhone Air

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Analysts speculate on iPhone pricing strategies due to

tariffs

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No major Siri upgrades; AI partnerships under scrutiny

By Stephen Nellis and Aditya Soni

CUPERTINO, California, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL )

on Tuesday is expected to unveil a new lineup of iPhones,

including a thinner "Air" model that could be a precursor to a

folding phone next year.

The slimmed phone, which analysts said is likely to be slotted

in the middle of Apple's ( AAPL ) handset lineup between less expensive

iPhone 17 models and pricier iPhone 17 Pro models, will likely

be the star of an event that will otherwise feature incremental

upgrades to Apple Watches and other mainstay product lines.

The iPhone Air will go head-to-head against Samsung Electronics'

Galaxy S25 Edge, and analysts told Reuters it could be a

stepping stone toward competing with Samsung's folding phones,

which are in their seventh generation.

The event at the company's Cupertino, California, headquarters

comes in the midst of a global trade reordering sparked by U.S.

President Donald Trump, with Apple ( AAPL ) estimating that tariffs will

cost it more than $1 billion in the current fiscal quarter.

Analysts are watching closely to see whether the company will

increase the price of iPhones, or seek alternative routes to

making up for tariff costs such as keeping the prices of base

iPhone models steady while increasing the cost of versions with

more storage.

The new iPhones will also arrive without significant

upgrades to Siri, Apple's ( AAPL ) virtual assistant, which Apple ( AAPL ) has

pushed off until next year. In the meantime, analysts are

closely watching to see whether Apple ( AAPL ), which has tapped ChatGPT

creator OpenAI as a partner to power certain

artificial intelligence features in its operating systems, will

add more AI partnerships to its lineup before the arrival of a

revamped Siri.

Alphabet's Google last month unveiled new phones,

including a folding model, that served as a platform to show off

its Gemini AI model.