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Apple ( AAPL ) introduces AirPods Pro 3 with live translation

feature

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Apple ( AAPL ) likely to unveil slimmer iPhone Air

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Apple ( AAPL ) launches blood pressure monitor in its latest Apple

Watch

By Stephen Nellis and Aditya Soni

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

on Tuesday introduced a new version of its AirPods Pro wireless

headphones and a blood pressure monitor in its latest Apple

Watch, at an event where it is expected to show a new, slimmer

iPhone.

The new AirPods Pro 3 will feature live translation of

languages. Apple ( AAPL ) also said that if both people in a conversation

are wearing the new AirPods Pro 3, the earbuds will translate

conversations in near real time. Apple ( AAPL ) said the new AirPods will

be priced at $249, the same as the previous generation, and

become available on September 19.

The blood pressure monitor feature is pending regulatory

approval, Apple ( AAPL ) said. The watch will not detect every case of

high blood pressure but the company said it expects the feature

to notify 1 million people and will make it available in 150

countries.

Apple ( AAPL ) is soon 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 will likely be the

star of the event.

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. A foldable phone is

important for Apple ( AAPL ) to appeal to customers in China, where

consumers like foldables and the company has been losing market

share.

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 are expected to 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.