Apple’s other new products, including the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro, remain slated for a Sept. 19 release in China, per the company’s site, and pre-order sales are open.

Apple's recent iPhone changes -- changes Google is also making to its devices -- enable Thread radio frequency support. That allows iPhones, and presumably iPads and so on, to connect to smart home devices with a built-in Thread border router directly. If you have a newer iPhone. It can already do it.

In what many are calling the most anticipated tech reveal of the year, Apple on Tuesday introduced its sleekest smartphone yet — the iPhone Air — alongside updates to its flagship product lines. But the fanfare comes at a time of growing tension between shareholders eager for innovation and consumers increasingly cautious about big-ticket purchases.