Apple Inc AAPL has sent out invitations to the media for a big event to be held on Sep 12, 2017 at the Steve Jobs Theater at its new headquarters located at Cupertino, CA, per reports.

Apple usually holds a big event in September to reveal its latest offerings, which start retailing a week after the event.

However, for a long time now, there has been tremendous buzz about this year’s event as Apple is expected to unveil the tenth anniversary iPhone edition along with Phone 7S and iPhone 7S Plus, which are updates to its iPhone 7 and 7 Plus editions unveiled last year.

Apple Inc. Price

Apple Inc. Price | Apple Inc. Quote

Nicknamed as iPhone 8, Apple’s mega edition phone has caught the fancy of one and all. Apple is likely to make a big innovation leap with iPhone 8. It is rumored to have features like a glass body, a dual curved edge-to-edge OLED (organic light-emitting diode) display with wireless charging (USB-C) and higher storage options. The camera is likely to be far better than its predecessors.

Reportedly, iPhone 8 will be the first of its kind to support OLED display. Per reports, the company has ordered nearly 100 million OLED screens from Samsung Electronics. OLED display is being increasingly adopted as it comes with improved brightness, contrast and efficiency compared with LCD or Plasma displays. Television sets have long been equipped with OLED displays. Smartphones are also catching up fast.

Expectations regarding the upcoming iPhone 8 are humongous. The revolutionary iPhone, first released in June 2007 had changed the world forever. The iPhone was the first phone to have a touch screen and was a "breakthrough internet device".

Upon release, the phone received terrific response. Following that, the success of iPhone over the last decade is well chronicled. Apple has sold over a billion iPhones across the globe. However, over the past few quarters, Apple’s iPhone sales have been marred by increasing competition from cheaper handsets like Oppo and Vivo.

With iPhone 8, Apple’s fortunes in China are expected to get a boost. A survey conducted by Maxim Group in May indicated "significant pent-up demand" for iPhone 8 in China. Per Maxim Group, iPhone sales in China will increase 170% year over year to 80.7 million units in fiscal 2018.

Also, if we go by the latest report from IDC, Apple will see a 9.1% rise in iPhone shipments next year driven by iPhone 8, iPhone 7S and 7S Plus. Though iPhone 8 is slated for release this year, the majority of shipments are “likely to land early in 2018”, according to IDC. More importantly, average selling price of premium devices (with large screens) will increase 9% by 2021 driven by high-end mobile phones like iPhone 8, Note 8, V30 and more.

Apart from the new iPhones, per media reports, Apple could launch a new Apple watch. There could also be a new Apple 4K TV. The company is likely to speak at length about iOS 11 and new MacOS and watchOS.

At the WWDC earlier this year, Apple gave a sneak peek into its AR efforts. The company also displayed an augmented reality (AR) tool called ARKit. We expect more on this at the September event along with HomePod.

Zacks Rank and Share Price Movement

At present, Apple carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Notably, the company has outperformed the industry in the past one year. Shares of Apple have surged 51.2% compared with the industry’s 50.6% increase.

Stocks to Consider

Better-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector include Applied Materials AMAT, Activision Blizzard ATVI and Applied Optoelectronics AAOI, all sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Long-term earnings growth rate for Applied Materials, Activision and Applied Optoelectronics is currently projected to be 17.1%, 13.6% and 17.5%, respectively.

More Stock News: This Is Bigger than the iPhone!

It could become the mother of all technological revolutions. Apple sold a mere 1 billion iPhones in 10 years but a new breakthrough is expected to generate more than 27 billion devices in just 3 years, creating a $1.7 trillion market.

Zacks has just released a Special Report that spotlights this fast-emerging phenomenon and 6 tickers for taking advantage of it. If you don't buy now, you may kick yourself in 2020.

Click here for the 6 trades >>

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Apple Inc. (AAPL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (AAOI) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Activision Blizzard, Inc (ATVI) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.