Apple has announced that its Watch will go on sale in seven more countries from Friday, 26 June – but Irish buyers will be left waiting for a while longer.

The Watch – already available in the US, Britain, Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong and Japan – will soon hit shelves in Italy, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland and Taiwan as well.

Irish customers have gotten used to being in the second wave of launch dates for a new Apple product – but this time the country has been bumped to at least the third phase of the Watch’s release.

Desperate shoppers can, of course, cross the border to acquire the Apple Store in Belfast, where they’d be looking to fork out upwards of €400 for a Sport model at the current exchange rate (which is roughly the same as what Apple fans in Germany are paying for the smartwatch).

Alternatively they can sit tight for another few weeks and pick one up when it finally lands in the Republic.

Apple TV is ripe for an update – and the market is ripe for innovation

Apple tends not to be a company that is first to market with a particular product, waiting instead until it feels it has the right device for a particular job.

The Apple TV bucked that trend.

First released in 2007, the petite media streamer was initially described by then CEO Steve Jobs as a ‘hobby’ – suggesting a level of experimentation that Apple normally does behind closed doors.

In more recent years, Tim Cook has let it be known that the hobby tag no longer applies, and the device was given a major overhaul that saw its price-point drop in the process. And while sales have allegedly been strong – especially in the context of minimal promotion by Apple – the TV product remains woefully under-utilised.

In terms of hardware, the Apple TV bears a lot of resembelance to an iPad (an iPad 2 or Mini, at least) – bar the likes of the touchscreen, of course. However what it can do is extremely limited, acting as little more than an accessory to other Apple devices a user might own (and perhaps a handy conduit for Netflix).

Since becoming CEO, Cook has repeatedly mentioned television as an area of interest, pointing out that the sector has remained largely static for a number of decades. There have also been persistent rumours of the company trying to strike content deals with US TV firms, perhaps to position itself as alternative to cable TV providers. Some have even suggested that Apple was preparing to enter the television market proper, launching a large HD screen with multimedia and streaming features built-in.

Despite all of this, Apple TV has remained largely the same for four years now. But the time may be right for that to change.

With the launch of its HomeKit for developers, which aims to make it easier for Apple products to link up with connected devices in the home, the company made it clear that it wants to be a part of people’s lives – and not just how they connect with the outside world. The television screen is a natural place for that relationship to begin.

And for all the talk of Apple taking advantage of this potential through a new product, all the pieces it needs to do so already exist.

Apple TV already runs on iOS – albeit a limited version of it – and, as already mentioned, has a manageable amount of processor power under the hood. A relatively small update (and a new SDK) could allow developers to make all manner of apps for the device that millions already own; turning it into a true media hub, communication tool and/or games console.

Leveraging HomeKit, as well as AirPlay, Handover, Continuity and iCloud Drive, Apple TV could easily become the place for people looking to manage and interact with all of their the devices they have dotted around their homes.

But when Apple does decide to unleash the power of its TV product, it is likely to do so with a new piece of hardware too.

Perhaps that will just be a refreshed version of what already exists – something with a newer processor and perhaps a little bit of added storage for all those apps.

They may also opt to completely reinvent the line, maybe to make it work better alongside the other boxes people have connected to their TV (a la the Xbox One’s HDMI pass-through feature) or to have it operate better independent of other Apple products.

Could that see them launch an actual TV? Perhaps. Apple is already familiar with the production of high quality displays – albeit on a smaller footprint than people would want for their homes.

But Apple isn’t in the business of making products at a loss, which is something that most of the big TV manufacturers have been living with for some time. And while the brand might help somewhat, it is hard to see people spending a premium on a commodity like a television just because of the software that’s on it.

Another possibility is that Apple TV partners with existing TV makers to have build its features into their hardware – similar to how Apple’s CarPlay is now being used as the media platform of choice by some car makers.

The problem with this plan is that the company would be extremely limited in its choice of potential partners – TV leaders Samsung, Sony and LG are all smartphone makers to boot, and more specifically are ones tied to Google’s Android OS.

And such partnerships are not always the best way to get your vision to market – as Apple itself knows too well. After all, who remembers the Motorola ROKR – Apple’s first attempt at merging the worlds of the phone and the iPod.

The safest bet is to imagine a next generation Apple TV as being a souped up version of what’s already there – one that’s supported by inventive developers and perhaps a few content makers. Keeping it (relatively) cheap will prove crucial too, and some strong support from the Apple media machine will also do no harm.

While some new iPads – and perhaps Macs – are to be expected next week, some hope that Tim Cook’s ‘…and finally’ might herald a new dawn for the Apple TV. Even if it doesn’t, the company will want to move quickly to exploit the opportunity that Cook himself has highlighted, as rivals like Google and Roku show that this area is far from a one horse race.

Apple’s event next week will probably focus on iPads – and maybe some Macs too

As Recode predicted it would, Apple has sent out invitations to another media event – this time at its Californian head quarters.

Following its unveiling of the new iPhone 6 / iPhone 6 Plus – and its debut of the Apple Watch – it is expected that this event will focus on new iPads ahead of the Christmas buying frenzy.

Upgrades to the iPad Air and iPad Mini are expected, while there an outside chance of a rumoured ‘Pro’ model being announced, boasting a bigger screen than previous iPad models.

Tablets aside, some expect the company to detail some upgrades to its Mac and MacBook lines, with many models in need of a refresh.

The company will probably give details of OSX Yosemite’s release at the event too, with the desktop operating system all but ready to go, if the beta testing is anything to go by.

It’s been almost a year since the iPad Air – and 2nd generation iPad Mini – were unveiled by Apple

Apple will follow up its unveiling of the iPhone 6 and Apple Watch with another event on 16 October – this one focusing on iPads and Macs. That’s according to a report on technology site Recode.

An updated version of the company’s flagship tablet – the iPad Air – would almost certainly take centre stage, likely featuring the same A8 processor as the iPhone 6. An Touch ID fingerprint reader is also expected, with Apple Pay capabilities (via NFC) a distinct possibility. Rumour also has it Apple will begin to offer a gold-coloured iPad to shoppers, much as it did with the iPhone last year.

A third generation iPad Mini is also likely to be shown off by Apple ahead of the Christmas rush – again featuring a better processor amongst other things.

Meanwhile, there have been rumours of a larger iPad being in the works – dubbed the iPad Pro – though the lack of any specific leaks at this stage suggests such a device may not see the light of day in two weeks’ time.

Tablets aside, Recode also suggests that Apple will take the wraps off a range of updated iMacs, with improved (Retina) displays, faster processors and better connectivity.

Some kind of MacBook and Mac Mini update cannot be ruled out either.

Finally, the October event is almost certainly going to mark the full launch of OS X Yosemite, Apple’s latest PC operating system.

That has been in beta since it was first shown off at WWDC, but recently entered Gold Master, which means it is just about ready to be unleashed upon the wider world.