Apple, Google, and Samsung's "MacBook-Pixel-Galaxy" all-star fight kicks off October 18: Who will be the winner?

• New 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro laptops with an upgraded design for the first time since 2016
• A new Mac Mini with an upgraded design
• AirPods 3
• The final (public) version of macOS Monterey

The new 14 and 16-inch MacBook Pro models share arguably their most important hardware element with the iPhone! That's right. Since the M1 MacBooks from 2020, Apple began transitioning towards using ARM-based processors even for their computers. This is a monumental leap for personal computing. The chip powering the MacBook is practically a beefed-up version of Apple's A15 Bionic. That's what allows MacBooks to run iPhone and iPad apps!

We've also been hearing rumors about AirPods 3 for ages, and it seems like the wait might finally be over. Still, AirPods 3 aren't as surefire for this event as the new MacBook. If we do end up getting new AirPods, they are expected to look like a mix between the AirPods Pro and standard AirPods - with shorter stems, ANC (?), but on-ear fit instead of in-ear. I'm sure some people have been waiting for this design with ANC for a while.

Google Pixel 6 event on October 19

We expect to see:

• Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro
• New Pixel Buds (?)
• Pixel Watch (please?)
• Pixel Fold (fingers crossed)

Although everything about Google's October 19 event seems pretty obvious, we might see a few surprises. Yes, the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro will finally be fully unveiled with a brand new design, upgraded camera sensors, and of course, Android 12.

However, according to sources with reliable track records, we might see a "One more thing", and no, we aren't talking about Apple's event here. Yes, Google might pull an Apple and show us the Google Pixel Fold.

Information about Google's first foldable Galaxy Z Fold rival has been circling around the internet for months now. It's believed that the Pixel Fold will launch at the end of the year, but even if that's true, nothing stops Google from announcing or "pre-announcing" it at next week's event - I mean, they did it with the Pixel 6 (we still aren't sure… why).

Samsung "Unpacked Part 2" on October 20

And that brings us to Samsung's "Unpacked Part 2" event. The name suggests that this should be a follow-up to the original Unpacked, where we got the new Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3. This rather hints at "no new hardware", but then again, we might see some “new" stuff, so don't scratch Samsung off your calendar just yet.

Samsung is expected to present new color options for the Flip series, or perhaps even unveil the long, long, long-anticipated Galaxy S21 FE. Unfortunately, we wouldn't have our hopes too high since many reliable sources have weighed in on the question, "will we see the S21 FE during Unpacked 2", and they say… no.

One UI 4 based on Android 12 might be the little star of the show since Samsung's been hard at work releasing beta versions of the new software for the Galaxy S21 series. One UI 4 promises more fluid animations, new widgets, and brand-new UI customization options.

Apple vs Google vs Samsung: Who will win the mid-October event war?

As mentioned in the beginning, it's rather unusual to see so many big announcements in the same week, let alone back to back! Of course, that brings a bunch of questions, which we'd love to address:

Was Apple afraid to hold an event on the same day as Google?

When Apple's "Unleashed" event was announced, one thing stood out immediately - it's on a Monday! That's very, very, very unusual, and frankly, I don't even remember the last time Apple held an event on a Monday. As it usually goes, Apple would send out invitations on a Tuesday, hold the event one week later, and then open pre-orders for any new products either immediately or on the Friday of the same week.

Not this time. Why? We'll never "officially" know, but it's pretty hard not to put two and two together here. Google had already announced the Pixel 6 event a while ago, and honestly, I think I'm speaking for most of the tech world when I say I wasn't expecting an Apple event in the same week. Moreover, when I first saw the news for the event, I was ready to enjoy some healthy Apple-Google rivalry, but no.

The options are two:

1. Google reached out to Apple to talk Tim Cook into moving "Unleashed" to Monday.
2. In a not very Apple-y fashion, Apple decided: "Oh, one of our biggest smartphone rivals is launching a phone. We should give it the spotlight and be… nice!"

Historically, Apple and Google's relationship has gone through many ups and downs. Here's a brief overview:

• Back in 2007, Google and Apple collaborated on the iPhone - as in the original one. In the absence of the App Store, Google provided YouTube and Google Maps for the iPhone since this was a priority for Steve Jobs.
• The two companies shared a few board members like Al Gore and even Google's CEO at the time Eric Schmidt, who even got on stage and joked with Jobs, suggesting they should merge the companies and call them "Applegoo".
• Then Android came about; Jobs was angry because he didn't expect it to be an iPhone rival; he threatened to sue a bunch of people.

Of course, then comes the present era, with Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai. It's fair to say that at the moment, Apple and Google are frenemies. They do great business together, thanks to the iPhone and the Google apps found on it. Also, this year Pichai and company paid $15 billion to Apple so Google can remain the default search engine on all Apple devices, not just the iPhone. Not to mention, Google loves ads, and ads live on your iPhone, so you can see what's going on there.

It's safe to say the two companies have a well-established business relationship, and product launches are part of the business, so it definitely looks like the dates for "Unleashed" and the Pixel 6 event were coordinated.

As long as this is the case, we might keep seeing more favors between Apple and Google, going both ways.

Did Samsung really need to get into this, and who will be the winners and losers of the mid-October tech battle?

No, Samsung didn't really need to get involved. However, I guess it's a great way for the South Korean company to get additional exposure if it gets into the MacBook-Pixel mix. It's the domino effect. Even the fact that we are discussing Samsung alongside Apple and Google now, despite not expecting some brand new hardware during Unpacked Part 2, shows that this works!

Who will be the winners, and who will be the losers of the mid-October tech battle?

It's pretty safe to say Apple will have the advantage of being first here. Also, without a doubt, the MacBook event will attract more viewers since this is a monumental change in the MacBook's design and capabilities plus… AirPods 3 (maybe)?!

Pixel phones have always created some Twitter hype, but we are not expecting them to overshadow Apple's event. Expectations towards Google's phones are always high, but unfortunately, Pixel fans have gotten used to being disappointed. For once, this year seems to be… different. We have our fingers crossed.

Still, on a personal note, I'm very pumped for the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro - I mean I've written at least 249247829 stories on them so far. In fact, I'm planning to switch to one of them from my trusty Huawei P30 Pro! Will I make the jump? We'll find out soon. Let's wait for the reviews!