iPhone 12’s killer software bundle just leaked early

Apple One appears to be the official name of Apple’s upcoming subscription bundle service that may be announced next week, or alongside the iPhone 12.

Credit for this discovery goes to 9to5Google, who found more evidence of Apple One’s existence within the 3.4.0 beta of the Apple Music Android app.

Codenamed “aristotle,” the code strings found within the app reveal that Apple Music will be included in the bundle. It also reveals that existing users will be able to integrate their existing Music membership into Apple One, without needing to cancel or pay twice for the same service.

Unfortunately, it seems like you’re unable to edit your subscription from the Android app. Instead, the text found in the APK file directs you to use “your iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac.” Hopefully you can just use a browser too; otherwise this could prove very inconvenient for Android users.

We’d previously seen proof of Apple One thanks to a report from Bloomberg back in August. It combines Apple’s current raft of subscription services — Apple TV Plus, Apple Music, Apple Arcade and Apple News Plus — into a single payment, which is far more convenient for people who have gone all-in on Apple’s premium services.

There appear to be several tiers on offer too, with the cheapest consisting of Music and TV, and the next two rungs of the ladder adding in Arcade and News Plus. There may also be an option to bundle in iCloud, Apple’s premium storage option.

With these bundle options, Apple seems to be hoping that it can encourage users to sign up for multiple services that they wouldn’t otherwise want to use. There’s no word on pricing yet, but we’ll likely find out for sure when Apple releases the full version of iOS 14 this fall.

Next week’s Apple event is believed to be all about the Apple Watch 6 and the iPad Air 4. We may see some iPhone 12 information, or perhaps just a teaser, but most are expecting Apple to hold a second event in October dedicated to its new flagship smartphone.

The big changes rumored for the Apple Watch 6 are a new case design, which removes the digital crown in favor of a new optical sensor for navigating the menus, and SpO2 blood oxygen tracking for improved health measurements. The iPad Air’s fourth-generation model will bring a new chassis design similar to that of the iPad Pro, as well as an A14X chipset for increased performance.