Here's How You Can Tune In To Watch Apple's iPhone 8 Event

Apple is set to unveil three new iPhones at its Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino on Tuesday, alongside a bevy of new products and software updates. Even if you don't consider yourself a rabid fan of its products, you're probably still curious about how to watch Apple's iPhone 8 event, if only to check out what the tech company that revolutionized modern-day communication has up its sleeve next.

The Tuesday event will be widely covered by the media as usual, and Twitter will surely be abuzz with talk about its new products. If you want to view it in real-time though, it's likely that tech media companies will live-stream the event on Facebook. And if you want the sure thing, you can watch it on the Apple website, where there will be a live-stream of the hours-long event beginning at 1 p.m. ET, or 10 a.m. PT. The catch, though, is that you can only stream it on the website from an iPhone, iPad, Mac in the Safari browser, Apple TV, or Windows 10 PC with the Microsoft Edge browser.

Apple is expected to introduce new iPhones, a new Apple Watch, a new Apple TV, and other software improvements. Rumors about the what the new iPhones will be called are unclear, but according to some leaks, some names floating around include iPhone 8, iPhone X, iPhone Pro, and iPhone 8 Plus. Two of them are expected to be mere updates to the iPhone 7, but one of the iPhones Apple is releasing is said to be a special version, with features potentially ranging from face-detection authentication to no home button.

Apple's new iPhones are expected to run on its new operating system, iOS 11. Older iPhones will probably be able to download the iOS 11 update sometime soon after, too.

The introduction of Apple's new iPhones are often subjected to intense scrutiny, and along with that, widespread criticism. For a company that single-handedly changed our relationship with cell phones when it released the first iPhone in 2007, it no surprise that expectations are high for each new generation it introduces.

The criticism that follows in the wake of each new iPhone points to how significant the first of its kind was. Steve Jobs calling it "a revolutionary mobile phone" when he introduced it in 2007 might have sounded like Silicon Valley ballyhoo at the time, but it quickly proved to be true. The iPhone enabled people to access the internet (literally) at their fingertips; it allowed people to take photos whenever, wherever, and of whatever they wanted (and decimated the point-and-shoot camera industry in the process); it transformed the way humans interacted with one another — not just through the iPhone, but also how we communicate in real life. Heck, it even spawned creations that altered language itself, like emojis.

Each time Apple introduces a new product, it carries the weight of its first iPhone. While it's unlikely that any of their new hardware — or software for that matter — will have the same impact on the world anytime soon, Apple's event on Thursday is still a highly anticipated.

Apple isn't expected to announce any new product category entirely, given the introduction of the HomePod — meant to rival the Amazon Echo and Google Home smart speakers — in June, so there probably won't be many surprises outside of the new premium iPhone. However, CNN noted that Apple CEO Tim Cook — who isn't shy about making public statements about his political beliefs — could touch on the current state of affairs in his opening statement. Whether it's about the hurricane or the administration rolling back DACA remains to be seen, but rest assured those tuning in to watch the iPhone 8 event will catch it.