Howdy folks, since Ginger has decided to not allow me to trade in rumours & speculation anymore on the podcast 
(except where I get a patent story in) I have decided to throw in my few cents as to what presents I believe Uncle Steve will be showing us tomorrow. So here we go :
Firstly as the title of this post suggests tomorrow will see the introduction of a new iPod Nano (Touch) with a 1.7 inch touchscreen which is about the size of the screen from the 2nd gen Nano. This is obviously based on the stories broken by Macrumors showing pics from a Chinese accessory manufacturer of a new case for this device & the pic of the 1.7 inch display, also an AppleInsider story with render of what it should look like . This along with the introduction of a 32, 64 & 128GB iPod Touch with features close to those found on iPhone4 (Retina Display for 64 & 128GB model but Facetime for all of them) will mean the dropping of the iPod Classic I believe & the death of the clickwheel. With that, the iPod OS will be no more on all display based iPods running on iOS going forward, the Shuffle will remain for now to cover the lower end of the market.
Secondly, there will be an update to iTunes to allow it to be more social as per AppleInsider but it will not go to the cloud yet as the data centre in North Carolina is not due to go live till January 2011 as per comment from Tim Cook (COO) during last quarterly analyst call. There is also a rumour going that iTunes song previews will be extended from 30 secs to a min (will they allow that on a 2min 30 sec song ?).
Thirdly, believe that iTV (UK naming rights pending ) or AppleTV revised will be previewed at the event, it is believed that this runs iOS (a headless iPod Touch effectively) as originally broken in an Engadget story here , will be compatible with existing iOS apps in the store & can be controlled via an iPod Touch or iPhone using acclerometer or even a remote (Magic Wand here we go) . Looking to get one of these myself.
As for a far out idea of what I think could also be introduced, I started thinking about the invite being in the shape of a guitar & realised it reminded me of the the electric guitar icon used for GarageBand, so I’m gonna throw out a mad thought that iLife 2011 will be previewed with a new feature/app allowing you to create your own iTunes extras/LP features.
Finally, I’m also hoping as per the current IMP episode panel that iTunes 10 is introduced, written to be Cocoa native with improved performance & media management capabilities.
Will sign off now & look forward to tomorrow.
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New pics of tablet HERE!.
Sorry, just trying to do a Dvorak & be a hit whore to get some attention. Know I haven’t posted as much as I should have for a while & have threatened to do so but with the impending event tomorrow, thought I would share my thoughts on what I believe the fruit company’s “latest creation” will actually show.
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Just a quick post to give my thoughts for tomorrow’s event & what I think will happen:
New iPods: This is an obvious one considering that the invite states “it’s only rock n’roll,but we like it” & depicts the familiar iPod silhouette. I’m expecting the 3rd gen iPod Touch to be unveiled which will have comparable specs to the iphone 3GS but obviously without the phone function. There have been reports from Hardmac & others of manufacturing defects due to bad camera modules on the first production runs which could delay their availability, but here’s hoping. Believe there will be a 16, 32 & 64GB range but would hope that Apple do an iPhone3G & keep the 8GB model & sell for €149 which would hand grenade the release of a certain “HD” device. Believe that the newer devices will also gain OLED screens which would substantially improve battery life. Also we can expect an updated iPod nano with camera also with more than likely updated software & hardware. Wondering if the patent for the multi-touch scroll wheel that I discussed on a previous podcast will end up being used here. Believe Apple will keep the 120Gb ipod classic in line but it will die a slow death before the touch fully takes over the iPod line.
iTunes9: There have been a lot of posts about this especially in relation to the “social” features, believe that this would be a correct feature to be introduced but believe that there will also be a way to manage your apps on the iPhone/iPod Touch introduced as has been released for jailbroken devices. Would believe also with Apple pushing more into cloud computing that it will be announced that you will be able to stream your TV/Film rentals from the cloud as opposed to downloading & storing on a HD which can take up GB’s of space as stated in this Techcrunch post. Also believe that iTunes will become a 64-bit app on Snow Leopard when you update with the benefits that will bring.
God: Finally, our great god Steve “Zeus” Jobs will be presenting this event & us Apple fans will be glad to see him back.
Don’t believe that the iPad will be introduced nor will the updated Apple TV- figuring an event in late October will cover the introduction of those little treasures.
Looking forward to seeing what appears tomorrow after 6PM GMT.
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Just wanted to get in on the Mac blogosphere fun with my own predictions as to what the Philnote may reveal :
Here we go..
New MBP 17″ : Have noticed that 9to5 Mac are predicting that a 17″ MBP unibody will be shown. Figured that, as both Justin & myself after the introduction of the MB & 15″ MBP models thought that they would be introduced at MW probably due to prioritising the other models first as they are higher volume sellers. It’s expected that the new unibody model may contain a non-removable silver zinc battery like an iPod, but cannot figure why this would be done as most people would prefer to access the battery themselves with easy removal. Maybe they are getting this battery mixed up with the one that is supposed to appear in the so-called Macbook Nano (would be surprised if Phil pulls that one out of hat).
Revised iMac & Mac Pro : Definitely expecting a speed upgrade for iMac which is likely to get a revised magnesium-alloy chassis & cooling mechanism to allow it to take the new Intel Core 2 Quad chip for the 24″ model will also get upgraded graphics chip. The 20″ model will have a Core 2 Duo chip & also contain the Nvidia 9400M for the graphics. Also expect that the Mac Pro will receive the Core i7 CPU & graphical chip upgrade with some case design revisions,which will make it a performance powerhouse.
New Mac mini : As per all other blog predictions, also believe that Mac Mini will be revised to bring it’s design into line with the rest of the Mac family (read aluminium) & will receive newer Core 2 Duo CPU’s & the Nvidia 9400M chipset which will bring it to a par with the unibody Macbook. There might be a cheaper model with the Intel chipset but if Apple are trying to prepare the new Mac family for transition to Snow Leopard it would be a retrograde step.
Preview of Snow Leopard : Since Snow Leopard is due in next 6 months then some preview of it will take place during Philnote. Am most curious to see how the new OS turns out since it is meant to be mainly substantial under the hood performance improvements as opposed to new features. Could Phil pull out a few new feature surprises at preview ? Let’s wait & see.
iWork & iLife 09 : These are also due to be unveiled at MacWorld, would believe that there will be further integration with MobileMe but these apps will not go fully into “the cloud”. Not sure though as to what any new features will be like.
One more thing : Would love this to be Steve Jobs taking the stage with Phil, but would settle for a video link if possible. Better make sure that Bart Simpson is not around when he speaks though.
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This is more of a quick rant that on a quiet news day Gizmodo decide to publish an article about the Stevemeister’s health from a reliable source which when put out proceeds to send Apple’s share price down.
Even though Gizmodo stated that they were treating this as a rumour it had the desired effect of temporarily panicking Apple investors.
We then have a counter article appearing later from CNBC’s Jim Goldman who as before stated that if Apple have something to say about their CEO’s health, they will do so. This seems to have relatively stabilised Apple’s share price but ironically it’s still down even though the Dow is up approx 184 pts at time of writing.
Once & for all, I believe all rumours related to this area should be discounted until Apple makes an official statement. If they have been lying about this to support the share price,then the SEC should go at them with full force. Correspondingly, they should also go after anyone starting these rumours who could gain financially from shorting Apple’s stock.
The fundamentals of the company are good with excellent cash flow & enough cash to get through the global downturn. They also have a highly-regarded management team that share the CEO’s vision.
I’m going to try to ignore any further “health” rumours like this personally till I hear from the horse’s mouth.
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