Report: Apple Event set for January 26, 2010

Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
A new report bolsters the rumored January 26 date assigned to an Apple Event planned at Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco. The event is widely believed to serve as the debut of the company's new slate as an expansion of its iPhone/iPod touch platform.



The brief report, published by Fox News today, offers additional confirmation of the date first cited by the Financial Times last week.



While the original report indicated that Apple had reserved the space to make "a major product announcement," today's report indicates that sources have first hand knowledge that the event will be associated with a product in the "mobility space."



The rumors certainly aren't any surprise to observers following the trail of evidence pointing to the introduction of what is generally expected to be a 10-inch slate-form factor device running the iPhone OS.



Apple has reported told some of its iPhone developers to prepare their apps to run on a larger device, which is not a major undertaking given the flexible foundation supporting today's iPhone apps. The new slate device is also expected to serve as a medium for a new array of iTunes digital downloads, from iTunes LP and Extras to novel class of digital books, magazines, and newspapers.



Reports that Apple is hosting its own January media event at the same venue it has historically used for its fall iPod-related music events also explains why the company announced last year that it would no longer be presenting a keynote or even a booth at IDG's Macworld Expo event, which has typically been scheduled for the first week of January. The event date set in late January allows the company more time to plan and prepare for the slate introduction.



The earlier timing of the independent Macworld Expo has been cited as problem for Apple, as it forced the company to scramble together its keynote and presentation efforts immediately after the December holidays, a month that serves as the primary vacation time for many the company's hard-driven engineers.



Death of the trade show



The company has weaned itself from trade shows in general over the past decade, first pulling out of the summer Macworld Expo after IDG decided to move its venue from New York to Boston in 2003. Apple CEO Steve Jobs asked the show's promoters to keep the event in New York to keep it closer to the company's big publisher base there, and when IDG refused Jobs simply pulled Apple's involvement out entirely, which subsequently killed the summer expo.



In place of the summer Macworld Expo, Apple expanded its own Worldwide Developer's Conference and incorporated QuickTime Live into a mid-year keynote and week-long training session that has rapidly expanded into an event that sells out quickly. The company also began hosting its own "Apple Events" in other months to introduce new generations of the iMac, iPod, and software releases.



In 2008, Apple similarly pulled out of the National Association of Broadcasters convention, which it had previously used to debut new releases of Final Cut Studio and related products. The company explained at the time that it "?is participating in fewer trade shows every year because often there are better ways for us to reach our customers.?



Apple has also ignored general consumer shows such as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which it regularly overshadowed (such as with the its its solo debut of the iPhone at Macworld Expo 2007), and the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, which despite a regular no-show by Apple has served as a place for competitors to talk about the iPhone and their attempts to provide a response to it.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 76
    quinneyquinney Posts: 2,528member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    While the original report indicated that Apple had reserved the space to make "a major product announcement," today's report indicates that sources have first hand knowledge that the event will be associated with a product in the "mobility space."



    Oh goody! A new line of geriatric walkers!!!!111!!!11!!
  • Reply 2 of 76
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    No one has first hand nothing and the tablet won't run "the iPhone OS". Sometimes you just have to go with your gut, the tablet will be bigger (and I don't mean physically) than simple a larger iPod touch. It will be more significant than that, I just know it. Like I have been saying, Apple not adding significant (fancy) features and charging $29 was a way of buying them time while they worked on bigger things, like Mac OS X touch. It was the old misdirection trick.
  • Reply 3 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post


    No one has first hand nothing and the tablet won't run "the iPhone OS". Sometimes you just have to go with your gut, the tablet will be bigger (and I don't mean physically) than simple a larger iPod touch. It will be more significant than that, I just know it. Like I have been saying, Apple not adding significant (fancy) features and charging $29 was a way of buying them time while they worked on bigger things, like Mac OS X touch. It was the old misdirection trick.



    I believe you mean YOU hope it's more than the iPhone OS 3.x.



    I believe if it's true and there is no multi tasking then it will fail as quick as the Newton and AppleTV.



    If there is more, then it will likely be a success. The lack of essential features in the iPhone OS will not be appealing to the market as anything more than a niche device in a tablet.



    Price and OS will set the future of the already late to market tablet.



    I don't need a history lesson on the iPhone or iPod, so do me favor and if you're going to reply to my posting, leave out how Apple is the only innovator of all that is tech. The iPhone doesn’t multi task 3rd party apps.
  • Reply 4 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post


    No one has first hand nothing and the tablet won't run "the iPhone OS". Sometimes you just have to go with your gut, the tablet will be bigger (and I don't mean physically) than simple a larger iPod touch. It will be more significant than that, I just know it. Like I have been saying, Apple not adding significant (fancy) features and charging $29 was a way of buying them time while they worked on bigger things, like Mac OS X touch. It was the old misdirection trick.



    What purpose would be served in putting a general purpose desktop OS on a slate device oriented around sandboxed third party apps and digital content?



    This is not a Handheld PC designed by Microsoft. It's a targeted consumer device with an intended audience and well conceived feature set.



    The only reason to put the full Mac OS X on it would be to allow it to run crap from the 90s like Office and Photoshop. Apple has a modern software model that is humiliating both the conventional desktop and the PC-mobile Microsoft model as well as the Java/Flash/Android/BREW model of other failed mobile platforms.



    The $29 Snow Leopard was to deploy the latest 64-bit OS widely across all Intel Mac systems. It did not "buy any time" in any sense, and certainly didn't do anything to distract attention away from Apple's future development efforts.
  • Reply 5 of 76
    sheffsheff Posts: 1,407member
    Can't wait! It is virtually assured that this will be about the Tablet, whatever it may happen to be. After thinking every which way about what I would like this to be, and what the rumors seem to suggest I still can't make any predictions or expectations. It can be a Kindle killer or it could be an iPod Touch Pro or a Macbook Air Light. Kinda hope its something that even the rumor mill could not have predicted. I am ready to be blown away.
  • Reply 6 of 76
    bageljoeybageljoey Posts: 2,004member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AngusYoung View Post


    Price and OS will set the future of the already late to market tablet.




    I just have to laugh. How can you be "late to market" when there is no market? Unless you think this will be an iKindle book reader by apple (which would be a disaster at the prices that have been speculated) then Apple is not up against a single established compeditor. If they succeed, they will make the market. If they fail there will probably not be such a market for a while.



    Slate/tablet computers had been subsumed by the smartphone market before they could grow beyond a niche. Can Apple bring them back and make them popular? That is the question. But late to market? That is a joke!



    (I do agree that price and OS are key, though...)
  • Reply 7 of 76
    I recently talked to a someone who works at Apple and asked him about the tablet rumors. All that he would say is that Apple will be releasing a totally new product in the next few months. Whether that new product is a tablet computer or something totally under the radar, he refused to say.
  • Reply 8 of 76
    chris_cachris_ca Posts: 2,543member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rtamesis View Post


    I recently talked to a someone who works at Apple and asked him about the tablet rumors.



    99% of Apple employees know absolutely zero about new products.

    The only thing they know about new products is what they read here.

    The only employees who know anything are those directly involved in development.
  • Reply 9 of 76
    I am looking forward to this. They would not put on a big event like this unless they had some special product(s) and/or services up their sleeves...
  • Reply 10 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chris_CA View Post


    99% of Apple employees know absolutely zero about new products.

    The only thing they know about new products is what they read here.

    The only employees who know anything are those directly involved in development.



    Let's just say that this person I talked to is involved with testing new products.
  • Reply 11 of 76
    Quote:

    The company has weaned itself from trade shows in general over the past decade, first pulling out of the summer Macworld Expo after IDG decided to move its venue from New York to Boston in 2003. Apple CEO Steve Jobs asked the show's promoters to keep the event in New York to keep it closer to the company's big publisher base there, and when IDG refused Jobs simply pulled Apple's involvement out entirely, which subsequently killed the summer expo.



    Apple wasn't quite recovered yet when IDG decided to move to the less expensive Boston in order to save money.



    Also it seems Apple didn't want to subsidize the expo in order to keep it in NY.



    Quote:

    In 2008, Apple similarly pulled out of the National Association of Broadcasters convention, which it had previously used to debut new releases of Final Cut Studio and related products. The company explained at the time that it "?is participating in fewer trade shows every year because often there are better ways for us to reach our customers.?





    The customers they were referring to was the larger home consumer market, thus Apple Stores etc.



    Quote:

    Apple has also ignored general consumer shows such as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which it regularly overshadowed (such as with the its its solo debut of the iPhone at Macworld Expo 2007), and the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, which despite a regular no-show by Apple has served as a place for competitors to talk about the iPhone and their attempts to provide a response to it.



    Yea Apple doesn't want to mix with the rest of sludge, but it does tap and most likely has people attending those expos.



    For instance at the last CES, San Disk introduced the SDXC, a SD card with up to 2TB of storage and speeds faster than a 7,200 RPM hard drive.



    New Mac's introduced (just shortly after CES) with SD slots can access the higher memory, but not the speed.



    So apparently Apple knew ahead of time and got cozy with SD slots all of a sudden, they didn't need to attend the show.
  • Reply 12 of 76
    al_bundyal_bundy Posts: 1,525member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bageljoey View Post


    I just have to laugh. How can you be "late to market" when there is no market? Unless you think this will be an iKindle book reader by apple (which would be a disaster at the prices that have been speculated) then Apple is not up against a single established compeditor. If they succeed, they will make the market. If they fail there will probably not be such a market for a while.



    Slate/tablet computers had been subsumed by the smartphone market before they could grow beyond a niche. Can Apple bring them back and make them popular? That is the question. But late to market? That is a joke!



    (I do agree that price and OS are key, though...)





    kindle is Ok but it needs to be in color and have multimedia capability



    my 2 year old loves my iphone and i have 2 pages of kids apps. a tablet with interactive children's apps will sell very well
  • Reply 13 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AngusYoung View Post


    I believe you mean YOU hope it's more than the iPhone OS 3.x.



    I believe if it's true and there is no multi tasking then it will fail as quick as the Newton and AppleTV.



    If there is more, then it will likely be a success. The lack of essential features in the iPhone OS will not be appealing to the market as anything more than a niche device in a tablet.



    Price and OS will set the future of the already late to market tablet.



    I don't need a history lesson on the iPhone or iPod, so do me favor and if you're going to reply to my posting, leave out how Apple is the only innovator of all that is tech. The iPhone doesn’t multi task 3rd party apps.



    Newton? AppleTV?

    "You're simply babbling incoherently", Is my reply to your posting.

    As for "niche device in a tablet"; I prefer my niche device in a Caplet. It's easier to swallow.
  • Reply 14 of 76
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    There is a lot more to iphone OS than the apps that come with iPhone. There is a real likelyhood that any new large screen devices will come with different apps more suitable for the screen size. These apps will still use iPhone OS UIKit. In any event apps are not the OS.



    That being said some apps will likely to be the same across the different sized devices in the family. It all depends upon how useful new interface objects/features would be on the larger screen.



    As to multitasking being exposed to new apps that would be easy to do with iPhone OS too. The capability is already there but Apple wisely decided it was not useful on the initial iPhone OS devices. On a tablet there is no reason to think it couldn't be a useful feature. All you need is a Touch based way to access it.





    Dave
  • Reply 15 of 76
    Segway PUMA with iPhone integration. You heard it here first.



    The 10" screen is just part of the package.



    Think Mobile®.
  • Reply 16 of 76
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Apple has reported told some of its iPhone developers to prepare their apps to run on a larger device, which is not a major undertaking given the flexible foundation supporting today's iPhone apps.



    I’d like to know more about their request. Asking for apps to be optimized for “full screen” is ambiguous.



    Quote:

    The new slate device is also expected to serve as a medium for a new array of iTunes digital downloads, from iTunes LP and Extras to novel class of digital books, magazines, and newspapers.



    I’m liking this part even though it’s still just a rumour.



    Quote:

    The earlier timing of the independent Macworld Expo has been cited as problem for Apple, as it forced the company to scramble together its keynote and presentation efforts immediately after the December holidays, a month that serves as the primary vacation time for many the company's hard-driven engineers.



    I have a feeling it was a lot more than that. I am sure that MWSF would have given Apple any date it wanted. I’m guessing Apple just didn’t want to be tied down so far in advance, especially when today’s technology and Apple’s place in the public eye makes easy work of allowing them to hold an ad hoc event with only a couple days notice to reporters, if need be.



    Quote:

    Apple CEO Steve Jobs asked the show's promoters to keep the event in New York to keep it closer to the company's big publisher base there, and when IDG refused Jobs simply pulled Apple's involvement out entirely, which subsequently killed the summer expo.



    I find this very funny. You don’t play hard ball in the sandbox with the kid who brings the toys. Especially when he’s ruthless bastard.



    Quote:

    Apple has also ignored general consumer shows such as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas



    Anyone here going to CES besides me?
  • Reply 17 of 76
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    There is a lot more to iphone OS than the apps that come with iPhone. There is a real likelyhood that any new large screen devices will come with different apps more suitable for the screen size. These apps will still use iPhone OS UIKit.



    I would think so, but I think having the ability to run iPhone apps in a window on a tablet would be a nice feature. It makes the decision to by the device a little more palatable if my iPhone apps work with the device, even if there is an App Store for the tablet. I would expect it?s running ARM and that it will sync thorough iTunes.
  • Reply 18 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Glockpop View Post


    What purpose would be served in putting a general purpose desktop OS on a slate device oriented around sandboxed third party apps and digital content?



    The only reason to put the full Mac OS X on it would be



    ....would be because all Apple's devices (Macs, iPhone, and this) all run the same Mac OS X kernel, and allows developers a common development platform with differentiating aspects peculiar to the device. The Mac's basic frameworks are the AppKit and Foundation frameworks. The iPhone's are the UIKit and the Foundation frameworks. This simplifies development and unifies the user experience.
  • Reply 19 of 76
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post


    No one has first hand nothing and the tablet won't run "the iPhone OS”.



    think that comment will get misread as you suggesting it will be a native build of Mac OS X on the tablet.



    Quote:

    It was the old misdirection trick.



    That is interesting. Could the rewrite of SL been to get a better foundation not only for Mac OS, but for other OS X flavours?





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AngusYoung View Post


    II don't need a history lesson on the iPhone or iPod, so do me favor and if you're going to reply to my posting, leave out how Apple is the only innovator of all that is tech.



    I love how you tell people what and how they can reply to your posts. BTW, don’t reply to this post until you are like an apoplectic troll who is wearing his ass for a hat. If you’re going to be civil and objective I don’t want to hear from you.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Glockpop View Post


    What purpose would be served in putting a general purpose desktop OS on a slate device oriented around sandboxed third party apps and digital content?



    Not being iPhone OS doesn’t mean it will be Mac OS. Apple already has a third flavour of OS X with AppleTV OS and a tablet would seem to have many aspects of both iPhone OS and Mac OS ,with it leaning toward the former so I would expect any tablet from Apple to have an entire new OS X flavour that is designed specifically for the device.
  • Reply 20 of 76
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    I?d like to know more about their request. Asking for apps to be optimized for ?full screen? is ambiguous.





    I?m liking this part even though it?s still just a rumour.





    I have a feeling it was a lot more than that. I am sure that MWSF would have given Apple any date it wanted. I?m guessing Apple just didn?t want to be tied down so far in advance, especially when today?s technology and Apple?s place in the public eye makes easy work of allowing them to hold an ad hoc event with only a couple days notice to reporters, if need be.





    I find this very funny. You don?t play hard ball in the sandbox with the kid who brings the toys. Especially when he?s ruthless bastard.





    Anyone here going to CES besides me?



    Actually, I wish I was going to that Apple January event. At the very least you would think Apple would have mercy and simulcast the event live over the internet.

    But I don't think they will.
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