Pu the iPod news from here together with the news that the iPod processor maker wil soon be introducing a wireless chip with WiFi and Bluetooth. My one gripe about PalmPilots is that they don't have nearly enough disk space on them. Throw in a 1/2/4/20/30/40/60GB HDD and voila...
Also, who's to say there won't be a price drop on the MBP's down the road when the MB's ship?
If the MacBooks (iBook replacement) arrived late this Summer or in the Fall, then sure. The MacBook Pro's could get bumped to 2.2Ghz or have a price drop, or both, thus allowing the MacBook (iBook replacement) to get a Core Duo. But if the iBook replacement is announced in March or April as the rumors say, then the current 15" MacBook Pro will have been available in quantity for only 1-2 months. Christ, some people will probably just be getting their MacBook Pro orders. If the iBook replacement arrives in March/April, then there's no way it can be Core Duo, because Apple's $2,000 laptop that just started to be readily available uses the lowest-clocked Core Duo.
You can have a Core Duo iBook replacement in the Fall, when MacBook Pro can get Merom.
While higher clockspeeds would be a good way to differentiate between the iBook and MacBook lines, I could see Apple relying on the other MacBook features to differentiate the units: higher-rez screens, more internal/external expansion, backlit keyboard, svelter/lighter case, etc. If you don't want to spend the extra money for a MacBook don't do it. If the iBook is crippled with a core solo processor, Rosetta and iLife will likely perform poorly. However this would definitely drive users to the MacBook unless the iBook's price is right.
Sorry to say this guys, but I just HATE, HATE, HATE the idea of the iPod moving to some tablet PC. I can see in some cases, it would be a fabulous thing, especially if it acted as a mirror to my current system ... like a pocket iMac! Bt I really don't like the idea of the iPod converting into that. The iPod is a great product because it serves a general need - the public's need to access their digital media quickly, simply and easily in an elegant, inexpensive and useful way.
If you throw OS X Lite into it and promote it as the PocketMac Pro or whatever, you have the distinct possibility of turning away new buyers. The iPod works cross platform, making it accessbile for the 95% of the world that doesn't use a Mac. The iPod needs to stay like it is and evolve over time as it has been. I'd like to see longer battery lifes, more movie codec support, bluetooth compatibility and a Power Book or MacBook type Aluminum look.
What Apple should do is let the iPod be the iPod, and work really, really hard to get me my PocketMac! Seriously, who wouldn't want a miniature computer with a 30 or 60 GB HDD in your pocket that mirrors your current system, has Wi-Fi and bluetooth compatibilty, carries pocket version of Office so you can give presentations on the go ... oh, the possibilities for something like that are endless, plus, if it runs a small version of iTunes and mirrors your library, it'd be like having an iPod ... only way more functional.
But yeah ... dream over ... two seperate products ... iPod and PocketMac. Together they can revolutionize the world!!!!
P.S. - Pocket iMac Pro - PMP, code named "PiMP", and really close to PSP, so if nothing else, Apple can make sure people know their alphabet...
>>Wolf also believes that Apple will use the event introduce the "real" video iPod. "Apple was careful to call the iPod capable of displaying video that it introduced in October just that?an iPod that played music but also featured a video viewing capability," he wrote. "According to our sources, the screen on the Video iPod will occupy the entire front of the current iPod with a touch-activated scroll wheel."<<
Gosh, do you think their "source" was the readily available patent drawing?
But seriously, I would flip for an iPod with built-in Front Row and the described touch-screen for close-up viewing. It's tough to imagine where they'll take it exactly, but I'd favor something much smaller and sleeker than the PSP, with tough nano-engineered diamond coat touchscreen.
Touch-screen iPod? I hope not. I tend to navigate my iPod by 'feel' - the clickwheel has a nice grippy texture so I can operate it without taking it out my pocket. I wouldn't be able to do that with a smooth touch-screen.
How many 'widescreen' videos are there in the iTMS, anyway? Enough to merit rumors of such a widescreen device? Hardly.
iPod would make the most useless tablet PC ever, but it would be nice to be able to create tasks/calendar items to sync with iCal. Never happen, though, it'd go against Apple's philosophy of only downloading to iPod, never uploading from.
If Apple does have such a device ready, though, I'm sure they'll wait at least until June before releasing it - people are still pawing over the current Videos and Nanos, they have plenty of time to investigate something super to stick in it beside the vanishing unfriendly clickwheel.
Personally, I'd rather see a longer battery life on the current iPod video than this, and maybe chop that extra width off for those of us who want the disk space but not the video... scrap the color screen, while you're at it! Hell, I may as well just stick with my 4G! Progress be damned! The only things that seemed attractive about the iPod Video were its slim profile and superior recording quality.
You have a good point. The current iPod was released like four months ago. The new BLACK color and widescreen format is still really new. I know many people still don't know what a NANO is?? And the nano was introduced BEFORE the iPod with video. I just don't see Apple bagging this relatively drastic design change, from the 4G so quickly. They'll do at least one or maybe two revs of it before a re-design...
Definitely the iBook, and I would think the media center Mac mini would be more likely at the April event, and if anything iPod is announced, the shuffles are due for a redesign, even though the prices were just lowered...
I hope Apple adds card slots to this unit as well. Think about this thing being a video/photo playback and storage unit. Add CF/SD and Memory Stick slots and it becomes the must have accessory for Aperture users. Add RAW support and you got a sale from me.
Apple doesn't seem to like having any more ports than they have to, see the eliminated remote connector on 5G and reduced ports on Mac Book Pro. If you want a memory card slot, it would be in an external device like the Camera Connector. It seems if Apple could sell a non descript monolith, they would.
some nice mockups circulating around the web. as probably stated already, thinksecret "can confirm" this 3.5" touchscreen iPod Video. would be really cool. fingerprints, scratches, smudges, and cracked screens notwithstanding
some nice mockups circulating around the web. as probably stated already, thinksecret "can confirm" this 3.5" touchscreen iPod Video. would be really cool. fingerprints, scratches, smudges, and cracked screens notwithstanding
Funny this is all based on some analyst that knows d*ck about what Apple is up to, yet people are actually thinking it's going to happen.
I just don't see Apple bagging this relatively drastic design change, from the 4G so quickly. They'll do at least one or maybe two revs of it before a re-design...
Saw first apple add in australia yesterday - was new intel one.
Anyways, i read entire forum and no one even mentioned solution of having click wheel on back, big ass screen on front.
That way, screen can have protector, whatever, no fingerprint smudges, and u use the thing with your fingers on the back.
Has been done before with some of the ye olde Sony Clie's, in replacement of the standard place for OS5's five way navigator. While i never owned one myself, a freind does, and he assures me is easy once you get used to it.
Anyways, new ipod could bassically be a PSP (sony again, my bad), without the gaming bit or the horrible looking headphone port. I mean, come on, yellow?
Dock attachment could still be on bottom, but do you think a billion dollar industry is going to stop jobs from putting it where he wants? I think not.
Apple's $2,000 laptop that just started to be readily available uses the lowest-clocked Core Duo.
Intel also lists a 1.6 duo, which may be shipping when the solos ship. I also wouldn't be surprised if apple *announces* the ibook and starts taking orders in late spring but doesn't ship for a little while. For school shoppers, they want to make their decision late spring, but they don't actually need the boxes until mid summer.
Does it really seem likely that the MBP will ship late february after a january announcement, followed in march by an ibook shipping immediately? Both models would be shipping at almost the same time.
Touch-screen iPod? I hope not. I tend to navigate my iPod by 'feel' - the clickwheel has a nice grippy texture so I can operate it without taking it out my pocket. I wouldn't be able to do that with a smooth touch-screen.
Thank goodness! I thought I was the only person that felt this way. Also, the iPod needs to maintain one-handed useability. I don't want to have to put down whatever I may be carrying in one hand because I need two hands to change tracks on my iPod. That would suck.
2 - When the MacBook Pro gets the Merom chip the high-end MacBook will get the core duo.
3 - The 17" MacBook Pro will start out with the Merom.
4 - Apple will release a 13" MacBook Pro with Merom processor.
The 13" MacBook Pro will have:
- a Merom processor
- support 4GB RAM
- no modem
- gigabit ethernet
- combined optical digital input/audio line in and out
- backlit keyboard.
I have never used a laptop with a PCMIA card/ExpressCard, but what if, when the MacBook gets a 64-bit processor, then Apple redesigns the 13" MacBook Pro so that it gets an ExpressCard in lieu of some built-in ports? Of couse you would get one with your MacBook Pro when you purchase it, but there would be a few for you to choose from so you could have what you need. Better yet, if the 13.3" MacBook Pro is wide enough then the slot for the superdrive will go in the front like the 15" and 17" models. This could then free up space for an ExpressCard, move the FireWire400 port to the other side so another USB port can be included, have room for a full-size DVI connection, etc. This would go a long ways toward separating the high-end MacBook from the low-end MacBook Pro.
Comments
Also this...ipodlinux.org
It really is doable. Just look at Palm's "LifeDrive" series.
Let the naysaying begin...
Originally posted by minderbinder
Also, who's to say there won't be a price drop on the MBP's down the road when the MB's ship?
If the MacBooks (iBook replacement) arrived late this Summer or in the Fall, then sure. The MacBook Pro's could get bumped to 2.2Ghz or have a price drop, or both, thus allowing the MacBook (iBook replacement) to get a Core Duo. But if the iBook replacement is announced in March or April as the rumors say, then the current 15" MacBook Pro will have been available in quantity for only 1-2 months. Christ, some people will probably just be getting their MacBook Pro orders. If the iBook replacement arrives in March/April, then there's no way it can be Core Duo, because Apple's $2,000 laptop that just started to be readily available uses the lowest-clocked Core Duo.
You can have a Core Duo iBook replacement in the Fall, when MacBook Pro can get Merom.
If you throw OS X Lite into it and promote it as the PocketMac Pro or whatever, you have the distinct possibility of turning away new buyers. The iPod works cross platform, making it accessbile for the 95% of the world that doesn't use a Mac. The iPod needs to stay like it is and evolve over time as it has been. I'd like to see longer battery lifes, more movie codec support, bluetooth compatibility and a Power Book or MacBook type Aluminum look.
What Apple should do is let the iPod be the iPod, and work really, really hard to get me my PocketMac!
But yeah ... dream over ... two seperate products ... iPod and PocketMac. Together they can revolutionize the world!!!!
P.S. - Pocket iMac Pro - PMP, code named "PiMP", and really close to PSP, so if nothing else, Apple can make sure people know their alphabet...
Gosh, do you think their "source" was the readily available patent drawing?
But seriously, I would flip for an iPod with built-in Front Row and the described touch-screen for close-up viewing. It's tough to imagine where they'll take it exactly, but I'd favor something much smaller and sleeker than the PSP, with tough nano-engineered diamond coat touchscreen.
http://invece.org/top-web-images/
How many 'widescreen' videos are there in the iTMS, anyway? Enough to merit rumors of such a widescreen device? Hardly.
iPod would make the most useless tablet PC ever, but it would be nice to be able to create tasks/calendar items to sync with iCal. Never happen, though, it'd go against Apple's philosophy of only downloading to iPod, never uploading from.
If Apple does have such a device ready, though, I'm sure they'll wait at least until June before releasing it - people are still pawing over the current Videos and Nanos, they have plenty of time to investigate something super to stick in it beside the vanishing unfriendly clickwheel.
Personally, I'd rather see a longer battery life on the current iPod video than this, and maybe chop that extra width off for those of us who want the disk space but not the video... scrap the color screen, while you're at it! Hell, I may as well just stick with my 4G! Progress be damned! The only things that seemed attractive about the iPod Video were its slim profile and superior recording quality.
Definitely the iBook, and I would think the media center Mac mini would be more likely at the April event, and if anything iPod is announced, the shuffles are due for a redesign, even though the prices were just lowered...
Originally posted by vinney57
They are meant to be a bitch to keep clean and scratch-free. Its called 'product bonding' and its marketing genius.
Yeah, that worked out real well when Apple got a bunch of bad press and had to replace a bunch of scratched nanos.
Originally posted by hmurchison
I hope Apple adds card slots to this unit as well. Think about this thing being a video/photo playback and storage unit. Add CF/SD and Memory Stick slots and it becomes the must have accessory for Aperture users. Add RAW support and you got a sale from me.
Apple doesn't seem to like having any more ports than they have to, see the eliminated remote connector on 5G and reduced ports on Mac Book Pro. If you want a memory card slot, it would be in an external device like the Camera Connector. It seems if Apple could sell a non descript monolith, they would.
Originally posted by sunilraman
Funny this is all based on some analyst that knows d*ck about what Apple is up to, yet people are actually thinking it's going to happen.
Originally posted by ThinkDifferent
I just don't see Apple bagging this relatively drastic design change, from the 4G so quickly. They'll do at least one or maybe two revs of it before a re-design...
Yeah, like they did with the G5 iMac...
Anyways, i read entire forum and no one even mentioned solution of having click wheel on back, big ass screen on front.
That way, screen can have protector, whatever, no fingerprint smudges, and u use the thing with your fingers on the back.
Has been done before with some of the ye olde Sony Clie's, in replacement of the standard place for OS5's five way navigator. While i never owned one myself, a freind does, and he assures me is easy once you get used to it.
Anyways, new ipod could bassically be a PSP (sony again, my bad), without the gaming bit or the horrible looking headphone port. I mean, come on, yellow?
Dock attachment could still be on bottom, but do you think a billion dollar industry is going to stop jobs from putting it where he wants? I think not.
Originally posted by Cory Bauer
Apple's $2,000 laptop that just started to be readily available uses the lowest-clocked Core Duo.
Intel also lists a 1.6 duo, which may be shipping when the solos ship. I also wouldn't be surprised if apple *announces* the ibook and starts taking orders in late spring but doesn't ship for a little while. For school shoppers, they want to make their decision late spring, but they don't actually need the boxes until mid summer.
Does it really seem likely that the MBP will ship late february after a january announcement, followed in march by an ibook shipping immediately? Both models would be shipping at almost the same time.
Originally posted by jdbartlett
Touch-screen iPod? I hope not. I tend to navigate my iPod by 'feel' - the clickwheel has a nice grippy texture so I can operate it without taking it out my pocket. I wouldn't be able to do that with a smooth touch-screen.
Thank goodness!
The Apple Video Player (iScreen) will be a different item altogether.
Originally posted by Bergermeister
The iPod will always be an iPod.
Be careful here.
iPod was an intentionally generic name.
Apple could easily broaden what "iPod" means to be a "platform" of products (music player, phone, video player, home DVR, tablet, PDA, etc.)
i -interactive/individual
P- personal/play
O- on
D- demand
?
1 - The MacBook (iBook) will get a core single.
2 - When the MacBook Pro gets the Merom chip the high-end MacBook will get the core duo.
3 - The 17" MacBook Pro will start out with the Merom.
4 - Apple will release a 13" MacBook Pro with Merom processor.
The 13" MacBook Pro will have:
- a Merom processor
- support 4GB RAM
- no modem
- gigabit ethernet
- combined optical digital input/audio line in and out
- backlit keyboard.
I have never used a laptop with a PCMIA card/ExpressCard, but what if, when the MacBook gets a 64-bit processor, then Apple redesigns the 13" MacBook Pro so that it gets an ExpressCard in lieu of some built-in ports? Of couse you would get one with your MacBook Pro when you purchase it, but there would be a few for you to choose from so you could have what you need. Better yet, if the 13.3" MacBook Pro is wide enough then the slot for the superdrive will go in the front like the 15" and 17" models. This could then free up space for an ExpressCard, move the FireWire400 port to the other side so another USB port can be included, have room for a full-size DVI connection, etc. This would go a long ways toward separating the high-end MacBook from the low-end MacBook Pro.