No new iPhone hardware expected at Apple's software-centric WWDC - report

13

Comments

  • Reply 41 of 75
    Start with the Holiday Sales period and work backwards. iPods still sell and their early fall release is the kick off for their annual profits boost.



    WWDC may be for developers, but the WWDC Keynote is Apple's huge free advertising program. The consumers, media and analysts all follow the Keynote. That's why there has not only been a lot of focus on the OS side, but also the introduction of a new hardware product.



    Can you see the Apple Exec Team sitting around talking about the 50 to 100 million or so consumers who will be exposed to the features of the Keynote? Some one would ask what hardware will be featured and the answer is "Nuttin".



    The iPhone 5 running iOS 4.x could be released. Maybe they will hold off on the iMac (doubt it), but it seems odd that Apple would not deliver some hardware product as a "One More Thing".
  • Reply 42 of 75
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    I'm not so sure. I thought my iPhone 4 was just fine and plenty fast enough until 4.3 came out and now the UI is full of tiny pauses. They use the software update to cripple the current models a bit so that when the new slightly faster ones come out you will upgrade.



    I fully expect iPhone 5 to have almost no compelling new features or capabilities that I personally need, (best bet on the changes seems to be that it will be a "world phone" with NFC tech), but because of the above I also fully expect to be upgrading anyway.



    Hardware updates are becoming less interesting in terms of looks and features. I am totally happy with my ip4, my ageing imac and my 13" MBP. The (minor) cosmetic changes that follow each iteration are nice but what is important is processing power. As the OS and other SW develops my hardware always slows down. Do you really believe Apple purposefully cripples hardware through software updates, or just that updated software is necessarily more cpu demanding and so requires better HW? To purposefully cripple 1 - 3 year old hardware would be a very dangerous and in my view, unnecessary business practice.
  • Reply 43 of 75
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by poke View Post


    That's stupid. The invitation says "at this year?s conference we are going to unveil the future of iOS and Mac OS." If that suggests we're not going to see iOS 5 before June it also suggests that we're not going to see the next version of Mac OS before June. But we've already had TWO previews of the next version of Mac OS (at the Back to the Mac event and on their website after the developer release).



    What exactly are they going to 'unveil' about Mac OS? You can't just ignore one half of the quote.



    Agree. My bet is that Lion is released in June after WWDC. iOS 5 gets previewed for a late August release, just before the arrival of the next iPhone in September.
  • Reply 44 of 75
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by thenewperson View Post


    I think I believe this now.



    Same here. His credibility is pretty darn good.
  • Reply 45 of 75
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ascii View Post


    The hardware in the iDevices is pretty well up to date in my opinion. Unless they want to try put the A5 in an iPhone but not sure the thermals will allow that.



    Sorry, but that is extremely unlikely. With low-power ARM SoCs, heat is not a major concern compared to other factors --- namely battery life. The A5 is not much different from other dual-core Cortex-A9 chips (T.I. OMAP4, Tegra 2, Qualcomm Snapdragon 86xx) which are already making their way into smartphones. With the constant evolution of process technologies, each year or so should be able to see a faster, lower-power processor.
  • Reply 46 of 75
    shaun, ukshaun, uk Posts: 1,050member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DJinTX View Post


    To finish out your prediction... will this new 4s bring the A5 chip and improved graphics a la iPad2? Will it include a slightly tweaked enclosure eliminating the glass back panel, or will it be physically identical to iP4? I'm just curious about your vision.



    Assuming they adopt a product cycle of internal upgrade one year, external redesign the next (so we get a new iPhone every year) the iPhone 4s will keep the same basic design with glass front and back but with iPad2 A5 processor and graphics chip and 4" screen. That plus new white model will be enough to sell it as a new version. The resdesign with aluminium back will happen next year.



    With the faster processor/graphics and larger screen they will push developers at WWDC to develop more graphics instense app's to rasie developer profit margins and maintain their lead over Android app's.
  • Reply 47 of 75
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Both this and the next article may be saying that Apple is having problems with the new phone design. It wouldn't be the first time this sort of thing happened. It could also be in error, and the new phone is shaping up just fine, in time for a late June or early July release. It's still March, and if many of the materials are similar, from the same suppliers, it may be that analysts aren't seeing the true picture.



    It's possible that Apple decided to change a major aspect of the phone after much of it was designed, and so it might be late. It could also be that Japan's problems are pushing some part deliveries back by a month or two. This is all speculation right now, so it means little.



    What it might not mean is that Apple is changing the way they're doing things.
  • Reply 48 of 75
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    IOS and Mac OS are a lot closer than you seem to gather or are aware of. [?] It is pretty hard to converge when you are growing out of the same trunk. Seriously I don't know why this crap persists iOS is the child of Mac OS and ever since it's release there has been a back and forth flow of new technology. This is not something that is new.



    I know that Mac OS and iOS have the same origins and are both built on UNIX. I was referring to the user experience (e.g., GUI, increasing use of gestures, etc.), not their technical specs (i.e., software libraries and such). Yes, underneath the GUI, iOS and Mac OS are very similar; implying that they weren't wasn't my intention. I was attempting to point out that how they behave (i.e., how people use them) is becoming even less dissimilar. That, and how that may be impacting Apple's future product release strategy, was my point.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    Beyond that a few simple GUI changes that derive from iOS doesn't imply that Mac IS will end up looking exactly like iOS. We have experienced user interface changes for years and the new features in Lion are not that special.



    Of course iOS and Mac OS won't end up looking exactly alike, and I don't think I implied that. Any future unified OS, if Apple does go that route (which seems perfectly feasible to me), will likely have a new GUI. It will probably retain many elements of both current OSes, but will be an altogether new animal (or river, or mountain, or whatever Apple names the future OSes after).



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    I have a hard time believing there will be a unified OS, the reason is fairly clear and is why iOS exist in the first place - that which works on the desktop doesn't always work on a handheld device. I just don't see Apple throwing away what has become obvious to their success for an unneeded unification of the GUIs. In the end what you are really talking about here is the GUI as the lower level software is surprisingly similar.



    I don't see why this is so hard for you to believe. Universal OSes and apps have existed for years that could recognize what hardware they were running on and execute the appropriate code. I don't see this as Apple throwing away anything. I see it as Apple having learned valuable lessons from its experience and applying that knowledge to the improvement of its platforms.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    In any event I'm just not down with this blowing the idea of a few GUI changes up into a big to do about a unified OS. Think about it; much of the supplied software, the libraries and such, are already exactly alike or extremely similar and have been for years. It is amazing so many mis the idea that iOS puts Mac OS or UNIX if you will, into your pocket.



    If I'm "missing" the idea that iOS puts Mac OS, or UNIX, in my pocket (which I do understand, by the way), it's because I wasn't aiming for that. To apply Steve Jobs' comment about post-PC devices at D5, "it doesn't matter" what's under the hood. It's how you use it. It's how you approach it.



    I think what Apple is doing is deliberately, and strategically, blurring the line between PCs and post-PC devices. Mac OS X Lion and iOS 5 could, let me stress again, could represent the culmination of their respective OS evolutions. Even the name "Lion" suggests this as there are no bigger big cats (unless they continue with Saber-Toothed Tiger or something). And I think Apple is doing it as part of an overall, larger strategy to not only make post-PCs more powerful and capable, but to make the user-experience transition between PCs and post-PCs as seamless as possible.
  • Reply 49 of 75
    pokepoke Posts: 506member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mark2005 View Post


    Agree. My bet is that Lion is released in June after WWDC. iOS 5 gets previewed for a late August release, just before the arrival of the next iPhone in September.



    Maybe it's true that there'll be no iPhone hardware at WWDC. Jim Dalrymple is a credible source, so let's accept that. On the other hand, none of the other recent rumours are credible so it's still possible that the following is true:



    1. There will still be an iOS 5 preview in April, as usual.

    2. We won't see the iPhone 5 at WWDC. But we'll still see it in this fiscal year. (It could even be in May or July.)



    Just because a bunch of rumours all come along at once, and you can make a story out of them, that doesn't make them true.
  • Reply 50 of 75
    aaronjaaronj Posts: 1,595member
    Dammit. If this is true, I will be miffed! Miffed, I say!



    I held off on buying an iPhone4, thinking that I would just wait for the 5. I WANT MY iPhone5!!!



  • Reply 51 of 75
    djintxdjintx Posts: 454member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AaronJ View Post


    Dammit. If this is true, I will be miffed! Miffed, I say!



    I held off on buying an iPhone4, thinking that I would just wait for the 5. I WANT MY iPhone5!!!







    I couldn't agree more.
  • Reply 52 of 75
    boeyc15boeyc15 Posts: 986member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AaronJ View Post


    Dammit. If this is true, I will be miffed! Miffed, I say!



    I held off on buying an iPhone4, thinking that I would just wait for the 5. I WANT MY iPhone5!!!







    Well, you might be miffed, but I'll be peeved! And hopefully I won't become 'riled'!
  • Reply 53 of 75
    It could be that Apple and Verizon have seen the lack of interest in the CDMA iPhone 4, and are hoping that rumors about a delayed iPhone 5 release will spark those customers that are waiting until June to take the plunge now??



    I'm one of many that is sitting impatiently on the sidelines for the iPhone 5 with hopes that it will be a combined LTE/GSM/CDMA phone that can be used on any of multiple carriers in the US or internationally.



    I think it's just a game to force more sales of Verizon's CDMA iPhone 4.
  • Reply 54 of 75
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by NC_iPhone View Post


    It could be that Apple and Verizon have seen the lack of interest in the CDMA iPhone 4, and are hoping that rumors about a delayed iPhone 5 release will spark those customers that are waiting until June to take the plunge now??



    I'm one of many that is sitting impatiently on the sidelines for the iPhone 5 with hopes that it will be a combined LTE/GSM/CDMA phone that can be used on any of multiple carriers in the US or internationally.



    I think it's just a game to force more sales of Verizon's CDMA iPhone 4.



    I'm not so sure there's a lack of interest. Several weeks ago it was shown that Verizon iPhones already made up almost 13% of all iPhones in the US. That's serious.
  • Reply 55 of 75
    "...the FUTURE of..."



    Not just the next version but a longer view, perhaps?



    Mac OS XI? Abandonment of "cat" motif? New "cloud" motif... Stratus, Cirrus, Cumulus? Complete iOS/MacOS convergence instead of Lion's hodgepodge implementation of iOS features? How about non-contact physical gesture input, ala Kinect? How about a 3D representation of the GUI? Usable voice control?



    C'mon, it's Apple, remember? Think Different. Look at Apple's patent filings... they are thinking WAY ahead. They are known for changing the paradigm, not for making incremental changes.



    These could be very exciting times!
  • Reply 56 of 75
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chazaska View Post




    These could be very exciting times!



    Now you're making me nervous.
  • Reply 57 of 75
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Shogun View Post


    Suddenly the verizon iPhone debut makes some more sense. Some were wondering why they should buy an iPhone 4 when a new one was just 4 months away. Ah, not 4 months away.



    Also makes sense with the rumor about no iOS five till fall.



    We've gotta remember that not every rumor is an employee spilling beans against company wishes. Rumors are a well-established way for a company to manage expectations.



    I now definitely expect iPhone 5 with iOS 5 and not till late summer at earliest.



    iOS 5 (Universal), Lion, iPhone 5, maybe ATV 3 all come out together. Lion w/in-built server software ties MMe cloud and cloud apps to iOS 5 on devices, of which iPhone 5 is the flagship.



    If there is no iPhone 5 soon after WWDC in 6/2011, I'll feel even more stupid having waited to buy it, my 1st iPhone



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DJinTX View Post


    Well for starters, the hardware may already be in place to make a "leap". We obviously have no way to know this. But more importantly, the hardware does not always have to make a leap. I for one don't consider the 3G a leap over the original iPhone, and honestly, it was a bit of a step back in terms of design. The original was far superior on design and construction. Likewise, the 3Gs was almost physically identical so it definitely was no leap. The iP4 was a big leap forward, but they won't always make such big changes for every iteration. They may or may not go with the A5 for iP5, but I am thinking they will. They already have the hardware, and everyone is expecting it, so it's not a huge undertaking. All they really need to do is slightly tweak the back so that it is no longer glass and maybe up the storage, and we are in business.



    The Focus could be on OS's and the Hardware would be another Evolution that allows the New OS Changes to showcase themselves best



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by NC_iPhone View Post


    It could be that Apple and Verizon have seen the lack of interest in the CDMA iPhone 4, and are hoping that rumors about a delayed iPhone 5 release will spark those customers that are waiting until June to take the plunge now??



    I'm one of many that is sitting impatiently on the sidelines for the iPhone 5 with hopes that it will be a combined LTE/GSM/CDMA phone that can be used on any of multiple carriers in the US or internationally.



    I think it's just a game to force more sales of Verizon's CDMA iPhone 4.



    The ??? uncertainty ??? about iPhone 5 coming at this WWDC in 6/2011 helps Apple and the Carriers, cause it increases those with the least patience to buy sooner!!! If the Delay of iPhone 5 does happen, it won't be a long one...



    Apple likely won't wait till 2012, since Thunderbolt and other 4G Smartphones will be out there.

    Apple won't allow all those 4G phones out there at Christmas Time!



    BTW, Thunderbolt as a name for a phone seems deliberate, since Thunderbolt, formerly Lighpeak, is Apple's New Thing... And since Apple's Thunderbolt is almost "Exclusive" to Apple (whatever that means) for 2011, the delay in iPhone 5 would eat away at that exclusivity!!!!



    Yep, in the past Apple chose to rid themselves from the Deadlines imposed by others - Macworld! That way Apple could choose it's own Deadlines, but.... Christmas can't be moved, and the Gold Rush to 4G, and Speed in general can't be ignored! Therefore Apple can't afford to sit out 2011 as far as iPhone 5!!!!



    So, whether it's the "usual" WWDC to announce New iPhone, or September, ala Back To School - it's gotta be BEFORE Christmas... And probably before September, so that people can settle in with the New iPhone Hardware + iOS before starting the New School Year, which is not for just the Students, but for the Entire Education Industry, Parents etc...



    In Conclusion - WWDC 2011 will focus on the New iOS and Lion and the New Tweeked iPhone 5 will be introduced then, with the availability 4-6 weeks later! iPhone 5 in October or November is way too close to the End of the Year, Christmas! It's too COLD in most places to be FREEZING in lines outside the stores for the New iPhone, as opposed to Summertime Let's Live and Buy Sunny Vibe!!!
  • Reply 58 of 75
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chazaska View Post


    New "cloud" motif... Stratus, Cirrus, Cumulus?



    I like!
  • Reply 59 of 75
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by wizard69 View Post


    I have a hard time believing there will be a unified OS, the reason is fairly clear and is why iOS exist in the first place - that which works on the desktop doesn't always work on a handheld device. I just don't see Apple throwing away what has become obvious to their success for an unneeded unification of the GUIs. In the end what you are really talking about here is the GUI as the lower level software is surprisingly similar.



    In any event I'm just not down with this blowing the idea of a few GUI changes up into a big to do about a unified OS. Think about it; much of the supplied software, the libraries and such, are already exactly alike or extremely similar and have been for years. It is amazing so many mis the idea that iOS puts Mac OS or UNIX if you will, into your pocket.



    My vision of this "unification" is that iOS will literally become the unified OS, in that it has all the GUIs built onto the same OS platform. That is to say that it will have the iPhone GUI, the iPad GUI, ATV GUI, and the Lion GUI all on the iOS platform. Then if Apple invents another device format, it will gain a GUI that applies best to its format, but uses the same platform.



    Lion and the AppStore are about creating a foundation for the OS X GUI to sit atop iOS (and its much stricter security model, ie only signed apps run etc...). So while the desktop OS gains some fancy new iPhone/iPad GUI adaptations, the real power is in the under the hood preparations for unifying the backend solely for all the GUIs. OS X will still remain slightly diverged in that it has the needs to run Flash/Java/Carbon, etc... that iOS will not run, as well as installing programs from anywhere.



    But the real mover, and looking at Apple's financials it is clear, the core focus is on moving iOS faster into adapting to whatever the GUI need is. If I take over my TV at home w/ my phone through Airplay or some other means, I get the Lion or ATV GUI and use a bluetooth keyboard/mouse w/ it. Then I take it out the door w/ me, and the data comes, but the GUI switches to the iPhone GUI.



    When we add cloud MM to the mix, ie data with you regardless of where, this becomes even more of a powerful position to be in. All your data with you, and you use the GUI that best fits your situation at the time, same apps, different GUIs (as we see already w/ iPhone/iPad apps, and now slowly beginning w/ MacApps).
  • Reply 60 of 75
    cgc0202cgc0202 Posts: 624member
    The new iOS or OSX 10.7 Lion might be appealing to Geeks or may even make some orgasm from delight knowing about how they work, they will not resonate to the average consumer, like myself.



    Also, it won't be just another repeat of the focus on Apps as they did last year (but even then, they still announced the iPhone4). How can you make 360K even more spectacular? By reporting 400K or even 500k Apps? Yawns. There comes a point when incremental numbers do not ring as much to consumers or even the press. For this reason, Apple ony put focus on milestones -- 100 million, 1 billion, 10 billion, etc.



    The average consumer wants something new.... and something physical that would make those "software" and Apps mean something to them.



    And, if it is June, it means new iPhone.




    The stock price of Apple will take a hit if Apple does not deliver.



    CGC
Sign In or Register to comment.