I've said this before, but it's my favorite week of the year.
I'll be at chief executive Steve Jobs' keynote on Tuesday, and I'll be updating our tech blog as I can during the event. I may enlist my fellow bloggers to post for me with some timely texting from the speech.
Traditionally, new Apple hardware and software is introduced by Mr. Jobs himself at a keynote or special media event.
If you follow Macintosh news at all, you've probably seen at least a snippet of a Steve Jobs keynote. It's part CEO speech and part rock concert.
People will start lining up at the Moscone West convention center the night before, and by the time breakfast rolls around the line will be around the entire building.
As for what will be introduced, there is only speculation. Last year, Mr. Jobs introduced the iPhone and AppleTV.
One of those has been a huge hit and the other (cough, cough, AppleTV) not so much.
There we were at the largest gathering of Macintosh fans in the world, and there was not one mention of any new Macintosh desktops or laptops.
It almost seems as if upgrading existing lines of computers is not important enough to merit a keynote mention.
I guess that's OK.
This year I've been reading the rumor sites along with everyone else. Here's what I think might come out of Macworld 2008.
Since the discontinuation of the 12-inch Powerbook, Apple fans have clamored for a very small, light laptop.
Long rumored, the ultralight Macbook has appeared recently online in some spy photos that looked heavily Photoshopped.
What I really want is a 10- to 12-inch laptop about half an inch thick with an LED-backlit screen and a Flash-based hard drive. Including an optical drive would not be possible, but an external drive is an option.
A recently released Apple patent shows a docking station that looks much like the current iMac. Picture a small laptop sliding inside the screen from the right. The screen itself is the docking station.
That would be sweet.
Critics point to lower-than- expected sales of AppleTV as the one chink in the armor in Cupertino, Calif.
Everyone seems to think if the AppleTV had recording capability like a TiVo and the ability to download content (including HD) from the iTunes Music Store, it would be a hit.
If the rumors of rentals from the iTunes Music Store are true, an enhanced AppleTV would be the perfect vehicle for getting the video to your TV.
A slightly larger box with a full-size hard drive (not a 2.5-inch laptop drive) would be nice. Incorporating an Airport Express to make the box a wireless access point or extend an Airport wireless network would be great as well.
Consumers have their Macs with the iMac and Mac mini. Professionals have the Mac Pro, but it weighs 40 pounds, is almost 2 feet tall and made of metal. It's a huge machine that isn't designed for a small office.
What Apple needs is a midsize Mac with one expansion slot and perhaps room for two hard drives. Think a VCR-size Mac. It needs to be easily expandable and cost about $1,200. It needs an upgradable video card.
Some people call this a headless iMac. The Mac mini is really not expandable at all, and its video capabilities are limiting.
One of the sure things in my mind is Apple introducing an updated iPhone that runs on AT&T's 3G high-speed network.
Apple wants to sell 10 million iPhones in the first year. They have until midyear to make that goal, and they're about halfway there.
Most everyone who wants an iPhone has one. What will kick-start huge sales again is a faster model.
I hope they don't change the form factor of the device. Companies have spent millions of dollars on designing cases and other accessories, and it would be a shame to make them all retool.
Mr. Jobs will probably introduce the new phone and make us wait again while the FCC does its testing. Look for a midyear release.
Source: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/ptech/stories/DN-p2techreview_11bus.ART.State.Edition1.2b63a82.html
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