We are on the eve of another Macworld. As with previous years, speculation is rife with rumors (or rumours for our English friends) about new hardware, software, iPod gear, and just what outfit Steve will wear for the keynote. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Steve will wear his traditional blue jeans, but his black turtleneck with have the new ‘Intel inside’ logo to match any new Macs that are ‘Just one more thing’ presented.
My thoughts on new Macs? Glad you asked even if you didn’t (and you didn’t). I would be surprised if new portables come out with that special Intel flavoring (and generous amounts of EVOO. Rachel Ray fans know what this is). Most people have said that the low end will be first and I must admit that has a certain amount of logic behind it.
Could it be the iBook instead? Look at it this way. If new iBooks with X86 comes out, why would you possibly spend more money on a G4 PowerBook? Other than a bigger screen, it won’t be faster unless Apple cripples them (and that would be immediately apparent). My thinking is that Apple will not do a low-end to high-end conversion. The gap between machines in the portable segment is too close for that to be a winning proposition. What I’d like to see is Apple come out with all their portables running Intel chips at the same time. Differentiate the lines much like they do now with higher screen resolutions and better graphics cards (no less than 128 mb please) on the PowerBooks and stick with the harder plastic shells and utilitarian functions for the iBooks. The price gap between the lines needs to be lessened as well. Is there any earthly reason why PowerBooks are priced so much higher than iBooks? Make the prices a little closer and some might buy more fully featured PowerBooks than iBooks.
Next up are the low to mid-range consumer machines. Namely, the Mac mini and the iMacs. The case is not so clear-cut here. Since the mini’s are still powered by last gen’s wunderkind processor, the G4, and the iMac has a slightly crippled G5 in comparison to the towers, you could make the case for a separate roll out of these two machines. Add in that the iMac has that beautiful LCD display (either 17 or 20 inch) and extra ports not available natively on the mini, which would you upgrade first? The case could be made for the iMac with its all-in-onederfulness being the perfect first port to Intel nirvana, but it wouldn’t be my first choice. Say what you will about IBM’s lack of upgrades in hustle for the G5, the iMac is still a speedy-quick machine. The specs for the mini on the other hand looks like what it is; an iBook compacted into a little square. This is a machine that is begging for a heart transplant. One other thing the mini needs is to dump the 2.5-inch drive. Too little storage and too slow as well. The weird thing is going to a 3.5-inch drive would make it faster AND cheaper. In order to do this, the case size will need to be bigger and in order not to put a power supply inside, a power brick would be needed most likely also.. Not necessarily longer or wider, but taller. Are we seeing the revival of the Cube? Well, maybe just in my mind.
Lots of talk about an Apple Media Center machine (iMedia?). Running some updated and BETTER version of Front Row than the iMac has. Make it short, but wide. Make it actually look like an audio/video component as compared to the Windows Media Center monstrosities out so far. Do it right, or don’t do it at all. Fortunately for Apple, no one has been able to make a media center PC that has managed to capture the public’s imagination like the iPod did. This is another consumer segment that Apple is slowly putting the pieces together for. Some time ago I called for Apple to start making some strategic partnerships. Looks like they listened, well not to me actually, but to someone with the same idea.
To sum up: I think the first Intel Macs will either be the Mac mini or the entire portable line. I think Apple will announce for sale soon a Media machine for the living room. That’s my take on it and I guess we’ll soon find out if I’m right or full of it like I usually am. No matter what, this Macworld is gonna WOW some people. I hope I’m one of them.
Last up, John Nemo has threatened me with physical violence if I don’t go to the 2007 Macworld. The fact that I’m much bigger than him and have MAD NINJA SKILLS (just ask Chris Seibold) hasn’t deterred him from making these threats. I’m going to take him at his word and do everything I can to go to Macworld 2007 in San Francisco. Not because I actually want to go or anything, I just don’t want John to hurt me.
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