Upcoming Releases: PowerMacs, iMacs, iTunes?

[MacRumors]

New rumor reports have slowed to a trickle over the past few months... though this appears partly due to a lack of significant announcements from Apple over the same time period.

All signs, however, are pointing towards the next few weeks as a final release time for pending Apple releases -- including PowerMacs, iMacs as well as the worldwide iTunes Music Store launch.

iTunes

A European iTunes release in June has the most evidence available at this time. Apple had promised that the release of the Worldwide iTunes Music Store would come soon. Early sources (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/10/20031006021444.shtml) reported that internal goals pegged an iTunes Europe launch in May 2004. Delays (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/02/20040210003959.shtml) pushed the expected date to June 2004 (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/04/20040423123109.shtml), according to our sources. Recent independent reports (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/05/20040527080444.shtml) have placed the iTunes Europe launch specifically on June 15th, 2004 (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/06/20040604155743.shtml).

A few other sources appear to confirm this date, and one suggests that iTunes Canada (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/06/20040606164657.shtml) will also be part of the launch. Apple was previously known (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/10/20031020131949.shtml) to be in negotiations with Canadian licensing agencies.

iMac G5

Apple last updated the iMac in November 2003 (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/11/20031118083916.shtml) with the introduction of a 20" G4 iMac.

One reliable source (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/05/20040510053824.shtml) had reported in May that the next iMac revision would sport a PowerPC G5 processor.

This ambitious report has seen some corroboration with a recent Appleinsider claim (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/06/20040604142722.shtml) that resellers will no longer be receiving iMac G4 shipments, paving the way for an upcoming iMac G5.

PowerMac G5s

The most anticipated release is that of the updated PowerMac G5s. Last updated at WWDC in June of 2003, the PowerMacs were promised to hit 3.0 GHz by [end of [2004] summer (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/09/20030917003957.shtml) or in 12 months (from June 2003 (http://www.macrumors.com/wwdc2003.html))], but a lack of interim updates have spawned skepticism amongst the Mac faithful.

The introduction of 90nm PowerPC 970s (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/01/20040106170203.shtml) in the January 2004 Xserves sparked some hope, but later reports (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/03/20040301135938.shtml) indicated that cooling issues had delayed PowerMac updates.

The most consistent information available simply points to an all Dual (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/03/20040317111449.shtml) PowerMac revision, recently Pictured (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/06/20040603143651.shtml) in an unreleased service manual.

Wireless

By current whispers, Wireless is reported to be "big" coming from Apple. The only related new technology that has been recently reported is Wireless Firewire (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/05/20040512081929.shtml) which has recently been approved and new products (in general) based on this technology are expected by year's end.

Something Else?

I remain hesitant to even suggest something else as the frequency of various Tablet/iBox rumors seems to overwhelm more traditional (ie. realistic) reports... but some scattered whispers have suggested "something else" altogether... related to a hangable display/appliance. More details will be posted if/when available...

[QCassidy352]

how about displays? Are we still assuming they'll come with the powermacs? That's what I'm waiting for!

[swingerofbirch]

i may or may not be an employee of apple, which means i may or may not be able to give what may or may not be confidential information, and to possibly protect myself i may or may not be able to only give information in the form of abstract language which may or may not contain a hidden message:

i'll be hosting a party friday night; i'll be serving hot fruit, who's coming? there will be three types of hot fruit and a decoration where you might normally see my monet

[Note from moderator: In a later post referring to this post, swingerofbirch says "i am not an apple employee....i was just simply feeling silly".]

[AoWolf]

This is mostly old news but hey why not talk about it more... :)

[agreenster]

Be careful swinger of birch-- the NDA also covers abstract slippages of the tongue.

Anyway, I've heard small whispers to expect the announcements to come before WWDC. I dont have any reliablity though.

My opinion? Yay 3ghzs G5's. Bring em on. Yay iMac G5. Bring it on.

Big LCD wall hangy thing? What?

Wireless Firewire? I'll believe it when I see it. :) Wireless iPod would be hellacool.

[stoid]

i may or may not be an employee of apple, which means i may or may not be able to give what may or may not be confidential information, and to possibly protect myself i may or may not be able to only give information in the form of abstract language which may or may not contain a hidden message:

i'll be hosting a party friday night; i'll be serving hot fruit, who's coming? there will be three types of hot fruit and a decoration where you might normally see my monet

And you may or may not be a spammer. :D ;)

Anyway, I'm sure that no matter what Apple does, if they do not release new displays, there will be uproar and unrest!

[toughboy]

I dream myself working at my table with my 17" iMac G5 and syncronizing my new (or old with an add-on, really doesnt matter) iPod with NO CABLES via wireless firewire..

WOW, that sounds cool, isnt it? :cool:

[AoWolf]

i may or may not be an employee of apple, which means i may or may not be able to give what may or may not be confidential information, and to possibly protect myself i may or may not be able to only give information in the form of abstract language which may or may not contain a hidden message:

i'll be hosting a party friday night; i'll be serving hot fruit, who's coming? there will be three types of hot fruit and a decoration where you might normally see my monet


3 new macs eh? I hope your telling the truth.

[QCassidy352]

i may or may not be an employee of apple, which means i may or may not be able to give what may or may not be confidential information, and to possibly protect myself i may or may not be able to only give information in the form of abstract language which may or may not contain a hidden message:

i'll be hosting a party friday night; i'll be serving hot fruit, who's coming? there will be three types of hot fruit and a decoration where you might normally see my monet

friday night? since when does apple do anything major on a friday?

And what would I see your monet in, a frame? Or more generically, a display?

...But of course, you're not talking about Apple, but rather about a party that you're having.

[markoibook]

Bring on the UK Music Store - and bring on those all dual G5 Powermacs!!!!!

[PRØBE]

friday night? since when does apple do anything major on a friday?

And what would I see your monet in, a frame? Or more generically, a display?

...But of course, you're not talking about Apple, but rather about a party that you're having.





Erm...one would normally find a Monet hanging on an erm...WALL much as arn hinted at on the front page. The new displays might therefore be "hangable"
This would be very a very cool feature.

[AoWolf]

Erm...one would normally find a Monet hanging on an erm...WALL much as arn hinted at on the front page. The new displays might therefore be "hangable"
This would be very a very cool feature.

Maybe it's some kind of Plasma tv thing, this would fit with the consumer product rumors.

[boy]

I want displays. :rolleyes:

[MacFan26]

The updates sound awesome. Wireless firewire though? I wouldn't think they'd release them before WWDC, what would be the point of that? Besides it's only a couple weeks away anyway. I do hope they update the displays too!

[aswitcher]

The updates sound awesome. Wireless firewire though? I wouldn't think they'd release them before WWDC, what would be the point of that?

Wireless Firewire.

When would I really use that? iPod - no. DV Camera - no. Computer to Computer - maybe, but networking is prefered.

Not sure how useful this will immediately be...

[Mudbug]

The updates sound awesome. Wireless firewire though? I wouldn't think they'd release them before WWDC, what would be the point of that? Besides it's only a couple weeks away anyway. I do hope they update the displays too!

this actually makes sense - last year, Steve's demo of Panther seemed rushed since there was so much to announce. If new products are released ahead of time, and literature already made available to the public before the event, he can overview the new stuff and show it's metal with the demo of Tiger, without wasting all the time with product announcements. The conference is for developers, like it or not, and not really for hardware developers either. They're there for the software applications of the Mac, with the new hardware as garnish.

And Aswitcher - it has to be available on the computer before it's available on peripherals, otherwise there really is no point. Apple is usually the pointman on involving new technologies, and wireless firewire would be the obvious next step.

[Hawthorne]

1. Mini-iPods for the rest of the world, which if IIRC were supposed to be released right about now, which, paired with iTMS for the rest of the G-8 would make for one helluva announcement, and;

2. 60gb iPods, as per Toshiba's leak^H^H^H^H foul-up :D . I wonder if His Steveness is looking for other mini-drive makers over that... I digress. I wouldn't expect to see those for a while, though, given that the drives were just announced.

[JW Pepper]

Well I would quite like a 20" G5 iMac for home and a DP3ghz G5 PM, so this could be an expensive month for me.

[aussiemac86]

**This is just rampant speulation**

Just thinking wouldnt it be cool if apple released a new wall hangable display, that was big enough to replace someones TV.........Some kind of integration of macs and TV/Stereo etc.

If they were to do this, perhaps the wireless firewire would have something to do with getting a signal from a mac set up with a normal display, as i dont see people wanting to do word processing etc form the other side of the room. But surfing the web, itunes, watching movies, viewing iphoto etc might be a bit of fun to do on a big screen hanigng on you wall.... who knows?

[Hawthorne]

Wireless Firewire.

When would I really use that? iPod - no. DV Camera - no. Computer to Computer - maybe, but networking is prefered.

Not sure how useful this will immediately be...

Well, the current bandwidith of 802.11(x) prevents its use to broadcast signals from the computer to a TV.

But Wireless Firewire has enough, and more.

And Apple needs to update its displays.

Hmmm.

[pyrotoaster]

this actually makes sense - last year, Steve's demo of Panther seemed rushed since there was so much to announce. If new products are released ahead of time, and literature already made available to the public before the event, he can overview the new stuff and show it's metal with the demo of Tiger, without wasting all the time with product announcements. The conference is for developers, like it or not, and not really for hardware developers either. They're there for the software applications of the Mac, with the new hardware as garnish.

And Aswitcher - it has to be available on the computer before it's available on peripherals, otherwise there really is no point. Apple is usually the pointman on involving new technologies, and wireless firewire would be the obvious next step.
We've become too used to the idea of the WWDC keynote being the new summer Stevenote/Product Release shindig. I'm not sure you'll wind up being right, but you make a perfectly good point.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a series of releases metered out over two or three weeks, like they did a few months back (one week it was new laptops, and then there was Motion, and then iTunes, et cetera.)

Wireless Firewire still sounds almost too bizarre to believe, although I'd love it if my iPod would sync up wirelessly (I'd actually use the iCal syncing).

[swissmann]

I don't know if Apple's secrecy helps or hurts them. For example I have been reading rumors of displays for a long time now. If I had known a year ago that Apple wouldn't update their displays for this long I probably would have bought one. Instead I am hanging on to a piece of junk 17" CRT that can't keep focus. How many people are waiting for a Rev B Powermac G5? I think quite a few. If they had known it would be June again and still no Rev B would they have bought a G5 last October. In October I am sure they were thinking - just wait till January and Rev. B will be here. I am most wanting those things that have been rumored that probably will never exist - Newton Revival, Headless cheap Mac, Quad Processor G5. I am guessing that we get updates but no real wow factor. "iMac" is an old word now and doesn't hold much excitement. If the completely redesigned G4 iMac was called "the new iMac" what do we call the new G5 iMac - the "new new iMac" or "newer iMac". Maybe a name change would do it some good. Something like calling PowerMacs "Papa Macs", iMac "Mama Macs", and eMacs "Baby Macs" :) ...I just realized how stupid I sound. But anyway I think "iMac" is old.

[rendezvouscp]

Something like calling PowerMacs "Papa Macs", iMac "Mama Macs", and eMacs "Baby Macs" :) ...I just realized how stupid I sound.
Have I seen those titles on hamburgers? *Looks at an A&W menu...* ;)
–Chase

[MacFan26]

If new products are released ahead of time, and literature already made available to the public before the event, he can overview the new stuff and show it's metal with the demo of Tiger, without wasting all the time with product announcements. The conference is for developers, like it or not, and not really for hardware developers either. They're there for the software applications of the Mac, with the new hardware as garnish.


You're right, it does make more sense to release at least the new hardware before the conference. I wouldn't want to go to a developer's conference and spend the whole time hearing about hardware. I just get carried away knowing that Steve likes to unveil new hardware :D

[Porchland]

**This is just rampant speulation**

Just thinking wouldnt it be cool if apple released a new wall hangable display, that was big enough to replace someones TV.........Some kind of integration of macs and TV/Stereo etc.

If they were to do this, perhaps the wireless firewire would have something to do with getting a signal from a mac set up with a normal display, as i dont see people wanting to do word processing etc form the other side of the room. But surfing the web, itunes, watching movies, viewing iphoto etc might be a bit of fun to do on a big screen hanigng on you wall.... who knows?

And, really, this is the logical killer app of wireless firewire: Moving video signal to a display. Connecting an iPod, harddrive, etc., to a computer wirelessly just isn't very important.

Fast-transfer wireless technology plus a plasma monitor is a much bigger deal, and it's very Apple. Plug in power cord; hang display on wall; hit "on" button.

[Macmaniac]

Ah its that time of year when Arn does the rumor break down, ah the smell of things to come;) Over the 3 years I have been on this site I have seen some pretty interesting things pop up in theses breakdowns, but this one I am most excited about;)

[Henriok]

The most consistent information available simply points to an all Dual (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/03/20040317111449.shtml) PowerMac revision, recently Pictured (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2004/06/20040603143651.shtml) in an unreleased service manual.
There's absolutely NO evidence of an all dual lineup in the picture from the service manual. All we see is a large metal plate with th G5-logo on it. If anything, this hits at a single CPU model since todays G5s have two G5-logos inside.

There might be evidence elsewere but not in that picture.

[whenpaulsparks]

you are right about WWDC... maybe there won't be ALL of the product announcements there. but firewireless (as i call it) would be neat, as would be a hanging display. Gateway and Dell (and probably others) already sell hangable LCD TV/monitors, so why not apple, and kick it up a notch by making it wireless?

but it would be neat to see:
iTunes Europe (although i'm in the USA, that will help them a lot)
60GB iPod (15,000 songs, with 40GB at $399 and 20GB at $299)
Dual 3 GHz PowerMac G5
iMac G5 at 2.0 GHz (FW800, SATA 250GB, etc.)

and lower prices on "older" G4 iMacs.

[whenpaulsparks]

and has anyone figured out the "party" code yet? 3 updated macs, with hanging displays? or is there something else in there?

edit: just realized that swingerofbirch is messing with us. look at his older posts, he's not an apple employee.

[crowdaddy]

For the sheer size of the company, and the computing industry itself, it is amazing how they can keep everything a secret up untill/close to the release dates. I know there are mandates and policies preventing corporate 'espionage' or disclosure of new products, but it would not be hard to anonymously provide inside tips on what a company is working on. But also consider this, there are no gateway or dell forums full of people discussing what is coming next. Those companies constantly pump out new products and people generally don't seem to get all hyped up over it as much as you people do. I wonder what the difference is?

[crowdaddy]

and has anyone figured out the "party" code yet? 3 updated macs, with hanging displays? or is there something else in there?

edit: just realized that swingerofbirch is messing with us. look at his older posts, he's not an apple employee.

what is the signifigance of hot fruit? A fruit is small...hot maybe meaning wireless ready, maybe some sort of handheld device like a new PDA? The US market is open now as Sony has bowed out don't you think?

[Wonder Boy]

friday night? since when does apple do anything major on a friday?

i'm pretty sure panther release party was on a friday.

[aswitcher]

Well, the current bandwidith of 802.11(x) prevents its use to broadcast signals from the computer to a TV.

But Wireless Firewire has enough, and more.

And Apple needs to update its displays.

Hmmm.


If they do that then sure they have a winner. I think if they bring it out without ANY preipherals or purpose it would be less interesting. Sure the future apps might be there but to make marketing work I think they need to promote it with a real and new app. Wonder how far Wireless Firewire goes...

Headless/dacapitating iMac :)

[stylewriter]

Adding 802.16 (WiMax) (http://www.wimaxforum.org/) to their airport cards makes more sense. It's starting to actually get rolled out (http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/06/05/2336247&mode=thread&tid=126&tid=137&tid=187&tid=193&tid=95) in a few areas. It's a newish wireless standard that lets you get 1.5Mb/s from around 20 miles of a tower(think wireless DSL).

Wireless firewire is neat and all, but short-range(<3 meters!) high-bandwidth wireless firewire is kind of useless. You would still need to plug in whatever you wanted to connect because there is no power comming though from the computer and the radio is sucking down power.

If Apple was going to release a wireless adapter for the iPod I imagine it would be in the form of a 802.11 cradle, 54Mb/s is plenty of speed for sending music files.

[swingerofbirch]

you figured out the riddle...that i am not an apple employee....i was just simply feeling silly.......but i appreciate several of your efforts to read into my gibberish, as for what i myself would like to see:

cheaper hardware
preview of tiger with a unified GUI ( a SIMPLE one ), which basically means pick between metal and aqua and go with it, i would prefer some variant of aqua, but whatever.....

/the hot fruit reference is an obscure omage to one of the early Strangers with Candy shows.............

[steve-not-jobs]

Just to add to the iTunes Europe dates - The Sun (UK) (http://www.thesun.co.uk/section/0,,4,00.html) has June 16th as the launch date.

[river_jetties]

wimax would be a good thing for them to do.

if PM's don't get updated, I think there will be some seriously disillusioned Mac users esp in light of the progress Intel and AMD have made recently. To be at the same top speed for a year is a very, very, very long time.

if no new PM's, I'd expect apple's stock to tank big time.

I'd still like to see them buy Alias and Tivo and develop Photoshop / Illustrator killer inhouse. Oh yeah, they should also buy SGI.

[Dont Hurt Me]

For the sheer size of the company, and the computing industry itself, it is amazing how they can keep everything a secret up untill/close to the release dates. I know there are mandates and policies preventing corporate 'espionage' or disclosure of new products, but it would not be hard to anonymously provide inside tips on what a company is working on. But also consider this, there are no gateway or dell forums full of people discussing what is coming next. Those companies constantly pump out new products and people generally don't seem to get all hyped up over it as much as you people do. I wonder what the difference is?We love our Macs, People using Dells use them because they have to or its all they know. Maybe this is wrong but i have allways thought that most Mac users are a little bit more into it and knowledgeable then pc users and hence they are using Macs because they have researched it more. Also the big pc companies dont play some of the games Apple does, a new video card comes out and they offer it with Apple its a mystery.

[iMeowbot]

I remain hesitant to even suggest something else as the frequency of various Tablet/iBox rumors seems to overwhelm more traditional (ie. realistic) reports... but some scattered whispers have suggested "something else" altogether... related to a hangable display/appliance. More details will be posted if/when available...

Apple have filed a rather extensive patent application regarding an interesting way of mounting monitors. It looks (in part) to be a refinement/improvement of the "snake arm" iMac concept discussed previously, but generalized to separate display systems. The sheer number of drawings makes it appear that a lot of effort has gone into exploring this one.

...and actually, I now can't find that application in the USPTO database. It was a 2004 application, I was was just looking at it a few days ago, and it showed a system with rails and moveable arms, with various desk and wall options, for mounting one or several monitors. Arrgh, is this one familiar to anyone else? It's not the iMac design application posted here a few weeks ago, this was a much newer one and ran to about 150 pages.

[scottkle]

The LCD wall hangy thing is the much-rumored Apple wireless picture frame. It would broadcast your photos from iphoto. It would do for digital photography what the ipod did for music/itunes.

Think about it. Think about how much sense it makes!!


Be careful swinger of birch-- the NDA also covers abstract slippages of the tongue.

Anyway, I've heard small whispers to expect the announcements to come before WWDC. I dont have any reliablity though.

My opinion? Yay 3ghzs G5's. Bring em on. Yay iMac G5. Bring it on.

Big LCD wall hangy thing? What?

Wireless Firewire? I'll believe it when I see it. :) Wireless iPod would be hellacool.

[Meall]

i may or may not be an employee of apple, which means i may or may not be able to give what may or may not be confidential information, and to possibly protect myself i may or may not be able to only give information in the form of abstract language which may or may not contain a hidden message:

i'll be hosting a party friday night; i'll be serving hot fruit, who's coming? there will be three types of hot fruit and a decoration where you might normally see my monet

You may or may not selling any true value information here, but supose they are true, I guest that:

- new PowerMacs
- new new iMac, possibly G5
- new iPod color with video possibity
- and the decoration, a new version of AppleWorks. People are always talking about new hardware, but Apple is also doing software, have you forgot? And more, AppleWorks update is overdue.

[JohnGillilan]

If you check some of the international Apple homepages, most of them sport a variation on this graphic on their front page (it has no mention of iTMS). However, apple.ca uses the same graphic as the US site.

[narco]

Wow, I was waiting for the release of a new G5, but if a G5 iMac comes out, I'll just sell my LCD and buy an iMac. I wonder what speed they'll be.

:eek: narco

[Sayer]

There's absolutely NO evidence of an all dual lineup in the picture from the service manual. All we see is a large metal plate with th G5-logo on it. If anything, this hits at a single CPU model since todays G5s have two G5-logos inside.

There might be evidence elsewere but not in that picture.

Uhm, there must be something about Euros that makes them disbelieve evidence right in front of them (granted this was on a rumor web site).

The current Single/Dual G5 has a separate heat sink over each CPU, each heat sink has a "G5" logo on it.

The "new" service manual (which I have not seen myself on the service manual web site so if it's real it was quickly pulled after the release) has a single heat sink on a piece of metal the approximate size of two previous heat sinks.

So either the new single G5 runs WAY hotter than before requiring a MASSIVE heat sink/fan assembly even in a single configuration, or there will only be a Dual G5 option thus there is no reason to make two separate heat sinks anymore.

But where did the other fan unit go if they run hotter? Under the heat sink cover? Gone all together?

We shall find out either way in a few weeks, I guess.

[codycartoon]

I wonder if it's just the Denver Cherry Creek Apple Store, but there are very large flat screen displays at the genius bar that hang on the wall above the bar.

I think they may be just plasma screens televisions, but I'm not sure.

anyone else see these?

-cody

[LaMerVipere]

I wonder if it's just the Denver Cherry Creek Apple Store, but there are very large flat screen displays at the genius bar that hang on the wall above the bar.

I think they may be just plasma screens televisions, but I'm not sure.

anyone else see these?

-cody

Eh, they have those here in chicago and everywhere else, nothing new.

[ddtlm]

Dont Hurt Me:

We love our Macs, People using Dells use them because they have to or its all they know. Maybe this is wrong but i have allways thought that most Mac users are a little bit more into it and knowledgeable then pc users and hence they are using Macs because they have researched it more.
You just don't understand, the rest of the world doesn't care about PCs vs Macs. Give them cheap, fast, compatible and they are happy. It has nothing to do with knowledge.

[windowsblowsass]

what is the signifigance of hot fruit? A fruit is small...hot maybe meaning wireless ready, maybe some sort of handheld device like a new PDA? The US market is open now as Sony has bowed out don't you think?
hot=new fruit=apple

[Mustafa]

.......if they could deliver some of last year's products before they announce new ones. I've flown all the way from London to Boston to buy my wife and daughter iPod Minis, and guess what?

OK, I was coming anyway, but you get my point.

[spankalee]

Does anyone else think that with the success of the iPod we could see Apple return to the peripherals market in a big way? Dell and HP have gone that direction and Gateway is being saved by their displays.

I would love to see Apple come out with a line of TVs, and a set-top box to go with them and/or a stereo. Gateway's been quite successful, and I'd have to think Apple could do even better.

I wonder if they should look at getting back into the printer market too; HP makes a lot of money on ink. What about hard drives, or tablets, projectors?

Would a move like that be the next logical way to make more money, or would it distract Apple and clutter up their product line?

[Trowaman]

If they do hanging displays with wireless firewire connection (hence, play movies on it) I would definitly consider that for college as my new tv if they have inputs from elsewhere and if it could pick up from my iMac somehow. I mean really, best tv on campus . . . :D

[applekid]

A good next six months would include these:

- A G5 iMac. Sounds to early to jump up to a G5 iMac, but think of it this way: To get Apple back in the consumer-level desktop market, Apple will have to sell low-price G5 iMacs with a design similar to the current. These new iMacs will have to be a better bang for the buck than eMacs and a little less than PowerMacs. To make it a better deal, Apple should show off benchmarks where the iMac is comparable to current consumers PCs.
- A Dual 3 GHz PowerMac G5. We may not reach in WWDC (but I've got my fingers crossed that we will see it), but I think we'll see it by the end of the year, if not this month. For a good surprise, maybe Steve will be able to say, "Today, we reached 3 GHz... and surpassed it." And he'll introduce a 3.2 GHz G5 PowerMac model. Smaller design, more internal devices, and a price drop?
- iTMS International. We'll see Europe and Canada soon. Maybe some easy language controls to work with all of those nations. Plus, as a bonus, perhaps each version of iTMS can access other versions with an automatic currency exchanger. Your music library will grow instantly.
- iPod Mini International. With iTMS, maybe we'll see some iPod Minis that aren't in the U.S.? iPod Minis for everyone! How's a price drop sound? I think Apple will help out the U.S. consumers as they announce internationalized iTunes/iPod plans with some price drops or some other perks. Of course international users will get these, too.
- iPod featuring FireWireLess. Make it happen. Improved storage, perhaps a slightly smaller size?
- FireWireless in other devices. Make it the way to connect all devices of all sorts. Displays, peripherals, etc. Your Mac will be a wireless hub for all of your input and output devices. I could go for that. And for power, connect all of your devices into the hub and the hub will get power from the socket. I doubt it's that simple, but maybe...
- PowerBook G5. The last big announcement this year or early next year. Take the current line, throw in a G5, new cooling system, and other faster buses. And how about a replaceable graphics card? It may become a new trend that Apple will join in.

Amaze me, Apple. Some of this may be wishful thinking, but hopefully Apple can fulfill most of this. I'm sure this will end as a great year.

[proglife]

Just thinking out loud, but how cool would this be?:

One main tower/rackmount/server...whatever, in a strategic location somewhere in your house. This thing has some serious Wi-Fi antennae built in, huge hard drives, a few CPU's and it served out information to Displays and little portable tablets that you could use around the house. You could add an inexpensive tablet at any time (it would leave most of the storage to the central unit). Sync your iPod anywhere in the house over Firewireless, print, record with a Tivo program....damn..the possibilities are endless. You could probably pull this off now if you could afford a few Powerbooks and a G5 or two, but a well thought out version of this could be hot.

[appleface]

will the new video pods double as remotes for the hanging displays?
will wireless fire precede the fabled "headless imac?"
it looks like the set top box has given way to the wireless display.

[titaniumducky]

Just thinking out loud, but how cool would this be?:

One main tower/rackmount/server...whatever, in a strategic location somewhere in your house. This thing has some serious Wi-Fi antennae built in, huge hard drives, a few CPU's and it served out information to Displays and little portable tablets that you could use around the house. You could add an inexpensive tablet at any time (it would leave most of the storage to the central unit). Sync your iPod anywhere in the house over Firewireless, print, record with a Tivo program....damn..the possibilities are endless. You could probably pull this off now if you could afford a few Powerbooks and a G5 or two, but a well thought out version of this could be hot.

...and uber expensive.

[jtmacb]

Look into your crystal ball. Could it be that a few months from now there is Bill Gates walking into his hillside mansion, being greeted by his wife and kids. But wait, they are not really there. It's the new iDisplay by Apple. The wife and kids are someplace else standing in front of an iSight camera, but Bill's secretly hidden G5 Quad processor running at 3 GHz, with its four 500 gig internal SATA drives and all sorts of other assorted examples of Apple's genius.

Apple's superior technology is working seemlessly and flawlessly to send an HD quality image to his new 32inch iDisplay via WiFire, otherwise known as wireless Firewire. Bill smiles at himself, confident in the fact while he may have to create Windows products - at least he gets to use Apple's.

[thrillz3]

I knew that when I got the 17" stuido, they would update it. Oh well, I still love it. They just better not update the PB's real soon...it wouldn't make sense...no money on the current ones.

If only I hadn't needed a portable, I would have waited another month to switch and gotten a G5 iMac. Oh well, I'll have my friend's to play with. I made sure he'll wait to get one of those.

[arn]

There's absolutely NO evidence of an all dual lineup in the picture from the service manual. All we see is a large metal plate with th G5-logo on it. If anything, this hits at a single CPU model since todays G5s have two G5-logos inside.

There might be evidence elsewere but not in that picture.

Right... the evidence is NOT from the picture.

arn

[gotohamish]

Question... if FireWire can power devices, and charge... can Wireless Firewire do that too? THAT would be interesting!

[ingenious]

For the sheer size of the company, and the computing industry itself, it is amazing how they can keep everything a secret up untill/close to the release dates. I know there are mandates and policies preventing corporate 'espionage' or disclosure of new products, but it would not be hard to anonymously provide inside tips on what a company is working on. But also consider this, there are no gateway or dell forums full of people discussing what is coming next. Those companies constantly pump out new products and people generally don't seem to get all hyped up over it as much as you people do. I wonder what the difference is?


Hmmm, maybe its the fact that there's nothing particularly exciting about a newly released Dull, err, um, I mean Dell box. Ho Hum, you see it on TV, you get it in your email... who really cares??!?!?! :rolleyes:

[thrillz3]

Question... if FireWire can power devices, and charge... can Wireless Firewire do that too? THAT would be interesting!

Somebody's suffering a little jetlag. ;)

[Mudbug]

Question... if FireWire can power devices, and charge... can Wireless Firewire do that too? THAT would be interesting!

you're probably not going to ever see wireless power being provided. If you want the full reasons why, ask an electrical engineer. But the short version of it is that the radiation given off by it would cook you. quickly.

[nspeds]

Somebody's suffering a little jetlag. ;)

I don't think Wireless Firewire will be a device used to power other devices. It's just a method for faster data transportation to other devices.

[dontmatter]

Wireless Firewire.

When would I really use that? iPod - no. DV Camera - no. Computer to Computer - maybe, but networking is prefered.

Not sure how useful this will immediately be...

Unless you think 802.11 is either useless or as good as wireless has can possibly be, then wireless firewire is FAR from useless. Without even expanding into dreamy things, wouldn't it just be nice to have a secure (well, as much as you're going to get with wireless) and fast wirelss standard, to replace standard wifi and bluetooth?

[ingenious]

Just thinking out loud, but how cool would this be?:

One main tower/rackmount/server...whatever, in a strategic location somewhere in your house. This thing has some serious Wi-Fi antennae built in, huge hard drives, a few CPU's and it served out information to Displays and little portable tablets that you could use around the house. You could add an inexpensive tablet at any time (it would leave most of the storage to the central unit). Sync your iPod anywhere in the house over Firewireless, print, record with a Tivo program....damn..the possibilities are endless. You could probably pull this off now if you could afford a few Powerbooks and a G5 or two, but a well thought out version of this could be hot.

Isn't that what we used to have when a computer filled a room and the station you worked at was a "dumb" terminal? :rolleyes: It's weird how ideas cycle. I would agree with it only if it kept the same idea of having each computer seperate and independent of the network, but able to offload serious processing tasks like HD video rendering on to the server or other computers on the network.

[Skiniftz]

For the sheer size of the company, and the computing industry itself, it is amazing how they can keep everything a secret up untill/close to the release dates. I know there are mandates and policies preventing corporate 'espionage' or disclosure of new products, but it would not be hard to anonymously provide inside tips on what a company is working on. But also consider this, there are no gateway or dell forums full of people discussing what is coming next. Those companies constantly pump out new products and people generally don't seem to get all hyped up over it as much as you people do. I wonder what the difference is?
The difference is that if I want a new PC, I know that if I spend $4000 on it now, that in three weeks time it wont drop significantly in price and that slightly faster models are coming out all the time meaning that my new purcase isn't going to be wiped off the map in one month. I know exactly what I would be getting, along with the fact that something twice as fast isnt going to come out next month. It's called a processor road map.

I've been waiting since ***ing JANUARY for G5 updates when I took out a loan to buy a dual 2GHz, however someone over on the Steinberg forums "advised" that I wait due to "rumours" - I've been glued to this bloody site since. :rolleyes: Having been stung by apple in the past when I bought a G3 iBook and THREE WEEKS later new models were announced along with the 12" PowerBook (which is what I really needed) then there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY that I am going to spend $4000+ on the tired year old 'top end' machine now only to find out in a short period of time that its obsolete and I could have had something a lot faster for the same money. I've now been waiting 5 months and PC's are starting to look more attractive every day. I swear that unless a new G5 is available VERY soon I'm going to be sticking with the PC and investing the cash.

(Incidentally I was lucky in that after 11 months of use my iBook screwed up royally due to the mobo bug and the place where I bought it screwed up the repair and had to refund my money meaning I ended up with a 12" PB :D )

[dontmatter]

Look into your crystal ball. Could it be that a few months from now there is Bill Gates walking into his hillside mansion, being greeted by his wife and kids. But wait, they are not really there. It's the new iDisplay by Apple. The wife and kids are someplace else standing in front of an iSight camera, but Bill's secretly hidden G5 Quad processor running at 3 GHz, with its four 500 gig internal SATA drives and all sorts of other assorted examples of Apple's genius.

Apple's superior technology is working seemlessly and flawlessly to send an HD quality image to his new 32inch iDisplay via WiFire, otherwise known as wireless Firewire. Bill smiles at himself, confident in the fact while he may have to create Windows products - at least he gets to use Apple's.

Yes, we are such gloating deamers ;-)

But seriously, you aren't from the seattle area, now are you? LAKESIDE mansion. uber-rich eastside neighborhood called medina....thing cost like 20 mil to make, I could see a crane on the site for several years from my house in Seattle (he lives on the other side of the lake, in the 'burbs. People like to go and gawk from boats on the lake...the place is a piece of work if there ever was one.

[Skiniftz]

Question... if FireWire can power devices, and charge... can Wireless Firewire do that too? THAT would be interesting!
Pah we can do this already with an Airport and Power over Ethernet (PoE)

;)

[Hawthorne]

The difference is that if I want a new PC, I know that if I spend $4000 on it now, that in three weeks time it wont drop significantly in price and that slightly faster models are coming out all the time meaning that my new purcase isn't going to be wiped off the map in one month. I know exactly what I would be getting, along with the fact that something twice as fast isnt going to come out next month. It's called a processor road map.


And if you look at the roadmap for Intel right now, you'll find it's ran into a brick wall. AMD is doing okay, though. And if you're upset at Apple's frequency of obselence, you'll be freaking out with a PC in just a few weeks.


I've been waiting since ***ing JANUARY for G5 updates when I took out a loan to buy a dual 2GHz, however someone over on the Steinberg forums "advised" that I wait due to "rumours" - I've been glued to this bloody site since. :rolleyes: Having been stung by apple in the past when I bought a G3 iBook and THREE WEEKS later new models were announced along with the 12" PowerBook (which is what I really needed) then there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY that I am going to spend $4000+ on the tired year old 'top end' machine now only to find out in a short period of time that its obsolete and I could have had something a lot faster for the same money. I've now been waiting 5 months and PC's are starting to look more attractive every day. I swear that unless a new G5 is available VERY soon I'm going to be sticking with the PC and investing the cash.
If you want to buy a Wintel, do so. No one's got an Apple-shaped gun to your head. Good luck finding as good a community as Apple has in the PC world, though.

(Incidentally I was lucky in that after 11 months of use my iBook screwed up royally due to the mobo bug and the place where I bought it screwed up the repair and had to refund my money meaning I ended up with a 12" PB :D )

Count your blessings, and move on.

[dontmatter]

60GB iPod (15,000 songs, with 40GB at $399 and 20GB at $299)


Now, I don't want to be like all those screaming apple fans who said the mini would flop b/c it's not good value wise...but if apple does have 20 GB for $299 and keeps with 4 GB at $249... I don't know. Sure, the premium for small size and style, the fact that for many 20 GB isn't any more than 4 GB because they don't have anything to put on it, and the comparsion to the value of flash players may keep the mini riding high, but it sure doesn't leave us with a product line that makes any sense. 20% dollars increase to go along with 400% capacity increase?

Within 3 months, I'd like a mini update, droping the current one by 50 or seventy bucks, and keeping the 250 price point around, but puting in a 10 GB drive.

Then again, this would make it soo much harder to stick with my current 10 GB second generation ipod....

[crowdaddy]

So why won't apple show some courtesy to its customers in that by warning of imminent updates their customers won't be left unhappy with a purchase of a product later on in its product cycle? They bought it knowing an update was coming along, so they can't be miffed at Apple. Why won't Apple do this!

[dontmatter]

And if you look at the roadmap for Intel right now, you'll find it's ran into a brick wall

Pentium, yes. Celeron....

I don't think apple's in good processor shape at all, particularly in the future. Look at the heat sinks on a G5 PM. Ain't no way you can make a good laptop out of that, anytime soon. PB's are already way too hot, particularly for the aluminum casing that looks so cool. And, AMD has some fricking great stuff coming. I currently see the future of apple in laptops and high end desktops. Looking at the road map, it's going to be hard for apple to compete with the immensely customizable, fricking fast world of AMD desktops. And, we all know that except for those who really need the bleeding edge, of liquid cooled AMD or top of the line macs, computer users are fast running our of reasons to need more performance. Unless we rethink the computer, and find way new uses, the software just doesn't demand it, except for high end gaming and media editing stuff. In which case, batttery life and heat are only going to become more important in laptops (and, nobody's buying the laptop for the high end stuff anyway), and outside of celeron, heat and power consumption are only growing...

Not to mention, celeron's in desktops could fill an important niche, as they grow faster....

just saying, you can write off some of intel, but writing off wintel for processors is just plain wrong. Mac's got to fight to keep in the game, there.

[jtmacb]

I guess my memory regarding Bill's house was bad. I just remember it was big and I thought on a hill or cliff. Regardless, we know from news reports that Gates likes all kinds of gadgets. God knows he has the money to afford whatever he wants. So if the best is being introduced by Apple, why wouldn't he use it. The kids don't know the difference. The wife will never tell. And anyone else who might spill the beans would get a pink slip the next day- probably whether they worked for MS or not.

Like you said, it's nice to dream. Afterall, until FireWire was announced who could have imagined what was possible down the road with iSight, FCP, iMovie, iDVD, DVD Studio Pro, etc.

Thought Apple did not invent WiFi it certainly got it off the ground with AirPort. Same with the popularity of USB.

While Apple doesn't get it right 100% of the time (see the Cube and Newton) they get it right 10 times more often than anyone else in the computer industry. And then there is the iPod family of products. Steve is on a roll.

For what it's worth, my wish list would be the following:

1. A G5 with four drive bays, each capable of holding 500 gig SATA drives that Apple and its key HD suppliers would concurrently introduce.
2. Quad 3GHz processors.
3. Improvement in digital video using iSight and iChatAV with PC owners.
4. Improvements in cooperation between iMovie, iDVD, FCP, DVD Studio Pro 5. Inclusion of a SuperSuperDrive that is multiDVD format compatible and records + and -R DVD disks at 16x and uses dual layer DVD disks. That's in addition to higher speed DVD-+RW and CD R/RW speeds.
6. Wireless Firewire with third party companies providing devices that you can connect other devices to such as camcorders, VCRs, digital webcams, inkjet printers, etc. And of course that new display that hangs on a wall. If this could be done at FireWire 800 speed so much the better.

I could list many other wishes but 6 is a nice number.

[AirUncleP]

Shame on you Arn. One hardware post. One "other" post. June will be interesting for all of us.

[joeconvert]

And if you look at the roadmap for Intel right now, you'll find it's ran into a brick wall. AMD is doing okay, though. And if you're upset at Apple's frequency of obselence, you'll be freaking out with a PC in just a few weeks.
If you want to buy a Wintel, do so. No one's got an Apple-shaped gun to your head. Good luck finding as good a community as Apple has in the PC world, though.


Count your blessings, and move on.

His point was that the x86 world makes their updates in small increments. There are no 1GHz or 1.5 GHz jumps in a matter of weeks.

[crowdaddy]

The apple processor is in trouble? This is not good news for a soon-to-be switcher. I've always been warned that Apple could collapse in the near future...oh man now i got doubts!

[nyprospect]

This is why i have not switched.I have been interested in macs since the blue bondi.but never had the money.Now i want a pb and i keep hearing the g4 chip is crippled.Its alarming to a pc user wanting to switch with limited funding.

[ibjoshua]

OK, everbody take a deep breath and repeat after me. "It's just a rumour round-up. Nothing more. Nothing less."

Thanks Arn. It's nice to see a roundup. It reassures one who thinks he may have missed a beat.


i_b_joshua

[crowdaddy]

But honnestly, is it or is it not true about the uncertainty of apple's computing future?

Nyprospect are you running intel or AMD right now?

[x86isslow]

i'll pass on the decapitating iMac, thank you very much.:D

If they do that then sure they have a winner. I think if they bring it out without ANY preipherals or purpose it would be less interesting. Sure the future apps might be there but to make marketing work I think they need to promote it with a real and new app. Wonder how far Wireless Firewire goes...

Headless/dacapitating iMac :)

[leftbanke7]

But honnestly, is it or is it not true about the uncertainty of apple's computing future?

Nyprospect are you running intel or AMD right now?

It is true, there is uncertainty in Apple's computing future, as there is uncertanity in Microsoft, Dell, AMD, Intel, HP, etc etc.

You really never know what's going to happen. It's technology and it changes quicker than JLo goes through men.

But, outside of Apple being bought out (which is a 10 billion to 1 longshot), Apple will be chugging right along with the rest of them for the forseeable future. So if you want to go buy a Mac, get out there and buy you a Mac.

[~Shard~]

I have commented on all of these rumors in far too much detail in their respective rumor threads, so I won't get into repeat discusisons here. All I'll say is, all will be revealed in the next 3 weeks, and I can't wait! I'm taking a couple hours off from work just to watch the keynote from WWDC. :cool:

And although a lot will be announced in this next month, G5 PowerBooks won't be, so for those of you delirious G5 PB fans, you'll have to sit tight until 2005! ;)

[JohnGillilan]

Something Else?

I remain hesitant to even suggest something else as the frequency of various Tablet/iBox rumors seems to overwhelm more traditional (ie. realistic) reports... but some scattered whispers have suggested "something else" altogether... related to a hangable display/appliance. More details will be posted if/when available...

From The Onion:

[adamjay]

as an audio professional, i really wish the G5 updates would hurry up.
Ableton has just released the 4th version of its stellar audio software, "Live", and it includes new sequencing tools, altivec optimization (finally), and compatibility with third party VST Instruments.

So, now more than ever do i *need a dual G5. a dual 2GHz G5 would offer a ton of headroom in the new Ableton Live 4 application running simultaneously with NI Reaktor, Reason, and Waves VST Mastering plugins, but currently costs $2999 :eek: . a sub-$2,000 price tag for a dual G5 would have me maxing out my credit card right about now.

[nyprospect]

I have used an amd and im using intel p4 3ghz.Ive read a few threads stating that the g4 chip is crippled .As a potential switcher my intial reaction is to hold my money tighter.

[crowdaddy]

I have used an amd and im using intel p4 3ghz.Ive read a few threads stating that the g4 chip is crippled .As a potential switcher my intial reaction in to hold my money tighter.

Same here, I'm at the cliff but I can't quite make myself jump off. I dunno what can sway me either way at this point.

[x86isslow]

i keep hearing the g4 cripple line from a lot of people on this forum, but i think its because there are a lot of pro-users posting. i got an eMac, and i game (warcraft) with pc folks just fine, so i'd say, unless you're doing CAD work or whatever on a powerbook (doesnt seem like a cost effective solution), the G4'll be just fine.

[Duff-Man]

It is true, there is uncertainty in Apple's computing futureDuff-Man says...that's right...because as we all know, Apple has been going out of business for about 20 years now...oh yeah!

[Michael Vance]

Adding tuners to monitors is easy to do, and there are LCD monitors that already offer this. The problem is that nobody wants to use their computer monitor as a TV. Most people will have a TV and a computer in the room and will want to keep them separate, not share them amongst a single monitor.

**This is just rampant speulation**

Just thinking wouldnt it be cool if apple released a new wall hangable display, that was big enough to replace someones TV.........Some kind of integration of macs and TV/Stereo etc.

If they were to do this, perhaps the wireless firewire would have something to do with getting a signal from a mac set up with a normal display, as i dont see people wanting to do word processing etc form the other side of the room. But surfing the web, itunes, watching movies, viewing iphoto etc might be a bit of fun to do on a big screen hanigng on you wall.... who knows?

[kenaustus]

Don't be afraid of buying a top of the line G4 PB - it will be 6 to 9 months before a G5 PB can be announced, delivered and initial customer problems surfacing and getting fixed.

I picked up a new fully loaded 15" G4 PB (with the exception of memory) las month and the 1.5 is significantly faster than my old 667 PB. Went with the 1.5 G4 because I need VPC for one proprietary Windows program I must have when traveling and even VPC is very fast. While I think MS will announce a version of VPC that will work with the G5 I also think it will be another 6 months before I would want to try it!

On pre-show releases there are two good reasons to start firing up the releases now. The first is that there won't be sufficient time to spend on a new PM and a G5 iMac within the time frame without taking away discussions on Tiger - which is what the conference goers really want to hear about.

The second is also interesting. Consider a 2.6 and 2.8 dual PM available immediately and a 3.0 available in a month announced this week, with a new generation iMac 2.4, 2.6 and 2.8 announced next week. At the WWDC Steve J can talk more about sales and backorders than the details of the boxes - especially if there are new displays available with the PM and integrated into the iMac. Developers want to know that sales are hot and the new computers are blowing out the door.

The other option I see is that the faster PMs are announced before WWDC with the G5 iMac being in the spotlight at the WWDC.

For me the key of the iMac is that it not only has a G5 (2.0 & higher), but also a lot of the speed related technology from the PM. It needs to address the single processor market with the same vigor as the PM is going to address the dual market.

iPods have a chance if they go with the color 40 gig f=range now and then bump it up to 60 gigs in October for Christmas trading. Otherwise I don't see that before or at WWDC.

Developers and Wall Street are expecting some excitement from Apple (and delivery from IBM) at, or before, WWDC and I don't think that Apple is going to disappoint.

[coumerelli]

Same here, I'm at the cliff but I can't quite make myself jump off. I dunno what can sway me either way at this point.
For both of you...You need to decide what is best for YOU. Why would you consider getting a mac? Cost? Performance? Usability? It's your call. I could give you a million (ok, about twenty) reasons right now to try to convince you to go Apple, but some are very subjective. I could also give you a few as to why you ought not to go with Apple. But they depend on your particular situation/needs.

Don't buy and then have regrets. That would be a waste. I'll tell you now, I can say I'm thrilled to work only on Macintoshes. And along with the 35,114 other members on THIS board alone, we can't ALL be wrong.

The best to ya!


It is true, there is uncertainty in Apple's computing future, as there is uncertanity in Microsoft, Dell, AMD, Intel, HP, etc etc.

You really never know what's going to happen. It's technology and it changes quicker than JLo goes through men.

But, outside of Apple being bought out (which is a 10 billion to 1 longshot), Apple will be chugging right along with the rest of them for the forseeable future. So if you want to go buy a Mac, get out there and buy you a Mac.
Home Run! Thank you for stepping up to the plate and swinging. Couldn't have said it better.


Back on topic: (sorry) I think what other's have been saying about Steve wanting to spread out the new stuff over a coupla weeks is right. But then again, when was the last time he actually said, "oh, and one more thing..."? Before the flatpanel iMac for sure. Anyone know? Bueller...Bueller...Bueller? ;)

[crowdaddy]

How versatile can the iMac get with its current consolidated design? I'd jump for an iMac in a second if it had room for a top of the line video card. I feel that is the only thing missing right now. With a videocard gaming on the imac would be a lot more enjoyable and with the added performance the range of games playable on the imac would be increased.

[mj_1903]

Personally I have a 1ghz G4 15.2" PowerBook and have used a G5. There is light and day between the machines, but I still manage to get a lot of work done and at my pace with my PowerBook.

Nevertheless, I will be buying a G5 as soon as they are announced because the speed difference should be worth it with regards to compile times and testing as neither are optimized for altivec, so raw power is more important.

The G4 is not 'crippled'. In fact, of either chip are crippled its the G5. It's altivec unit is a hack, not a proper implementation. It still happily flogs many a chip on the market though, and that goes for the G4 as well.

[looklost]

How versatile can the iMac get with its current consolidated design? I'd jump for an iMac in a second if it had room for a top of the line video card. I feel that is the only thing missing right now. With a videocard gaming on the imac would be a lot more enjoyable and with the added performance the range of games playable on the imac would be increased.

Yes, I have the same problem with buying a imac, no video card upgrade. That's why I going to buy a new PowerMac G5. Although I think I'll wait till the winter, a few months after releasing a new computer, they sometimes drop the price and offer some bundled savings. That's how I bought my PowerBook.

[AT71]

Any update of Mac products would be nice.

But...

Please NO iPod, iPod mini or vPod or just about any Pod updates. Is Apple all about music now? Where's our "Great Mac Year"?

Anyway, 3GHz G5, iMac G5 or even PB G5 are all welcome.

[rendezvouscp]

Any update of Mac products would be nice.

But...

Please NO iPod, iPod mini or vPod or just about any Pod updates. Is Apple all about music now? Where's our "Great Mac Year"?

Anyway, 3GHz G5, iMac G5 or even PB G5 are all welcome.

iPods aren't going to happen for a while, not at least until they have a new design ready to implement and/or the drives are ready to be mass produced. Apple is so strong right now with iPods, they don't have a reason to change anything until the demand is lower and/or they have a more effective design.
–Chase

[Dahl]

Anyway, I'm sure that no matter what Apple does, if they do not release new displays, there will be uproar and unrest!
You got that right!
Even if Apple "can't" lower the price a lot, they need to update the design of them.

[imgmkr]

and i heard it thru grapevine that it's gonna be a headless ;)
hence affordable one. i can't wait to see its new design though...
what Mr. Ive could do to top a previous design of iMac? hmmm ;)
perhaps that chameleon transluscent case? well, we'll see~

and i hear this wireless firewire technology... i guess it could
go hand in hand with headless iMac G5 as an very expensive
option ;)

[SiliconAddict]

It is true, there is uncertainty in Apple's computing future, as there is uncertanity in Microsoft, Dell, AMD, Intel, HP, etc etc.

You really never know what's going to happen. It's technology and it changes quicker than JLo goes through men.

But, outside of Apple being bought out (which is a 10 billion to 1 longshot), Apple will be chugging right along with the rest of them for the forseeable future. So if you want to go buy a Mac, get out there and buy you a Mac.

Ya right. If I was a betting man I'd bet on a set of companies that own 95% of a market vs. a company that at best owns somewhere in the ballpark of 3-5%. I mean really. If this wasn’t Apple and we were talking say a series of grocery store chains who would you bet on with the above stats? No it’s because it’s the great Apple that everyone believes that they will be around forever. And yes people have been predicting the demise of Apple for god knows how long. They were all wrong but they haven’t been wrong about one thing. Zero market share growth. Unless Apple changes how they distribute computers there is zero chance of catching market share. Catching new users yes. New market share no. Apple could hardly stay on top of the demand for the G5 PowerMac. Do you think Dell, Sony, Gateway have that kind of problem? So when Apple gets to less then 1% market share do you think anyone outside of fans of Apple will give a care in the world about Apple? Would you commit your fortune 500 company to a company that has less then 1% of the market? And if you say yes you are a flat out liar. As it stands Apple is in a precarious position. That position isn’t going to keep me away from Apple, yet, but I know a whole heck of a lot of people where it’s a concern. I will only get concerned when more of the larger players that develop software for the Mac call it quits. If Adobe totally folds up shop on the Mac then I would question if I should even be considering the Mac. Until that day it’s still a viable platform.
Folks, lets not sugar coat Apple predicament. You can play all the games you want with numbers, specs, sales, stats, and whatnot but at the end of the day Apple isn’t growing in the computer market by any leaps and bounds. When I see even a 2% growth over a 2 year period then I will believe that Apple is on the right track. Until that time I will remain pessimistic about the future of the Apple at least when it comes to computers. I’ve done my part by sending people to the Apple store when that ask about computers at work but the occasional stray computer user being sent into the Apple store isn’t going to save Apple’s hide. Home appliances are another matter. I really believe that Apple has a potentially bright future in home electronics so much so that they are going to give Sony a serious run for their money. I would dearly love to see what Apple could do with a smart TV, or a DVR, or a cellphone, or even a cordless home phone. They know how to create some dang fine devices. Even more so then Sony. Am I right? Am I wrong? Don’t know. Don’t care. It’s just an opinion at this point. I want to see Apple do well but as it stands, IMHO, they aren’t at least enough for me to breath a sigh of relief.

Product releases have come as such a pathetically slow pace that it borders on insane. I know of no company in the PC world that releases a desktop once per year. And the same could be said of Apple’s laptops. Sure they have given us some speedbumps but it’s nothing new. Nothing drastically different. This is supposedly THE innovative company. What true innovations have you seen in the PowerBooks as of late? Reading the tech manuals of the 17” and 15” PowerBooks I don’t seen anything that innovatively different between that and the PC counterparts other then the form factor and that has changed drastically in the last year due to the Pentium M. In fact the only thing that I’ve seen is DVD-R, RW, [insert whatever flavor it supports here] support that Apple still leads in but beyond that? Every time I hack on Apple I feel like a X Files quote, I WANT TO BELIEVE. I really do. But as it stands I need something to believe in. The proverbial UFO sighting. Give me a glimpse of what Apple is capable of at WWDC and then at that Paris gig this fall. Show me I don’t have misplaced faith in this company.
In short: Make me a believer. As it stands. *shrugs* I can’t get excited about Apple since there isn’t anything out there to get excited about.

[Analog Kid]

Wireless Firewire.

When would I really use that? iPod - no. DV Camera - no. Computer to Computer - maybe, but networking is prefered.

Not sure how useful this will immediately be...

I agree on the iPod (with the current battery life you'll want to charge it every chance you get, so if it's docked, may as well power it), but I think the DV Camera would be a great application.

They're finally starting to put video-in ports on the front of TV's so people don't need to go digging around behind them to watch what's on the camera. No wires at all would be a great advantage for something like iMovie. In general, it's easier to find a wall outlet to plug in a charger than it is to get to the cabling ports on most machines.

Another application-- before I checked here I was sitting on my couch playing with iMovie. Powerbook doesn't have a big enough drive so I've got an external firewire drive plugged in. Stood up and the cable got wrapped around my leg and yanked out of the PB. Yeah, I'm clumsy, but just having the drive plugged into the wall and sitting on the couch next to me would be a lot easier.

Then there's the whole rats nest behind my iMac. Such an elegant machine but by the time I've got my Firewire CD burner, two FW hard disks, printer, flat bed scanner, film scanner, XD card reader, microphone and iPod plugged in it looks like it's sitting in a pile of rubberized Easter grass...

If everything communicated wirelessly it would cut the cable load in half.

[Analog Kid]

Question... if FireWire can power devices, and charge... can Wireless Firewire do that too? THAT would be interesting!
No. The problem is the radiation pattern. If you want it to work anywhere in the room, the power in the signal goes down by the square of the distance to the transmitter.

Imagine all the power painted on the surface of a sphere centered at the transmitter-- it's a really small sphere at the source but by the time the sphere grows to reach the receiver the paint will be pretty thin. Maybe the skin of an expanding balloon is a better analogy.

That's why you might hear your local radio station talking about mega-Watts of transmission power. They need that much at the tower so you can still get micro-Watts (actually probably much less) at your radio miles away.

You need surprisingly little power to receive data, but if you're trying to charge a battery you'll want Watts and that's just too hard to do at any distance.

[MacFan26]

I can’t get excited about Apple since there isn’t anything out there to get excited about.

Are you saying that if there wasn't anything to get excited about, you wouldn't buy from Apple? No offense, but I haven't heard about anything more exciting from Dell or any other company for that matter. As far as market share, why should market share really matter to a consumer? So it's not 95% of the computer market, that's not stopping me from buying a machine from the company. If I may be permitted the analogy, no one shys away from a Porsche because of their market share.

[Windowlicker]

:: offtopic ::

I just had a dream I bought a shiny new 12" PB with max ram and everything.. i was so glad.. I just don't know if it was a g5pb because it was so superb ;) ...if it was, let's BRING ON THE G5PB RUMORS! ;D

:: less offtopic ::

back to reality. I almost accindentally found myself at this page that has illustrations of imagined apple hw, wallpapers and such. there was this damn cool hiMac. It was pretty much just an aluminium display that had all the usb/fw/whatever ports and optical drive on the sides. it also could be dragged around. that would be a computer I'd want on my desk.

anyone who knows the site i'm talking about please feel free to input the address. can't find it anywhere.

:: ontopic ::

tomorrow will be a good day. so will be the rest till 28th. can't wait.

[slooksterPSV]

Just thinking out loud, but how cool would this be?:

One main tower/rackmount/server...whatever, in a strategic location somewhere in your house. This thing has some serious Wi-Fi antennae built in, huge hard drives, a few CPU's and it served out information to Displays and little portable tablets that you could use around the house. You could add an inexpensive tablet at any time (it would leave most of the storage to the central unit). Sync your iPod anywhere in the house over Firewireless, print, record with a Tivo program....damn..the possibilities are endless. You could probably pull this off now if you could afford a few Powerbooks and a G5 or two, but a well thought out version of this could be hot.

Thats so weird cause guess what, Windows has something like that. You have you're main XP server in the basement with Wireless and you can take tablets (shows screen and that) anywhere. Sync stuff automatically from the tablet since its Wireless and that and you can have TV's with Windows XP Media Center Edition to save shows and all that. Mac needs something like this though. (if you watch TechTV they showed it a while ago for XP) It may cost alot, but they do have it.

[Windowlicker]

Another application-- before I checked here I was sitting on my couch playing with iMovie. Powerbook doesn't have a big enough drive so I've got an external firewire drive plugged in. Stood up and the cable got wrapped around my leg and yanked out of the PB. Yeah, I'm clumsy, but just having the drive plugged into the wall and sitting on the couch next to me would be a lot easier.

Analog Kid, aka Jar Jar Binks (me's a... clumsy).

Then there's the whole rats nest behind my iMac. Such an elegant machine but by the time I've got my Firewire CD burner, two FW hard disks, printer, flat bed scanner, film scanner, XD card reader, microphone and iPod plugged in it looks like it's sitting in a pile of rubberized Easter grass...

If everything communicated wirelessly it would cut the cable load in half.

my thoughts exactly. I needed more usb ports.. my father was nice and solved the problem for me before I did. the only bad thing was that he got an usb hub. I would much more have liked a pci card. later i bought a pci card and ditched the hub. hmm maybe i should sell the hub and get another card too... would have use for it. I also might want to change my Griffin iMic to an PCI sound card -- because I need the sound in, but 1. the iMic's sound quality is terrible and 2. it takes space on my desk.

[MacinDoc]

How's this for tying these all together:

Before WWDC: iTMS Europe (and hopefully Japan and Canada, too).

WWDC:

1. Displays: widescreen 17, 20, 23 and 30" plasma displays with thin aluminum bevel, hangable or attachable to a desktop stand or (with the exception of the 30") the new iMac arm. Possibly with wireless firewire (great oxymoron!)

2. iMac G5: somewhat larger aluminum base with a similar articulating arm, 1.6 and 1.8 GHz PPC 970FX, 64 MB graphics card, CPU sold separately or together with Apple display (at a discount to match current iMac model pricing), maybe with an online store banner like "Mix and iMac". This would allow buyers to upgrade the CPU or the monitor in the future, but most people would still use the Apple displays for the integrated iMac experience, and Apple could save on the production costs of displays through economies of scale. This would be the Power Mac 8,1 in OS 10.3.4.

3. Power Mac: dual 2.2, 2.4 and 2.6 GHz PPC 970FX, bus speed 50% proc speed, dual channel memory up to 533 MHz DDR II, PCI Express, dual layer 8X SuperDrive. To ship at end of Aug (possibly dual 3 GHz model announced to ship end of Sept). As usual, hopelessly inadequate standard RAM and overpriced RAM upgrades. Same price points as the current models, with the exception of the dual 3 GHz, which would retail for $3999. These models would be the Power Mac 7,3 in OS 10.3.4.

4. Possibly wireless firewire transmitter, 3 foot range.

5. Tiger: to be compiled with IBM's new compiler instead of GCC, with an estimated 30% performance gain. New compiler to be immediately available to developers.

Before year's end: PPC 975, based on Power5 architecture, with improved AltiVec implementation. This would be the chip designated as "Trinity".

Sorry for the length of this post. If any of this is correct, it will be due to the sheer volume of speculation in it!

[eric67]

I have learned that some "VIP" have received their invitation for the inaugural event of iTMS Europe launch which will apparently take place in London. :)

[Belly-laughs]

I´m expecting a Burton G5 jacket.

[adamjay]

::crosses fingers for dual 2.2GHz G5 for $1599 (after -$200 ComboDrive downgrade):: :D

[eric67]

How's this for tying these all together:

Before WWDC: iTMS Europe (and hopefully Japan and Canada, too).

WWDC:

1. Displays: widescreen 17, 20, 23 and 30" plasma displays with thin aluminum bevel, hangable or attachable to a desktop stand or (with the exception of the 30") the new iMac arm. Possibly with wireless firewire (great oxymoron!)

2. iMac G5: somewhat larger aluminum base with a similar articulating arm, 1.6 and 1.8 GHz PPC 970FX, 64 MB graphics card, CPU sold separately or together with Apple display (at a discount to match current iMac model pricing), maybe with an online store banner like "Mix and iMac". This would allow buyers to upgrade the CPU or the monitor in the future, but most people would still use the Apple displays for the integrated iMac experience, and Apple could save on the production costs of displays through economies of scale. This would be the Power Mac 8,1 in OS 10.3.4.

3. Power Mac: dual 2.2, 2.4 and 2.6 GHz PPC 970FX, bus speed 50% proc speed, dual channel memory up to 533 MHz DDR II, PCI Express, dual layer 8X SuperDrive. To ship at end of Aug (possibly dual 3 GHz model announced to ship end of Sept). As usual, hopelessly inadequate standard RAM and overpriced RAM upgrades. Same price points as the current models, with the exception of the dual 3 GHz, which would retail for $3999. These models would be the Power Mac 7,3 in OS 10.3.4.

4. Possibly wireless WiFi transmitter, 3 foot range.

5. Tiger: to be compiled with IBM's new compiler instead of GCC, with an estimated 30% performance gain. New compiler to be immediately available to developers.

Before year's end: PPC 975, based on Power5 architecture, with improved AltiVec implementation. This would be the chip designated as "Trinity".

Sorry for the length of this post. If any of this is correct, it will be due to the sheer volume of speculation in it!
according to IBM specs, a PPC970fx running at 3GHz is not possible...because with a ratio 1/2, the FSB will have to be 1.5GHz...and IBM do not have such a chipset...the last one they have released in February allowed max 1.3GHz, in other word 2.6GHz PPC970fx...
so if we have a PMG5 at 3 GHz, it has to be a PPC975...
now this is based on recent tech info from IBM...maybe there is something new...
what you are reporting (2.2/2.4/2.6) are actually the revision which was planned/expected for February 2004....and never came out...
so forget it...I think apple has extensively delayed the release and killed one revision...at the WWDC we are probably going to see the revision planned for Sept2004/Jan 2005...it has to be something big, because sells are really down now.
same for iMacG5, for which I think your expectation are correct...it will be 970fx with models ranging from 1.6 to 2 or even 2.2 GHz...not problem with PM models, since they will all be dual ranging from 2.5-3 GHz
let's wait for the WWDC

[eric67]

::crosses fingers for dual 2.2GHz G5 for $1599 (after -$200 ComboDrive downgrade):: :D
last week, Director of Apple France (a good friend of Apple Europe Director who is also French) was reporting that Apple will apply more aggressive price politics in the future PMG5 line...
so here we go for a less that 1500 Euro/$ Dual PMG5 @ 2.2 :eek:

[adamjay]

is that, Apple France will be more aggressive, or Apple in general? because i'll take the discount stateside as well. ;)

[NOV]

Product releases have come as such a pathetically slow pace that it borders on insane. I know of no company in the PC world that releases a desktop once per year. And the same could be said of Apple’s laptops. Sure they have given us some speedbumps but it’s nothing new. Nothing drastically different. This is supposedly THE innovative company.

Slow pace does not necessarily has to be a too bad thing. It gives people comfort to know that their relatively large investment on Apple stuff is not vaporizing within months.

[eric67]

is that, Apple France will be more aggressive, or Apple in general? because i'll take the discount stateside as well. ;)
well the way it was said make it unclear...now that we have higher Tax rate (VAT), but since 1 euro=1.2US$, basically Europe prices copy US price, so I guess the price politics should be for both side?!?!?

but I am pretty sure that the future low-end model will be at least a Dual 1.8GHz...wit ha price probably between the current single 1.6 and the dual 1.8GHz...
indeed the current ADC promotion is restricted to single 1.6GHz...
so we can expect 1.8 Dual being potentially the low-end of the future revision (I personaly think that the low-end will be dual 2 or 2.2 GHz)

[EDIT]
here is a news related to what I was speaking about above regardin G5 pricing in the future[EDIT]
http://www.hardmac.com/niouzcontenu.php?date=2004-06-07#2242

[jimboboc82]

I'm pretty sure the website you're thinking of is this one:

http://www.theapplecollection.com/

I check this every now and then coz i'm obsessed with apple's designs, the only problem with the site is they don't see to update the good stuff often.


James


Or to be more specific: http://www.theapplecollection.com/design/macdesign/HiMacR12.html

:: offtopic ::

I just had a dream I bought a shiny new 12" PB with max ram and everything.. i was so glad.. I just don't know if it was a g5pb because it was so superb ;) ...if it was, let's BRING ON THE G5PB RUMORS! ;D

:: less offtopic ::

back to reality. I almost accindentally found myself at this page that has illustrations of imagined apple hw, wallpapers and such. there was this damn cool hiMac. It was pretty much just an aluminium display that had all the usb/fw/whatever ports and optical drive on the sides. it also could be dragged around. that would be a computer I'd want on my desk.

anyone who knows the site i'm talking about please feel free to input the address. can't find it anywhere.

:: ontopic ::

tomorrow will be a good day. so will be the rest till 28th. can't wait.

[SirusBodine]

:: offtopic ::

I just had a dream I bought a shiny new 12" PB with max ram and everything.. i was so glad.. I just don't know if it was a g5pb because it was so superb ;) ...if it was, let's BRING ON THE G5PB RUMORS! ;D

:: less offtopic ::

back to reality. I almost accindentally found myself at this page that has illustrations of imagined apple hw, wallpapers and such. there was this damn cool hiMac. It was pretty much just an aluminium display that had all the usb/fw/whatever ports and optical drive on the sides. it also could be dragged around. that would be a computer I'd want on my desk.

anyone who knows the site i'm talking about please feel free to input the address. can't find it anywhere.

:: ontopic ::

tomorrow will be a good day. so will be the rest till 28th. can't wait.

www.applele.com?

[eric67]

hardmac.com just announced the following info
http://www.hardmac.com/niouzcontenu.php?date=2004-06-07#2241

or a small picture of this invitation:

[XForge]

The phrase "Wireless FireWire" makes my verbal cortex ache.

[javabear90]

Wouldn't it be cool if you had your 30" firewireless LCD hanging on your wall and you had a video iPod hook up to it and play a movie... wirelessly? Or have a video iPod display your pictures. Then you come home with you PowerBook and it automaticly hooks up to it and you start playing a computer game. Now what I think would be really cool is..... to have adapters. aka. an RCA to Firewireless so that you could hook up a VCR or an adapter to normal firewire - firewireless that hooked in. Or a display thing that hooked into a dvi slot. The posabiltiys go on...... :rolleyes:

[crazedbytheheat]

Just thinking out loud, but how cool would this be?:

One main tower/rackmount/server...whatever, in a strategic location somewhere in your house. This thing has some serious Wi-Fi antennae built in, huge hard drives, a few CPU's and it served out information to Displays and little portable tablets that you could use around the house. You could add an inexpensive tablet at any time (it would leave most of the storage to the central unit). Sync your iPod anywhere in the house over Firewireless, print, record with a Tivo program....damn..the possibilities are endless. You could probably pull this off now if you could afford a few Powerbooks and a G5 or two, but a well thought out version of this could be hot.

If the displays were priced right (<$400) I could imagine this being really cool for offices. One install of all applications, one computer to manage, etc. Just a small drive for caching application data to speed up locally used resources. Definitely some licensing and technical issues to be resolved, but it would be pretty awesome. I'd buy it for my house. It's a pain having to update multiple computers everytime there's a software update.

I know this is basically "the network is the computer" that Sun mentioned years ago that never came about, but I can't help but believe network bandwidth is finally getting to the point that this could work.

[Toe]

I predict (randomly, and out of the blue) that Apple will soon release a hardware iTunes. It will look just like iTunes, but it will be a hardware device... like a brushed metal/LCD panel that hangs on the wall.

It'll wirelessly suck MP3s from your Macs, iPods, etc., and be controllable by any bluetooth device. It will also be able to wifi songs directly from ITMS. It will have wireless speakers which can be placed wherever.

Considering how popular iTunes/ITMS/iPod are, Apple would be stupid not to make this device.

Think it's gonna happen in 04?

[dopefiend]

Think it's gonna happen in 04?

Yup, it will be released right next to the quad G5 3ghz machines :p

[Toe]

I predict (randomly, and out of the blue) that Apple will soon release a hardware iTunes.

Oh, and they should probably call it wallPod.

:D

[crazedbytheheat]

Would you commit your fortune 500 company to a company that has less then 1% of the market? And if you say yes you are a flat out liar.

CEO to IT dude: Are you stupid or what? I can't even believe you'd consider an AS/400 to host our database? Just look at their market share.

(Or maybe not).

The primary reason most companies use windows boxes has nothing to do with market share and everything to do with price, inertia, and compatibility. Buying the best tool for business user's typically isn't a main concern (sad, but true). I was at a client site recently that was still using Win 98 on 386 machines!! An how many insurance company offices have you been to that are still running DOS apps.

Finally, I market share isn't what causes a company to go under or stay afloat, profit is. Truth be told, most computer manufacturers have single digit market share. It's just that people tend to lump all of the x86/Windows computer makers into one big pot. Furthermore, many of the 95% of the wintel manufacturers aren't even making any money. I expect most of them to go out of business well before Apple dissappears.

[MacinDoc]

All Power Mac models at the Apple Canada store have an estimated 7-10 business day wait for shipping, and CTO models with 9800 Pro video cards have a 4-6 week estimate for shipping. This is much longer than normal for the Canada store, and may confirm a dwindling supply of the current models.

Can't wait to get my hands on one of those new G5s.

Also, expect iPods to get updated to 20, 40, 60 GB this fall at the current or lower prices, and expect a price drop for the iPod Mini (OK, this hardly takes a genius to predict). iPod Minis to have worldwide shipping announced on June 15.

And to Canadians and hockey fans everywhere, Go Flames, Go! (sorry, couldn't help myself).

[sfwalter]

Only Apple...would (and could) make a consumer (me) who is 5 minutes away from an Apple store not spend their money because Apple wants to put on a show to unveil its products.

Apple--For the love of god, if you have the goods then release them.

I have been waiting for 4 months to upgrade to a G5, I guess I can wait another 3 weeks.

[NNO-Stephen]

according to IBM specs, a PPC970fx running at 3GHz is not possible...because with a ratio 1/2, the FSB will have to be 1.5GHz...and IBM do not have such a chipset...the last one they have released in February allowed max 1.3GHz, in other word 2.6GHz PPC970fx...
so if we have a PMG5 at 3 GHz, it has to be a PPC975...
now this is based on recent tech info from IBM...maybe there is something new...
what you are reporting (2.2/2.4/2.6) are actually the revision which was planned/expected for February 2004....and never came out...
so forget it...I think apple has extensively delayed the release and killed one revision...at the WWDC we are probably going to see the revision planned for Sept2004/Jan 2005...it has to be something big, because sells are really down now.
same for iMacG5, for which I think your expectation are correct...it will be 970fx with models ranging from 1.6 to 2 or even 2.2 GHz...not problem with PM models, since they will all be dual ranging from 2.5-3 GHz
let's wait for the WWDC

they don't have to use a 2:1 bus multiplier.

They could use 3:1 give a 3Ghz machine a 1Ghz bus. 2.8 would have a 933Mhz bus, and 2.6 would have an 867Mhz bus. that's plenty of bandwidth for the processors. I just wish they'd increase the L2 cache per processor. to 1MB. :)

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/02/12/ibm_90nm_g5_chip/

read that too,

[ddbean]

Sounds way kewl...

Press Release Source: Apple

Apple Unveils AirPort Express for Mac & PC Users
Monday June 7, 1:00 pm ET
World's First 802.11g Mobile Base Station Features AirTunes Music Networking

CUPERTINO, Calif., June 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple® today unveiled AirPort® Express, the world's first 802.11g mobile base station that can be plugged directly into the wall for wireless Internet connections and USB printing, or thrown into a laptop bag to bring wireless freedom to hotel rooms with broadband connections. Airport Express also features analog and digital audio outputs that can be connected to a stereo and AirTunes music networking software which works seamlessly with iTunes®, giving users a simple and inexpensive way to wirelessly stream iTunes music on their Mac® or PC to any room in the house. AirPort Express features a single piece ultra- compact design weighing just 6.7 ounces, and will be available to Mac and PC users starting in July for just $129.


"AirPort Express isn't just the world's first mobile 802.11g base station -- with the addition of AirTunes users can now play their iTunes music on any stereo in their home -- all without wires," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "This innovative Apple product will appeal to both notebook users who want wireless freedom in their hotel rooms and to music lovers who want to listen to their iTunes music library on a stereo located anywhere in their home."

Apple was the first company to offer consumers easy, affordable wireless networking and is now the first to offer a truly portable wireless base station compatible with industry standard 802.11g and 802.11b wireless devices. AirPort Express features an incredibly compact design with no power brick required, providing maximum portability so it can easily be taken on the road for wireless broadband access in hotel rooms. The AirPort Express mobile base station also includes a built-in combination digital and analog audio connector allowing users to connect AirPort Express to a home stereo, powered analog speakers or the latest digital 5.1 surround sound systems.

AirTunes is Apple's breakthrough music networking technology which works seamlessly with iTunes running on either Macs or PCs to let users easily create a wireless music network in their home. iTunes 4.6 automatically detects remote speakers and displays them in a simple pop-up list for the user to select. Once the remote speakers are selected, AirTunes wirelessly streams the iTunes music from the computer to the AirPort Express base station. AirTunes music is encoded to protect it from theft while streaming across the wireless music network and uses Apple's lossless compression technology to insure no loss of sound quality. AirPort Express provides a range of up to 150 feet, and multiple AirPort Express base stations can be bridged together to send music to extended areas.

AirPort Express offers both Mac and PC users the ability to share a single DSL or cable broadband account with up to 10 simultaneous users and a single USB printer with multiple users. With its advanced security features, AirPort Express safeguards data on networked computers with support for WiFi Protected Access (WPA), 128-bit encryption and a built-in firewall.

Pricing & Availability

AirPort Express can be ordered immediately through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com) and is expected to be available in July at Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $129 (US). AirTunes requires the next version of iTunes, iTunes 4.6, which is expected to be available later this week as a free download.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offerings.
# (C) 2004 Apple. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, Mac, Mac OS, AirPort, iTunes and Apple Store are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

[DHagan4755]

Okay, if Apple releases the new Power Macs before the WWDC and announces the new iMac before the WWDC, I wonder what new hardware will be shown at WDDC :confused: :eek:

[jwtseng]

ddbean...

Nice catch on the Airport Express. I'll credit you with the first posting!

[Toe]

I predict (randomly, and out of the blue) that Apple will soon release a hardware iTunes. /snip/ It will also be able to wifi songs directly from ITMS. It will have wireless speakers which can be placed wherever.
Can I call 'em or what? I posted this half an hour before AirPort Express (http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/) was announced.

Ha.

I'm just surprised it isn't brushed metal. But I didn't see the portability aspect, so can understand why it'd be more like iPod than iTunes.

[agentmouthwash]

http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/


http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/


http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/


http://www.apple.com/airportexpress/

[snahabed]

Damnit I thought I would be the first one to point out Airport Express here! :)

[iriejedi]

ddbean...

Nice catch on the Airport Express. I'll credit you with the first posting!

No way I was first *smirk* I went the wrong route - went for the rumore/new submission but found this!

IJ

[jwtseng]

Alright, alright...props to everyone who noticed... hehe.

[Skiniftz]

Well looks like the "home appliance" rumours were not unfounded.

[liketom]

Any one know when it will be ready for download?????

tom

[Rantipole]

Apple--For the love of god, if you have the goods then release them.

I have been waiting for 4 months to upgrade to a G5, I guess I can wait another 3 weeks.
Me, too. BUT, it BETTER be worth the wait, or I will be very angry. :mad: To the point of buying a Windows PC??? We'll see.

[midifarm]

There have been speculations galore about the upcoming G5's, but no one that I've seen has mentioned my thought. We've heard the rumour about delays stemming from ATI and nVidia supplies. Could it be that Apple has been working with them both closely to ditch AGP altogether from their motherboards and use PCI Extreme? This could account for the delays and smaller motherboard speculated from the leaked photo.

One question to those that thought the fans would be removed. Why would you need or want to remove them if they're not causing harm and they're quiet? Cooler is always better. Even liquid cooled would be nice, but circulation is still needed.

More drive bays? That'd be a great thing especially for independent audio/video guys that can't afford an X-Raid.

Any thoughts?

Peace

[~Shard~]

As I mentioned in another thread, maybe the "new display" rumors and the "new iMac" rumors are one in the same - perhaps, continuing with its "all-in-one" design, the new G5 iMac with simply be a new display and that's it! Make the display a few inches thicker, stick the equivalent of an iPod hard drive behind the LCD, a slot-loading SuperDrive in the side of the display, as well as your RAM and all your other components! ;) :cool: