ThinkSecret's MWSF Wrapup

[MacRumors]

ThinkSecret has compiled their summary of what they believe that MacWorld SF will bring.

Most significantly, they echo CNet's report that Apple will start charging upgrade fees for certain iApps. They also report on an introduction of 802.11g -- an new an improved Airport. Finally, they stick to their previous report that no new hardware will be introduced.

The possibility of an iChat update and an Apple branded browser remain on the list, however.

[Groovsonic]

All I can say is It would stink so bad if apple started charging for iApp updates!

Thats part of the reason I bought a Mac!

[alset]

I will be very sad if my week old Airport network is already obsolete. On the other hand, bring on more things we can brag about to our PC friends!

Dan

[vniow]

Originally posted by alset
I will be very sad if my week old Airport network is already obsolete.

802.11g is backwards compatible with Airport which uses 802.11b.

[lmalave]

Originally posted by Groovsonic
All I can say is It would stink so bad if apple started charging for iApp updates!

Thats part of the reason I bought a Mac!

I agree part of the appeal of the Mac (especially for switchers) is that i comes bundled with such great iApps. I guess you still get them for free when you buy a new mac, but still, charging for upgrades would feel like a little bit of bait-and-switch for this recent buyer

I don't think Apple will do this though. Apple makes great software, but their margins are still coming from the hardware, so I still think that Apple will keep all iApps free as a compelling reason to switch to OS X.

[IJ Reilly]

The only thing more "hilarious" then Dan Gillmor predicting an Apple-branded PDA is ThinkSecret predicting a Mac tablet computer.

[MacManiac1224]

Think Secret is usually on the ball when it comes to predictions, I think this is what we are going to expect.

[bigdog]

I really don't like the sound of this but I suppose there isn't much we can all do. I appreciate what Apple does, and I'll be one of the last people to ever switch to Windows [I'm using WinXP right now at work and can't stand it] but at the same time, we're all getting these free programs and updates time after time.

One thing about recent [read: any mac that can run OS X] Macs is that everything has always, more or less, just worked. My father, a long time Windows user, who jokingly gives me grief about my choice of Macs, was blown away by the new G4 he helped set up at my mother's office. "I plugged in the printer, and it knew right away what kind it was. I plugged in the monitor and it gave me the brand and model number and suggested all these resolutions for it. It was amazing."
These sentiments were echoed come Christmas morning when he couldn't find the drivers for his camera to work on their freshly reformatted PC. Like Janie Porche [but male and admittedly harder on the eyes than a brillo pad] I was able to bust out my iBook and iPhoto and "save the day", so to speak. My sister-in-law's parents, two technophobes [the most advanced thing they've ever used was the basic cash register at the bakery they own] thought the way iPhoto and iTunes and all of the other iApps I was able to show off work together just amazingly.

While I can continue to show these programs and others to friends and family [turned a friend onto iCal last night after showing him how to add the Red Sox and Bruins' calendars] it will become increasingly harder to do so when newer features fall to the side as I cannot always afford the newest and best. That's why my desktop machine is still beige, and my iBook is a refurb. I look forward to amazing things coming from Cupertino, and I know that Apple is always going to amaze us, especially with Jobs as the ringleader of the iCircus. I can only hope that, as the popularity of Apple increases proportionally to the decrease of general patience with Microsoft, Apple realizes that the simplicity and beauty of these iApps, satisfying power user and novice alike, is something that pulls people to OS X. I'd like to believe that Apple will continue to provide core iApps for free, but I know that's really wishful thinking.

Remember, of course, how many people thought the rumormills were smoking kitty litter when the iTools + $50 = .Mac equation hit the news wire...

[nanosound]

Yeah, it makes sense they'll charge, just like they do for .Mac and each revision of X. They have to make money somehow, especially since their pro machines just aren't selling too well (gee, I wonder why?).

[mymemory]

iCal: I couldn't care less.
iTunes: Nice, enogh with iTunes 2, I doub it can sounds better with the original Mac audio outputs.
iMovie: Extra nice, worth the upgrade.
iDVD: I'll see, there are lots of things needed to be added.

BTW .Mac... I see no future for it.

I guess that is it.

[vallette]

The package includes iMovie, iDVD, and iPhoto. The upgrade to iMovie 2.0 was $49, the upgrade to iDVD 2.0 was $20. What's the big deal? You get 3 upgrades for the price of upgrading to iMovie 2.0. You still get the software free when you by a Mac, you only pay if you want new features. BFD.

[richard5mith]

iCal, iMovie and iDVD for $49 wouldn't be bad, especially since they charged for the last iMovie update as well (v2.0), so this isn't a new thing. Although if they had any sense, they'd include them with the .Mac subscription.

Although I'm starting to wonder if they do have any sense.

As for the rest of the predictions, like they point out, they were right on the money last show time. And apart from the Superdrive/Powerbook thing a couple of months ago, they're usually always on the money. A tablet though.... that's a hell of a secret to keep. But if it runs OS X, that'd certainly explain the VERY strange addition of inkwell in 10.2.

Oh I don't know. But I've got the day off work on Tuesday to watch.

[dguisinger]

Originally posted by alset
I will be very sad if my week old Airport network is already obsolete. On the other hand, bring on more things we can brag about to our PC friends!

Dan

Actually, there are several vendors (linksys comes to mind) that have announced they begun to ship 802.11g equipment for PCs. I use both PCs and Macs. Several years ago it was something to brag about........Apple took Lucents OEM PC Cards and bundled them in macs at $99, while Lucent and the competition sold them for $500. Now, 802.11b and 802.11g equipment from companies like LinkSys sell for under $100, infact closer to $75. Apple may be the first system vendor to use the faster g spec out of the box, but it is no longer the case of Apple setting a new trend. Apple set the wireless trend several years ago, and now the PC world has caught up. Since G is compatable with B, most companies will just phase out B production and insert G instead. (note, backwards compatable at 11Mbps).

-Dan

[Durandal7]

Give it a rest and stop bitching about the iApps. iMovie 2 was $49, why shouldn't they charge for iPhoto and iDVD? You should all be grateful that it isn't $49 for each program instead of complaining about how Apple is dooming itself and that you think all Software, OS upgrades and web hosting should be free for life.

[dguisinger]

Originally posted by Durandal7
Give it a rest and stop bitching about the iApps. iMovie 2 was $49, why shouldn't they charge for iPhoto and iDVD? You should all be grateful that it isn't $49 for each program instead of complaining about how Apple is dooming itself and that you think all Software, OS upgrades and web hosting should be free for life.

I agree. I know I sure get spoiled easily, but companies in this economy are diving head first into the ground if they don't charge for what services they provide. While it would be suicide to charge $49 each, $49 for a bundle isn't that bad.

Personally, with 10.3 coming a few months down the road with some new desktop models.........the savings along with the performance benifits seem worth it to upgrade my FP iMac.

But who knows, although ThinkSecret was right in July...lets wait and see what the real announcement is. Maybe its a two-way approach....maybe $50, or free upgrades if you use .Mac......you never know. Using that apprach, they satisfy two groups....the group who doesnt wan't .Mac.....who wouldn't want to pay the extra $50 for services they don't want..........and the .Mac group, who aren't happy at paying $99 for the services and would like more things included.

-Dan

[g30ffr3y]

id say that charging for i-app upgrades isnt a bad idea and since all new macs still have them installed it wouldnt really effect any new switchers... but i must contradict that as i just purchased a gig powerbook last month with what will soon be old versions of these apps... that kinda sucks since the $3000.00 is a little steep in the first place and now another fifty to get the upgrades... im already paying for the .mac when i used to have itools free... such is the life a mac user... but id never go back to m$ so out comes my visa...

[pyrotoaster]

I agree that paying for iApp updates kinda sucks, but paying for anything kinda sucks, so there's really no point in dwelling on it. Apple does need to make money, they just need to make the prices right for their users.
I think most of us would be okay with inexpensive quality apps. Offering the upgrades in bundle form only isn't a good idea, though. Of iPhoto, iMovie, and iDVD, I only use iPhoto regularly, and would be more willing to pay let's say $20 for iPhoto 2 than $50 for all three.
What perplexes me is the lack of any hardware of any sort, that's why I'm willing to put some faith in the possibility of a tablet.

[g30ffr3y]

just to feed the tablet rumor... i was watching tech tv last week and id swear that i saw a tablet that looked just like the screen of an imac... they didnt say anything about it, but id swear thats what it was... anyway... as far as the iapps go... im sure panther [cheetah, pinot... whatever 10.3] will have current versions of all the iapps when we have to shell out for that... so who knows... i just want an ipod...

[henryblackman]

While I personally wouldn't probably spend the money (as long as it's less than $50 for the whole lot of upgrades), I think Apple - while perhaps acting like a business instead of the company we've known and loved - will be shooting itself in the foot.

iApps are currently what is selling hardware, without decent and FREE, iApps, Apple - right now at least - has NOTHING to compete with. Mac OS X isn't what people see when it comes to doing something with their computer, it's the iApps. Mac OS X doesn't do anything that a computer shouldn't be expected to do... iApps make a Mac a Mac and somewhat better than PCs. Otherwise I'd be running Linux or FreeBSD :-(

Take away free iApps and you take away what people do with their machines. What does that leave. EXPENSIVE hardware thats all.

I hope Thinksecret is wrong. If they are right, at least about the iApps, it's going to be a very quiet Macworld. What's the point of streaming it if there is nothing being announced. Anyway, isn't it true that Steve writes his keynotes only the day before to ensure people don't know what's coming...

[pyrotoaster]

I was struck by the last sentence of this part of Think Secret's article: "We can't see Steve Jobs doing a keynote with just a bunch of iApp announcements and a new AirPort base station as the main items. There are rumblings of something bigger than any of this; something Apple should be congratulated for keeping under such tight wraps, if true. Let's say it's 40% inspiration, 60% clues, but we wouldn't be totally surprised to see an innovative tablet Mac in the $1100 to $1500 range. Just think of it...Inkwell handwriting recognition, iSync capabilities, Bluetooth and a PCMCIA slot for an optional AirPort card. Just like the iMac, it's time for Apple to innovate again."
I think it is time for Apple to innovate again, and when put like that, I think a very different tablet is on the way.

[bbarnhart]

You still get a copy of all the iApps when you buy a new computer. The upgrades to future newer version is what you will be paying for. In my opinion, that seems fair. No one says you have to upgrade.

(Now watch Apple make .Mac dependant on the newest versions of its iApps)

[Codemonkey]

Originally posted by g30ffr3y
that kinda sucks since the $3000.00 is a little steep in the first place and now another fifty to get the upgrades... im already paying for the .mac when i used to have itools free... such is the life a mac user... but id never go back to m$ so out comes my visa...

I feel the same way... I always take into account the total package... which helps in justifying the steep-ish prices (like everyone seems to say: feature for feature the Mac is a better deal... right?). So by charging for these once-included features (irregardless of upgrades pricing in the past), you've detracted from the overal value of the Mac platform. Kicked the platform right out from under it, in fact.

By charging for every little thing and for all intents and purposes keeping their hardware prices the same is pretty underhanded. Here's an example...

2003 [insert car make and model here]*:
$24 000

* This does not include tires, or mirrors.

Obviously, some MFG's already do this. How do you feel about it when you end up paying $27 000 for that same car? Pretty jilted. And pretty soon Dell, Gateway et al will be advertising "Get a new computer for $xxx, no surprises. Honest"

Anyway, this turned a bit ranty, so I digress. After spending mucho $$ on a computer, some more on .Mac, and various low-impact upgrades (and over 3k on 3rd party software), More $$ to enjoy what used to be a given makes me sad...

[jettredmont]

Originally posted by edvniow





802.11g is backwards compatible with Airport which uses 802.11b.

True, but like all other backwards-compatible standards, note that your 802.11b equipment won't magically become faster until both sides of the connection are replaces by 802.11g.

Also, I don't know if 802.11g access points will be able to simultaneously connect to 802.11b and 802.11g clients. While this isn't a huge issue at home, it could be an issue in the workplace. Of course, corporate situations generally favor the more mature 802.11a product with 11 discrete channels (802.11g like 802.11b has three discrete channels amongst 11 non-discrete channels) and more containable range (yes, the ability to hack a company's servers from across the street is actually a problem ...).

802.11g is not yet standardized, too, which could be a problem. Last I saw it would be around May of this year (2003) before the standard could be finally ratified. Granted, hardware makers have a history of jumping the gun on pending standards, and Apple I think pushed AirPort using 802.11b out the door before that standard was ratified, but standard ratification does affect product availability and thus cost.

Nonetheless, if all new Macs were to sport 802.11g hardware, that would be a good future-looking investment, and you'd be ready to switch to 802.11g when you change your access points over, and until then can stay with 802.11b ...

[pyrotoaster]

Think Secret's report says, "we hear something Apple will announce Microsoft won't be happy about" while talking about the possibility of an Apple web browser.
I admit there are good chances of an iWeb or something like that (especially since the man in charge of the Chimera project went to work for Apple), and that would anger Microsoft (bye, bye Explorer).
But a tablet would also anger Microsoft, wouldn't it. Gates has been putting so much into the tablet (the results are like the monsters in Metroid Prime, laptops with screens that twist and turn around), that a kick-@$$ Apple tablet would really piss off Microsoft. More reasons to love the idea!

[totally_fly]

if u care so much about the price, get the updates on carracho.. god..

if you're pathetic, you can even use hotline.. stop whining