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Apple Planning Entirely New Mac Product Line?

ctdonath said:
Well...it is. My only use for optical drives now is to check & copy legacy discs before tossing them in the trash or deep storage. Don't use the drive much at all; one good USB-powered portable DVD reader kept in a drawer would be enough, alongside the for-freak-discoveries-only USB 3.5" floppy drive.
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You are 1 person, even if I get 7 people saying "I dont use my optical drive either" doesnt change the fact that millions of people out there, maybe even more will require regular access to a Disk Drive.


BornAgainMac said:
I kinda wish the Post PC era was another decade away. Not liking what I am reading.
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Microsoft Slams "Post PC" idea
 
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I'm hoping for a 'Microsoft Surface done right.' It could kind of be like laying at a slight angle like their keyboards or trackpads and have the option of using a keyboard/mouse with it. Lion could be used, with the same type of falling away of the stoplights and other things that is present in Quicktime X or as smaller full screen apps (kind of).

The ablitity to organize your workspace in a very natural way would be probably the largest benefit. You could flick windows around and resize them with pinch-to-zoom; maybe even rotate them and stuff. The webOS way of flicking windows to the top of the screen to end them woukd be cool. Finder could be implemented like the Twitter app for iPad, where you can flick through with the ever-present pane on the side.

I think it would even better if it had an ARM processor in it (in addition to an Intel processor)for running iOS apps as kind of widgets/more windows. It would be kind of like having a bunch of iPhones/iPads all over your desk to use and arrange however you saw fit, especially if it had a 20-35" screen.

It would be like the most natural way to use a computer to me, with all of the organization just like a desk. Coupled with gestures to do things like switch spaces and stuff that are already available in Lion would be perfect, with the implementation of apps just like they appear on the iPad, so all you would need to do is port them over. Personally, this is where I would love to move to in computing, and I think Apple is the most ready to do something like this.

Priced right (probably around $1499) this could be the most natural computing device you could ever use. Add in something like voice control and it's almost science fiction now. I don't know why something like this couldn't be done with Lion with an improvement or two in the extremely near future. A direct port of some apps could be made from the iPad to this device. I have no idea what they would call it, but if they got it to a good enough price for more mainstream use, they would definitely have a hit on their hands!

Just my 2¢.
 
MorphingDragon said:
Of course Microsoft would say that. But really that desicion is up to the hardware manufacturers.
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And of course Apple would say "Post-PC Era" if they can cause the demise of Computers, and push everyone towards tablets, they would be in a position to have a leading marketshare. Instead of their current 7-8%.

I could understand the term "Post-PC" if PC's were dying out, and tablets were a suitable replacement for all PC's. But as it stands now, Tablets are merely Media Consumption devices. They are not capable of creating much. And are currently not powerful enough to become a replacement. Yes there people out there like my Parents and Grandparents who use the iPads i bought them more than their Computers, but currently, they will inevitably come across something they need a PC for.

I agree with Microsoft, Tablets and such are not devices to replace your Computer, they are devices that compliment and work with your Computer. I believe that computers will always be around. Although Windows 8 will actually be a big step-up for Tablets, being a fullly fledged OS on one, allowing you access to the file-system, and everything a desktop can do.
 
I would like to see some sort of Mini Tower but I know it won't happen... it doesn't seem very Apple like. I am thinking we will see something that is more based on iOS. It may be some sort of more powerful iPad and less powerful MBAir that runs iOS on an A6 chip? Maybe like a 11 and 13" iOS laptop? huge battery life, more powerful than the iPad... who knows. All I know is that if it is game changing like the iPod, iPhone and iPad were than we are in for another treat. Even all you Apple haters have to thank Apple for popularizing and pushing technology for the better.
 
Pretty sure that something was lost in translation. My bet is, that It won't be an entirely new addition to the Mac line up but an expansion of one of the existing products.

MY guess would be an 15 MacBook Air. Over the next 2-3 years I would expect 2 line ups of Apple Laptops. The Airs and the Pros. The MacBook Pro with a better graphic card and a HD SSD combo. The optical drive will go away, as the writing is on the (Mac Mini) wall.

In future, when better graphic performance is available in a smaller package, SSDs are cheaper and the iCloud has taken off, the MacBook Airs and the Pros will merge into one line up of laptops only.

The Mac Pro won't see a design change or upgrade until new processors are available.
 
Benjy91 said:
And of course Apple would say "Post-PC Era" if they can cause the demise of Computers, and push everyone towards tablets, they would be in a position to have a leading marketshare. Instead of their current 7-8%.

I could understand the term "Post-PC" if PC's were dying out, and tablets were a suitable replacement for all PC's. But as it stands now, Tablets are merely Media Consumption devices. They are not capable of creating much. And are currently not powerful enough to become a replacement. Yes there people out there like my Parents and Grandparents who use the iPads i bought them more than their Computers, but currently, they will inevitably come across something they need a PC for.

I agree with Microsoft, Tablets and such are not devices to replace your Computer, they are devices that compliment and work with your Computer. I believe that computers will always be around. Although Windows 8 will actually be a big step-up for Tablets, being a fullly fledged OS on one, allowing you access to the file-system, and everything a desktop can do.
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Check out the iPad forum. You'll probably have someone claiming that they edit and encode 4K video with no problems at all. :D
 
AppleScruff1 said:
Check out the iPad forum. You'll probably have someone claiming that they edit and encode 4K video with no problems at all. :D
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So true... Whenever discussing the iPad's possibility of being a computer replacement, people talk about this "amazing" stuff they do on their iPad. :p I don't know about anyone else, but my iPad felt like a huge iPhone. I sold it
 
Yumunum said:
How does that even make sense? A touchscreen Mac Pro?
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Here's what I think the next desktop will be.

Storto said:
Well, I'm pretty good at coming up with "new" stuff. Just by thinking new and different than any other....., My guess is: a Large iMac with a really low mount. almost an iPad on steroids. Multi-touch screen, but large and comfortable enough to use both hands on it. Maybe even gesture recognition too. (in the camera/iSight). this also stream-lines the need for magic trackpad.
Imagine the gestures you could come up with, not with 1-2-3-4 fingers, but two hands moving and rotating. You'd really be able to intuitively move things around and navigate your work space. Almost like from the movies Minority Report and Ironman, but 2D vice 3D.
This would also be a logical next step for lion.
I can already see the keynote; Steve Jobs grabs a window a slings it into the corner of the desktop to get it out of the way.
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But the more I think about it. I think the next generation devices will be very iCloud intensive. Your iPhone and your desktop will have the ability to make you lazy. The basis of most Million dollar ideas.
Here's my 2 cents:

I submitted this idea to Apple after hearing they acquired the Siri Assistant App in April of 2010. Although I could patent it or act on it, I’m a stock holder and would rather “help than hurt” Apple.

So imagine this, your driving home from work, and you hear a voice in your car,”Looks like your heading home sir, would you like me to get the house ready?” Answer ,”yes” and the next thing you know, you HVAC kicks on, the lights turn on just as you round the corner, and your house unlocks.
This IS possible....Right now, If you haven’t played with the free Siri Assistant App, you should, it uses a combination of AI and data on your phone to “figure” things out. like give you reminders, get you a cab, even tell you where the best steak in town is. All this is accomplished via Nuance voice recognition.
Combining this technology, with Apps that already exist, is the next logical step, you can control and automate everything in your life.
Here is a break-down of the example in the first paragraph:
1)Your iPhone knows your location, the AI can be programed to do things after entering certain geo-fences, if your closing the distance to your house at a rate equal to 10% less than the speed limit, it thinks your heading home.
2)Home = the home address on your contact card in the contacts app.
3)Now the tricky part, Apps already exist that can control your Lights, HVAC, and door locks. There just needs to be an action like Applescript, /tell [application name] run [script name]. All that is needed is the protocol for apps to accept commands from IOS 5.
That is just one example. Using this technology could, Automatically set your alarm in the morning, tell you your schedule for the day, even turning on your house, wakening your computer, just by you grabbing your phone(combining the accelerometers, and your location).
I hope that this idea motivates you to come up with some interesting innovations, but i really hope Apple follows though on this one.
 
The article says there's going to be a new, different Mac model launching this year. It's not going to be revolutionary and change computing forever or anything like that. Probably something more like a 15" Air or the slimmed down Pros without an optical drive and with SSDs.
 
A REAL desktop that isn't built into a monitor. Please? That is the one device that is completely missing from the Mac line and I bet it costs them millions of sales every year. Why you ask? Because corporate america won't buy iMacs, thinks the Mini is too restricted, and doesn't need workstations.
 
Benjy91 said:
Microsoft Slams "Post PC" idea
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And yet oddly he completely agrees completely with what Steve said.
So I wonder if there are a whole bunch of people who need to listen and understand before they react.

I dare say that the market for trucks has never really shrunk but they are certainly past their peek growth and general interest. That doesn't mean there aren't any number of very profitable business models to service that market.
 
hayesk said:
Except that, you know, most people don't know how or want to upgrade parts in their computer.
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But many people want more BTO options - so that even if the end user never opens the box it's nice to have a PCIe 2.0 x16 slot with 150w of power in case you want a better graphics card. A couple of PCIe slots.... Or a couple of empty drive bays if you want more storage (without a rat's nest of mismatched expansion boxes, a tangle of USB/1394/USB cables and bunch of power bricks).

For most people, the point of the upgradeable system is more options at the point of purchase, not necessarily the advantage of being able to have someone upgrade it for you years later.

For some people, though, the "years later" is extremely important for extending the life of the system.
 
clickgr said:
People used to say the same for Apple in the phone industry before the iPhone.
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But the phone industry was growing; new phones features were coming out left, right and centre. Most of all, people were buying them.

TVs on the other hand, are not changing much and people aren't buying the new features.
 
It feels like Apple forgets us hardcore PC gamers exist. There will always be a market for PC's as long as there is gamers, as consoles just aren't enough for a lot of people. Never thought I'd do this, but I'm going to be building a PC so I can game on it. I'll still use my Mac for everything else, but I'll actually own a Windows computer, which is something I never thought I'd do.
 
Guess

If this is at all true it would have to be something a bit different then just a new form factor. I would guess something along the lines of an iMac 3D... the one that uses multiple layers all driven by independent GPUs.
 
sennekuyl said:
But the phone industry was growing; new phones features were coming out left, right and centre. Most of all, people were buying them.

TVs on the other hand, are not changing much and people aren't buying the new features.
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maybe Apple will surprise us all. who knows what they've got up their sleeve. for all we know they have one brilliant addition to TVs that hasn't been thought of before. just a thought.
 
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