here is my 2c why apple is drawing out these updates, is they want to get the most money out of what now is most likly a cheaper manfurcting process. the people apple is targeting are not us. they are not the poeple who read macrumors, and know excatly how long a particuar model has been out. It some guy/gal or pointy haired boss who is using m$ right now. These guys don't go and look when they think apple is going to update, if they are convinced to buy apple they do it now. Thats what i did. I bought a 800Mhz ibook, and found out i was getting a 900mhz ibook (last G3 ibook refresh april/2003), and thats what a lot of people do. They need/want an new computer now, not maybe next week/month when apple updates there products. Apple is more than happy to sell systems like this because after X months of a product release there margins increase, and they make more profit. Apple will put new products out when it is profitable for apple, not when it would make us macrumors people happy.
BUT... at this point apple need to update there products soon (1/2 months) becuase the x86 world is catching up to the G5, and the P-M is faster than our powerbooks.
We will see, within the next 1/2 months.
2.0, 2.3, 2.5 Powermacs.
1.2(12 inch),1.3(15 inch),1.4(15 inch),1.5(17) G4 powerbooks (the 1.5 G4 is good competion for the P-M, not matter how many people say the G4 is dead its not. The G4 has a shorter pipeline and a better altivec pipeline, futhermore the pipleine of the G4 is shorter than the P-M. The only thing that holds the G4 back is the current bus, if someone could design a true DDR bus for the G4 i would be more than happy to buy a computer with a G4 not matter how dead it is. If IBM would make a 1.5 GHz G3 and through it in an ibook i'd buy it, the G3(i don't use altivec that much) only has a 5 stage pipline, less than half that of the G4 and G5, and a fifth that of a P4.
1.6,1.8 G5 (moto can't get G4's that fast) imac by WWDC, i hope there isn't a major redesign, i love the white ibook, imac thing.
1.(something) G4 in a emac. i would like to see a g5 in there but that would cut into imac sales, and i think apple want to stop that.
1.0(12 inch), 1.2(14 inch) G4 ibooks by WWDC always keep below the powerbooks.
well anyways my 2c. I know alot of people say the same kinda of stuff, and i am not sure that we will see many of these before WWDC, but we can hope. If i think about if apple does any of these updates one at a time it will screw up their product grid, maybe they will do it. maybe they won't. i think its a big gamble for them to wait to WWDC to anouce all of these things. but that is the next big thing, and to update the whole product grid would take a big event (has an the whole apple product line ever been updated at once?) several months is a long time in the computer world. Apple is on the verge of a comeback, i know i have convinced 5 or 6 people to buy apple because of OS X(i think people have always had respect for apple hardware), but i do think that the next to excute the next 2-3 years flawlessly, and we will see a surge in apple market share 10-15% if they do everything right in the next 3-4 years. many, many people are sick of windows.. but any ways product delays kinda hurt, but sometimes they don't, most people don't know what 2.0 Ghz G5, or 3.0 Ghz P4 or any of that means.
so here it is, steve made the gamble. knowing who he is selling the most stuff to. we will not see a major product refresh till wwdc in june. i don't like it you don't like, but apple will....
[edit] - this was one train of though, so forgive me at the beging when i say 1/2 mounts.
