WWDC 2006 Expectations

[Agilus]

About cameras in Mac Displays

I don't think that a camera in a Mac display is a big issue for companies, and here's why:

1. I work for a company that cares about security. We don't allow cameras in the building, with the recent exception of cell phones with cameras. The reason for the exception is because it is becoming difficult to get a cell phone without a camera. And really, these companies are almost always PC-based, so are they really big ACD purchasers?

2. In the lab, cell phones with cameras are still off limits. However, lab computers are pretty locked down with regards to software, and since you need software to use the camera, I think there are multiple easy solutions to this problem (e.g., restrict software installations, or maybe disable the camera at an OS level). It's possible that someone could bring in a laptop and do some funny business, but even that would have to be a company computer, or the user would be in serious trouble. And in the case of it being a company computer, it suffers all of the same issues of a lab equipped with non-camera-mounted monitors (or removable media for that matter).

 

[gugy]

I know that everyone thought 30" would be too big before they were released, but still, 40" for a desktop screen? That's bigger then most TV's. Think about cost as well. 42" LCD's (not plasmas) run at least $3K, and are usually 1366x768. There's likely a few 1080p screens, which would be probably around $5K. Considering the 30" is 2560x1600, we're looking at something around 4000x2500 (or whatever the ratio is). That would be WAY too expensive to ever be feasible to anyone except for a SMALL percentage of people/companies.

Yes, it would be expensive but some people out there and companies could afford. I bet the price would be the same when they introduced the 30" $3,500.
If you think the advantages of such a monitor for Pro people, I don't think $3,500 is so bad. The monitor would pay for itself quickly.
Bring it on Apple!

 

[Sijmen]

I'm pretty sure it's time for the Mac Pro. Alongside, something should happen to the Cinema Display.

The current models are
- way overpriced, especially the 20" and 23"
- the only current Apple display products (with the exception of the iPod) without have a built-in camera.

/edit:

4000x2500?!

Coolness. But you'd get tired of moving the mouse all the menu bar every time 😉

 

[ChickenSwartz]

How about this for WWDC:

--Talk about how great the switch to Intel is going
--Praise developers work on Universal apps
--Talk about pro software
--Sit down and preview Leopard
--Talk about new Core 2 Duo
--Oh, by the way the iMac I have been using has the new Core 2 Duo
(Conroe) in it (he seems to like to do this), shippng now
--We want our Pentium 4 Power Macs back...
--Introduce new Mac Pro (Woodcrest),
shipping now
--Talk about how transition to Intel is almost complete and will be by the end
of 2006
--Thanks for comng
One more thing...
--MBP with Core 2 Duo (to complete the Pro Line), shipping in two weeks

 

[twoodcc]

i can't wait!! and it's gonna be so hard buying a Macbook tomorrow and not being able to open it til the 7th!

 

[ChickenSwartz]

i can't wait!! and it's gonna be so hard buying a Macbook tomorrow and not being able to open it til the 7th!

Wish I could get a MBP for <$1500 then I would be in the same situation.

 

[Sijmen]

i can't wait!! and it's gonna be so hard buying a Macbook tomorrow and not being able to open it til the 7th!

Ah, you're buying it at that tax-free thing right? This is a nice idea.

 

[twoodcc]

Ah, you're buying it at that tax-free thing right? This is a nice idea.

yeah i am. but it's going to be hard just looking at the box all day. and i already have 2GB of RAM here for it as well 😱

 

[mandis]

How about this for WWDC:

--Talk about how great the switch to Intel is going
--Praise developers work on Universal apps
--Talk about pro software
--Sit down and preview Leopard
--Talk about new Core 2 Duo
--Oh, by the way the iMac I have been using has the new Core 2 Duo
(Conroe) in it (he seems to like to do this), shippng now
--We want our Pentium 4 Power Macs back...
--Introduce new Mac Pro (Woodcrest),
shipping now
--Talk about how transition to Intel is almost complete and will be by the end
of 2006
--Thanks for comng weeks

Sounds pretty reasonable to me 😉

One more thing...
--MBP with Core 2 Duo (to complete the Pro Line), shipping in two weeks

And I'll be on my way to the applestore... 😀

 

[Unorthodox]

How about this for WWDC:

--Talk about how great the switch to Intel is going
--Praise developers work on Universal apps
--Talk about pro software
--Sit down and preview Leopard
--Talk about new Core 2 Duo
--Oh, by the way the iMac I have been using has the new Core 2 Duo
(Conroe) in it (he seems to like to do this), shippng now
--We want our Pentium 4 Power Macs back...
--Introduce new Mac Pro (Woodcrest),
shipping now
--Talk about how transition to Intel is almost complete and will be by the end
of 2006
--Thanks for comng
One more thing...
--MBP with Core 2 Duo (to complete the Pro Line), shipping in two weeks

I doubt the MBP will get one more thing twice in a row.
The Mac Pro is going to get the spotlight.
"The fastest Mac ever" 100 times faster than the Power Mac.
I think the MacBook Pro and the Mac Pro will switch places on your list.

I wouldn't be surprised if all that happens is Leopard previews, Mac Pros and Steve rips his shirt off and crowd surfs.

 

[heisetax]

Minor speed bumps

macbook pro? imac core duo? intel mini? macbook? 😕

mac pro, xserve intel, leopard previews, maybe cinema displays, maybe something like a tablet that we haven't heard about.

no updates to imacs, macbooks, macbook pros, or minis. Those are minor speed bumps that will be done quietly over the coming weeks and months, not something to trumpet in a keynote.

But minor speed bumps is all they have to talk about. Some say that going from shipping a 2.16m2.0,1.83 GHz to shipping just a 2.16 & 2.0 GHz models is a speed bump. How can that be a speed bump when the max speed is still 2.16 GHz.

Other than a OS 10.5 demo I have no expectations for WWDC. I believe that Steve Jobs is too smart to bring out a new Intel PowerMac & have people see if he will promise that they will be up to the 3 GHz speed in a year. Or did he say 2 or 3 years or was that 2 or 3 processor changes before that happens.

With Photoshop, Quark, MS Office & other Mac productive software not yet able to run natively on an Intel Mac much of the excitement for the developer & Pro user is not there.

Apple has gone too long with waiting a year for updates that anything sooner than hat will take them awhile to do again.

The only thing I'd like to see is an easy to shange hard drive & optical drive in the Intel MacBook Pro 15" & 17" models. My PowerBook will last a long time, so I can wait. I may have to do all of my operations with an external drive. I always changed my hard drive for a newer drive once or twice a year. Sometimes I just wanted a different set of programs. My 15" TI PowerBook was easy to open & change hard drives. The new Intel MacBook seems to have a good answer for this problem. Let's see if Apple can do this in the Intel MacBook Pro line as well.

Bill the TaxMan

 

[michaelrjohnson]

How about this for WWDC:

--Talk about how great the switch to Intel is going
--Praise developers work on Universal apps
--Talk about pro software
--Sit down and preview Leopard
--Talk about new Core 2 Duo
--Oh, by the way the iMac I have been using has the new Core 2 Duo
(Conroe) in it (he seems to like to do this), shippng now
--We want our Pentium 4 Power Macs back...
--Introduce new Mac Pro (Woodcrest),
shipping now
--Talk about how transition to Intel is almost complete and will be by the end
of 2006
--Thanks for comng
One more thing...
--MBP with Core 2 Duo (to complete the Pro Line), shipping in two weeks

Line-by-line, I think that's the most accurate prediction to date.

 

[Grimace]

This is a DEVELOPERS' conference!! Steve usually announces something on ONE new/updated product. You guys who are "predicting" that Apple will update everything in the lineup are asking for a let down.

ONE new thing (Mac Pro) will be announced -- speed bumps and other updates usually happen 2-4 weeks AFTER the Developers' Conference. iMacs and MacBook Pros might get bumped in early September but that's it.

 

[JoshH]

I wouldn't be surprised if all that happens is Leopard previews, Mac Pros and Steve rips his shirt off and crowd surfs.

No, I think this is the closest so far 🙂

 

[michaelrjohnson]

But minor speed bumps is all they have to talk about.

It was the introduction of all these products that people keep referring to. IIRC, the MacBook, MacBook Pro, intel iMac, intel MacMini did not exist before January 1, 2006. All of these products were released in this calendar year.

 

[kingtj]

Built-in cameras....

Actually, my guess is that Apple/Jobs thinks the whole idea of banning cameras from PCs in the workplace is nonsense anyway. Being a bit of a trendsetter, Apple probably will go ahead and put them in all of their products so the majority who don't mind them will reap the benefits of no-hassle video teleconferencing and so forth.

Nowdays, it's so *easy* to build a digital camera into even the smallest, most discreet places, that it's pretty much uneforceable if you're going to dictate "no cameras" in a work environment of any sort. It's just like the places that no longer allow USB flash drives or iPods to be brought in, for fear someone will steal data and take it home. You can get a USB key built into a watch with retractable USB cable, or combo pens/USB flash drives. Do you think security guards at the door will really be on top of every possibility for those?

The *real* answer has always been to only hire employees you trust, and keep them happy and fairly paid for their work - so they don't have an interest in leaking out your company's secrets.

Any company requiring security clearance most likely will not allow them. Mine does not. It's based on the sensitivity of the environment.

 

[gallinger]

cant wait either!!!!

As soon as the new macpro's are out for shipping im getting one. Im like on edge cuz I want it now. cant wait. haha

 

[heisetax]

Dual cameras

Well, I disagree with the first part of your post. However, I'm sure Apple won't care and go ahead anyway! 😀

As for the two-camera thing... wasn't there a rumor sometime back about how Leopard could handle dual-camera chatting? It would use the monitor/camera that the chat window was on... move the chat window to the other display, and the other camera picks up the chat!

With Steve Jobs having Apple quietly dhanging the built-in camera from the iSight FW model to a USB2 model, would these cameras follow & be USB. Wouldn't that mean that either 2 USB channels be used or the cameras work in a jirky or slow manner? FW400 for your iSight or built-in camera & your iPods & FW800 for your external hard drives, new SanDisk CF card reader & other Pro needs. The FW400 won't be used for these activities for new people though as all new iPods are USB only & the iSight probably will be soon.

I have my iSight camera mounted on a flexable gooseneck stand. This allows me to show what I want. The iSight runs very hot just being plugged in. It is nice being able to unplug it when it is not in use. Just shutting the camera off is not enough.

Bill the TaxMan

 

[heisetax]

Universal Office?

Then, unless it is a pharmaceutical, national security, or some other VII, the company needs to get with the times. So called intellectual property is so last century and quite honestly patents are pretty useless in these fast changing times.

My take is that Steve will spend much time on numbers (how many units sold, how well the Intel switch is going) and then introduce the Pro Line. Expect a bit on Leopard and probably a jab at Vista. Although, that might not happen if Steve has what's-her-name out again to introduce the Universal Office. I would not be suprised if Steve has someone from Adobe out to introduce a Universal suite... for sometime in the future.

Wouldn't it be something if Apple came out with a new piece of hardware. Maybe there will be a new strategic alliance introduced.

I thought that MS said they they would have separate versions of Office for the PPC & Intel Macs. That's what I expect from them when you look bak at Office X, which was really only a side grade from OS 9 to OS 10 support. So no Universal Office, just a PPC Office & an Intel Office. Then in a year when Steve Jobs declares the PPC Mac a dead item, the PPC version will be gone.

I'd rather see an UB version as then if I do get an Intel Mac I could move the software over. But then MS couldn't sell me a new copy. Maybe a special price of $10 or so off if you purchase both versions together.

Bill the TaxMan

 

[heisetax]

Not many options!

I think this is an oversight (we can call it oSight) by Apple. If you want to gain market share, especially for people who want high powered equipment. I worked in a small research for a while, like the above poster, there were NO cameras allowed including camera phones. This was a blanket policy for the whole facillity even if you had no security clearence. In this case it was required becasue they did a lot DoD research.

So, right off these new computers (iMac, MB, MBP) are not options for a facility like this to use. Additionally, anyone who works there and ever wants to bring his/her personal laptop to work is sunk too.

If was still working there I probably would have to opt for a differnt laptop.

Compared to other computer brands Macs give their customers fewer add-on options. I don't know why. I guess it makes it easier for them. But, in this case I think not making the built in iSight an option (even if it is free, like the glossy screen in the MBP) is a mistake.

Probably the main reason for few or no options is because of the 1" thick PowerBook model. That does not leave room to add anything. The next reason is just like air conditioning in new cars. The manufacture can sell it to everyone even if they don't want it. That increases profits. They use to have an external keyboard/mouse option which is also gone. So just look at the glossy screen as being different, not the norm for Apple.

Bill the TaxMan

 

[ChickenSwartz]

This is a DEVELOPERS' conference!! Steve usually announces something on ONE new/updated product. You guys who are "predicting" that Apple will update everything in the lineup are asking for a let down.

ONE new thing (Mac Pro) will be announced -- speed bumps and other updates usually happen 2-4 weeks AFTER the Developers' Conference. iMacs and MacBook Pros might get bumped in early September but that's it.

I think "one" new thing will be the Core 2 Duo. This is the chip developers want in their computers: Mac Pro and MacBook Pro. I think it will be introduced in the iMac as the "Oh by the way, I have been using one during this Leopard preview" because it seems Steve likes to do that.

With all the talk that has been going on about performance/watt (the reason Mac switched to Intel) the new Merom chip will news worth a Keynote spot.

 

[peharri]

The most important new product at this year's WWDC

"So, with the new Core 2 Duo based Xserve, and Leopard's November release, this is going to be the best year for Macintosh ever. One last thing. I'd like you to take a look at this."

As Steve says this, a flunky wheels a large object covered by a black sheet onto the stage, and then departs. Steve smiles at the crowd, winks, and then lifts the sheet off with the flair of a magician. The audience goes "Woo" at what appears to be a huge, glowing, apple.

"It's really neat isn't it? The surface isn't glass, it's actually solid man-made diamond. That's right. Diamond. The light inside is generated by passing electricity through a gas field generating plasma."

Sparks appear to fly from the center of the apple - four feet high excluding stem and just as wide - to the sides, while the center flows different colours... red, blue, red again, green, white, bright bright white, the apple suddenly "turns off" but then begins to glow red again. The apple hums and occasionally crackles.

"Now, the stem of the apple is actually titanium plated, and you can reposition it in any direction you want. And, of course, it's low power, the entire apple uses less electricity than a night light. It's controlled using Airport. Let me demonstrate."

Steve walks to the computer console while the audience begins to get puzzled and restless.

"You can make the entire thing green just by clicking on a button... there"

The apple turns green, varying the shades between the very dark and the black. Lightning continues to spark from the center to the sides.

"Good for you who like granny-smiths. We can also make a golden delicious..."

...the apple turns yellow. There's a crackling noise, but it's somehow comforting.

"...or even go for red."

The apple flashes red, and then changes back to random colours. Finally, a click of a mouse, and the colours line up into stripes, reminding everyone of the classic Apple logo. There is confused applause from the audience.

"We have these in a variety of sizes. You can get this four foot model for just $399, from the Apple Store right now. Yes, we're selling it today, in sizes of 3 feet, four feet, and eight feet. Thanks for coming to see us today, see you next year!"

With that, the master salesman leaves the stage, his audience stunned.

Within minutes, the entire first run of 1,500,000 4' apples is completely sold out.

By Christmas, the entire country will have huge glowing apples in every home.

By July, 2007, apples will be exchanged as a symbol of peace. Iraqis will proudly have huge glowing apples placed on every home, symbolising the return to tranquility in that forsaken region.

In 2008, Apple will withdraw the iPod. Nobody needs it any more. Nobody wants it. A huge, useless, glowing apple will be all anyone will want.

 

[ChickenSwartz]

Actually, my guess is that Apple/Jobs thinks the whole idea of banning cameras from PCs in the workplace is nonsense anyway. Being a bit of a trendsetter, Apple probably will go ahead and put them in all of their products so the majority who don't mind them will reap the benefits of no-hassle video teleconferencing and so forth.

Nowdays, it's so *easy* to build a digital camera into even the smallest, most discreet places, that it's pretty much uneforceable if you're going to dictate "no cameras" in a work environment of any sort. It's just like the places that no longer allow USB flash drives or iPods to be brought in, for fear someone will steal data and take it home. You can get a USB key built into a watch with retractable USB cable, or combo pens/USB flash drives. Do you think security guards at the door will really be on top of every possibility for those?

The *real* answer has always been to only hire employees you trust, and keep them happy and fairly paid for their work - so they don't have an interest in leaking out your company's secrets.

Well until the Department of Defense starts trusting its 3rd party contractors (the citizen of the United States) this will be the rule.

No security guards can't catch every camera, but if the employees are ethical and play by the rules they will not carry these for fear of going to federal prison (if one of the device accidentally snaps a picture).

 

[Dr_Maybe]

In 2008, Apple will withdraw the iPod. Nobody needs it any more. Nobody wants it. A huge, useless, glowing apple will be all anyone will want.

Funny 😀

<confused applause />

 

[zoran]

WWDC2006 video coverage?

How can we get a hold of that keynote that Macrummors said will cover?