COMPUTERWORLD: Polish Mac sleuths have uncovered unpopulated Discussion Forums on Apple’s website that suggest we’ll see iMovie 11, iPhoto 11, GarageBand 11, a product referred to as ‘MBA – Need Official Name”, and, of course, “one more thing”…
I recall a previous post here which we told you it was on its way, this morning Aspyr Media confirms the news that it is bringing Civilization V to the Mac, just in time for Christmas.
Sid Meier’s Civilization V for Mac is the latest entry from the flagship turn-based strategy franchise. This is Aspyr’s biggest release this year, and it is being made in partnership with 2K Games.
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The Enterprise Desktop Alliance has published survey results which claim that Macs will be the fastest growing systems in the enterprise through 2011.
The EDA claims tech purchasers now see the Mac as more productive machines, and are finding tools to integrate tham into existing networks.
Macs will climb from 3.3% of all systems in 2009 to 5.2% in 2011. Those figureds may be small, but the survey also claims 25% of all new systems to be added in the enterprise will be Macs.
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Amazon just updated their Mac Kindle Application with the following new features:
Good for new MacBook Air owners? Download here:
What’s interesting about the MacBook Air that is likely to be introduced tomorrow is that it is painfully overdue. Not just milked by Apple longer than normal, but kept back artificially for some reason. To put it into perspective, Apple’s “least bang for buck” high-end, low-power laptop will be exactly 500 days since its last update tomorrow. Apple hasn’t ever let any other MacBook/Pro go even a year without an update of some kind.
So what’s up?
I think Apple had to hold the MacBook Air back for OS 10.7, Lion. Some Lion features must be integral to the new MacBook Air (and maybe other new MacBooks?). We know Lion was originally slated to be released earlier and has been in testing for over a year.
So what could these new features be?
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Adobe CEO Shamu Narayan says that they are going to remain independent. No Microbe.
Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.com
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RIM Co-CEO Jim Balsillie didn’t let Steve Jobs’ comments during the call yesterday go without a response. here’s the statement from the co-CEO:
For those of us who live outside of Apple’s distortion field, we know that 7″ tablets will actually be a big portion of the market and we know that Adobe Flash support actually matters to customers who want a real web experience. We also know that while Apple’s attempt to control the ecosystem and maintain a closed platform may be good for Apple, developers want more options and customers want to fully access the overwhelming majority of web sites that use Flash. We think many customers are getting tired of being told what to think by Apple. And by the way, RIM has achieved record shipments for five consecutive quarters and recently shared guidance of 13.8 – 14.4 million BlackBerry smartphones for the current quarter. Apple’s preference to compare its September-ending quarter with RIM’s August-ending quarter doesn’t tell the whole story because it doesn’t take into account that industry demand in September is typically stronger than summer months, nor does it explain why Apple only shipped 8.4 million devices in its prior quarter and whether Apple’s Q4 results were padded by unfulfilled Q3 customer demand and channel orders. As usual, whether the subject is antennas, Flash or shipments, there is more to the story and sooner or later, even people inside the distortion field will begin to resent being told half a story.
Wow, it’s getting hot in the smartphone biz!
COMPUTERWORLD: Facebook and Android users should be warned that an open model to security places them at risk. In an age of identity theft, billing checks are no protection at all, so perhaps there’s something good to say about Apple’s so-called ‘walled garden’ after all…
An interesting point this morning from Philip Elmer-DeWitt, who notes that independent investors seem to be more accurate when it comes to making AAPL estimates than those analysts who get regular paychecks from big banks.
In a note he (I think erroneously) calls ‘Amateurs vs. Professionals’, PED points out just how much more accurate individual investor bloggers were at predicting Apple’s fortunes than were those professional analysts from analysis firms.Perhaps that’s because in the case of bloggers, their fortunes are directly related to being right, while analysts will still get paid even if they’re wrong.
In any case, if you are an AAPL investor, it might make sense to take a look at what the ‘Amateurs’ have to say. As a whole they were clearly much more accurate than the big investment bankers.
Move over Android and iPhone, here comes the new smartphone ‘choice’ — HP today is introducing webOS 2.0, which it is declaring to be the “next generation of mobile innovation”.
webOS 2.0 will take its first public bow on the Palm Pre 2 in France, the United States and Canada, which will be available Friday in France from SFR and is scheduled to be available in the coming months in the United States from Verizon Wireless and in Canada.
“With webOS 2.0, we’re advancing the innovations we introduced 16 months ago, expanding the features that make webOS great for consumers, enterprises and developers,” said ex Apple veep now senior VP and general manager, Palm Global Business Unit, HP, Jon Rubinstein.
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiFc11OdSrg&w=670&h=401]
7digital has developed its own iPhone app and is engaged in “positive discussions” with Apple, and expects its app — which enables music purchase and playback — will be made available via the App Store.
The UK-based digital music firm introduced its app for Android devices last month. The app lets users:
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Apple boss Steve Jobs spent five minutes pointing out the fragmented nature of Android OS devices during last nights financial call, this morning Google’s Andy Rubin has fired back with his first Tweet.
Naturally, Rubin uses the Tweet to cast some deeply-coded hocus on Steve Jobs’ claims, using Lingo to make a claim that Android actually is “open”. In the sense that device makers can do what they like, that is.
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I’ve spent some time wondering about this — how Apple will integrate iOS within the Mac OS X experience — take a look here and here — now it looks like we’re going to find this out at tomorrow’s Apple event, with iOS scrolling, quick look and popovers all set to reach the Mac.
The integration isn’t finished yet. Mac OS X 10.7 simply borrows elements from iOS which can be translated into a Mac using paradigm. The interface gets an overhaul but remains Aqua-based.
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iPad shipments jumped to 4.19 million in Apple’s just-gone quarter, somewhat under some expectations of 5 million or more sales, but well in line with what you’d expect from a hit product that’s already being more widely purchased than any previous new consumwer electronics category. The good news is Apple could sell more, if only manufacturing could keep up…
iSuppli this morning raised its outlook for iPad sales this year to 13.8 million, up from July expectations of 12.9 million, citing indications of improved component supply.
Wow, the commentary didn’t do it justice. Jobs really took aim at Android during today’s conference call but the most impressive bits were the numbers: Apple has been activating 275,000 iOS devices/day and up to 300,000/on some days. Google still hasn’t announced anything beyond 200,000.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUQVIqjkzD4&w=640&h=390]
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By the numbers:
Apple’s revenue train keeps on chugging, yet somehow Wall St. was expecting more. Apple is hovering around 300, down 5% in after hours trading.
Apple is forecasting another blow out next quarter (first quarter of fiscal 2011) including revenue of $23 billion.
Apple’s press release:
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Boy Genius Report claims that Apple’s CDMA/Verizon iPhone has just hit “AP” status which means the device is currently being field tested and is rocking final hardware. This is the final step before the final software gets loaded on the device and this is the step right before retail.
For comparison, this is the stage after the stage of Gizmodo’s iPhone 4 prototype. So, we’re clearly pretty close to that Verizon iPhone if BGR’s sources know what they’re talking about – they usually do. One important feature of this CDMA iPhone is a SIM card slot. BGR speculates that this Verizon iPhone will be the CDMA/GSM model. Or, the SIM card could be for international users.
BGR also states, that this iPhone 3,2 may not even be the CDMA iPhone, but just an improved iPhone 4 without the antenna issues. – This would be a major party buster though.
Boy Genius Report also claims that Apple’s 5th-generation iPhone is in EVT-mode and this is the development stage directly prior to the stage Gizmodo’s leak was in. This means Apple is currently testing the engineering aspects of the device and is almost ready to being testing final hardware. BGR does not discuss any features of Apple’s next-gen device.
The image above is not the Verizon or 5th-gen iPhone.
What’s not to like about this idea? The Style 9670 Clamshell will fit right into Snook’s purse.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUehwO4nrDk&w=640&h=390]
COMPUTERWORLD: As Apple prepares to announce its fourth financial quarter results later today investment houses are chattering on expectation of strong — perhaps estimate-beating — iPad sales, and we’re watching iPhone 4 sales with great interest. Did ‘antenna-gate’ damage iPhone 4 sales? I’m also anticipating confirmation of anecdotal reports of booming Mac sales.
As previously reported, Qantas Airways has been testing iPads as entertainment consoles on some flights since June — now the airline plans to deploy Apple’s tablets across its Jetstar flights.
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Apple is developing iAds for video, developing a new product that will deliver in-stream ads to videos shown on the iPhone, iPad and (presumably) the Apple TV.
These ads will appear both within apps, and on mobile websites. A report tells us Apple’s new ads network is expected to launch in the first half of next year, and it does seem to dovetail nicely with development of ways publishers of popular video on Apple’s networks could make some money for their work.
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We’re seeing another piece of documentation with a landscape dock connector, at least according to the latest patent filings, this time emerging from Europe.
These latest patents, submitted to the European Trademarks and Designs Registration Office, show another landscape 30 pin dock connecter, with both Jony Ive and Steve Jobs named on said patent. And of course there is that questionable hole at the top which could indicate a camera or just an ambient light detector that exists on the current design.
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More details are coming in this morning regarding Apple’s next MacBook Air that is set to officially debut at Apple’s October 20th ‘Back to Mac’ event. First Engadget posted an image of a next-generation prototype MacBook Air. The most interesting thing about this prototype is that it’s a 13 incher. For a while now reports have claimed the next MacBook Air would feature an 11.6-inch display. The measurments below seem to indicate that it might even be smaller than that. DO NOT SAY NETBOOK!
Yesterday, CNET, claimed they are certain the device would be 11.6 inches which makes us all wonder why Engadget’s prototype is 13 inches. Well, some measurements taken of the Engadget device seem to indicate that the screen might not be 13.3 inches diagonally. It might not even be 11.6 inches.
You can also see that the SSD controller up there is made by Toshiba and that port next to the MagSafe is as yet unidentifiable. Perhaps we are looking at Apple’s first USB3 port? OR a SIM Card Slot for 3G? Which would you be more excited about?
On that Toshiba Drive controller: The Toshiba T6UG1XBG SSD controller is a 43nm part, with a maximum rated read speed of 230MBps and write-to performance peaking at 180MBps.
Update: Here’s another rendering with a different set of maths:
According to the Los Angeles Times, Mark Zuckerberg visited Jobs’ house two weeks ago to discuss Ping over dinner. Apple and Facebook have been at it since Facebook dropped their integration into Apple’s Ping at the early-September launch. Since then, Apple has apparently been trying to reach a deal with Facebook to bring back the slick Facebook integration originally built into Apple’s music-based social network.
They are two of Silicon Valley’s most famous founders: Jobs created the world’s must-have gadgets, Zuckerberg the world’s most popular social networking service. These days they are often mentioned in the same breath. Now apparently the two also recently broke bread.
Apparently Jobs invited Zuckerberg for dinner at his house to talk about Ping two weeks ago. That’s when a tipster spotted them on a stroll in Palo Alto.
Yeah, you read that right; Jobs and Zuckerberg went on a little nice stroll together. Oh, and Marky-Mark is still richer.
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