this is only speculation not inside information.
Wouldn’t is be nice if that big 30’ display was Multi-Touch? How about a 40’? Still think that no feedback is annoying? Well why not add super realistic touch feedback? Add improved contrast and brightness, why not add a camera in the bezel? Price? If Apple plans to decrease their profit margins this quarter you might just get it all for the same price. Don’t expect to see GUI changes until Mac OS 10.7 (the one after Snow Leopard), but when it comes be ready to learn how to use Multi-Touch [multi-touch learning method]. Worrying that you’ll have to buy the Cinema Display to get the features? Buy an iMac. It will be like the Intel switch all over again, but instead of adding windows as a 'feature' you'll have the worlds most advanced computer.
Next up is the Mighty Mouse [multi-touch mouse]. We might see an entirely new creature out there complete with Multi-Touch and laser for the corded. You cant have a mouse without a keyboard, but what is a keyboard [virtual keyboard, touch feedback]? We might see the biggest change to the keyboard since, well you might not think its a keyboard.
Now how about the Mac mini? With the recent purchase of P. A. Semi and LLVM [explained by roughlydrafted.com, appleinsider.com] it will be able to play all those cool games with the graphics not turned down. The catch, that Windows doesn’t have the drivers or technology to take advantage so you’ll have to buy Mac games. Not to worry with Cider floating around the web its easy to convert most any PC game to run in OS X.
The laptops can now get very interesting. With designs ranging from a tablet [video, video] to a MacBook Pro with no noticeable seams or screws, it would slick. With Quicktime X being brought over from the iPhone what’s to stop Core Location being added to the list? If you add a GPS you add the ability to find that stolen laptop over Back To My Mac in an instant. Don’t forget the keyboard, when I said that Multi-Touch would go every where it would be completely obtrusive to type on the screen so why not have two screens [laptop design and then add the virtual keyboard]? One that you would rest you palm and type and the other as the main screen. Alternately for those 3D art pros that use their own USB keyboards have different screen perspectives that make brain sense.
The only product that will not see any touchable improvements is the Mac Pro, but don’t think because you cant slap on Multi-Touch it wont be cool. We may be looking at an entirely new design, inside and out. While you may not get all the improvements until Snow Leopard, the inside will be completely gutted and redone thanks to P. A. Semi. With Grand Central you don’t need special hardware to have SLI or Crossfire, in face you might be able to mix and match. For all those PC ways to get physics and mathematic operations on the GPU if things turn out the way I think the compiler with optimize your code so with little effort you not only have 8+ cores to work with, but every GPU thats hooked into your PCI bay. In addition to the Mac's growing market share, it would give any serious game company a reason to think about Mac development again.
There is a rumor floating around that before the end of this year the Mac will be revolutionized. Most current rumors hint towards the laptops, but I think that base on Apple’s patent portfolio (type patent in search field) greater things will happen throughout this year. Starting with a new look and ‘feel’. With the look starting from the Mac mini and Mac Pro to the laptops and Cinema Displays. The twist is that all the cool features that are in the iPhone will trickle back into everything else plus more.
Wouldn’t is be nice if that big 30’ display was Multi-Touch? How about a 40’? Still think that no feedback is annoying? Well why not add super realistic touch feedback? Add improved contrast and brightness, why not add a camera in the bezel? Price? If Apple plans to decrease their profit margins this quarter you might just get it all for the same price. Don’t expect to see GUI changes until Mac OS 10.7 (the one after Snow Leopard), but when it comes be ready to learn how to use Multi-Touch [multi-touch learning method]. Worrying that you’ll have to buy the Cinema Display to get the features? Buy an iMac. It will be like the Intel switch all over again, but instead of adding windows as a 'feature' you'll have the worlds most advanced computer.
Next up is the Mighty Mouse [multi-touch mouse]. We might see an entirely new creature out there complete with Multi-Touch and laser for the corded. You cant have a mouse without a keyboard, but what is a keyboard [virtual keyboard, touch feedback]? We might see the biggest change to the keyboard since, well you might not think its a keyboard.
Now how about the Mac mini? With the recent purchase of P. A. Semi and LLVM [explained by roughlydrafted.com, appleinsider.com] it will be able to play all those cool games with the graphics not turned down. The catch, that Windows doesn’t have the drivers or technology to take advantage so you’ll have to buy Mac games. Not to worry with Cider floating around the web its easy to convert most any PC game to run in OS X.
The laptops can now get very interesting. With designs ranging from a tablet [video, video] to a MacBook Pro with no noticeable seams or screws, it would slick. With Quicktime X being brought over from the iPhone what’s to stop Core Location being added to the list? If you add a GPS you add the ability to find that stolen laptop over Back To My Mac in an instant. Don’t forget the keyboard, when I said that Multi-Touch would go every where it would be completely obtrusive to type on the screen so why not have two screens [laptop design and then add the virtual keyboard]? One that you would rest you palm and type and the other as the main screen. Alternately for those 3D art pros that use their own USB keyboards have different screen perspectives that make brain sense.
The only product that will not see any touchable improvements is the Mac Pro, but don’t think because you cant slap on Multi-Touch it wont be cool. We may be looking at an entirely new design, inside and out. While you may not get all the improvements until Snow Leopard, the inside will be completely gutted and redone thanks to P. A. Semi. With Grand Central you don’t need special hardware to have SLI or Crossfire, in face you might be able to mix and match. For all those PC ways to get physics and mathematic operations on the GPU if things turn out the way I think the compiler with optimize your code so with little effort you not only have 8+ cores to work with, but every GPU thats hooked into your PCI bay. In addition to the Mac's growing market share, it would give any serious game company a reason to think about Mac development again.
To recap you may not see grand new iPods this year, but there as gone as the iPod Mini. Pretty soon you’ll think way back when and wiki them on your iPod Touch 128 GB. But looking at MacRumors buyers guide there might be a cosmetic update for the iPods before the holiday season in the works. Expect to see new looks all around and Multi-Touch in as many places as possible. That means that throughout this year Apple will change the Mac mini (looks and guts), iMac (only the guts), Mac Pro (looks and guts), the laptop line (looks and guts), Cinema Displays (maybe change looks but they will be bigger and better), and lastly the Mighty Mouse will become more mighty and Multi-Touchy. In general you can expect Apple to release things that you will not be able to buy any where else [alleyinsider.com] while still being affordable because of Apple kindly lowering the profit margins. Welcome to the future.
