Published in News

Rumors swirling on mystery product

by on25 July 2008

Image

Apple surely knows how to generate buzz

If all of the worry from analysts and fans about Apple CEO Steve Jobs isn’t enough for you, then the little snippet during Apple’s latest announcement that they are working on something exciting might amp up your excitement level a little bit more.

What Apple is working on is always shrouded in mystery and they normally are pretty good at being able to keep a secret, but these days with the Internet around Apple can’t control everything, although they would like to make people think that they can.

As for the buzz that they have been able to generate, it seems that there is no limit on the predictions of what it could be. Here are our thoughts on what we expect to see from Apple next, based on our sources.

The rumors of a Mac tablet PC product continue to be the sexy rumor that everyone seems to want to be true. Based on the success of the iPhone we do think it is possible that Apple might be looking at this, but to make this product succeed where other PC makers have failed will take something unique beyond what we would suspect it to be.

While we do think it is likely that Apple is looking at some sort of an ultra portable Internet device that is bigger than the iPhone with a touch screen, we just don’t think the timing is right for a product like this. We find it unlikely that this is the Apple mystery product, but speculation and rumors will continue that this is what Apple is working on.

We do think there is a much better chance that you will see a refresh to the Apple computer product line with a new revamped Mac Mini and a low cost sub-notebook. The Mac Mini has needed a refresh for some time and we think that Apple will deliver a new version at a lower price in time for the back-to-school season.

Apple also has to be drooling over all of the possibilities that bringing a low cost sub-notebook to their line up might mean for sales. Sales of computers have been brisk and Apple is gaining momentum in this arena. If they are do bring out a sub-notebook at a reasonable price they could have a real hit on their hands, but just don’t expect it to be as cheap as a Windows based sub-notebook, because, after all, this is Apple and it just will not happen.

A refresh of the iPod product line is very likely. We expect, however, that it might just be limited to a new version of the Nano. We suspect that Apple is very likely to introduce a new Nano at 16GB and maybe even 32GB to replace the now small 8GB Nano that is currently available. Of course, if they increase the size of the Nano, it is likely that we will see a new 64GB version of the iPod Touch. It just does not seem that Apple would want to cross over into the capacity territory that is owned by the high-end Touch.

As for the Classic iPod, we have not really seen any 1.8” hard drives above the 160GB limit yet, but we do think 200GB, or maybe even 250GB, are possible with the advancements in hard disk technology, but it is likely that the Classic will stay the same for the time being. If you are going to bet on this, we suggest that a 16GB new version of the Nano is the safe bet, but don’t be surprised if they roll out a new lower cost iPod, as well. We also suspect if Apple does not announce a larger version of the iPod Touch, that they will at least announce a price drop on it.

Apple is able to generate a buzz with just a little hint of what the future may hold. It is getting people talking about their products, which is always good for business, and we suspect that they will move forward with something in the back-to-school selling season, but you never know… they just may wait to make an announcement closer to the holiday season. But the safe money is that Apple will make a play for back-to-school sales, as that is always where one of the strongest selling seasons is for the year.

Last modified on 25 July 2008
Rate this item
(0 votes)