neyo

With Apple’s annual WWDC (WorldWide Developer Conference) only hours away, rumours about announcements and so forth are as ripe as ever. Few things are guarenteed (Mac OS X Leopard, and Steve’s usually attire), but much is speculated – New PowerMac’s running on Intel, new XServes, new iPods/iTunes services, an Apple branded mobile? For years, gadget loving folks have yearned for an Apple device, offering the hardware and software delights that the iPod offers to the Portable Digital Music market. Every Apple event, brings forth new visions, speculation and rumour about the so called ‘iPhone’, and inevitably people are always let down when Steve’s lasting comment isn’t about Cell phones.

So is this year any different? There’s little call on it really, I think after so long, any moment Apple introduce a cellular device will be shocking. Personally speaking, I am very keen to see Apple jump into the market, and it does make some sense; off the back of it’s not-so successful ties with Motorola, bundling iTunes. I am sure any Mac using, iPod loving ‘gadget-whore’ would welcome the ‘iPhone’ with open arms. Imagine being able to sync all your apps seamlessly with one device:-

iCal – Calendar
Address Book – Contacts
iTunes – Music
iPhoto – Pictures, think that this could be auto ‘updated’ with content shot with an inbuilt camera (and with iPhoto’s movie support, small video’s too?)…

The list is endless really – well as far as your imagination allows you, but one thing is at the forefront of all this – it would HAVE to be as seamless as iTunes and iPod. Given that the iPod actually syncs additional data from some of the applications mentioned, that wouldn’t like such a feat for Apple, really. Bring in Wifi & Bluetooth, and a seamless link to iChat too, and you could offer a very interesting device, that could offer both GSM & VoIP calling… Whether this would deter support from carriers, only Apple could really comment on – but to my knowledge this would be some kind of ‘first’ – something Apple is never shy of. So why haven’t they jumped into the market already? Maybe they have, in an indirect way – I am sure creating a cellular phone – which of course would need carrier support, is far more complex than creating a Portable Media Device, which is totally controlled by Apple. With the cell-phone market growing at such a huge pace, it would seem silly to think Apple haven’t been working on stuff previously… Maybe their relationship with Motorola was just to fill the void, until they could compete in the arena on an even keel? Who knows, and it’s pure rumour-mongering right here, and right now!

Time is running short now, time will tell… Even if it appears to be untrue (once more!), we can be confident of expecting fresh and exciting new things from Mac OS X Leopard, demoed for the first time tomorrow. I love WWDC!