DerekMartin.ca

Neither of these events is in February/March. What this means is that Apple didn’t consider this product refresh to be their “BIG WOW”. Processor bumps, and graphics bumps of lower end systems up to the specs of current MacBooks is no big whoop. It doesn’t warrant calling the press, and getting Steve out of bed. He’s trying to relax, not spend his days getting blue jeans and turtlenecks ready for action! Furthermore, Christian said “Although Jobs isn’t around… Apple has successfully negotiated the Mark Papermaster appointment, started shipping a new version of iLife, unleashed the major Safari 4 Beta with cool new features, … updated the Mac mini, iMac, as well as its range of wireless base stations… and unveiled a new Mac Pro which runs Intel’s “secret” Nehalem processor, something you’d expect only Steve Jobs could pull off.” That’s all true, but jeebus, Chris, do you seriously think that Apple did all that in the last 2 months? No way. Software and hardware take time to develop. They would have been designed and developed under Uncle Steve’s watchful eye, months ago. It takes about 2 months just to put the finishing touches on things, and by finishing touches I mean small details; look & feel stuff, not functionality. Apple probably had to provide their hardware manufacturers with the new blueprints & “gold master discs” before Steve even left the building. Things need time to happen. So, what I’m saying is this: 1. Spyshots are cheap tricks, whereas Apple is all about style, production value, and true quality. Anything less than Hollywood-style launches would go against their branding. 2. The blockbuster events will keep rolling, even if Steve isn’t the one in the driver’s seat. 3. This past hardware ‘update’ was not worthy of a big event. That means Apple has sweeter treats to come in 2009, namely Snow Leopard, and new iPhones in various form factors, at various price points. Maybe a tablet or netbook (iBook Pro?). Perhaps even a “buy an iPod for twice the price of our current iPods, and get all-you-can-eat access to the iTunes store for free, for the life of the device.”

At the end of his article, Christian says: “I’d put my money only on an Apple event in the case of a major form factor change … and the annual iPod refreshes.” That’s exactly how it is now, and has been for the past several years. Didn’t you notice?