Apple will hold a special event today at 1 pm (Pacific) and speculation has been rampant about what will be announced. I’ve read pretty much all the predictions, mulled ’em over and decided this is what we’ll see — and won’t see.
We will see:
° A new iPod touch with a front-facing camera, higher rez display and support for FaceTime;
° A revamped iPod nano that lacks a click wheel;
° A web-based version of the iTunes Store that will — as “All Things D” put it — “sync up easily with the rest of the Internet and make it much easier for customers to share their musical tastes (but not songs) with friends.” It could offer easier integration for services like Twitter and Facebook, allowing users to link to the store and share playlists, songs and albums.
°An Apple TV in a sleeker case with more storage, cheaper TV show rentals, running iOS with Apple TV specific apps available.
We won’t see:
° iLife ’11 or iWork ’11 (but look for these within the next month);
° A new MacBook Air (also look for a quiet update to happen soon — though I suspect, with the iPad’s success, the Air’s days are numbered);
° A new iPod classic or shuffle (their days are also numbered, I suspect, as Apple spreads its love on the nano and touch).
° iTunes updated to take advantage of a new cloud-based music and video service (apparently Apple hasn’t approached the big labels abut licensing deals for a streaming “locker” service);
° iOS 4 for the iPad (that’s coming in the fall).
° A 7-inch iPad (if it arrives at all, it will also be in autumn).
° An Apple TV with no storage, but which links up with the (upcoming, but not here yet) clouds-based iTunes.
— Dennis Sellers