MacWorld is coming to SF next week.
It is probably too late to buy Apple's stock but it has never been a better time to be a Mac-zealot. With the retail stores bringing in new users and selling more stuff to old users, the iPod blowing through the roof, and the iTunes music store setting records daily it is hard to think that there can be any more excitement in store. But there is...
Rumored to be announced or released at next week:
- OS Tiger
- iWorks package - Microsoft Office-like suite
- $500 Macintosh mini (buy your own monitor, keyboard, and mouse)
- Updated iLife suite
- iPod Shuffle - the affordable iPod
Other notable recent releases:
- Xsan - a powerful storage area network software
- XServe upgrades - still the best looking compute nodes around
- XServe RAID - affordable HPC storage arrays
- iMac G5 - the best all-in-one Macintosh to-date
Questions for 2005?
- Will new iPod owners who are Windows users buy the new Mac Mini?
- How much iPod can the world take?
- Will Apple release a portable video device (iPod for video)?
- Will Apple release a home entertainment/media center?
- Will Apple release a G5-based laptop?
- Does any of this really matter?
Steve Jobs' keynote will amaze. It always does. It should be webcast so if you cannot attend look for it on Apple's web site. You can count on a few more surprises (disappointments too I am sure.)
