Rumors for a New Year

- 2002.01.02

Steve Jobs will be addressing the Consumer Electronic Show the day after the Macworld Keynote. What's up with that?

Like you had to ask? C'mon, everyone knows that CES is where they show off all the new electronic gadgets - MP3 players, digital cameras, DVD players, stereo equipment, boom boxes, TVs, surround sound hardware, game consoles, VCRs, camcorders, etc.

It's never really been a big deal for the computer industry, which should tip us off that Apple is planning more consumer gear to follow in the iPod's footstep. So let's put on our thinking caps and imagine what Apple might announce at Macworld and the CES. (As always, remember that this is groundless speculation.)

We Are Not Macs, We Are iVo

To be rolled out to the driving beat of the old Devo hit, Apple will be going head to head with TiVo with a brand new OS X-based alternative. But it will go way beyond that - iVo will not only be able to record two programs at once, it will also function as a cable modem, Internet router, and network firewall.

iVo will have four internal hard drive bays, making it very easy for users to shut down, add a drive, power up, and be ready to record more content than ever. It will also be networked to both your computers and your TVs, letting you watch video content on either type of device.

Yes, that means you'll be able to take your iVo files into iMovie, edit the ads out of your favorite TV shows, and burn them to DVD with iDVD.

And did we mention that iVo has megabit ethernet and can also act as an AirPort hub?

Burn, Baby, Burn

What iTunes has been for burning CDs from MP3s, iVideo will be to the creation of videotapes, DVDs, and video CDs. iVideo will run OS X, will have a pair of last year's 667 MHz G4 processors, and will be able to burn DVDs and Video CDs easily. It will also have ports that connect it to your VCR or camcorder to record digital content to tape or digitize content from tape.

iVideo will be a network device that can be controlled remotely by any type of computer with a browser - Macs, Windows, Linux - anything. It will have hooks to work with iVo, but it will have a much smaller drive (no larger than 20 GB), so only a limited number of projects can be stored at once.

Thanks to AirPort (optional), it won't even have to be hard wired to your computer network.

The iBox

The iPod is great when you want to wear headphones, but the iBox will let you fill a room with MP3 sound - a lot of sound. The basic iBox will act as an AM/FM/CD clock radio, include a quiet 15 GB laptop hard drive (3,000 tunes!), and work a lot like the iPod. It will have a remote control, will include gigabit ethernet, and will also be AirPort optional. You could conceivably set you iBox to act as a network MP3 server.

Rumors are Bose will be making these for Apple using the Wave Radio as a template. That means they'll sound great and cost a lot - which is always good for Apple's bottom line.

iBox To Go

The iBox To Go is a portable, boom box version of the iBox. Same kind of features, but big removable speakers and the ability to run from batteries.

QuickFlick

The only component missing from the "create your own video" package is an Apple branded digital camcorder - that's QuickFlick. Built by Sony, the base QuickFlick will use the Digital 8 format, include a full FireWire implementation, and use Sony's Memory Stick technology.

The more advanced QuickFlick (QuickerFlicker?) won't use old fashioned tape at all. Instead, it will use a specially packaged plug-and-play version of the 48 GB IBM TravelStar hard drive - ten times the capacity of a single-layer DVD with lightning fast access.

Did we mention IBM will be producing this as the first FireWire native hard drive - expect it to appear as a BTO option for the next generation of iBooks and PowerBooks as well.

I Want iMac TV

Remember Mac TV, a crippled LC 550 only expandable to 8 MB RAM - but in a nice black case and including a TV tuner? With the company's renewed commitment to digital video, a new line of digital Apple televisions wouldn't be at all out of line. After all, the FCC wants us all to be using digital TVs within a decade, so a fully integrated überTV running OS X could have a nice niche market among early adopters. Best of all, early adopters are used to high price tags, which could further help Apple's bottom line.

What Else?

Well, it is the Consumer Electronics Show - maybe we'll see Apple-branded portable DVD players, Apple-branded speakers that aren't spherical....

One More Thing

You know Steve always likes to save the best for last. So do I. Possibly called GigaWire, AirPort Plus, or SpacePort, Apple's next generation wireless networking protocol will work on both computers and consumer electronics. Using a 5 GHz carrier, wireless networking will now function flat out at FireWire speed. A new AirPort Plus card will also make this backward compatible with all existing Macs that support AirPort.

Finally, you'll be able to compute with just one wire - the power cord. And 'Book users will only need that when charging their batteries.

It's a brave new year, and Apple will be redefining itself as the brave new company behind your digital lifestyle.

Or maybe not.

- Anne Onymus

Recent Rumor Mills

• New Apple drive supports Blu-ray and HD DVD, 09.11. Tired of being second-guessed and sometimes outmaneuvered by Microsoft, Apple has embraced both next gen DVD formats with its new SuperDrive Extreme.
• California: Beyond 'no light bulbs for you', 02.01. A Calfiornia assemblyman wants to make incandescent light bulbs illegal - but that's just the beginning. His next target: CRT monitors and TVs.
• IRS to tax Second Life, WoW, Monopoly: How to fight back, 12.18. Nothing in life is certain but death and taxes, and now the IRS wants to tax your virtual life as well as your real one.
• Sudden impact: Apple's great Asteroid hoax, 06.09. Truth of the matter is, the Asteroid Project didn't exist to produce a viable product, but as a way to shut down rumor sites.
• More in the Rumor Mill index.

Links for the Day

• Mac of the Day: Quadra 700, Oct. 1991 - The successor to the Mac IIci ran a 'wicked fast' 25 MHz 68040 processor.
• List of the Day: Apple TV List The Apple TV List is a forum to discuss the Apple TV.
  
• August 29 in LEM history: 00: My lowest low-end Mac - 01: Uncluttered organization - Microsoft wins over Mac user - 02: Salute to SatireWire - 03: Wireless Internet popping up everywhere - 05: World domination, online or off - A 3-dimensional Dock replacement - 06: Productive at the low end - PowerPC vs. Intel - Secure wireless

Recent Content on Low End Mac

• Looking for a Content Management System That's as Easy as Mac, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 08.29. Low End Mac needs to move to a content management system, but the few we've tried just don't cut it for people used to the simple elegance of the Mac.
• First 3 Million Mac Quarter, Skinny on Mac mini Pricing, Mac-like gOS, and More, Mac News Review, 08.29. More plan to buy Apple products than ever before, complete reset can fix MobileMac synch problems, Apple boosting computer and smartphone share, and more.
• New 'Books Likely in September, 17" PowerBook Display Fault Site, SSD Security, and More, The 'Book Review, 08.29. Also 6 ways to speed up your MacBook, next generation MacBook Air CPU, MacBook Air Update, LapStrap carrying solution, rise and fall of ultraportables, bargains from $220 to $2,699, and more.
• iPhone 3G Reception 'Completely Normal', AT&T International Data Plans for iPhone, and More, iNews Review, 08.29. Also longer life for iPod earbuds, an alternative to MobileMe, new cases and apps for iPhone, AppStoreGems website launched, and more.
• Best Power Mac G4 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.29. Used 450 MHz AGP, $75; 500, $99; 800 QS, $199; 1.25 GHz MDD, $375; 450 MHz dual, $179; 867 dual, $300; 1 GHz dual, $395; 1.42 dual, $575.
• Best iBook G3 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.29. Used 300 MHz clamshell, $150; 500 CD, $150; 800, $200; 600 CD-RW, $240; 900 Combo, $300; 14" 600, $360; 900, $400.
• Best iPod nano Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.29. Used 2 GB iPod nano, $89; refurb 3G 4 GB, $99; new, $140; refurb 8 GB, $149; new, $179.
• 10 Mac Browsers Compared, Simon Royal, Mac Spectrum, 08.28. A look at Internet Explorer, Radon, Opera, Safari, Shiira, iCab, Firefox, Netscape Navigator, Flock, and Camino running in Leopard.
• Clone and Boot: Another Advantage of the Mac OS, Kev Kitchens, Kitchens Sync, 08.28. Unlike Windows, Apple makes it possible to clone a bootable drive (Classic Mac OS or OS X) and use it with another supported Mac.
• Best MacBook Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.28. Used 1.83 GHz, $799; 2.0 black, $875; refurb 2.1 GHz, $899; 2.4, $1,099; black, $1,299; new 2.1, $1,019 after rebate; 22, $1,094; 2.4, $1,219 a/r; black, $1,394 a/r.
• Best iMac G5 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.28. Used 17" 1.6 GHz Combo, $499; 1.8 SuperDrive, $530; 2.0, $600; 1.9 iSight, $625; 20" 1.8 GHz, $580; 2.0, $650; 2.1 iSight, $700.
• Best classic Mac OS Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.28. System 6, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5.1, $4; Mac OS 7.6, $13; 8.0, $13; 8.1, $48; 8.5, $25; 8.6, $20; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $20; more.
• CrossOver Strikes Out, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 08.27. Running Windows apps on a Mac without paying for Windows is great in theory, but actually getting Windows software working is another story.
• MacDrought: 4 Months with No New Macs, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 08.27. The most recent Mac update was over four months ago, and the Mac mini has been unchanged for over a year.
• Resurrecting a Dead Pismo, Spotlight Search Tip, and EasyFind a Good File Finder, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 08.27. Lots of tips on bringing a comatose Pismo back to life, a Spotlight file name search tip, and EasyFind as an alternative to Spotlight.
• Best Intel iMac Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.27. Used 17" 1.83 GHz, $625; 20", $599; 2.16, $749; 24", $950; refurb 20" 2.4, $999; 2.66, $1,299; 24" 2.4, $1,299; 2.8, $1,549; new 3.06, $2,094 after rebate; more.
• Best 15" PowerBook G4 Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.27. Used 1.25 GHz Combo, $600; SuperDrive, $650; 1.33 Combo, $640; 1.5, $680; SD, $725; 1.67, $730; hi-res, $800.
• Best Time Capsule and AirPort Deals, Low End Mac Deals, 08.27. 500 GB Time Capsule, $294; 1 TB, $468; AirPort Extreme Card, $39; 802.11n Base Station, $166; 802.11g AirPort Express, $60; 802.11n, $98.
• More links in our archive.