Analysts predict 7″ touch, 10″ mini notebook
The outlook for new products from Apple is still clear as mud, though two prominent prognosticators think they know what the Cupertino wünderkinder is brewing. Apple, quite naturally, is remaining silent on the issue.
Quoting Shaw Wu, Kaufman Bros, and Gene Munster, Piper Jaffray, Bloomberg reports that Apple may be planning to double the size of the iPod touch and perhaps is planning a 10 inch mini notebook computer.
So, will the so-called “iPod touch on steroids” look like the image above? Well, that rendering comes via iLounge and an enthusiast whose rendering may be as accurate as anything currently out there, whereas the one below comes via the good offices of the Cult of Mac.
“A 7 inch screen creates more workspace and may make surfing the Web more pleasurable and certain applications more usable than a 3.5-inch screen”—Shaw Wu, Kaufman Bros
A 7 inch screen with a powerful processor and ample RAM, with some improvements to the virtual keyboard and an option to add a real one via Bluetooth, would make a formidable device, especially for gaming and electronic books.
Not a netbook
Apple’s lowest cost portable is the $999 plastic polycarbonate MacBook, refurbished variants of which sell for as little as $799, which is affordable by the standards set in Cupertino. However, something smaller and perhaps even more affordable may be in the works. Bloomberg reports:
The company also may introduce a low-cost notebook with a 10-inch screen, the analysts said. That would let Apple compete with so-called netbooks — scaled-down portable computers used to surf the Internet.
Despite the wishful thinking of the many and likely informed guesses by these two analysts (of record when comes to all things Apple), we likely won’t know anything for sure until product is actually announced—the mothership is just too cagey to corner on such issues.
However, Cupertino’s Tuesday, March 17 Special Event, which is advertised as an introduction to iPhone 3.0, could provide insight about the company’s plans vis a vis the rumored “iPod touch on steroids.” Moreover, even if Apple doesn’t spill the beans next week, it’s overwhelmingly likely that clues to their plans will be leaked when the beta of iPhone 0S 3 and the SDK are released to developers.
So, wha d’ya think? Is our favorite fruit company planning a 10 inch mini notebook that will sell for well under a grand? Is a bigger and badder iPod touch in the cards?
Your guess is probably as any…
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March 13th, 2009
Very good, thanks
March 14th, 2009
You weren’t wrong, polycarbonate is a kind of “plastic” (it’s the more generic name for the family of plastics that include Plexiglas and Lexan).
Considering the very expensive MacBook Air, Apple’s comments about not being able to make a $500 computer that wasn’t crap, and its love of high margins; why would anyone not think that this rumored device will cost at least, say $1100 or $1200? As I recall, unlocked, unsubsidized iPhones in Europe are pretty expensive.
I also believe that this will be a larger iPhone, not a larger iPod Touch. Meaning it will probably be tethered to AT&T with a mandatory data plan (then maybe a lower price subsidized by AT&T?).
Just a thought.
March 15th, 2009
Looks like a buying opportunity.