Some Predictions for Mac World 2008

1.

Just as CES 2008 comes to an end, Macworld 2008 is upon us, starting this Tuesday in San Francisco with Steve Jobs’ keynote address. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) for me, the odds makers in Las Vegas aren’t taking bets on what new hardware Jobs will unveil. But I’m still going to take a shot at making some predictions, anyway.

• Apple will announce its first compact notebook with an LED-based display. Although it’s not definite, a 13” display size seems most likely. LED displays are environmentally friendly, since they’re mercury free and emit more light than traditional displays while using less power. In general terms, properly tuned LED displays can also light up quicker, last longer and produce a wider color gamut than traditional displays. LED-Based Compact Notebook Probability: High

• Apple will introduce a super-slim metallic notebook. This notebook may be coupled with the LED display described above. Although less likely, there’s also a possibility that Apple will debut its use of a NAND flash solid state drive in place of a traditional hard drive. NAND flash is used in digital camera memory cards and USB flash drives. The advantages of NAND flash memory include reduced hard drive noise, improved speed, increased battery life and higher reliability, due to the lack of mechanical components. Super-Slim Metallic Notebook Probability: High

• Steve Job’s keynote will include the debut of a touch screen based notebook or iMac. Apple is eager to further cash in on the success of the tactile responsiveness of the iPhone and iPod touch. While I think this is on its way, next week may be a bit too soon for this one. iTouch Notebook or iMac Probability: Low

• Perhaps the most obvious piece of computer hardware missing from Apple’s current lineup is an affordable tower. The Mac Pro now sells for $2,799, with a minimal quad-core configuration available for $2,299. Anyone wanting a configurable tower at a more affordable price ends up turning to third-party resellers to buy used older-version Intel Mac Pros, G5 and G4 models. Steve Jobs is missing out on grabbing a piece of the market, and that’s inconceivable. A configurable mini tower, somewhere in the $1,500 price range, is long overdue. I’m not sure if it’s my instincts or just that I really want to see it happen, but I’m going to say: Configurable Mac Mini Tower Probability: Moderate

• An upgrade to the iPhone, possibly an ATT G3 based iPhone. Although Jobs tends to keep Macworld focused on Macs versus (everything else), he won’t easily let the opportunity to announce an iPhone upgrade slip away. Customers have been demanding an upgrade to the G3 network for months because of its enhanced speed. Apple has resisted, due to its enhanced power requirements and the iPhone’s already limited battery life. If the power problem has been resolved, or even slightly improved upon, we’ll see a G3 iPhone debuted at Macworld. Another hardware upgrade possibility for the iPhone is the addition of GPS capability, which is currently not available. iPhone Upgrade Probability: Moderate

• Apple hasn’t had a serious upgrade to the Mac Pro since 2006, and has been buying massive supplies of the Intel Penryn 5400 Series processors, strongly suggesting that the Mac Pro will be upgraded to ... well Steve Jobs beat me to the punch on this one; the upgrade to an eight-core Penryn processor Mac Pro has already been announced. The details are here.

The Macworld Expo officially kicks off with Steve Jobs’ keynote on Tuesday, January 15th. Say tuned for our coverage..