Earlier on this month Apple announced that it will be holding its annual WWDC in San Francisco on 8-12th June. Primarily for developers to learn about IOS and OS X changes it has also become a key platform for Apple to launch its business focused products.
Here we round up some of the best rumours and try and guess what Apple might have in store for us later on this year.
Most of the online rumours are centring on the 15” MacBook Pro with Retina Display. Its baby brother, the 13″, got an update in March but the 15” was overlooked. We expect to see faster processors and flash storage and without doubt the integration of the Force Touch trackpad. What would really excite us is if this model could move towards the new MacBook and become even slimmer and more portable.
A product that ties in nicely with the MacBook Pro with Retina Display is the Apple Thunderbolt Display. This is looking a little antiquated nowadays when you compare it to the Retina Mac models, especially the iMac with 5K Retina Display. The online consensus is very much that the time has arrived for the Apple display to receive a significant refresh.
The Mac Pro was the highlight of WWDC 2013. Such a radical redesign put years of rumours and speculation about Apple’s professional workstation to bed. However, since its launch the Mac Pro hasn’t been touched so we would expect to see a speed bump in performance through the integration of new processors and flash storage.
The iMac is an interesting range. Technically it was updated last year with the introduction of a low cost iMac and of course the amazing iMac with 5K Retina Display. However, the rest of the range has not been refreshed since 2013. As with the Mac Pro, the consensus is that a speed bump in terms of performance is what is called for and nobody seems to be predicting a huge change in the iMac range.
The trusty old MacBook Pro with DVD-Superdrive is also subject to rumours. However, these are the exactly same ones that have surrounded this model for years. Will it be scrapped or will it be refreshed? Nobody, seems to know. The belief is that Apple keep the model going for those markets that do not have great broadband speeds and are more reliant on have DVDs for the software than downloading it.
Although, the Mac changes are always exciting the main buzz around this year’s WWDC is undoubtedly the Apple TV. Apple usually provide clues about what the WWDC will focus on in their logo and this year’s gives a strong indication that the Apple TV is that focus.
The outline of the TV box is easily visible in the logo and many commentators are predicting that a new model incorporating a streaming TV service, Siri and the App store will hit our shelves later on this year. It is also expected that the Apple TV will be the hub that Apple will use to make its HomeKit work for the masses.
Without doubt this year’s WWDC will be as fascinating as always. Having already received the Watch and the new MacBook this year we are looking forward to see what surprises Apple have in store for us in the second half of the year.
