WWDC Predictions

To be honest, I have read only a little of all the rumors and hype around the Net regarding all this Monday’s WWDC keynote. Not because I’m not interested or excited, but I’ve just had other things to do.

Since I am relatively uninformed and have no inside sources, I thought it only logical to give my two cents on what we may or may not see at WWDC. And besides, everyone else is doing it.

  • iPhone: I am hesitant to believe we will see a 3G capable iPhone released and available to buy next week. Announced or talked about? Absolutely. But I’m not convinced it will be in stores before this Fall.On the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see a price drop and/or a refresh to the current iPhone model. Maybe an increase in storage capacity, a fix to that annoying headphone jack and one more thing.
  • iPhone Software Update: I’m still holding to the ‘sleeper agent‘ mentality I adopted after watching the iPhone SDK announcement in March. There is a lot of potential within the current iPhone which Apple is still unveiling. Right now, as far as Apple is concerned, it’s all in the software. I think the software update will be the most exciting news.I think Steve will brag on – and then release – the 2.0 software update. It’ll probably be available right after the Keynote (which means a whole lot of people will be pounding on the server and we won’t actually be able to get it until 24 hours after the keynote).

    Also, I’m sure we will see some 3rd party apps available on the iTunes store as well. Come on App Store.

  • Laptops: I will be surprised if we don’t at least see a refresh to the MacBooks and MacBook Pros, though I doubt we’ll see a whole new lineup just yet. They seem very much overdue for an update, but it also feels like the main push at WWDC next week is going to be software, not hardware.Of course that’s not to say Apple won’t release a whole new line-up
  • .Mac: Speaking of software, .Mac has long been Apple’s would-be golden ticket to a fantastic Mobile/Home synchronization platform thingy. The potential of .Mac is so un-tapped, and I think everyone is ready to see it updated.The main update feature I’m hoping for is a better synching option between my MBP and my iPhone. Primarily over-the-air synching.

    Will the name get changed to Mobile Me (or something like it)? Probably. If they’re going to make a massive overhaul to the service, it would be just like them to give it a new name. Similar to when they made the move to Intel: PowerMac became Mac Pro; PowerBook became MacBook Pro; etc…

  • Snow Leopard: Sure. Why not?

To wrap up, my gut tells me the main push next week will be software related, with some hardware refreshes (and maybe some price changes) to accommodate.

WWDC Predictions