Steve's MacWorld Keynote

It's been a couple days since the keynote and I've had a bit of time to ponder. I think I can sum it all up with one word: Fantastical. I'm excited about the name change and the general direction of Apple. The 10 years since Jobs' return have been astounding: iMacs and iBooks, the shift to OS X, iLife, the iPod, the shift to Intel, and finally, the iPhone. Yes, it really is astounding. Given the content of the Jobs keyonte it seems likely that Apple's future is not only secure, but that it will continue to break away as a leader of design in many areas.

The iPhone and the Future of Apple Mobile
A mobile device that runs a version of OS X and incorporates an entirely new system of touch-based control is nothing short of groundbreaking. I wish they'd called it Apple Mobile which would better reflect the range of the device. Regardless, it seems obvious that there will be a series of iPhones, like the iPod, that will offer a range of prices, sizes, and feature sets. It also seems likely that the technologies in the first iPhone will make there way into upcoming iPods and perhaps a new class of mobile/tablet that does not include a phone. The iPhone is the first of a new Apple platform and as great as the iPhone will be, it is running on just the first version of mobile X. Get ready, this roller coaster is just pulling out. The first round of iPods, all of them till now, were just the process of standing in line and getting buckled in.

AppleTV and the new Airport Extreme
Back to the living room, not only did Apple release the expected AppleTV but also a new Airport Extreme. The news here is not the 802.11n which was the next logical step, but the inclusion of Airport Disk. According to Apple almost any USB 2.0 hard drive can be plugged into the Airport Extreme's USB port and then be easily shared via the network. Not only that, plug in a USB hub and share multiple drives and printers. Let's hope that Airport Disk will work with Leopard's new back-up system, Time Machine.

Leopard, iLife, and iWork
To everyone's surprise Jobs did not mention Leopard, iLife, or iWork. Not a peep. Many folks have expressed disappointment which is understandable. We've all come to expect new versions of these suites with each new year's MacWorld. Some have speculated that iLife and iWork apps will require Leopard technologies and so may be tied into it's release. It goes without saying that the Mac community is eager to get more details on Leopard and the iApps... hopefully we'll here something soon. I wouldn't be surprised to see a special Apple event soon.


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