[addabox]

Via Gruber, we see that the page for WWDC '15 is up, bearing the the tagline "The Epicenter of Change" and featuring what is unmistakably the shape of an Apple TV. Is this the long awaited breakout device/software update that leverages HomeKit and Apps to make a play for the connected house/game console/ala carte TV service? Does the Watch get some hitherto unmentioned control functions? None of the above? Don't care? Discuss!

[turtle]

I feel certain there is an AppleTV update that is going to be mentioned. I would personally love to see it involve actual Apps and an App Store eco system because it would allow actual development from players vs big dev houses with ties to Apple.

Game console and stuff is kinda neat idea, but not sure how that would play out in our home. I wouldn't mind if the AppleTV was able to be a true "everything I need" device, but those can be ineffective at everything. If in the end if means I spend more money daily then I'm not that interested.

[addabox]

Judging from the tag-line and invite, I think Apple TV will be at the center of this WWDC.

I wonder, too, if this is just ad copy or if Apple is taking the measure of the actual meaning of "epicenter", which is the point at the surface where the actual underground action manifests. That's probably a bit too nuanced for something like a pithy bit of text to stick on an invite, but it would awesome if they actually were making a point.

[turtle]

Yeah, add to that the new Apple TV pricing "starting at" $69 stated in the recent keynote. Means a higher priced version is coming. I'm looking forward to seeing what it really is too.

[addabox]

Outside of whatever standalone TV deals Apple has made, and iOS games (which might also suggest an Apple branded controller), maybe some kind of whole house iOS thing? Like, HomeKit works with the AppleTV somehow to better enable security, lights, HVAC, etc.? I actually have no idea what that would look like-- I think you can already get iOS comparable locks, Nest works with iOS, etc. Maybe Apple branded versions of this stuff, with extra coolness enabled by the AppleTV?

[Robo]

I think a new Apple TV is coming, but not because of the invite. Yes, it's the shape of an Apple TV...but also of iOS app icons, which Apple has used in WWDC imagery many times before. Only this time, they added circles, because watch app icons are circles...

I think the "epicenter" is supposed to be WWDC, not any new product. But I'm sure a new Apple TV is coming.

[turbulentfurball]

I thought it was pretty obvious that the image was a combination of rounded square iOS app icons and round apple watch app icons... Given that this is for developers of such apps. I think everyone has read way too much into it.

[addabox]

No. I refuse to listen to reason. The Apple TV has been transformed into a multi-dimensional power tesseract that transcends space and time. I'll use my mine to wreak terrible vengeance on the naysayers. Proportionality is not one of my strengths.

[709]

Tesseract design confirmed.

By the WWDC page link, of course.

[addabox]

*prints out compelling evidence, crumples it up, spits* TESSERACT, I SAY!

[Frank777]

The shape is meant to convey both the Apple TV AND App icons. As in: Developers, get your Apple TV apps ready for October.

Yes, breaking the conventional TV industry will be the main feature, but real gaming controls have been a side project on iOS for a long time, and I think Nintendo in particular is about to be slapped silly. October is also when gaming consoles traditionally launch. Apple's going for both markets.

Other business:
Boring update on how well that watch thing is selling.

iMacs
4K retina option on the 21" iMac. Both models get the new USB-C ports.

Mac Pro
New model coming in September, with Skylake chips and Thunderbolt 3.

One more thing: The new 15" MacBook Pro. Upgrading only the 13" last month sent a clear signal that a new 15" was in the works.
USB-C ports, no SDXC slot (in lieu of more battery.) I have no idea about chips or whether Thunderbolt 3 is a possibility.

[Brave Ulysses]

Originally Posted by Frank777 The shape is meant to convey both the Apple TV AND App icons. As in: Developers, get your Apple TV apps ready for October. Yes, breaking the conventional TV industry will be the main feature, but real gaming controls have been a side project on iOS for a long time, and I think Nintendo in particular is about to be slapped silly. October is also when gaming consoles traditionally launch. Apple's going for both markets. Other business: Boring update on how well that watch thing is selling. iMacs 4K retina option on the 21" iMac. Both models get the new USB-C ports. Mac Pro New model coming in September, with Skylake chips and Thunderbolt 3. One more thing: The new 15" MacBook Pro. Upgrading only the 13" last month sent a clear signal that a new 15" was in the works. USB-C ports, no SDXC slot (in lieu of more battery.) I have no idea about chips or whether Thunderbolt 3 is a possibility.

1. iMacs - I pray that they don't further neuter Apple's only viable desktop for 75% of the population. It needs to maintain a good selection of I/O and value.
2. 15" MBP - I think the SDXC slot will remain.... it's priceless for photographers.

[Frank777]

Originally Posted by Brave Ulysses 1. iMacs - I pray that they don't further neuter Apple's only viable desktop for 75% of the population. It needs to maintain a good selection of I/O and value. 2. 15" MBP - I think the SDXC slot will remain.... it's priceless for photographers.

1. USB-C is the future. Mixing USB 3 and 3.1 ports on the back will only delay adoption of the new standard. USB adapters will be cheap.

2. My camera has an SDXC card, and I usually just plug in the USB cable.
Since newer cameras have built-in wifi, eventually Apple will opt for more battery and less SDXC.

[kscherer]

Yes, there will be some jabber about the Watch, unless none sold, in which case we won't hear bupkis! Otherwise, the first 10 minutes will be the standard brag-a-thon.

Max OS X 10.11 Sequoia will be announced alongside iOS 9. Both will feature slightly updated visuals and a few new features, but will be focused almost entirely on under-the-hood optimization. I'm pretty convinced this year's update is the Snow Leopard of the non-Universal era. Mac OS 10.11 will gain the anti-theft tethering of Apple ID security that will render machines purchased from pawn shops as un-fixable bricks and customers will !!!

I can definitely see a new 15" Pro in the works using the current display resolution, only much thinner (way-off possibility of it going 4k, but I doubt it); new Unibody design with the machined-in hinge mechanism from the 12" MacBook; USB-C x 3 (2 on left, 1 on right); Thunderbolt x 2; HDMI; New keyboard from the MacBook; Force Touch trackpad; 16GB RAM standard w/option for 32GB; 512GB flash standard w/option for 1TB or 2TB; Quad i7 something or other; MagSafe will go bye-bye ; SD will go bye-bye; Crazy thing will be as thin as the new MacBook, but not tapered. Available in 8,000 colors or some other stupid thing to make me !

I am starting to agree that Apple has the TV thing figured out and that will be the big focus of WWDC. However, unlike Frank777, I think the Apple TV business will be slotted in as "One More Thing", if Cook uses that line, again. There will be content deals announced and Cable/Satellite companies all across the globe will collectively sigh and begin plans to raise the cost of internet access in order to offset the lost revenue of TV content subscriptions. Meanwhile, DSL providers will collectively giggle with glee and rush to build out their networks. Should Apple release an SDK and either a simultaneous controller or support for 3rd-party controllers, then we can also expect to hear the collective sighing of the entire gaming industry, with the possible exception of Microsoft — because Halo!

The audience will courtesy clap through the brag-a-thon, applaud nicely when Apple announces they're committed to fixing the collective oopses of OS things, cheer or boo the forward-thinking 15" MacBook Pro (depending on their reliance upon standard USB and MagSafe, which will go away in favor of the standards-based USB-C and it's cheap power adapters, but usher in yet another round of dongle-odites ). Finally, One More Thing will parade one network CEO after another across the stage to announce their content deals with Apple and the president of ESPN will announce the Apple TV-exclusive ESPN On-demand for $20/month and the whole frickin' world will turn upside down! As one, the audience will roar with approval and rush from the Moscone Center like a mad hoard and race over to Merrill Lynch to sell their Comcast/CableOne/DirectTV/Dish Network stock, which will plummet like its wearing concrete shoes!

Thanks for coming.

[kieran]

Hell, my photo imports lately have been to import from my camera to my phone via EyeFi card and then those photos end up in the iCloud Photo Library all by themselves. Never plug anything in.

[kscherer]

Originally Posted by Frank777 1. USB-C is the future. Mixing USB 3 and 3.1 ports on the back will only delay adoption of the new standard. USB adapters will be cheap.

This.

After playing with the new MacBook, I'm sold on USB-C. Fantastic little connector, and the price of power adapters will drop dramatically. In the very near future, we will sell 1 Apple adapter for every 25 3rd party adapters. They will get cheap and good. Right now, the only MagSafe business we carry are the Apple Adapters. The 3rd party stuff is mostly crap! With an entire industry collectively behind USB-C, there will be very good options available. And, now, when your chord breaks, it won't cost $80 to solve the problem. That is huge for the customer!

Also, since USB-C is a standard (and much cheaper than Thunderbolt) the PC industry will dive in with all feet and that will yield up some inexpensive enclosures/adapters that will leave Apple parts for the financially stable faithful. YEAH!

We complained when Floppies went away, we complained when CD's went away, now we're complaining when dumpy USB goes away. I say "Good riddance!" USB-C is nearly stupid-proof and way more flexible (right up to and including backwards compatibility with a cheap dongle). And, other than the "break-away-ness" of MagSafe, I'll be glad to see it go.

[Brave Ulysses]

Originally Posted by Frank777 1. USB-C is the future. Mixing USB 3 and 3.1 ports on the back will only delay adoption of the new standard. USB adapters will be cheap. 2. My camera has an SDXC card, and I usually just plug in the USB cable. Since newer cameras have built-in wifi, eventually Apple will opt for more battery and less SDXC.

1. Not so much USB 3 I am worried about, but Apple seems to not be all in on Thunderbolt.

2. I hope you are the exception to the rule. SDXC card interface is standard. USB cables are not. I never use a USB cable for any of my cameras. And wireless has yet to be pain free and fast enough.

[kscherer]

Originally Posted by Brave Ulysses 1. Not so much USB 3 I am worried about, but Apple seems to not be all in on Thunderbolt.

I think that's because no one else is using it, which means all the hubs and docks we were hoping for have not materialized. I give them credit for bailing and adopting industry standards, as opposed to pushing a going-nowhere interface. TB is awesome, but if the rest of the industry says no, then Mac users take a back seat when it comes to accessories.

[Frank777]

Originally Posted by Brave Ulysses 1. Not so much USB 3 I am worried about, but Apple seems to not be all in on Thunderbolt.

I think they are all in, but they are caught by the fact that they can't implement TB3 until Skylake chips are out.
[Those who know better about the Broadwell and Skylake chips, please correct me if I'm wrong on this.]

So Apple can't introduce the new connector on refreshes of the iMac or MacBook Pro this spring, they have to wait for the Pro to release in the fall.

And that's a problem, now that USB 3.1 has essentially caught up.

[Frank777]

And all the peripheral makers know that TB3 has a new connector design.

So as a business, you have to have rocks in your head to release new TB stuff before the Christmas season.

[Robo]

I think the new connector design is a pretty good sign that Apple's planning on adopting TB3, actually. Only Apple would push them to make the connector thinner. It's about 1.5mm thinner, to be precise. Who else in the industry would care about that?

I think USB-C will be the only port on Apple's consumer Macs (replacing power, video-out, and USB), but "Pro" products and the iMac will likely get TB3 too.

[709]

The 1-port Macbook is an oddity to me. I still can't quite wrap my head around a push for a 'connector' so new and leave just 1 port to play with. I'm no stranger to dongles and adapters (believe me, my SCSI, ADB, serial box of mess would blow your mind) but I just don't get this. Yes, I bought the gumdrop with USB only, but I don't think that's a truly fair comparison. I'm not sure why. Maybe because people weren't so entrenched in tech back then – this move seems much more demanding on the consumer.

Hell I don't know. It'll be interesting to see if the upcoming iPhones and iPads adopt this though. Lightning can thankfully go away now.

[Frank777]

Originally Posted by 709 The 1-port Macbook is an oddity to me... It'll be interesting to see if the upcoming iPhones and iPads adopt this though.

Those machines are already 1-port machines.

[709]

You know what I mean.

Lightning always felt temporary. It was 'USB thin' before it was a thing. Now that 'USB thin' turns out to be a demon in the sack, why not put it everywhere you can? Plus it's cross-platform.

It's the best for both worlds, especially since those worlds are increasingly colliding.

[Frank777]

I've seen multiple reports on the Net that a MacBook Pro update is scheduled for WWDC.

Makes sense, and USB-C and a thinner form factor are all but guaranteed now.

But can Apple include Thunderbolt 3 on these?

[Kickaha]

Yes. Yes they can.

http://www.engadget.com/2015/06/02/thunderbolt-3-usb-c/

[Frank777]

Well the recent MacBook Pro upgrade seems to acknowledge that the next update will be Skylake, possibly in the late Fall.

With regard to the TB3/USB 3.1 news, I'm intrigued about the branding of this new multi-use port coming to my next Mac.

Will Apple say their new machines have dual Thunderbolt 3/USB 3.1 [rev B] ports? That seems way inelegant for Cupertino spec sheets.

Could they actually create new branding? Universal Thunder ports? ThunderBus?

[Kickaha]

TB3 includes USB 3.1, so it's not necessary.

Well, okay, it's necessary for marketing. :P

[kscherer]

Will we get back to the "making fun of Thunderbolt" thread?

Lightening Bolt?
WonderThunder?

I do kind of like ThunderBus.

[drewprops]

FumbleBolt.



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