Some news has surfaced concerning iOS 5 and Apple's roadmap for the coming year. According to M.G. Siegler of TechCrunch, Apple is going to push back the release of iOS 5.0 to this fall, and the iPhone 5 will launch with a version of iOS 4.x.
Speculation has been that Apple would hold a media event next month for an iOS 5 preview and MobileMe revamp, but TechCrunch's sources claim otherwise...
According to a report from The Music Void, Apple will be re-launching MobileMe this April, alongside a new, cloud-based music "locker." MobileMe will most likely be a free service, but The Music Void claims this new locker service will cost $20 a year.
The streaming locker service would have to tie into the iTunes backend, and users would be able to stream content between iDevices and the desktop. No specific details have been leaked about the locker in the sky, but The Music Void says Apple has already been hounding record labels for the rights to stream their content...
Remember when we all signs were pointing to a MobileMe revamp at Apple's last event? The iPad 2 ended up stealing the show, and MobileMe wasn't addressed at all.
Apple has stopped selling MobileMe at their retail stores, and you can only sign up for the 60-day free trial online. Because there is no current way to actually pay for MobileMe, it makes sense that Apple is about to do something significant to their cloud-based sync/storage solution.
According to an inside source, Apple will launch a new, free version of MobileMe in April...
Me too. After almost three hours of waiting (I know that's not much compared to some) at my local Best Buy, I was told there were no more WiFi-only models left at that location. Not only that but there were no more white iPad 2 available.
With only about 25-30 people ahead of me in line, and almost none of them walking away with white iPad, I had to wonder how small their drop shipment actually was. It also would have been lovely to know the model availability before I wasted most of my afternoon, waiting on the impossible. Determined to not accept defeat, I then proceeded across the street to Target....
My hopes that they somehow had some iPads left were crushed when I made my way to the electronics department. Not only were they sold out, they only had 6 units to start with, and none of them were the 16GB WiFi-only model I lusted after. So I went back to my car and although frustrated, quickly dialed every Walmart in town.
It was about 5:30 P.M. at this point, but I was desperate, and was hoping that the general public wasn't much aware of Walmart carrying iPad 2's on launch day. But with every phone call, reality crept a little bit closer. Finally, it was time to give up the chase, and I headed home. I had completely failed, or did I?
Yesterday morning, I mentioned that I had a feeling iPad 2 stock was limited, and I was spot on. So, did Apple drop the ball on their big launch day, or did everything go as planned? I'm going to go with the latter, because although the iPad 2 was just announced a week ago, original iPad sales had to give Apple some kind of insight to what demand was going to be for their new tablet.
Apple's plan, like many other major product launches, may have just been to release a limited number on launch day. Even though they may have warehouses packed with iPad 2's, they could be choosing not to ship to create a higher demand. Releasing iPads in rounds also makes Apple more agile. If they release a million units at a time, and there is a defect, they can quickly repair the problem.
But whatever the reason, I know that the hundreds of thousands of loyal Apple fans that flocked to their respective Apple stores and retailers, deserved better. My one opportunity to purchase an iPad 2 was a 64GB Black AT&T model, $829. That's almost double what I was wanting to spend, and I just didn't have any use for all the extra memory.
Were you able to snag an iPad 2 on launch day? Or did you have a similar, disappointing experience like myself? Tell us below!
If you missed today's event where Apple unveiled the iPad 2, you can now watch the full video online. Apple posted the full keynote on its website for everyone to watch. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.
It's been a busy day for Apple. The iPad 2 has been announced, and Apple is set to take the tablet market by storm again.
During Apple's keynote this morning, lot's of great announcements were made. There were some expected details, some curveballs, and several rumors were left unanswered.
Let's take a look at some components of today's keynote. Perhaps even more interesting are the topics left unaddressed by Apple...
Today, Apple announced the next generation of the iPad. The iPad 2 is the next stage in Apple's tablet evolution, and the device boasts a significant redesign from its predecessor.
There's a lot that's new about the iPad 2. It's thinner, lighter, and 2x faster than the original iPad. It also borrows elements from the iPhone 4, including dual cameras for FaceTime.
Let's take a closer look...
After months of speculations and rumors, Apple finally unveiled the iPad 2 today. Almost surprisingly, Steve Jobs was here to lead the presentation. As usual the event started with some big numbers: 100,000,000 iPhones in the world, 15,000,000 iPads sold, representing a 90% market share which generated $9.5 billion in revenue for Apple.
Apple's message today was pretty clear, the iPad is not a tablet, it's a post-PC device. An indeed it is.
Here is a quick summary of everything worth noting about the iPad 2:
Steve Jobs was here to present the event iPad 2 gets an A5 chip iPad 2 new design iPad 2 to come in black or white iPad 2 keeps the same price iPad 2 available on March 11 Apple give the iPad 2 a new cover iPad 2 gets 2 cameras iPad 2 promo videoApparently, you are not able to pre-order the iPad 2, which is kind of unusual. I sure hope Apple will let us do that prior to March 11 as I don't feel like standing in line for hours.
What a great surprise to see Steve Jobs today on stage to present the iPad 2 to the world.
Apple events are legendary in the tech community. No other company receives the level of response and interest that Apple gets with their announcements.
This fact is probably due to the intense level of secrecy that Apple maintains around their new products. Rumors ran rampant about what Apple will do next, but no one ever really knows what's going to happen.
If you're interested in following today's Apple announcement as it happens, here's a list of the best places on the internet for live Apple coverage.
Apple will be holding an iPad-centric event tomorrow at the Yerba Buena Center in San Fransisco, California. Honestly, that's all anyone knows at this point.
In the calm before the storm, speculation based on rumors based on leaks are all there is to go on. There's a good chance that Apple will address other products like MobileMe.
General consensus is that we'll also see a preview of iOS 5.0. An iOS 5 tease wouldn't be a stretch, especially with the probable release of the iPhone 5 this June.
In case you didn't know, MyGreatFest is a new convention taking place later this year. MyGreatFest is not any normal gathering; it is the world's first iDevice and jailbreak convention.
We've already given you several details about MyGreatFest. The first event will be held this September in London, U.K. The team behind MyGreatFest plans on holding more conferences in the U.S. after the first event takes off.
We here at iDB are proud to announce that we are an official sponsor of MyGreatFest, and we will be bringing you more coverage of the convention as the date approaches.