“As the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas winds down to lackluster reviews, Apple Inc. is expected to grab the spotlight with an ultra-slim laptop computer and online movie rentals at its biggest annual show next week,” Scott Hillis reports for Reuters.
“Next week’s annual Macworld event in San Francisco is the favorite venue of Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs to roll out new products and chart the company’s course for the year,” Hillis reports. “His showman-like pronouncements also increasingly set the agenda for the computer and electronics industries, and have in recent years overshadowed CES, held in Las Vegas around the same time.”
“Analysts expect a computer half as thick as Apple’s current MacBook lineup, but using flash memory chips like those found in its iPod music players rather than a hard drive,” Hillis reports.
“Many also think Jobs will announce that customers will be able to rent downloaded movies from Fox, Warner Bros and others though its iTunes online store, a move that could shake up the $9 billion U.S. movie rental market,” Hillis reports.
“Many industry analysts see the polished message of Macworld as a welcome relief from the chaos of CES and its familiar parade of ever-larger televisions, sharper video cameras and slimmer cell phones,” Hillis reports. “‘Apple didn’t need to take thunder from CES, there was nothing to take,’ Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with Jupiter Research, wrote on the company’s blog.”
Full article here.
You know what, I think I will spend the weekend reducing my expectations from Apple. Some solid news about growth gains will be nice. Anything else is gravy.
Nuff said.
This is one possible explanation for the recent announcements … getting them out of the way. Get them out there now, let them get some ink before these big stories grab what’s available. Besides, Apple needed something to counter the news of the Wintel mini-laptops from the CES.
Dave
“Apple didn’t need to take thunder from CES, there was nothing to take”
Enough said.
If this is all we are going to get, I’m waiting ’til after the keynote to buy my next bunch of AAPL. Today’s number will look way overpriced.
More fool you! I wish I had the readys to actually buy stock
AppleTV, a hobby no more.
Can someone explain to me how one little company in Cupertino, California can overshadow the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas? This is Apple astroturfing at its worst. You have, what, over a hundred exhibitors, Celine Dion AND Tom Jones and the best buffets on the planet and MDN expects me to believe one company with expensive, proprietary computers that can’t play games as well as overpriced me-too MP3 players garners more interest than CES. Bullsh!t and you know it, MDN.
Fact is everyone is still buzzing after Bill Gates’ magnificent, inspiring and electrifying CES keynote. I’d hate to be Steve Jobs next week.
Your potential. Our passion.™
Zune Tang – you’re awesome. LOL
I love your posts. Good humor!!
Zune Tang certainly knows how to whip up the Applelites, doesn’t he?
heheh.
Zune Tang, you are a comedy master! Your sarcasm rings so true! Preach it! It’s sad to think many believe what speak as truth! LOL!
Countdown until someone takes Zune Tang seriously, and spouts out some insults, attacking his MS fanboyism…
And… 3… 2… 1…
When a MacPro new version comes out so discreetly, be sure something real great will poor out Steeve’s hat!
More and more people are realizing that he is one of us and is using his keen sense of sarcasm to make fun of the crowd from Redmond.
I used to get peeved from his comments… now I laugh along with him.
It’s amazing that one company can upstage the rest of the consumer electronics industry. CES is lucky MacWorld was not scheduled during the same week, like last year. Ten years from now, MacWorld will be THE “consumer electronics show.”
EDIT:
Not only MacPros’s quietly… but also MacBook Pros have been updated with a new 2.6 CPU choice… Clearly, the anouncements will be of some other nature…
Whoa!! Zunie! What did they put in your Tang err orange juice today! Great wit and sarcasm!!! You are truly outshining yourself! That is, if light can actually come out of a Zune – brown hole!
Keep up the good work! I know two guys who worship you. They hang on every word you say! One will soon be without a job and the other monkey boy will drive the final nails in the coughen coffin!
BOL!
All these steve Jobs want a bees can go to heck
I am m sick of all the johnny come late lees
enough already
go away please
fsck -f off
@ ZuneTang
Yes, we can explain, but not to you. That would require intelligence, and since that has been Tanged from your head, you’l have to work your way back to the Romper Room.
I would like the new AppleTV and UMMac (UltraMobileMac) to be the same device.
There has been a huge amount of talk at CES and elsewhere about internet-connected TVs, set-top boxes, etc. Things are messy and they’re going to get messier with BlueRay drives, computers, FreeView, hard drives and iPods all connecting to the TV or going inside the TV. The 80s showed us that no one wanted an all-in-one HiFi – they are still the cheaper cousin today – but we want components. Yet today’s components are way too complex for the non-geek to understand or assemble.
So, why not have the iPod slot into the front of the TV (like the JVC) and the UMMac slot into the side of the TV/monitor. No messy cables. No transferring of songs, photos or movies to the set-top box. Plenty of high technology, but hidden from the user. Plus portability.
There was a lot of thunder at CES, but the whoring media ignored much of it. The vendors were falling all over each other announcing iPod integration. iBitch baby, iBitch!
The collapse of support for HD DVD by studios has destroyed Mafiasoft’s DRM ridden attempt at controlling access to content and is chilling the use of HD DVD drives in those same vendors equipment. This is huge news.
Apple’s not being at CES forced the competition to show their hands and the latter had nothing. Apple dominated CES by not being there.
Is an “expectation” more plausible than a “rumor”?
Hey, mike_in_helsinki:
Have you bought yer new MacPro yet? How is yer new MacPro configured? How much did you pay? Feeling a bit more manly this week?
“More and more people are realizing that he is one of us and is using his keen sense of sarcasm to make fun of the crowd from Redmond.”
Agreed. I think it’s time for Zune Tang to go mainstream ala the Colbert Report.
I’ll welcome a new slimmer MacBook Pro, my last one’s optical drive suddenly died.
Many thanks to the Apple Store guy who allowed me to clone my boot drive in the store, bypass the long line of computer newbies at the Genius Bar and simply drop off my computer instead of scamming my ass with Pro Care membership.
I had traveled a long way to get my rarely failing Mac fixed and he was a great help.
He now sports a very special Apple black T-shirt only gotten by those who have had the privilege to enter the gates of Cupertino itself.
He was very proud.
@ mike_in_helsinki
Cmon dude. I’ve read your stuff here on MDN. I thought you were smarter than that.