“With consumers embracing a rapid shift away from traditional computers and towards a growing array of mobile devices, Apple may be preparing to introduce a distinct family next-generation Mac designs unlike anything seen to date,” Katie Marsal reports for AppleInsider.
“Citing an anonymous source within the Cupetino-based company’s Asian supply chain, hit-or-miss macotakara.jp claims Apple with the help of its component suppliers is gearing up to introduce Macs that are ‘absolutely different from current products,’ possibly by the ‘end of this year,'” Marsal reports.
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Marsal reports, “The brief report goes on to state that although the source could provide no further details on the matter, the designs of the news Macs mark such a departure from Apple’s existing offerings that they could be brought to market under a new brand or product name altogether.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “ojames” and “Jax44” for the heads up.]
webOS undoubtedly.
I was thinking the Macintosh, “Smart” Dumb Phone.
Must be Apple Internet TV
ARM based Macs? TV? augmented reality stereoscopic glasses? a riding mower? a restaurant chain? (oops, hope they don`t use “Mac” in any of their products”)
You can say this about any company that sometime in the future they will have new products coming out.
Non article.
OK… So we have the communicator (iPhone), and we have the tri-corder (iPad)… What’s next?
The Phaser, of course!
At any price!
The iPhaser, it’ll blow you away!.
Photon Torpedoes!
The teleporter. Changing the way you commute.
Obligatory +1
Set iPhasers to iAmStunning!
Just in case there Is still anyone out there that doubts who invented the mouse driven PC GUI OS, Apple will reinvent the PC industry, once again, for the post PC era.
What a boring world it would be without Apple.
Apple invented the GUI, mouse driven or not, and the term “PC” is essentially meaningless.
It’s amazing that Apple is allowed to exist, since they don’t distribute all their profits to the homeless like you think they should, you dirty looter.
What’s next? The “Ghost in the Shell” style, surgically implanted cyberbrain—we’re talking true “retina display” technology with augmented reality.
If the source is a hardware supplier, you are all wrong thinking in minor enhancements or new software capabilities… i think the new mac will bring two screens as seen in the new Acer Iconia series… its a great idea that the friends of Steven Jobs could be really taking in mind!
of course it makes complete sense.. you have 2 eyes, so the best thing to do is just double what you have to try to focus on. All we need is that chameleon gene so we can unhinge our eyes apart since depth perception is so out of fashion…
@breeze – I think it was Xerox Labs that invented the mouse and the concept of a GUI, but Apple that saw the commercial opportunity and exploited it. People thought they were nuts – what was wrong with the DOC Command Line anyway…?
Apple paid Xerox a licensing fee to use the mouse concept but Apple’s implementation went far beyond what Xerox had imagined.
So did Microsoft’s. The right-click 🙂
Can’t believe how long it took for Apple to finally support that.
The mouse was invented at SRI
DOS! Can’t even bring myself to type the accursed word….
By eliminating the optical drive, replacing hard drives with SSDs, and molding batteries to fill available spaces – computers may come in some interesting, surprisingly practical configurations. Bring on the wireless video, and we’re really talking!
jMac – it’s one better than iMac.
I dont think SJ is in any rush to radically change things like this article implies. Jobs is the one who thought OS9 should be “milked”. Lion, Macs, Airs, etc., still have a lot of milk to give.
The leak must have seen a patent application.
iPad is the display for a new case, that is the keyboard and touch pad of a Mac Air (with intel chip & WiFi to screen) that uses the iPad for the screen. Use it as an iPad, use it as a Mac.
Put me down for a couple of those at least!
Obviously it’s a Not So BigAss Table done right.
How freakin’ dare you blaspheme the BAT!
Infidel!
A Mac that is more like a big touch screen keyboard?
More signals that the convergence between iOS and Mac OS continues.
As I had been saying (for the past year or so), Lion will likely be the last cat. The next OS for the Mac line will be iOS, and the next hardware configuration for the Mac will be all multi-touch displays of various sizes. Mouse will be retired forever, taking its well-deserved place in the museum of computing (and, of course, working with Windows machines), keyboard will become optional (for heavy typists), and all OS app developers will again be forced to re-work their apps for the new Mac OS (i.e. iOS). Just as they had done it four times so far (68k to PPC, System 9 to OS X, PPC to Intel, 32bit to 64bit), they’ll do it again (some kicking and screaming, like Adobe), but eventually, there will only be one single massively scalable platform to develop for. From iPod nano, all the way through 24″ multi-touch iMac.
I have been half expecting to see a tablet/notebook hybrid. THe form factor was one of the better (of a lot of bad) formats for the windows tablet so you have to assume that SJ was looking at it. I am eager to see what it looks like when it is done right.
Then again, the much rumored Apple TV is somewhere in the wings waiting for the right moment.
“…the designs of the news Macs mark such a departure from Apple’s existing offerings that they could be brought to market under a new brand or product name altogether.”
Like what they should have done with Final Cut Pro.
:/
I just hope that Apple doesn’t forget content PRODUCERS!!! As a studio engineer, the idea of having to switch computer platforms because Apple has decided no one needs the things my MacPro now has which makes it work for me, is daunting. Change is very good, but without the same utility, change sometimes doesn’t work for all people.
At last, an Apple netbook !
Well, put it this way.. the Mac mini has already been updated and looks great… iMac and Mac pro are beautiful machines, but admittedly long in the tooth… they’re obviously gonna do something there.
iMac… air?!
Whatever it is, I’m buying one … and yes, I will join a very long line of ‘Mac Fan Boys’ if necessary to get the iMarvel …