The speculation is really starting to ramp up. With MacWorld 2008 just days away (Jan. 14-18 at the Moscone Center in San Fransisco), ArsTechnica lit the fuse today with it's picture of a banner hanging at the Moscone Center, reading "2008 There's Something in the Air".
Everyone's taking a stab at what Apple will announce next week. I confess I am not yet a user of Apple products. But I sense I will soon make the transition, first with an iPhone. My wife wants one, and already has a Macbook with her wherever she goes. I think it stays under her pillow at night. I'm certainly a fan, though I type this post from my smallish HP Pavilion laptop, which does the job for now. But the iPhone ... how can you not be moved by something like that? To say there are plenty of passionate iPhone consumers is to say there's a tendancy toward Catholicism in Rome.
Last year of course was the iPhone launch. Hard to top that. So some are saying Jobs has to announce a completely new product this year, or else the hype balloon will go pzzzz and lose its air. I disagree. I think the big announcement will be the next phase of the iPhone evolution, because I believe 2008 will be a pivotal year in the mobile revolution.
Look for a 16GB, 3G iPhone, with the ability to stream and record video (compare to Nokia's N95), and download movies wirelessly from Apple TV. And ... something about the Apple/Starbucks alliance, with ordering/payment ability. And I think this will go much further ... I think Apple's ultimate goal is to make the iPhone your wallet, for just about anything. It goes beyond skipping lines at Starbucks. It's about the convenience of purchasing things with your portable device, and Apple knows it's not only convenient, it means additional sales, as people tend to spend more when they use credit cards, or the equivalent of credit. When you hit a button, like swipping plastic, it doesn't feel like you just took money out of your wallet.
The video thing would be huge. Imagine if Apple provided a platform like Qik.com, where you could send live streaming video from your iPhone to a hosted channel on dot Mac. These are the things I'm thinking. What are you thinking?
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