Why iLife 07 Didnt Appear At Macworld 2007
Friday, January 12, 2007 at 9:13PM 
Based on the successful prediction I made about the iPhone back in September, I thought I'd take another shot.
Sitting watching the iPhone demo here at Macworld I got to thinking about some of the technologies built into the iPhone. The multi gesture touchscreen is simply amazing and could really be a game changer.
Here's my take on what we might see over the next six months based purely on speculation...
Apple have positioned 2007 as the year it all changes (You've seen web graphic - The first 30 years were just the beginning). Even by Apples standards, this certainly feels like a precursor to something major.
The iPhone?
Well I'm sure we've just seen the birth of a new digital platform but I'm sure there's more than that, much more!
The complete and utter absence of Leopard, new versions of iLife and iWork and no hardware revs on any of the Apple Mac range at the premier Mac user conference and Expo is mind boggling. Did Apple really not want to spoil iPhones thunder or are we on the cusp of something much more significant?
I think the latter!
OK, so here is my prediction!
Leopard will include support for the multi touch gesture technology as demonstrated in the iPhone and be launched simultaneously with a completely revamped range of Desktop Macs and touchscreen Cinema Displays.
To truly appreciate just how amazing this could be, check out this research video.
iLife 07 will introduce touch enabled versions of iPhoto and all the other iLife applications alowing you to drag and drop, resize, re-arrange and do all sorts of crazy stuff directly on the screen using touch gestures.
Again, this is pure speculation and not based on any substantive information.
It just strikes me that if Apple are poised to blow us away with Leopard and take the whole computing paradigm to the next level, this would be a spectacular way to do it.
Could this be the secret stuff they've been hiding from us?
We can but dream!
Technorati Tags:
Macworld 2007, Apple, Mac, Leopard, OSX
Reader Comments (18)
i hope you're right, because that'd be down right incredible if it happened.
Don
I think you are talking a lot of sense in this article, and could'nt resist posting this to Digg, which you can find at:
http://digg.com/apple/Why_iLife_07_Didn_t_Appear_At_Macworld_2007/who
Scott
Don, do you think this revolution will include touchscreen iPods?
Ginny
I would think that touchscreen ipods in the same form factor as the iPhone would be a distinct possibility but probably won't be available until after the iPhone launches.
Otherwise, it would dilute the iPhone sales.
To add further credence to this theory, consider this:
http://www.engadget.com/2006/04/26/apple-patent-embeds-thousands-of-cameras-among-lcd-pixels/
Ding!
Ah yes, I'd forgotten about that patent! The one where the whole LED screen becomes a camera by interlacing camera "pixels" inbetween the display pixels so the whole screen becomes a camera.
When it first cam out I must admit to scratching my head as to why you'd want this with a fixed monitor but now the iPhone has been announced with no forward facing camera but a large LED screen, it all starts to make sense.
I doubt we'll see it until version 3 or 4 of the iPhone but this looks like an ideal way to provide video conferencing without spoiling the clean design of the iPhone by putting something as easy as a camera lens on the front of the iPhone.
Now that would be too easy!
I've been thinking about MacWorld 2007 and the total lack of Mac OS X and anything really Mac related. The iPhone event would have been a better item at the Consumer Electronics Show going on at the same time in Las Vegas. So what's up? I think part of it is that Apple has the world's undivided attention during the MacWorld Keynote. it's always something big, and while i am disheartened that there were no Mac announcements... the iPhone and the iTV are very much "BIG." Two devices that do right what everyone else has done half hearted. Alas, where does that leave us with Macintosh and OS X? The start of something big.
The logo doesn't make sense if we are just talking iPhone and iTV.... they were both released in January and one wont' even be available until June at the earliest; assuming law suits or the FCC don't get in the way. If though, this was just the first volley in what will be released when they start talking about OS X 10.5; then maybe it makes more sense. Don could be on to something here.
I also don't think the iPhone will be where it is at.... could we finally be looking at something new in the Mac world. Something on par with the release of the original iMac or the original PowerBook. The MacBook Pro didn't get a rev in design really, the MacBook got a minor update. I do think whatever it is, it's tied to Leopard. The whole reason Apple releases new OS updates that are big, is to drive hardware sales. So there has to be something in there that will either drive people to want the new machines that came out last year, Intel based...... I mean really give them a reason to switch or some hardware changes that have not yet been announced. Which would mean last year's models were just test runs of the Intel hardware and the OS and 2007 they will really release new equipment. Something that will make people need a new machine. Speed is one thing... but if they have something that is killer... something other's don't have.... then that could drive sales even more.
haven't we seen this before... a build-up of testing new technologies and then a release of something that ties it all together... oh yeah... iTV and the iPhone... maybe the change is just begining.
Managed to catch up with the keynote via iTunes. I noticed Steve did say they\'ll be rolling out some amazing stuff for the Mac over the next few months.
I\'m fairly relaxed about there being some big things n the pipeline.
I suppose it was a strategic decision to announce the iPhone at Macworld this year with the closeness of CES. It\'s just a pity for all the Mac heads who\'d made the rip to SF there was nothing more substantial on the Mac front.
A temporary situation I\'m sure.
I caught a quick snippet of Bill Gates at CES on CNN n the flight from SF to JFK.
I had a \"Spock\" moment (OK - I raised an eyebrow) when he started talking about the different hardware vendors supporting Vista. The first one he mentioned was a touchscreen monitor! I wonder if they are thinking the same thing I am following the iPhone announcement and are trying to get in first?
Check out this I\'ve just Google\'d:
http://www.tiny.cc/j4Y6A
Perhaps I\'m not that far off the mark after all?
PS Surely not an iMac killer :-) Urgh!
[...] McAllister says: [...]
I am just hoping that iLife '07 will include some new instruments for GarageBand 4. A trombone that actually slides would be good. A blues harmonica would be nice. Mandolins so you could write R.E.M. style music would be good. Since GarageBand 3 came with sound effects for podcasts and creating soundtracks for films, it would be nice if there were new Jam Packs with nothing, but sound effects.
And while I am on a wishlist, Apple has boosted people's creativity with iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD, GarageBand, Keynote and Pages. I hope someday they come out with iGames, a piece of software that would allow game enthusiasts to easily create their own games (kind of an iMovie for games) without having to learn any programming languages (like Flash Action Script). Perhaps once that comes out they could have accessories for it, such as plug-ins with tools for specific genres of games (kind of gamers Jam Packs).
For a long time there has been clip art for programmers. Apple (or anyone else could make a fortune if they create clip programs for artists.
Thanks for listening
Gene Hamm
Heard information that apples first release of iphone will be vastly improved on the one we saw at WWDC. One of apples top men has leaked information that when iphone hits the stores in june that it will be packing a proper 4.7 megapixel camera, 3G connectivity and 20GB storage capacity. Also released was information about the new MacBook Pros with the LED backlit display. People were told that the new model would be thinner, lighter, brighter and faster. The new MacBook Pro will be released with leopard and will have a new black 14.4" design and a silver 16.4" version. These laptops wil be released with the new quad core processors and with built in 3G connectivity for broadband internet acess. Finger scanning technology will be built in to the track pad for the most secure access. This is all i know at the moment but was told that one more massive feature on the new MacBook Pro was still to be confirmed.
Wow Andy, that's some spec!
Fingers crossed :-)
Wow Andy! I hope so. I was bummed for only 4GB of storage on the iPhone. Thanks for the un-official News!
I Hope Apple Bundles iLife and iWork with Leopard. It would make buying a new computer so Convenient to have great office products like iWork plus the Creativity of iLife pre-installed.
As for all multi-touch, It would be incredible, but I like having a mouse (call me old fashioned :))
Yeah, no offense Andy, but that\'s a pile of *****.
Don, I cannot believe your audacity in making such optimistic claims...but...you\'ve managed to persuade me and I actually think Apple and Intel have a sweet device in the pipeline dedicated to Multi Touch. After all they did say they\'d be working on some great stuff together in the future.
Nice one Don!
;-)
Did you also hear rumors about Apple ultimately wanting to stop producing computers and cocentrating only on ipod and iphone? It appeared last week in a article in one of our daily national papers here in the Netherlands.
mrawie
[...] Kudos to Microsoft for the announcement about “Surface“, the new $5000 hardware device (a digital table top) that uses multitouch technology. Despite being in development since 2001 (as MS are at pains to point out on the website), this to me represents the biggest clue yet that Apple has something similar in the works with Leopard and new Macs (as I predicted back in January 2007). [...]
[...] Last, Multitouch. The iPhone gets it first because it is a small device in comparison to the rest of the line. It changes computing as we know it. It allows us to basically carry a screen in our pockets that can do a multitude of functions. We humans like to touch, that is how we interact with the world. I’m not the only one who thinks iLife ‘07 is holding out for multitouch. There is no doubt in my that the iMac and the Macbook will become one device because of this shift. Inkwell meet Multitouch! [...]
[...] New Hardware Of course, we’ll get new iMacs and Cinema Displays this year, they’re both well overdue for a refresh. The funny thing is that they both include display technology. I hate to go into rumour mode but….. What if the iMac and Cinema Displays include some brand new technology that we’ve not seen before? What if Apple do want to leverage the power of Core Animation and MultiTouch into their new hardware range? They’ll need Leopard to provide the software to enable the hardware. I’m still sticking to my prediction I foolishly made back in January during MacWorld in that Apple will be getting into multitouch in a big way on a refreshed Mac platform. [...]