With the new year here, and Macworld San Francisco just a few days away, I'm gazing into my crystal ball to make a few predictions for 2006 and offer a few thoughts on the year just past.
For two years I've been saying that iChat A/V would be a big thing. Inside the tech community, it already is a big thing. Within my family, it's a big thing, too -- I get to chat with my 5-year-old niece who lives in another state. However, it does seem that the technology has yet to catch on among the general public. I remain expectant that it will.
For 2006, I think Apple will find a way to further integrate its wildly popular iPod line with TV and the home media center -- perhaps with a Tivo-like personal video recorder that sports a video iPod dock. The company might even release video iPod with a bigger screen, include some form of camera, add a wireless connection and make it all work with some variant of iChat A/V.
Do you get the sense that the combinations and possibilities here are endless?
Any such systems would be dependent on Wi-Fi for connectivity, since the bandwidth necessary to deliver true mobile broadband over cellular isn't readily available to the mobile providers. Perhaps in a few years, they will be able to outbid the television stations for leftover spectrum.
With that in mind, how about this scenario a few years down the road: SBC Communications buys Disney/ABC and then merges with Apple. The resulting company could offer bandwidth, content and hardware with a good interface. Of course, this is a predictions column, not a wishes column, so let me focus on something closer to home: hardware.
On the computer side in 2006 -- and I don't really think I'm on much of a limb here -- look for new PowerBooks sporting dual-core Intel chips and perhaps an integrated camera. (Yes, I've got a thing for the iChat A/V.) I am hopeful that a low-cost tablet Mac will also be released.
In enterprise applications, Apple would do well to upgrade its e-mail server offering, and just such an application may be in the works for later in 2006.
Overall, 2006 will see a further expansion of mind share for Apple as it moves to Intel chips, leading perhaps to market share growth in the consumer space. The iPod will continue to be the growth engine of the company and will continue to challenge the business model of the entertainment industry.
Did I miss something? Do you have an opinion to share? Send your questions, comments and curses to y.kossovsky@ieee.org.