My iOS 5 Feature Requests

iOS 5 is due to be shown to developers for the first time at WWDC this summer, and released to the public this fall. Here is my wishlist of features I hope make it into iOS 5. Things like a new notification system, social integration, improved file copy, wireless/cloud syncing I think are necessary, and the rest of the items in bold are my top requests, in no particular order.

• New notification system (like WebOS)
• Lockscreen Information (email, news, weather)
• Multi-user support for iPad (with gesture or voice-based logins & individual app data profiles)
• Over the air, delta updates (as long as they aren’t applied without permission - having to reinstall the entire OS for every update is ridiculous)
• Improved file copy experience (outside of iTunes) & Ability to mount iDevice as a flash drive
• Improved, system wide Voice Control and voice-to-text transcription
• Selective App Data backup & restore (like game saves)
• Cloud syncing (Non-mandatory) & Wireless backup/syncing with Mac
• To-Do lists in Calendar
• System-wide dictionary/thesaurus app (like OS X has, useable in any app. with custom dictionary and translation dictionary support)
• Social: Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, etc. integration throughout the OS & APIs for developers
• Mail: IMAP-Idle for Gmail; Local notifications for received mail messages; Gmail staring, tags, ability to delete Gmail messages instead of archiving them (in addition to archive ability); Editable Exchange drafts
• AirPrint: Print to PDF creation & compatibility with additional printers & ability to print through a Mac or a PC
• Rich Text support (iOS 4.x only supports Plain Text)
• Background updating for app content (Twitter, Facebook, Instapaper, Reeder, etc.)

• Official pull to refresh support

• Safari: Stop bookmarks from popping-up when Safari is opened with no open tabs; Wireless bookmark syncing for free (sans MobileMe or a paid subscription); Ability to drag and re-arrange Safari tabs; Safari Autofill keeps auto-filling the wrong email (Should have an option to select what info we want to use from the contact card, like what email address)

• Improved Photos app with features more like iPhoto (tagging, image editing, image rotation, custom Camera Roll folders, etc.)
• Improved YouTube app (doesn’t log you out, can manage subscriptions, etc.)
• GarageBand and iWork for iPhone
• Ability to see previously-purchased, but not installed apps in the App Store
• Ability to update apps without having to have double the space available on the iDevice
• Dynamically updating weather app icon (with temperature and forecast)
• Transcription and Forwarding of Visual Voicemail
• Support for USB card readers & flash drives (for copying photos/files with no conversion)
• Custom Audio Alerts (Custom email, calendar, and notification audio alerts)
• Improved Camera app (more like Camera+)
• FaceTime over 3G

2010 iOS Apps of the Year

About two weeks ago, Apple posted their iTunes Rewind 2010 - a roundup of the best and most popular Apps of the year. As I did last year, it’s also time for my 2010 Apps of the Year list, but this year, I’m also adding a boos & bravos section. Enjoy!

Games of the year:

1. Angry Birds & Angry Birds Seasons
2. Cut the Rope
3. Reckless Racing
4. Infinity Sword & Epic Citadel
5. Real Racing
6. Parachute Ninja
7. Osmos
8. Card Shark Solitaire
9. Wispin
10. Jenga

Game Honorable Mentions:

• ZenBound 2
• Plants vs Zombies (Apple’s game of the year, but still no retina display support though)
• Flight Control and CroMag Rally (Updated with GameCenter multiplayer)
• DoodleJump (for the free, frequent updates)

Apps of the year:

1. Reeder
2. PlainText / Notesy
3. Remoter
4. Navigon MobileNavigator (Traffic in-app purchase is great, panorama view is a bit of a rip-off)
5. TuneIn Radio
6. 1Password Pro
7. Twitter (formally Tweetie - free)
8. DropBox (free)
9. AppShopper (free)

App Honorable Mentions:

• Boxcar 2.0: for attempting to bring order to iOS’s horrendous notification system
• VLC
• Google Voice Apps (GVMobile + and Google’s official Voice app for finally being allowed into the App Store)
• Netflix
• Facebook
• ReaddleDocs
• Articles
• TextExpander

Boos and Bravos:

• ID and Epic/Chair - for pushing the iOS platform and hardware to the max

• Gameloft - for updating many (maybe most) of their existing (popular) games (like N.O.V.A., Uno, Let’s Golf 2, Shrek Kart, etc) for the retina display (EA has yet to update most of their lineup)

• Firemint - for being at the forefront of iOS game development, releasing updates for Real Racing (and Flight Control) to add support for the retina display and gyroscope very soon after the iPhone 4’s release (one of the first to support either), and GameCenter with multiplayer support.

• Rovio - for continuing to bring new content to both Angry Birds and Angry Birds Seasons without requiring additional purchases.

• Apple - for making Find My iPhone free for iPhone 4 & iPad owners and for relaxing/clarifying App Store rules (finally allowing Google Voice, for example). Boo for removing shared AirPrint functionality, making AirPrint practically useless (unless you have a new HP printer) and not bringing iWork to the iPhone.

• Chase, USAA, and PayPal - for remote check deposits. Boo for taking so long to process them (7 days for PayPal)

• Developers for making separate iPad “HD” versions, instead of bundling them as a Universal app.

MacBook Refresh in the Works?

There has been a lot of speculation recently regarding an upcoming refresh of Apple’s MacBook and MacBook Pro notebook lines. These rumors were spurred by purported images which surfaced of a new bottom case for MacBook Pro’s which reflected some sleeker, MacBook Air inspired design curves as well as Apple’s own admission the other day of a “product refresh” later this year. Like many Mac heads, I’m rather excited about the prospects of the redesigned systems, and in addition to updating the system specs and adopting Intel’s new Centrino 3 “Montevino” architecture, I hope that above all, both models inherent design cues from the Air, and well as becoming lighter and slimmer. Furthermore, there has been a rumor in the last day or two claiming the new MacBook would gain a glass screen with iPhone-like multitouch, built-in GPS, and an accelerometer. This would also be neat! As I previously posted, there has also been rumor of an Apple netbook. Anyway, I decided to compile a short list of what I would like to see in the new models:

MacBook Air:

• Faster Processor – at least 2GHz
• 2 USB Ports
• Gigabit Ethernet Port
• Upgradable Memory (2 RAM slots supporting up to 4GB)
• Stereo Speakers
• Audio input (Mic in)
• Kensington Lock
• User-Replaceable Battery
• Upgraded iSight camera (the Air’s current version has less MP than other MacBooks and is fuzzy)
• Cheaper Price 

MacBook Pro:

• MacBook Air-inspired curves and design cues
• Lighter (5 pounds or less) and thinner
• eSATA Port
• Faster Centrino 3 Components
• Multitouch? 

MacBook:

• Faster Centrino 3 Components
• Aluminum Case (like MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, maybe even boring some design elements from the iMac’s rounded, aluminum sides– considering the iPods are all now aluminum – I really like the aluminum look, and it’s certainly more scratch/dirt repellent)
• LED Backlight Display
• Backlit Keyboard
• eSATA port; USB 3.0 (draft) – Not especially important, I’m just wishing here!
• Lighter (around 4-4.3 pounds – to compete with Windows competition)
• Thinner (to compete with Windows competition)
• Multitouch?

Netbooks: MSI Wind or a Possible Apple?

Since I first read about the MSI Wind netbook back in April, I’ve been captivated. What’s not to like about it: 1.6GHz Atom processor, long battery life, and 10” screen – all at roughly 2 pounds and with an incredibly portable footprint? Adding to the intrigue, the Wind featured a dedicated overclock button, which overclocks the CPU automagically from the stock 1.6GHz to approximately 1.8GHz, which would come in extremely handy when running media intensive apps or games(unfortunately, this feature has been removed from shipping versions, apparently because MSI didn’t know how the CPU would react to overclocking in the long-term. Hopefully, this great feature will return, perhaps through software). Furthermore, all of this comes at the extremely amazing price of $499. The only drawback: it runs Windows XP (but I could live with this). After salivating over its good reviews, I’ve been waiting to click the purchase button now for over two months.

Anyone who has been following this machine would have noticed that its US release date keeps slipping. Originally scheduled to ship around June 14, the ship date was pushed back to the 2ndweek of July in limited quantities – and then only with the much smaller 3-cell battery – for essentially the same price ($479) as the 6-cell ($499). I think it’s interesting to note that the Wind, and its many clones, have been shipping in other parts of the world now for well over a month. Whatever MSI’s US distribution problems may be, it seems they don’t plague Europe and Asia – which makes me wonder whether MSI’s market focus has inched away from the North American market in sync with the ever declining dollar? Now, Newegg lists availability of the 3-cell black version as 7/26 (after slipping from 7/22) at a cost of $499 – the same retail price MSI originally announced for the six-cell. Additionally, MSI somewhat confusingly announced that the 6-cell version will be available either in late August or September (expect this to slip too). Now the question is: Do I buy the 3-cell version now, and purchase an additional 6-cell battery when it becomes available (at an unknown price), or wait an unknown amount of time for the 6-cell version to ship (Apple could refresh the MacBook or release a netbook in the meantime as well).

As a netbook, this would obviously not end up being my main computer (I would retain a Mac for that), but the Wind’s low price, light weight, and small size combine to form the perfect laptop for porting to and from university and using in the classroom for notes and on the go browsing and work. What I really would like is a MacBook Air, but since its really pricy and its performance is abysmal for the price, I feel like it would be a bad choice as my primary machine (which it would have to be at its $2,000 price). At only $500, the Wind would allow me to easily purchase both a more portable netbook for school, as well as a larger and heavier PowerBook (or MacBook). Obviously, the ideal solution would be for Apple to release netbook Mac, with MacBook Air style, and featuring identical or better specs to the Wind, running Mac OS X and possibly containing a touch screen for iPhone-like multitouch. I would gladly pay an additional premium for such a system, as long as the price would come in sub-$800. Indeed, there has been a lot of recent analyst chatter about the possibility of Apple entering the netbook (or touch tablet) market, possibly this fall or early next year (I remain skeptical, however, due to netbooks relatively low profit margins). This would certainly be a welcome, and highly aggressive move for Apple to attack and likely dominate a whole new and fast growing segment of the electronics and computing industry.

Leopard Wish List 1 - Eye Candy and Animations

I’m beginning a series of posts highlighting the features I would like to see featured in Apple’s next iteration of Mac OS X, version 10.5 Leopard, which is due to be publicly shown for the 1st time in August. While my top request would be a re-designed Finder with meta-data support, I’ll be posting about that later. Following right behind the Finder on my wish list would be the user interface, which I’ll address here first:

It’s been awhile since I’ve really been wowed by a user interface. That honor would go all the way back to the first time I saw Aqua in action on an OS X developer’s preview. The transparency, the colors, and the Dock and its animation took my breath away, and I immediately wanted OS X on my computer. Everything was stylish and refreshing, in an era of boring, dull grey workspaces. Subsequent releases of OS X have refined aqua, through actions such the reduction in use of transparency and pin stripes, along with the introduction of brushed metal and the new “unified” look present in Tiger. While many people claim colors and flashy animations are annoying, un-professional, and hinder their work, I disagree – it keeps me entertained at my computer. Although with Tiger, I’ve grown board of the same interface I’ve used for the last 5 years. I want change! I want to be impressed again! So, with Mac OS X celebrating it’s 5 year birthday, and with Windows Vista releasing sometime in the next year, I think the time is right for Apple to make changes to Aqua, and in the process, make it new, flashy, and exiting again!

I’ve noticed two different new interface ideas showing up recently in Apple products. The first interface I’ll write about showed up first in Tiger’s Dashboard, and more recently in Aperture and iPhoto 5. It’s become apparent that all three applications display the same new dark, black translucent interface, with translucent panels and new close widgets and scroll bars – an interface completely different and distinct from Aqua used elseware throughout the system. The new interface is really spectacular in Aperture (which has some great animations and touches, like the floating search box with arrow – see figure 4 below) where it comprises almost the entire application’s interface, but also in the full-screen mode of iPhoto 5, which displays the same dark translucent panels (or HUDs) and scroll widges. I really like this interface, and hope that it could be applied in some way system-wide. I’m salivating just thinking about the Finder, served-up with Aperture-like, translucent black sweetness!

The second interface also showed up with the introduction of 10.4 Tiger, and actually consists of two different color schemes. Most applications in Tiger make use of a “platinum white” unified interface, as demonstrated clearly in Mail and Automator. The second is a darker grey interface, originally showing up in iTunes 5, and later in iLife 05 applications. This new interface has been widely rumored around the web to be the replacement for brushed metal, and the predominant interface in Leopard. I hope it’s not, and that the “white platinum” interface gets more use, along with my favorite, the translucent black Aperture interface! A great example of the direction I could see “white platinum” going in can be seen in the search functions of any iWeb created and .Mac published web site (see figure 7 below). I think this would be especially attractive if used throughout the system, especially in the Finder. My perfect Leopard Finder interface would consist of the new .Mac search “platinum white” windows, combined with Aperture like widgets (see figure 5), the new scroll bar (see figure 2), translucent black panels (figure 6), search boxes (figure 4), and icon/image reflections (figure 1). I can just see a new “platinum white” Finder window with translucent black inspectors, previews, and search boxes integrated in the window now. It would be fantastic, especially if used elsewhere throughout Leopard too!

Beyond the new interface, I’d like to see brushed metal and pin stripes completely gone. I’d also expect more animations, such as icons and pictures shuffling around in the Finder (see Microsoft Max for some great inspiration) and flashy things like the image reflections found in FrontRow, iChat, and .Mac published iWeb sites (see figure 1). I’d also like to see a move towards vector-based widgets, or at least much higher resolution bitmaps, for a resolution-independent and scalable interface, matching the capabilities of Windows Vista and providing for new, high resolution, high DPI displays on our Macs.

Figure 1 - iWeb created, .Mac published slidshows - Demonstrates new scroll bar widgets and image reflection effect:

Figure 2 - iPhoto 5 Fullscreen Mode - Demonstrates new scroll bar & widgets: Figure 3 - iPhoto 5 Fullscreen Adjustment HUD - Demonstrates new translucent black panel interface: Figure 4 - Aperture Search - Shows translucent black hovering search panel: Figure 5 - Aperture Widgets - Demonstrates new “platinum” widgets: Figure 6 - Aperture adjustments & keyword (tags) HUDs - Demonstrates new, translucent black “HUD” panels: Figure 7 - iWeb/.Mac website seach - Demonstrates a new “white platinum” look, I think would be very attractive if used in Leopard, especially if combined with “translucent black” widgets and interface: Figure 8 - Full Screen iPhoto 5 Screen Shot - Demonstrates new “translucent black” interface, panels, & widgets. Pay attention to the bottom bar - it’s attractive too: Figure 9 - Aperture full screen screen shot - Demonstrates new “translucent black” interface, panels, & widgets. Pay attention to the bottom bar - it’s attractive too (and different from iPhoto): Figure 10 - Front Row’s Interface - Shows a great use of reflection and animation, including the zooming out of the Desktop:

Apple Ultra-Mobile Mac… and GPS?

With all of the hype surrounding Apple’s recent patent frenzy for touch screen input on what appears to be a tablet Mac, as well as Intel’s imminent announcement of their Ultra-Mobile PC concept (Microsoft calls it their Origami project), leads me to suggest a new Apple product - An Apple ultra-mobile Mac. It would be a convergent device for us all. For us, a media player (iPod), portable computer, and Blackberry. It would fulfill our desires for an Apple tablet and handheld. For Apple, it would fill a void in the portable computer product line, left after Apple completes the transition to a 13.3 inch widescreen iBook and cancels the 12” iBook’s and PowerBooks - a sub-compact Mac. This could be Apple’s holy grail - a sub-compact Mac and a Media player (think enhanced iPod) in one! Now, borrowing from Intel’s specs and my own desires, I’d like to see Apple’s new product come complete with the following: Touchscreen stylus input, removable keyboard, OS X, extra long battery life (Intel claims 10-day standby), incredibly thin and light, WiFi, Wi-Max, Bluetooth, external display for calendar and email alerts, new built-in music player (perhaps emulating the new iPod’s touch screen controls), outdoor viewable screen, and GPS. As far as the GPS goes, Apple would have to build a new GPS application. I’ll call it  Apple Go. It would feature neat special effects, Apple-designed maps, cool voices, pen interface, and additional voice/map download and upgrades. It would be designed for car or go anywhere use. And, Apple could design a USB or Bluetooth transmitter, and sell the software package to existing Mac users. It would fill a real void on the Mac landscape  the lack of Mac GPS support and software! Now, lets just hope if Apple releases such a product, lets hope they don’t price it out of the mainstream market, like they usually do. If they don’t, Apple could have a real mass-market hit on their hands!

My MacWorld Predictions….

My predictions for MacWorld, which is occurring at the Moscone Center in San Francisco next month. The big ticket item: the first Intel-based Macs. I expect new Mac Minis and iBooks, using Intels new Yonah processor. The new iBooks are supposed to come with a 13.3 inch widescreen (long overdue) and hopefully, be incredibly thin! The new Mac Minis are supposed to further Apples advancement into the living room, with new media center PVR support, FrontRow 2, and maybe the long-rumored movie download service (hope its HD, and its not confined to the Mini). Also, its rumored to steam  not download the movies to the Macs HD. I hope this isnt the case. I want something tangible, like a file. And if I buy the movie, I really am going to want the file so I can back it up to a DVD and watch it whenever I want on a DVD player! Along with this new Mini, I hope there is a new Airport Express with video/photo streaming support, and hopefully the ability to stream TV back to a Mac for PVF-functionality. The new Airport express might even contain one of the new, faster wireless standards. Also, a new, smaller iPod shuffle is rumored, in the same sizes and price points.

I also expect Apple will announce iLife 06 and iWork 06. I have a long string of enhancements for iLife  including the above mentioned media center/PVR app.. iPhoto needs to be completely overhauled to be more like Aperture, and support tags and photo editing (CoreImage support anyone?), among many other things. My biggest complaint with the existing iPhoto is its slow response and having to use its library (Id prefer to keep my own folder structure). Id like to see new, better looking interfaces and eye candy with these new apps. too (like Aperture, not brushed metal). Id also like to see a blogging/podcasting app. added. As far as iWork is concerned, besides generally upgrading/improving the existing Pages (which needs it) and Keynote, Id like to see a WYSISYG web editor and a spreadsheet application added!

Looking into the future, I see Intel PowerBooks in the Summer (around the time of WWDC, and probably, the first showing of Mac OS 10.5 Leopard). Im expecting PowerMacs in the September-October timeframe, around the launch of 10.5 to complete with Windows Vista. Hopefully by then, most applications can be updated as a universal binary (like Adobe and Office). 2006 is looking good for Apple!

Apple DVR?

So, now we finally have a video iPod and an iTunes video store (even though just TV/Pixar/Music Videos right now). And unfortunately, we dont have new PowerBooks (come on Apple  release them already). But, I think the most interesting announcement of Steves One More Thing event is the new iMac  with Front Row, iSight, and the Apple Remote. The new iMac comes with iSight built-in  an addition I strongly support. It also included an interesting new application called Photo Booth, which takes advantage of the iSight camera to take pictures and then uses Tigers Core Image to add filters and effects. Im not sure what the real point of this application is, but Im glad to see Apple making use of Core Image  maybe this can be a precursor to its use in iPhoto or in Aqua itself. The new iMac also includes Apples new Remote  a universal infrared (why not Bluetooth?) remote that works not only with the new iMac, but also any iPod with the new Universal Dock. Way to go Apple. This is so cool  Apple is actually making a new peripheral that will work on my existing products (Nano and 3G iPod) and not forcing me to upgrade! This is a great trend, and one Id like to see Apple continue  it will certainly sell more accessories. And, the new iMac comes standard with Mighty Mice, which I still think should be Bluetooth. Since I havent personally seen or used Front Row, I cant comment on its use or features. But, from the screen shots Ive seen and what Ive read, I have some observations and feature requests. First the feature requests: PVR functions, DTV/IPTV support, output video over network to an external monitor, allow ITMS purchases through Front Row and remote. You get the idea  at least make it comparable to Vistas media center components. From the GUI perspective, Im liking what Im seeing. Has anyone noticed Apples new obsession with reflecting images? The icons in Front Row reflect themselves underneath them like a mirror  as do the images for music videos in iTunes 6 (is this done purely with DHTML, java script, CSS, etc.). The effect is used in iChat for three-way video chat too. Enhance this a little, add some animations, and apply it to the whole OS  please! I like it! Unfortunately, Apple didnt finish their product launch. They didnt release an updated Airport Express, which they really should have to fully round out their new iPod/Media Center strategy. The new Airport Express needs to support video streaming (HDTV) and external display use, support Apples Remote, maybe Bluetooth, and support cross traffic for sending both commands as well video back to your Mac to record or use as a PVR. These enhancements would allow you to use your HDTV as an external display for your Mac and Front Row; stream video; allow you to control an iPod docked in another room from your TV; control it with a remote; and send video back to your Mac. Heres where I take issue with Apples new announcements. Why is Front Row only available with the iMac? We dont need to have the remote. It should be part of the OS  to compete against Windows Vista MCE. Give it to us in a free download (remember the good old days, when iPhoto and iMovie were free downloads). We can buy the Remote for use with our iPods  why not make an adapter to allow its use on any Mac or new Airport Express. Better yet, make it Bluetooth. Heres one I really dont understand  give us Photo Booth as a free download so those of us with an external iSight can use it, and allow us to use it with any image. Oh, and when ever Apple finally gets around to updating their stale-dates PowerBooks  include an integrated iSight in all models. Theres already evidence of this in a patent application filed by Apple for a camera integrated into a latch for a portable. Come on Apple, get with it  update the PowerBooks and Airport Express and release Front Row and Photo Booth to everyone!

Google/Apple - A Partnership Made in Tech Heaven?

So, earlier today Google and Sun Microsystems entered into multi-year partnership. I’m not sure exactly what this entails, but it is my understanding that it included cross-distributuion of the Google Toolbar, Sun Office, and Java. As it lies now, I’m not sure how this helps Google that much (Sun yes), which is why I think there’s some deeper motivation here. Maybe, Google can get their engineers and GUI people (Picasa = excellent GUI) to improve Sun Office/OpenOffice and really give MS are hit where it hurts. People were joking about Google creating an OS, but truthfully, it may not be far off. This leads me to suggest what Google’s next partnership should be with - Apple.

Just think for a few moments about the mutual benefits a Google-Apple partnership could bring (much more than with Sun). Google could expand their product offering to the Mac (such as Google Earth). Apple could tightly integrate Google into the OS and Spotlight, creating a kind of built-in Google Desktop search on the Mac (sounds pretty cool). Google could cross-list songs from the iTunes Music Store (there has already been rumor about this). iPhoto and Picasa could merge - bringing iPhoto to Windows, and Picasa features to the Mac. Google may be able to get some extra GUI and Mac help from Apple. Google and Apple could work on some sort of combined, Google hosted .Mac service, with Gmail and open to everyone. Apple could develop a blogging app. tied into Google’s Blogger to bring blogging (including Podcasts and video blogging) to the masses. Apple could help Google with video services; especially that Google IPTV rumor thats been floating about for a while. Oh, yeah - there’s that free wi-fi and location-based ad service thingy that analysts are touting to be Google’s next big thing. And that’s not to mention the most obvious - Apple could work with Google to improve both Google Talk and iChat.

With all of the rumors surrounding MS buying AOL, the consolidation of MSN with AIM/ICQ would leave only one alternative, proprietary IM service - Yahoo. Apple and Google could work to expand Google Talk’s feature list and underlying open-source Jabber protocol to have a product that could really compete against MSN/AIM. Apple has really good video with iChat which Google could use. Google presents a huge network and distribution channel Apple could us for iChat. They could team develop new features like whiteboard, application sharing, VoIP, location based services, etc. iChat for Windows. The sky’s the limit. In my opinion, win/win for both Google and Apple!

Apple: “One more thing…”

Wow! The Nano has only been out for less than a month, and Apple’s already at it again. Today, they sent out press invitations to a media event on October 12 at 10 AM in San Jose with a picture of a movie curtain and Job’s product intro tagline, “one more thing.” What could this mean? I think my long hoped for video iPod may finally be coming true (hint, hint: movie curtain?). But, does this mean and iTunes Movie Store? I’m thinking more about video blogs, content, and music videos than I am about full movies. Hey, digital tv would be cool too! Anyway, Jobs is right, the iPod has too small of a screen to watch a full movie on right now (unless there’s a whole iPod redesign with a larger screen?), and Apple is too messed up with the music industry negotiations for iTunes to delve into the movie industry too. But, this could pave the way. My other thoughts is that the new 5g iPods will be slimmer - the 4g one’s look huge next to a Nano. Anyway, I just hope I don’t get too jealous after buying my Nano! Besides the 5g iPod introduction, what about the long rumored “Pro” updates from Apple? Dual-core Power Mac G5’s. Updated PowerBooks. You know, just enough new great stuff to make you buy a whole new system now before the switch to Intel. The PowerBook is really looking old. It’s very outdated when compared to current Centrino machines. There was the rumor about Apple canceling the 12” PowerBook, but I hope they don’t. That is, unless they unveil a new 13” widescreen! I know I’d buy one! They need something to compete in the sub 15” and 5 pound market. At least, upgrade the 12” display - and maybe add some xbrite to it while your at it.