Soul of Apple

Category: Rumors

  • WWDC 2023 Hardware- Hopes and Predications

    WWDC 2023 Hardware- Hopes and Predications

    I want to make it clear right at the top that hardware reveals are not overly very common at WWDC. WWDC is primarily a conference dedicated to giving developers a preview of the changes Apple is making to their platforms in the coming months. The conference, unlike events in September, are much more specifically marketed toward developers and professional users, not the average consumer. Hardware at WWDC is not something that is impossible, it does happen. In the past 10 years, 4 have had hardware announcements. So I don’t generally go into WWDC expecting hardware. Having said that, this is a year where there are multiple hardware rumors going around. So I want to discuss those rumors some while also managing expectations.

    For starters, new Macs are being talked about as a possibility. This would be very exciting as there are a couple Macs that we are still waiting to get upgraded to the M2 chip. The iMac stands out as a product that could realistically get the M2. There have been rumors a larger 15″ MacBook Air with the M2 making its debut. This would be a nice product to have in the lineup, but it’s not very exciting on its own. Think of it this way- exactly a year ago Apple debuted the new 13″ MacBook Air with the M2 chip. Is it really interesting or necessary that they reintroduce the same product in a larger size with the same chip? The answer is no. Another product due for an upgrade, and one that would be very fitting and exciting for this conference specifically, is the Mac Studio. I can very easily see Apple bringing the M2 Max to this product and debuting the M2 Ultra chip at WWDC, marking the Mac Studio as the most powerful Mac in the entire lineup. There have been some rumblings on the Mac Pro making its debut, the last two generations have all been announced at WWDC, but the rumors seem to indicate that Apple hasn’t figured out how they can maintain the products signature modularity while giving it the boost Apple Silicon provides. So a Mac Pro reveal seems unlikely. Better to focus on the Mac Studio- a very impressive and warmly received product- and a larger MacBook Air that can be quickly introduced this summer ahead of the college shopping season.

    The only other product that is supposed to appear, and is probably what you are reading this post for, is Apples new headset that, depending on the rumors you listen to, is either a virtual reality (VR) focused headset or a mixed reality headset that will incorporate elements of both VR and augmented reality (AR). It’ll be a new product category for Apple and the first new product category since AirPods were introduced. I have been a VR skeptic my entire life. So if this headset is mostly VR focused, I will have pretty minimal interest in the product. Especially at the rumored/anticipated $3,000 price point. If it is more AR focused, I’ll definitely be more intrigued, but that price is the biggest thing that consumers won’t be able to overcome. I don’t want to judge a product before it’s announced, but I am not looking forward to this headset in the way I was about AirPods, Apple Watch, or even the launch of Apples suite of paid services.

    I do also want to point out that rumors can be very wrong. If you have been following Apple rumors for the past several years, you might remember the one about the Apple Watch Series 7 getting an all new flat design. That ended up not happening at all. In fact, the opposite was true- the Series 7 introduced curved glass that made the display look like it wrapped over the side of the Watch. I always keep that example in mind whenever rumors like the ones about the headset swirl about.

    Whatever Apple does announced on Monday during WWDC, I will be sure to share my thoughts on it that day.

  • An Apple Journal App Sounds Amazing

    An Apple Journal App Sounds Amazing

    I generally try to avoid rumors on this blog, but there is one new rumor that is going around that has caught my attention. The rumor is that Apple supposedly plans to introduce a new journaling app alongside iOS 17 that will likely be announced at their upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). The app is similar to other journal based apps in the App Store like, perhaps most notably, Day One.

    Based on the reporting from The Verge, “Apple’s ideas for the app include having it pull usage data from the user’s iPhone to make suggestions about what they might like to journal about. It might spot when someone’s daily activity has changed and suggest writing about specific events like a workout. There’s even mention of an “All Day People Discovery” feature that could recognize friends and colleagues that users regularly spend time with.”.

    Upon first hearing this rumor, I didn’t think a journal made a ton of sense for Apple to do. However thinking more about it, it actually does. An Apple Journal app could become the ultimate repository for all your Apple device usage history. Imagine for a moment the Journal app taping into the Health app to see your Sleep Schedule, so I t can prompt you to start a journal upon waking up. Any Apple Fitness+ workouts you complete can be viewed in the Journal, allowing you to track how often you workout in general or do a certain workout type. If there’s a new song you hear, you can directly add that song to the Journal. Apple News integration could be a thing here too, Apple could push a popular article from the News app for a given day or allow you to share an article directly to the Journal to reflect on later. Even Wallet integration could occur here. Imagine being able to pin a movie ticket from your Wallet directly to the Journal app so you can keep it, virtually, forever. The same could apply to Photos. Imagine pinning a photo you took that day to reflect on later.

    A journal app could become the ultimate repository to see how everyone uses their Apple device. Combined with some of the rumored features like the “All Day People Discovery” thing, it could even allow you to share full journals or maybe just entries with friends by using the Find My app or integrating into iMessage.

    This all sounds like an excellent way for Apple users to track what they do on their Apple device and an equally good way for Apple to market their services and other apps to users. This type of app would work great on Apples core devices- iPhone, iPad, and Mac- getting it onto other devices like HomePod, Apple TV, and Apple Watch could be a lot more difficult. Of those platforms, Apple Watch is probably the platform that Apple would actively work to bring this app to. It may let users quickly track their mood or provide a journal reminder.

    I went from uncertain about an Apple Journal app to pretty positive. If this app turns out to be real, we’ll just be weeks away from seeing exactly how far Apple takes it and what the overall goal or mission of this new service is. I do hope that this is a free app and not subscription based. That is one of the major complaints I have with Day One and many of its competitors. I’d even take a one-time purchase, however those types of apps are becoming a rarity and are not generally something Apple does.