Despite the yearnings of obsessive fans,
an Apple-branded television set remains a mythical
creature.
Apple used the opening session of its Worldwide Developers
Conference last Monday (June 11) to announce the next
generation of its iOS mobile operating system, enhancements
to Siri and new notebooks — but the tech giant did not
shed any light on the much-rumored TV
set it is supposedly developing.
Wall Street analysts and bloggers
have been abuzz for months about a
top-secret Apple HDTV, which some
suggest would radically alter the media
landscape (see “Behind Apple’s TV Mystery,”
June 11, 2012).
Investors were apparently disappointed
at the absence of a momentous
product launch on the order of
an HDTV, driving Apple stock down
2.8% on June 11. Instead, Apple’s announcements
included:
• New ultra-portable and high-end notebooks, including a
MacBook Pro model with the high-resolution Retina display
with more than 5 million pixels. The Retina display is used in
the latest iPhones and the third-generation iPad.
• iOS 6, with more than 200 new features added to the
software that powers iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices,
including a Maps app with “Apple-designed cartography”
(rather than Google’s) and turn-byturn
navigation, and Facebook integration
for contacts and calendar. The
iOS 6 update will be available to device
users this fall.
• Enhancements to the Siri voicerecognition
service, including its availability
on the new iPad; additional
language support and localized information
for 15 countries; and the ability
to use Siri to update Facebook status,
post to Twitter or launch an app.
