The Apple Beat: October 16 event wish list

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

Apple has scheduled a special event in its Cupertino campus on Thursday October 16. While October events usually focus on iPads, and we’re expecting some new iPad Air and iPad mini models. There are a number of Mac products that have been waiting for a refresh and here is my personal wish list of what Apple will unveil next week.

An even smaller Mac mini

The Mac mini is still an important product and is the gateway drug to the Mac OS for many PC users. Now with the coming of Yosemite, an even smaller yet capable mini could be a game changer.  It can’t be hard for Apple to make an Apple TV sized Mac mini, just look at the small yet powerful Intel NUC. 

Apple 4K Monitors

The venerable Apple Thunderbolt Display hasn’t received a refresh in the. longest. time. Now, almost a year since the 4K capable Mac Pro has come out and ultra HD content becoming more prevalent, wouldn’t it be nice to get a matching ultra high-def monitor for your Mac? Apple-made monitors are impressive in every way, and they last long. I still use 8-year-old dual 20-inch Cinema Displays in my office and they’re workhorses.

12-inch MacBook Air Retina - This one’s been making the rounds in the rumour mill for a while and it is a novel idea. A completely solid-state and fanless ultraportable that’s even thinner than the 11-inch MacBook Air but equally as powerful and with even longer battery life.

This could be the successor to Apple ultraportables of the past like the PowerBook Duos, The PowerBook 2400c and the 12-inch PowerBook G4.

Retina iMacs - Another heavy bet for next week are updated iMacs with dazzling 5K Retina Display screens. While the iMac line has recently been updated, maybe there’s room in the family for a prosumer model that’s targeted to designers, photographers and video editors who need higher resolution onboard. I’m doubtful about this one but you never know.

New iPods - While the iPod Classic has been retired from Apple’s store, there’s still quite a demand for iPod Touches as well as the nano and shuffle models. No other company makes such an extensive range of personal media players. The iPod Touch is up for a refresh, possibly with a larger display mirroring the iPhone 6 and I would imagine a 128GB version to offset the hole left by the now departed iPod Classic. I have high hopes for new iPods.

concept study for the Apple TV by Martin Hajek from the Netherlands.Apple TV - It would be awesome to see a new Apple TV and one that does more than stream content from iTunes and a handful of other sources. There’s a lot of competition in the set-top box and Streaming Stick space, Apple would be wise to differentiate Apple TV from the mob. There’s a lot of potential for Continuity to come to Apple TV (take calls on your TV, see text messages, iMessages and even FaceTime calls with a compatible camera, why not?). Apple TV can also serve as a conduit for HomeKit applications plus many are convinced that Apple has been cooking up various content deals and exclusives for their ‘not a hobby anymore’ set-top box.

Other items we expect covered at the event next week are a firm launch date for OS X Yosemite  and a final set of features. Apple needs to address iOS 8.1 and what that update to the update needs to bring in terms of security as well as overall improvements.

We might hear more about Apple Pay, which could be tied in to iPad announcements (i.e. new NFC-enabled iPads can serve as Point of Sale terminals for secure iPay transactions). Wouldn’t it be cool if retailers or even entrepreneurs just needed to get a new iPad Air or iPad mini with Touch ID and NFC to enable accepting Apple Pay in their establishments? That would really change the game and push Apple Pay forward for small to medium businesses. I also expect a longer list of Apple Pay partners and maybe a rollout schedule for the rest of the world.

The October special event will definitely be an exciting one and looks like it will touch on every corner of Apple’s business. Stay tuned for my live reports from Cupertino where I expect to bring updates on this space plus on our @Creviewer Twitter feed. I also hope to grab some hands on video with the new devices announced at the event.