As predicted, Apple have sent out invites to a 'special event' on Octover 23rd. The invites look like this...



Possibly suggesting the iPad mini (assuming that's what it is) will have a case in multiple colour options like the new iPod Touch?

I think the only thing we know for sure is that iTunes will be revamped, as they said they'd be doing that "in mid-October" at the iPhone 5 event. I so hope it's just that (and the Armitage-special 16GB MacBook Air/1440x900 13" MacBook Pro). Just once the rumour mills need to be shown to be completely loopy, to try and prevent all of these 'confirmed' news stories in the tech and general press.

The rumour mills cave caused problems for Apple in the past bro years there were rumours that an iPhone would be announced. Each the they didn't and their share value took a tumble.

So no iPad mini now could reduce Apple's stock value, not the kudos of the rumour machine.

I have to ask, Paul... Are you using voice recognition software to compose your posts these days?

So..

13" macbook pro - with a HDMI port!
Upgraded mac mini (it's actually now not a bad PC)
New iMac - take the optical drive out, make it very thin, update the internals
Both the desktop macs can be BTOed with 'fusion' drives -128GB SSD + 1TB/3TB HDD and the system will optimise things to put the OS plus the stuff you use most on the SSD (note: I don't think they're the same as the 'hybrid' HDDs you see because those optimise at the block not the file level)

4th gen iPad - updated internals again, with 'EE' logo suggesting they'll work on UK LTE
iPad Mini - more like a boosted iPad touch in fact, 7.9" screen, back very much like the new iPod Touch. Retina display, lightning port. Internals are between iPad 2 and iPad 3.
Order on Friday, ships next friday for wifi only, later for 4G versions.

New lightning adapters - HDMI, USB 3, CF card
iBooks 3 with 'continuous scroll' view


You wanted a mac pro? Yeah... if you haven't already, starts seriously considering alternatives.

My reactions to hardware:

13" macbook pro - Want for my next laptop
Upgraded mac mini - Nice
New iMac - Very sexy, though I still use my optical drive

4th gen iPad - Expected (specs, not timing)
iPad Mini - Meh

I bought a bus powered USB bluray writer for less than 100 quid. If you want an optical, you can have one. Do you use one often enough to want it there all the time, as oppose to say somewhere you can just go get it and plug it in when you need it?


They've updated the UK iShop and they start at £269. That's a bit mad, frankly.

I use the DVD on my iMac about 80% of the time it is switched on... If Apple replace my 3000 DVDs with downloads from the Apple Store for free, I'd give up the DVD drive, otherwise...

Seriously? That's.. a lot. And probably quite a bit more than the drive is specced to handle, to be honest with you. Can you give us a bit of flavour of the way you work that means you use it so heavily?


They probably would if they were allowed to. In your use case though I'd actually be minded to recommend using an external optical drive anyway. Heck of a lot easier to replace when it wears out, which by the sound of it it would be doing more often than most...

The last time I used the optical drive in my MacBook Pro was to rip some copyright-free CD music we have to iTunes for a video I was making. That was about six months ago.

Apple is doing to the optical drive what it did to the floppy drive in 1997 - making it all but obsolete. Most of the software I use every day is downloaded from the internet or via the App Store. The last software I installed that used optical media is now four years old.

I still prefer buying music on physical CDs, and movies on DVD. While I will rip music to my Mac, DVDs are used in conjunction with a nice big telly and audio system. The music will have to come in via an external drive in the future. That's progress.

I've had my current MBP about three years, and in that time I've used to optical drive three times.
Two of those times was to upgrade operating system and the third time was to burn a restore disc of 10.8.

Mark

I still like to burn discs on occasions - however the drive in mine has packed up.
So, I'm looking at a £20 Samsung bus powered DVD burner in it's place.

I actually have some sympathy for the 'It spoils the concept of an 'all in one' computer to have a USB DVD writer hanging off it' - Apple have done pretty much everything they can to eliminate 'things on wires' hanging off the iMac - but given how often most people use optical media these days, it seems a reasonable thing to drop to me. Just wish they'd found a way to put a USB socket somewhere other than round the back.

I spent about 18 months with no optical drive due to a Fanta-based incident. I didn't mind, and only got it replaced as it was free when I had the screen fixed.

Please take better care of your new one when you get it. (8+)

Mark