A lot of digital ink has been splashed on what Steve Jobs has up his sleeve for next Tuesday's Macworld keynote address. Only one thing's certain: It's not in your best interests to but a mac in the next seven days.
My own guesses for what's next at Apple?
DVD-RAM standard on all G4 Towers and Cubes - Though I don't know whether Mercury will come with a DVD-RAM or DVD-ROM. It's also been speculated (and if they're standard I'd have to agree) that these DVD-RAM drives will be able to write to CD-R and CD-RW media as well.
Powerbook G4 - It's been a long time in coming, but Apple will absolutely show and sell the new Powerbook G4 (Mercury) in an enclosure that has the same footprint as the PBG3, but be about 25% thinner and lighter. The conventional wisdom currently says that the DVD drive will be slot-loading and fixed in place. There won't be a removable media bay in the PBG4 (unles you count the PC-card slot). Also expect that the power key may be the new 'inductive' type found on the cube, and relocated away from the keyboard, possibly on the top right corner above the LCD display. Also possible, but hardly assured, is on-demand indiglo-like illumination embedded within the keyboard. Some have also speculated that the audio-in jack will be missing from the PBG4 but I highly doubt it, though it might not exist in the cubebook. Judging by Apple's PB price cuts this week, the PBG4 will certainly be selling on January 9th.
Cubebook - This, of course, is the big mystery. In New York last August, Apple left a big fat hole in the product grid when they introduced the Cube. They actually showed the hole in the 3x2 grid instead of closing it up by showing three squares in the desktop line and two stretched rectangles in the notebook line. The audience was supposed to leave in wonder of the Cube, and with a touch of anticipation for the next event, when that hole would be filled. Now, with MWSF a week away, only one thing is for certain: Whether or not the 'cubebook' (so named for its position on the chart, and less likely for a strong visual resemblance to the cube's stylings) gets unveiled as Jobs's 'just one more thing' you can be assured that there has been a lot of pressure put on the engineers to make it so. With Apple's current inventory situation, it's highly unlikely that they'll preview the cubebook until it's ready to go, lest it cannibalize PBG4 sales, so if it's not ready to sell, we won't get so much as an inkling. In fact, I'd wager that they remove the spot on the grid just to make sure people aren't holding their breath until it's July release. What would a cubebook be like? It'll definitely be a subnotebook to compete with the Vaio, Libretto, etc. Expect aesthetic design ideas to come more from the PDA realm than the Notebook arena. This means more brushed metal, less grey and black plastic. It will definitely be geared toward the professional, not the student, so no iBook matte white, and probably no garish colors unless they're in the form of a swappable trim. Following the Cube's styling they may go for a pearlescent white with a gloss finish, as long as it can stand up to wear without scratches, or add too much width to the unit. If they go this way, expect a dark graphite 'SE' version as well. Slot DVD, Digital everything except for audio-out jack and speakers. If dreams are to be believed, look to a form factor not unlike the VAIO Picturebook, though a little wider, a little deeper, and a little thinner. The full-sized keyboard will be the defining width dimension, and a DVD will be the defining depth dimension. As always, the limits of technology and fabriaction costs will define the thickness of the unit, though expect 0.8 inches if it doesn't have a DVD, and 1.2" if it does. A new-for-Apple pointing device will also be introduced (possibly a trackpoint). The display will be wide-format, and the base price will almost certainly be $1999. Low energy G3 processor, 20 gig hard drive, USB, Firewire, Video out, Airport, PC-card slot, possibly two slots at the expense of on-board ethernet. Will it come out next week? If not, then they may push it to July. Apple doesn't release products at WWDC and though this product woiuld be a hit in Japan, it could be a real saver in the US and a Tokyo Expo release could seriously impact its US accpetance, where it would be seen as just another small-keyed Japanese subnotebook (ala the 2300 and the Comet) and negatively impact public perception here. Here's hoping...
Mac OS X - Definitely be shown. I'm sure there will be application demos as well as demos of new or modified features since the Public Beta release. There will probably be a new release available to all those who purchased PB1, or to anyone who wants for the $30 fee, but the final deal won't be out until February or March.
iBooks - Expect no changes with the iBook. No new colors. There's a possibility that they may introduce a rev with the slot-loading DVD, but it'll be an incremental update, and not a focal point of the address.
Bluetooth - A no show for Apple this Expo. Third parties will have tons of products from keyboards to PCMCIA cards to headsets to game controllers, but Apple's not going to say a word on this until July, when they'll start putting the chips in the machines and making bluetooth peripherals to compliment their wireless strategy.
Well, that's it for Kevin's precognitions. If you're in to Apple stuff, be sure to checkout the webcast of the keynote speech if you're not lucky enough to watch in person.