Macworld 2007 - What’s Expected?

It’s every Mac lovers favourite time of the year, a time when Apple CEO Steve Jobs and his sneakers gather on stage to unveil exciting new products and other Apple related news to keep our pulse rates above 140 for the next year. Rumours have been going off the chart the past few weeks with the iPhone still topping the list of “what will they surprise us with next?” – and I still say no phone device will be released, although I wouldn’t mind being proved wrong.

For those new to the Mac platform, you may have already heard about this extraordinary Macworld Expo that takes place once a year, but did you know a that there’s actually a whole host of other expositions and conferences taking place throughout the week? Take a look below to see what’s to be expected.

Whilst the Expo starts on the 9th of Jan, the actual conferencing begins on the 8th with a few 9 til 5 sessions on how to get the most out of certain Powertools, such as Filemaker, Acrobat, Aperture and AppleScript to name a few.

However, the main gig kicks off at 9am on Tuesday 9th 2007, with Apple CEO Steve Jobs taking centre stage once again in what is supposed to be a 2-hour keynote on the latest Apple offerings. And, once again Apple Matters will be offering live coverage at live.applematters.com. A few of the virtually confirmed things we know Jobs is planning to talk about during this keynote are:

1.    OS X 10.5 Leopard (due for release this Spring)

Yes, that’s all that’s been pretty much confirmed, with the following rumours slated to make some form of appearance – a few are more likely than others, with iTV topping that list, but of course, nothing else has been mentioned.

1. iTV – a media streaming device
2. New iPod model
3. New light weight portables
4. Monitors equipped with iSight cameras
5. And of course, a mobile phone with iPod capabilities

It seems every year the Mac faithful is either completely surprised with something we never saw coming, are virtually spot on (although that’s a rarity), or over-expect and thus deem anything Steve says as a bit of a let down – just don’t expect that silly iPod phone, okay?

After the two-hour keynote, the Expo beings, and here’s a list of what’s on offer.

20 Hours of Free Education

Throughout the conference over 20 hours of free complimentary lectures will be taking place aiming to teach Mac users, both new and old, tips and tricks in getting the most out of their Apple products. Topics include getting the most out of your iPod, using OS X to your advantage and being as creative as your mind allows you to be with a Macintosh.

John Lennon Bus

For music buffs out there, take a peak inside the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus that lets users take a tour of mobile recording and multimedia studios. In here you’ll get to see how certain artists have helped students to record music and video using Logic, Reason, Final Cut Pro, iLife 6 and JVC Pro Video cameras.

Special Interest Pavilion

Whilst Apple develops some beautiful software, there are other companies out there who do just as good a job, and the Special Interest Pavilion is the place to come and check this out. The S.I.P includes Macintosh technologies from Business solutions to developer tools to education to digital media.

Apple Consultants Network

We’ve all heard of the Genius Bars that appear in virtually all Apple stores worldwide, right? Well if you haven’t they’re simply technical help desks where you’re pretty much guaranteed to speak to someone who knows what they’re talking about. The Apple Consultants Network that appears at the Expo is like a much larger version of this and allows users to come up and ask for technical advice on their Macs or other Apple products from certified experts. A great way to get a solution to any problems you have.

Macworld Best of Show Awards

After everything has been unveiled, from the latest Apple products to the latest third-party software, an awards show takes place where the best of the best is paraded on stage, live for the first time, to the entire Mac community. The most exciting and innovative products are due to be demonstrated on stage and is a must for anyone looking for the latest gadgets and technology for their home or business.

ADC Developer Pavilion

ADC (Apple Developer Connection), Macworld Conference and Expo, and Macworld Magazine present to you a collection of the latest Mac products for users to test drive and purchase, including some yet-to-be-released gear as well.

As you can see from the highlights above, there’s an awful lot on offer, and I’ve not even listed all of the highlights (see more at http://www.macworldexpo.com). Whilst the Keynote at 9am on Tuesday is guaranteed to tickle many of us home users, the entire conference is well worth a visit (although tickets will cost you upward of $1,600 now so I’ve been told).

Stay tuned to Applematters.com over the next couple of weeks to read more on the build up to Macworld 2007 and a hoard of editorials and opinions on the latest gadgets and services released by Apple next week.