Apple WWDC rumour roundup

OK, so it's that time of year again. Apple rumours abound with the prospect of the Worldwide Developer's Conference (WWDC) and a Steve Jobs keynote speech on the 7th August only a few days away.

The rumour mill has been pumping them out as you would expect, so below is a summary of the main threads.

1. Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard
   
   OK so this isn't really a rumour, we know there's going to be a showing of the next version of the Apple operating system but what we don't know is what the update will include. Virtualisation? Enhanced finder, spotlight, iChat and safari? New iCal? More on the details over at AppleInsider.
   
   
2. Mac Pro and Xserve?
   
   The last remaining PowerPC offerings from Apple are due to be launched with new Intel processors. But which ones? Xenon for the Xserves and Core 2 Duo for the Mac Pros?
   
   
3. Macbook Pro and iMac updated with Core 2 Duo?
   
   With the launch of the new Intel Core 2 Duo chips only a week ago, it seems likely that Apple will go for an update to the higher end computers currently running the Intel Core Duo chips. But will they announce it at WWDC or later, maybe at Paris expo?
   
   
4. New cinema displays?
   
   We're into the less likely bracket here as far as I'm concerned but it is possible that with new Mac Pros, we'd also get new cinema displays. Built in iSight and IR ports for Apple remotes?
   
   
5. iPhone? iChat mobile?
   
   OK, now we're talking. The long-rumoured, highly anticipated, so-called "iPhone" has seen a lot of attention lately on the rumour mill. Apple have even eluded to the fact that they're making one. We just don't know when they'll announce it. With WWDC traditionally focussing more on Macs, maybe this is a little too soon but you never know!
   
   
6. iPod updates?
   
   Neither the nanos or full-sized iPods have been updated since they were introduced last year. It's surely only a matter of time before the nano at least gets bumped up to 8GB. I must admit, I've been holding off buying a nano and sticking with my 4g iPod until they release one with higher capacity. As for the 30 and 60GB iPods, we may see a slight capacity bump but the rumours go that the highly anticipated "real" video iPod, possibly with touch screen, has been delayed until later in the year or maybe even early next year.
   
   I think iPods may come at the more consumer orientated Paris expo in September rather than here but frankly, a baboon's guess is as good as mine.

No doubt Apple will surprise us all and announce something no-one expected. That's the beauty of it, you never know what they've got up their sleeve (can anyone say iTablet?). I can't wait!

Add your comments below and let us know what you think Apple is going to say and do next week!

Tags: apple, rumours, wwdc, mac, osx, leopard, iphone, ipod, macbook, macbook pro, imac