No one has speculated on Apple releasing a true media center. This seems to fit nicely with the clues in the invitation and also fits with the limitations on downloading high quality movies. A DVD quality movie of about 2 hours with 5.1 sound using MP4/AAC encoding is going to run at around 1.5GB. Very few people are going to have connections that can handle that and even then we're talking about hours of download time. And that movie better be less than $5 because with the time it takes to download I can make 10 return trips to Best Buy and get the same movie on DVD with all the special features.

A media center. A mini with a very large SATA HD, Firewire for extra storage, software to store a DVD in MP4/AAC format on the drive so that users can have a movie jukebox like iTunes and the next generation of Front Row seem to be something people would pay for. Since TV is in a state of flux around the world with the transition from analog to digital and the further transition to HD, internal TV support would be a bad idea, but what's to stop Apple from having an external box that holds TV receiving circuitry and communicates via FW, like El Gato. Add that to Front Row and you've got a movie jukebox, tuner and PVR where you can easily change the tuner when you change your method of receiving tv.

Then again. Maybe Apple will wait until the TV market settles before releasing a true media center. I just find it real interesting that no one is even talking about it at all. It's all movie downloads and video iPods. They are all very obvious ideas. But what ever happened to all the people who were chanting for Apple to turn the mini into a media center?

An external box for TV reception is so un-apple (they like having things all-in-one, not pieces all over). Plus, since when does Apple care about backward or forward compatibility?

They'd go USB, not Firewire, for external storage (Firewire is dead as an external drive interface). But, again, neither people nor Apple want external storage (how about a component size mini, which would give people enough room to add like 4 or more hard drives? Then it would also fit most people's media center.

DVD ripping will NOT exist in an apple product, because the studios would kill apple about it.

And Apple doesn't want you recording TV content. They want you BUYING IT!

But besides all of that, you're spot on!

You know, I can't wait for apple to release the iphone. If for no other reason then we can stop hearing all about how apple is poised to enter the cell phone business. Then we can get onto the important matters at hand. Like the soon to be announced "iWalk" PDA. Now that's going to be something.....

BTW, if its ever released, how many rumor sites will be touting that they said it first, or state "As we first said here (back in 2001), Apple announced the iPhone..."

http://im.digitalhymn.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/03/Apple-Nano-iPhone.gif

this is it.

All we'll see tomorrow is movie downloads and a new version of iTunes and possibly some new little accessories. Just don't believe Apple is ready to release cell phones or some sort media device. And still to soon for a true video iPod.

... about what they're doing with studios. At current common broadband speeds, it's going to be a lot better to buy/rent a DVD than acquire something online.

Mind you, there are plenty of people out there willing to buy postage stamp-sized videos of TV shows from iTMS...

iPod refresh is what I'm looking for. My old 3G needs replacing.

> http://im.digitalhymn.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/03/Apple-Nano-iPhone.gif

One thing which everyone seems to be missing when mocking up designs for an iPhone is the question of where the sim card goes. I can't imagine Apple putting a wee flap/door on the device and there's no way it'd be pushed in beside the dock connector, so where will it go?

"And Apple doesn't want you recording TV content. They want you BUYING IT!"

You can say exactly the same about CD-recording and free podcasts, iTunes will be much bigger and extremely important in the future but for now it's only for the iPod sales.

just because i haven't heard that one in a while... lol

...might be the ticket ? rumoured to be increased in size to accommodate a 300+GB 3.5" drive combined with the introduction of new multi-channel bit-torrent like airport technology...?