Apple Watch Event - Live Coverage (Watch + Retina Air + Retina Macbook + HBO Now + ResearchKit) UPDATED

[Victorious Secret]

 

This worked so well the last few times I did it, so why not go for it again? Its nice to keep all the discussion in one place and I plan on keeping this post updated the entire time so we can keep up a good discussion. 

 

I'll include some of the rumoured stuff, this event went from "Apple Watch" to a little bit of everything, with rumours of updated Airs, Retinas, even the iPad has been brought into discussion as being given a more 'productivity orientated" SKU.

 

Even word floating around a 4K equipped Apple TV, which might be more likely given how much Apple has neglected the unit in the past few years. Lets see whats what, but for now lets get some typical LTT shenanigans going. Not the terrible kind of shenanigans, but the fun kind. 

 

Yes, I'm making this thread early because it took a while to format it. Oh well. Enjoy. If you want to follow along with a live stream, here are some links:

 

Apple: http://www.apple.com/live/2015-mar-event/
Gizmodo: http://live.gizmodo.com/our-apple-watch-liveblog-starts-right-here-at-10am-pt-1689915279/+ericlimer

 

Apple Watch 

$349 for 38mm, $399 for 42mm Sport Edition

$549-$1049 for 38mm, $599-$1099 for 42mm for Stainless

Starting at $10,000 for Edition, limited quantities

 

Sales start April 24th, can preorder now

 

Built in speaker and microphone to take your calls, glances for quick information checks. Lots of features, hidden in the spoiler. Lots of features for health, will give you weekly updates and what not.

 

A lot of fluff and nothing really groundbreaking here. Passbook use and what not, but is not too terribly interesting. 

 

Here we go. 18 hour battery life, 3 distinct collections as we've known for a while now.

 

 

 

Battery Life Information:

 

 

Might want to add info from here http://www.apple.com/watch/battery.html.

 

"Testing conducted by Apple in March 2015 using preproduction Apple Watch and software paired with an iPhone using preproduction software. All-day battery life is based on 18 hours with the following use: 90 time checks, 90 notifications, 45 minutes of app use, and a 30-minute workout with music playback from Apple Watch via Bluetooth, over the course of 18 hours. Battery life varies by use, configuration, and many other factors; actual results will vary."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Macbook Air/Macbook Air Retina/Macbook Pro Retina

$1299 to $1599

 

They are talking about their new success. They are now showing off the Retina Air by all accounts. Its just called the Macbook. Also gold. Also thin.

 

It is 13.1mm thin, weighs 2 pounds. New butterfly keyboard system, not scissors. It is thin as hell. 2304x1440 resolution. 

 

Has a Force Touch trackpad, has tactic engine and sensors, force feedback. The thing doesn't click anymore. Its all software based "clicking". It is entirely fanless. They filled all the space with batteries. Lots of battery. 

 

9 hours of web browsing, 10 hours of video. Has contoured batteries that allow them to shove more into the case. USB type C for all outputs. Comes in 3 colours. Starts at 1299, 1599 for faster processor and storage.

13" Pro also getting updated to have Force Touch trackpad, 10 hour battery life as well as a spec update to Broadwell, same with the 11" and 13" Airs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

iPhone

 

700 million have been sold so far. Tout a 99% customer satisfaction rate. Incredible year over year growth at double the industry average.

 

700,000 places accept Apple Pay in the US, 100k Coke Machines by the end of the year.

 

 

 

 

 

iPad

 

 

 

 

Apple TV

$69

 

Apple TV is now $69. They've sold 25 million units so far.

 

HBO is coming, along with their existing content providers. HBO Now. Entire HBO catalogue. Standalone streaming, exclusive to Apple (for now). 

 

Will be 14.99 a month, if you sub in April you get a month free. 

 

 

 

 

 

General Information

 

Apple is seeing China as a big place for growth, has 21 stores there now and 40 next year.

 

Talking about HealthKit impacts on medical research now. Talking about how hard it is to get useful data and to share that data. ResearchKit is frameworks just for medical research, for researchers. Has some big players behind it.

 

It will be open source, which is a nice surprise. It will release next month, the apps however will be available today. 

 

 

 

 

 

Current Rumours

 

 

 

 

Apple Suppliers Told to Produce Larger-Screen iPad in Second Half

 

The Cupertino, Calif., company had originally told suppliers that it wanted to start mass production of the 12.9-inch iPad in the first quarter of this year, the people said.

Apple now is considering adding USB ports and adopting so-called USB 3.0 technology, a much faster version that promises to transfer data up to 10 times as rapidly as current USB ports, one of the people said. It is especially useful for transferring large amounts of data, such as backing up computers to USB-connected hard disks. 

Currently, Apple’s 9.7-inch iPad and 7.9-inch iPad Mini don’t come with a USB port.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rumor: Apple may soon update iPad mini with A8 CPU, 802.11ac Wi-Fi

 

Citing an unnamed source, Macotakara reported on Friday that a so-called "iPad mini 4" may arrive soon, featuring an A8 processor and 802.11ac Wi-Fi. Those would be the same specifications found in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, but a step down from the beefier A8X chip found in the iPad Air 2.

If Apple were to do a mid-cycle refresh of the iPad mini, it would address what many viewed as a shortsighted decision by the company last year. The iPad mini 3 gained a Touch ID fingerprint sensor, but featured the same A7 processor and overall design as the previous-generation iPad mini 2.

With the iPad mini 2 still available for $299, and the iPad mini 3 selling for $399, that means Apple is effectively charging a $100 premium for nothing other than Touch ID, as well as a new gold color option.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources: 

 

http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/9/8164375/apple-watch-macbook-event-time-streaming-live-blog

http://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-suppliers-told-to-mass-produce-larger-ipad-pro-in-second-half-1425530886

http://live.theverge.com/apple-watch-macbook-liveblog-march-2015/

http://appleinsider.com/articles/15/03/06/rumor-apple-may-soon-update-ipad-mini-with-a8-cpu-80211ac-wi-fi

http://live.gizmodo.com/our-apple-watch-liveblog-starts-right-here-at-10am-pt-1689915279/+ericlimer

http://www.apple.com/live/2015-mar-event/

http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/09/apple-watch-vs-the-competition/

http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/09/new-macbook-hands-on/

[ShadowCaptain]

my heart is exploding with anticipation and excitement

nice early leak, 4k apple tv and retina air is official haha

[Victorious Secret]

my heart is exploding with anticipation and excitement

nice early leak, 4k apple tv and retina air is official haha

 

The Retina Air being 12" and the iPad Pro being 12" might be the same damn thing. This also leaves the 11 and 13s sitting around doing nothing, so I have no idea how Apple is going to segment their Air lineup now. 

 

Maybe 11" regular to be cheap, 12" Retina Air just like how the 13" regular Macbook still kicks around? Who knows. 

 

I'm more excited that Apple Pay is expanding into more countries. 

[ShadowCaptain]

The Retina Air being 12" and the iPad Pro being 12" might be the same damn thing. This also leaves the 11 and 13s sitting around doing nothing, so I have no idea how Apple is going to segment their Air lineup now. 

 

Maybe 11" regular to be cheap, 12" Retina Air just like how the 13" regular Macbook still kicks around? Who knows. 

 

I'm more excited that Apple Pay is expanding into more countries. 

 

We will soon find out my friend

 

 

What I want Apple to announced 13" black retina pro with 970m.... i would pay £2000

[Nup]

Ooh yeah i'd love to see Apple Pay hit Europe some time soon!

 

Nice thread too! Wouldn't mind seeing a cheaper laptop, but I doubt that's going to happen. They had one for a while..  

[Victorious Secret]

We will soon find out my friend

 

 

What I want Apple to announced 13" black retina pro with 970m.... i would pay £2000

 

BlackBooks are best books. Surprised they never gave it a go, but they might introduce Space Grey to replace what they have now. Space Grey isn't black, but it sure would be nice. 

[givingtnt]

nice

[Victorious Secret]

Ooh yeah i'd love to see Apple Pay hit Europe some time soon!

 

Nice thread too! Wouldn't mind seeing a cheaper laptop, but I doubt that's going to happen. They had one for a while..  

 

Apple Pay showing up in Canada will force Google to get off their asses and roll out Wallet support en masse. At least I would hope. 

 

We're such a contactless payment friendly country that its almost insulting to see us get ignored though I understand that Apple wanted to focus its efforts on the US, a country that is truly behind the curve on adopting alternative payment methods. 

[ShadowCaptain]

BlackBooks are best books. Surprised they never gave it a go, but they might introduce Space Grey to replace what they have now. Space Grey isn't black, but it sure would be nice. 

 

Gold and white, or black and space grey macbooks.... I could go for that, yeah black was beautiful, (shame it was plastic) they should keep the airs silver, make the "retina macbook"  in 2 colours, and then make a black "retina macbook PRO" 

 

I would settle for a gold one though like the MSI gs60 ghost in gold - it looks fabulous, I mean its pretentious but who cares its sexy

[Victorious Secret]

Gold and white, or black and space grey macbooks.... I could go for that, yeah black was beautiful, (shame it was plastic) they should keep the airs silver, make the "retina macbook"  in 2 colours, and then make a black "retina macbook PRO" 

 

I would settle for a gold one though like the MSI gs60 ghost in gold - it looks fabulous, I mean its pretentious but who cares its sexy

 

One mans pretentious is another mans work of art. Apple experimented with the 5C and having colours, so its not like they're entirely closed off to the idea. 

[ShadowCaptain]

One mans pretentious is another mans work of art. Apple experimented with the 5C and having colours, so its not like they're entirely closed off to the idea. 

 

macbook airs in anozied colours would be AMAZING!! maybe not the Pros etc, but the Airs, and iPads perhaps!

 

Like getting a red aluminium macbook, to match your red beats and red iPhone, or even just random colours all mixed together Bring the FUN back to Apple

[Nup]

Apple Pay showing up in Canada will force Google to get off their asses and roll out Wallet support en masse. At least I would hope. 

 

We're such a contactless payment friendly country that its almost insulting to see us get ignored though I understand that Apple wanted to focus its efforts on the US, a country that is truly behind the curve on adopting alternative payment methods. 

 

Yeah, seeing Google launch into that would be great.

 

It is surprising that Canada got no attention, I would have imagined it would be reactively easy to do it in CA and the US.  I hadn't reaslised it's behind on payment methods. 

[Victorious Secret]

 

Let the games begin! Can't think of which store this is from, and if its the redesign that all stores are supposed to be getting. 

[Victorious Secret]

HBO is coming, along with their existing content providers. 

 

GoT trailer!

 

[Victorious Secret]

[Victorious Secret]

 

Lots of stuff for research based purposes. 

 

[Victorious Secret]

 

Yea, thats thin 

[GlassBomb]

~snip~

 

Yea, thats thin 

 

I DUN LIKE EET.

 

Its only in-/outputs are 3.5mm and power in.

[Victorious Secret]

I DUN LIKE EET.

 

Its only in-/outputs are 3.5mm and power in.

 

USB Type C, so while its only one, it isn't just power. Its everything. 

[Victorious Secret]

 

Core M. 1.3Ghz turbo to 2.9Ghz. Nothing else said. 

[GoodBytes]

So the CPU of the MacBook, is the same in terms of performance (assuming no throttling) than my Surface Pro 2. ok... [update]Wait it's not, it is slower, it is a Core M unlike the Pro 2/3 which is the U series[/update]

And where is the charging port? Don't tell me they use USB 3.1 for not only everything: Displayport and USB, but also charging.

That would be halarious. how are you supposed to plug a mouse and a monitor or a mouse and charging the device?

Also the pressure touchpad... nothing new. My Surface Pro 2 has that, and it's not great. I am not talking about the track, I am talking about the physical lack of feeling the track pad being pressed. That is why they return to clicking one with the Pro 3.

And the Pro 2 touchpad, is a big improvement over the Touch keyboard of the Surface Pro 1.

The only good thing I see here, is that they upgraded the panel to an IPS high resolution screen after all these years.

[GlassBomb]

And where is the charging port? Don't tell me they use USB 3.1 for not only everything: Displayport and USB, but also charging.

That would be halarious. how are you supposed to plug a mouse and a monitor or a mouse and charging the device?

 

It will seemingly be used for everything. Apart from the 3.5mm jack that is on it.

 

And I feel very much the same as you.

[LAwLz]

Can't you just update the OP? Seems a bit excessive to make a new post for each slide Apple shows.

 

 

 

Only having 1 port on a laptop is stupid.

 

USB Type C, so while its only one, it isn't just power. Its everything. 

That makes it even more stupid. So you can't even plug a USB memory stick in while it is charging. You can only have 1 thing plugged in at a time. Want to use wired networking? Guess you will have to go without power, or file transfers from external media then! Want to use a mouse and keyboard? Sorry you can't. Only one at a time.

You better have your battery charged before the presentation because it can't be charging while connected to for example a projector.

[Victorious Secret]

Can't you just update the OP? Seems a bit excessive to make a new post for each slide Apple shows.

 

 

 

Only having 1 port on a laptop is stupid.

 

That makes it even more stupid. So you can't even plug a USB memory stick in while it is charging. You can only have 1 thing plugged in at a time. Want to use wired networking? Guess you will have to go without power, or file transfers from external media then! Want to use a mouse and keyboard? Sorry you can't. Only one at a time.

You better have your battery charged before the presentation because it can't be charging while connected to for example a projector.

 

It could very well have a passthrough. We have no idea since they didn't show what the charger will be like. Its not a stretch to assume they thought of this. 

They should've, at any rate

[MrSuperb]

 

That makes it even more stupid. So you can't even plug a USB memory stick in while it is charging. You can only have 1 thing plugged in at a time. Want to use wired networking? Guess you will have to go without power, or file transfers from external media then! Want to use a mouse and keyboard? Sorry you can't. Only one at a time.

You better have your battery charged before the presentation because it can't be charging while connected to for example a projector.

 

just wait a bit ... there will be a solution to all your "problems".