14 DAY TRIAL // Everything has been said and done for 2014 as far as Apple is concerned. The company has held its usual trimestrial events announcing new stuff in both hardware and software, all while the media has been teeming with rumors.
Not only did half of these rumors not materialize this year, but they didn’t even come close to seeing the light of day. Like the 13-inch iPad or the 12-inch MacBook Air. Despite all the supply chain chatter we’ve been subject to for the past year, neither of the rumored hardware got stage time this year. Even some software features have fallen into oblivion. Are our expectations too high or is Apple’s pace too slow?
iPad Pro
One of the key Apple products rumored to roll out in 2014 was the 13-inch iPad Pro, or iPad Plus, as some believed it would end up being called. Instead of releasing this enterprise-centric, business-focused, creative-endorsed uber-tablet, Apple chose to increment the existing lineup and launched iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3.
The Air 2 is a considerable upgrade. It has the A8X chip with more CPU and GPU power, an extra gig of RAM, Touch ID, and overall much better performance than the A7X found in the first-generation iPad Air. The iPad mini 3, on the other hand, only gets a Touch ID fingerprint sensor and an extra color.
Split-screen multitasking
iOS 8 was said to deliver, among other things, a new way to work with multiple apps simultaneously. Also known as multitasking, this is one ability that iOS has never truly mastered.
Instead of keeping two running apps on-screen, side-by-side, Apple’s mobile software freezes apps in the background and un-freezes them when you use them. Separately. And it still does so. Perhaps iOS 9 will finally deliver.
Retina MacBook Air
Despite upgrading the iMac line to an all-new 5K specification, Apple failed to introduce the much-rumored Retina MacBook Air this year. Sources in the supply chain recently noted that the computers had entered trial production, but that the thinness of the chassis was posing manufacturing difficulties.
This would reportedly cause the systems to be delayed until early next year, and it seems those new rumors were correct. On to 2015, then.
Apple TV
The Apple TV sadly didn’t get a refresh this year, despite some analysts anticipating such a move from the Cupertino giant. Even magnates like Carl Icahn are keeping their fingers crossed to see a full-fledged HDTV unveiled by Apple.
But instead of refreshing the hardware, Tim Cook and his troops just gave it a new OS with redesigned visuals, family purchases, descriptive video with a new accessibility feature, the ability to AirPlay without connecting to your wireless network, Beats Music integration, and more.
Sapphire-everything
In 2013, Apple hired a company called GT Advanced Technologies. The purpose of their partnership was to obtain copious amounts of sapphire to use in next-generation iDevices.
Because GTAT failed to deliver the amounts of good-quality sapphire crystal needed, the Cupertino giant was forced to use regular glass for its iPhones’ displays. Okay, so it’s not ordinary glass. It’s ion-strengthened, according to Apple. But it’s still more brittle than sapphire.
As it stands, the company only uses sapphire for the Touch ID fingerprint sensors on new-generation iPhones and iPads, the lens covering the camera module on these iDevices, and the underside of the Apple Watch.
One more iPod touch
A less plausible rumor that came out this year was the possibility of Apple releasing yet another iPod touch. This would have been the sixth-generation model, boasting a new processor but not necessarily a new design. In fact, if you look at the iPhone 6, you can clearly tell it takes many cues from the fifth-generation iPod touch.
Did we miss anything? If so, don’t hesitate to use the comments section below.