Analyst Predicts Apple Roadmap for 2013, No Apple HDTV Until 2014
Analyst Predicts Apple Roadmap for 2013, No Apple HDTV Until 2014
The start of the year is a good time for making predictions of upcoming products from major manufacturers, and KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is among the first to share his projected roadmap for Apple. In his roadmap, Apple is predicted to release the following devices in this order:
- Q1 2013: Apple TV refresh
- Q2 2013: MacBook Air
- Q3 2013: iPhone 5S, a new design iPhone 5, iPad 5, iPad mini 2, New design MacBook Pro, Modified iPod Touch 5, iPod nano refresh
- Q4 2013: iMac and Mac mini
Kuo believes that an Apple HDTV will not show up until next year, and expects a refresh of the Apple TV set-up box in Q1. The MacBook air is unlikely to come with Retina displays as it still remains a challenge for Apple. A more likely upgrade will be outfitting the MacBook Air with Intel's Haswell platform.
Despite rumors and reports of the iPad 5 and second-gen iPad mini launching in March, Kuo asserts that they will be launched in Q3 instead. In addition, he predicts the iPad 5 to be "significantly lighter and slimmer" than current iPads, and will inherit a narrow border design similar to the iPad mini.
As for the second generation iPad mini, Kuo says that it will come with a Retina display with a resolution of 2,048 x 1,536 pixels. This will allow developers to code apps for one standard resolution across all iPads.
More interestingly, Kuo predicts that there will be two new iPhones this year - an iPhone 5S and a redesigned iPhone 5. The iPhone 5S is estimated to incorporate a fingerprint sensor and a larger aperture for its rear camera, while the redesigned iPhone 5 (also known as the low-cost model) will sport a similar design as the iPhone 5 but is slightly thicker with a plastic chassis that comes in 6 different colors.
As for the MacBook Pro lineup, Kuo believes Apple will retire the non-Retina MacBook Pros this year, and offers all-Retina MacBook Pros at more affordable price points. A design tweak is also expected.