5 reasons to mark your calendar for Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference
Monday, June 8th 2015, Tim Cook will take the stage, to introduce Apple fans and consumers, to new and upcoming products and services, some of which, the Cupertino tech giant has kept close to the chest for the past few months, with just enough leaked information to feed the rumor mill.
According to said rumors, we have been able to piece together five items likely to be disclosed at the event.
Beats Music streaming
Just as digital downloads have been slowly killing music CD sales, oddly enough the same thing is happening to music purchases, oddly enough, now lagging behind online streaming services, particularly Pandora and Spotify, whose subscribers make up the lion’s share of music listeners.
Apple is very likely to present its own music streaming service, based on a model very similar to Pandora and Spotify, which is expected to be priced $10 per month, and which will also be available to Android users, as an app.
By offering a music streaming service, Apple will be able to cater to consumers who may not have the time to organize their playlists, may not have purchased enough music, or may not be satisfied with automatic mix-and-match options offered by iTunes.
Artists will also be able to benefit from the new service, as it will allow exposure to listeners worldwide, whether or not they purchase their music.
New apple for Apple Watch
App developers have had a tough time creating apps for the Apple Watch, without access to the powerful array of sensors, and the digital crown. As of this year, Apple is expected to lift those restrictions and allow developers to access all hardware on the Apple Watch. This will result in far more impressive waves of apps in the future.
By this token, there is word of a new toolkit to be made available to developers, which is likely to be announced at the conference on Monday.
Predictive search on Siri
Apple is expected to take a page from Google, and provide predictive search through Siri’s future enhancements, which include cards and pop-up notifications, and even augmented reality, to display information according to what Siri learns from the user’s emails, calendar entries, geographical location, and habits. For instance, if a user goes frequently to the same coffee shop, Siri will automatically provide driving or walking directions, or display information pertaining to the establishment, like events, and perhaps even promotional information from nearby local businesses.
As of late, Apple has purchased augmented reality company Metaio, which is a strong indicator that we could see the technology being implemented in Apple Siri.
iOS 9
OWners of older devices, like iPhone 4 and iPad Mini, should pay attention this year, as iOS 9 is expected to offer a little less in the way of new features, and a lot more in terms of stability and performance on legacy devices. The next major update to iOS is expected to offer some interesting features, at least in some devices, like the rumored 12.9 inch iPad Pro, where split-screen could actually be implemented.
Take your next bus ride with Apple Maps
Public transit times and routes are expected to be part of Apple Maps, effective this year. This could also be part of Apple Siri’s new predictive search abilities.
What we won’t see
It’s unlikely that Apple TV will make an appearance, at least according to rumors that have been pointing to a new video streaming service, a new app store for Apple TV, and a hardware and interface refresh. It seems that plans have been delayed in connection with ongoing negotiations with content providers.
Apple is expected to offer its own streaming service this year, and it could include live TV, with a respectable selection of channels, priced between $30 and $40 per month.
The Apple’s WWDC event will start streaming live from Moscone Center in San Francisco. As usual, the event will be broadcast from Apple’s website, which will require either an iOS device or Mac computer to access.
A number of third party news sites will also be streaming the event live, for viewers who are interested in watching the keynote from devices other than Apple’s..