The limelight during yesterday's WWDC keynote was hogged almost entirely by the MacBook range, in particular, the brand-new, Retina display MacBook Pro. With the four-year wait for Mac Pro enhancements bringing only incremental improvements at best, you could have been forgiven that Apple was distancing itself from the desktop in favor of the notebook.
Microsoft's latest Windows 8 operating system has been getting a lot of attention and causing waves in the technology world over the last few months, attention that has intensified in recent weeks thanks to the release of the Release Preview that pretty much shows us what to expect when it hits the shelves. With Windows 8 featuring the much loved Metro-style interface, users are not only excited about getting their hands on what represents the next step for Microsoft, but also keen to see what software is produced by third-party developers.
Today's big WWDC kick-off saw much publicity even before the curtain was raised. Anticipation was sky-high, and all the press in the land converged upon what was possibly the most exciting non-iOS hardware announcements for some time. We knew something big was coming, and we were right.
Today's WWDC event certainly went off with a bang, and as well as a new Retina iMac, MacBooks, iOS 6 with all the expected trimmings, there was also a big surprise in the form of the next-generation MacBook Pro.
Having spent a significant amount of time updating its website to begin selling the refreshed line of MacBooks, as well as the brand-new Retina MacBook Pro, Apple has also slipped out a new smart cover for its iPad. Unlike the previous official smart covers, which only protected the screen, the new one protects the backplate as well, and retails for a reasonable $49.
While Apple's annual event may be dubbed as Worldwide Developers Conference and will be mainly focused around development workshops for iOS and OS X developers, the company likes to cater to all tastes and always has a number of announcements and releases to keep all Apple loving tech fans happy. The yearly event is regarded so highly amongst Apple aficionados that the $1600 tickets regularly sell out in minutes, with attendees queuing outside the Moscone Center hours before the doors open for the keynote.
Apple has delivered in the hardware stakes at today's WWDC, and after running through many new little quirks of iOS 6, iOS chief Scott Forstall has shown off a brand-new feature/app called Passbook, which looks to be the fruit of the rumored Organize app.
Having wowed the crowds with the introduction of the next-gen MacBook Pro, Apple's Craig Federighi began unveiling some brand-new features of the forthcoming iteration of OS X, known as Mountain Lion. As well as reiterating what's already been showcased in the Mountain Lion Preview, he also gave an in-depth look into some of the new apps and features Apple has been working on over the past few months, in anticipation for the release in July.
With the rumor mill having been in overdrive over the past couple of months, Apple has finally released those all-important details of its upcoming iOS 6, and as it turns out, most of the suspected features of the fruit company's forthcoming mobile operating system are included, along with a few surprises.
Apple always manages to come through with a surprise or two at WWDC, and this year is no exception. In a move that nobody foresaw, the Cupertino outfit has unveiled a brand-new, "Next Generation MacBook Pro."
