Tuesday’s event was just as I expected, everything was focused on iPhone and the related products, plus a minor upgrade to the iPods. Let’s review what all was discussed on Tuesday by Tim Cook and company:

iOS 5:

The iOS 5 segment of the presentation was mainly review of the new, powerful features of iOS 5. Apple did discuss two new apps they are launching:

Cards: Allows you to send beautifully designed picture cards from your iPhone which are then printed and sent for you. Cards sent within the  US are $2.99 per card and for anywhere else in the world they are $4.99 per card. This could be interesting and as we have seen with iPhoto, Apple makes great cards! The app will be free in the app store.

Find My Friends: Find my Friends, allows users to find friends who also use an iPhone. Friends must be first approved and you can even make temporary groups of friends to share your location with certain people for a set period of time. There are privacy settings built-in, including parental controls. I’m hoping this will bea free download in the App Store and not pre-installed on iOS so users can opt-in and hopefully prevent a privacy scare.

iOS 5 will be released Wednesday October 14th!

iCloud:

Ok, there was no real news about iCloud except perhaps the ability to purchase additional storage directly on your device. They merely reviewed the features and told us that it will be released to the public Wednesday October 14th!

Updated iPods:

iPod Touch: The iPod Touch only got one modification, which was the addition of a white model. Also, the price of the 8 GB model dropped from $229 to $199, while the 16 GB and 32 GB both remain at $199 and $299 respectively.

iPod Nano: The iPod Nano also retained the same design and really only has updated software which adds multiple clock faces (including a Mickey Mouse face). and built-in fitness functionality for walking and running. The Nano prices dropped to $129 and $149 for the 8 GB and 16 GB models respectively. Current generation iPod Nano owners can update their current device to enjoy the new features.

The current iPod Shuffle and Classic will continue to be available unchanged.

iPhone 4S:

The big announcement was the new iPhone, or the slightly improved iPhone 4s. The two major improvements is the use of Apple’s duel-core A5 processor and improved graphics, which will be great for gaming.  The iPhone 4s added a few features which makes the already great iPhone 4 even better! It has an improved wireless system that uses two antennas and intelligently switches between them for better signal quality. Maybe this will prevent the antennagate scandal iPhone 4 early adopters experienced last year. The 4S also has a significantly better camera with an 8MP sensor as well as improved low light sensitivity. The major feature the iPhone 4S will have and the iPhone 4 won’t have even with iOS 5 is Siri . Siri is a voice-based personal assistant application that allows for voice commands as well as dictation which can be incredibly powerful, and helpful and makes me really wish it was a software update for the iPhone 4. The new iPhone 4S will be released October 14th  on AT&T, Verizon and for the first time, Sprint. The pricing is the same as previous models with the addition of a 64 GB model for $399. There also will be only one iPhone and the models will only differ in storage because it is now a world phone meaning it has both a GSM and CDMA radio in it.

But, don’t count the iPhones 4 and 3GS out. An 8 GB iPhone 4 will be available for  $99 and the iPhone 3GS will now be free, both prices assume a 2-year contract. The free 3GS, although it will only be on AT&T, will be very helpful to growing Apple’s mobile market share, because now they are the same price as a the free flip phone beside the fact you need to buy a monthly data plan. I have a feeling that many consumers might choose the 3GS even with the data plan, although it is 2 years old because it has a lot more features than those “dumb phones”.

This event wasn’t the big brand-new, revolutionary product launch that one might think Tim Cook would have as his first event as CEO. However, the new product line Apple has is great and I think the 4S  will sell as well if not better than it’s predecessors.

On Tuesday, Apple will be having a media event on their campus for the much awaited reveal of their new iPhone. There have been a flurry of rumors out about what will be announced, some people say there will be a totally redesigned iPhone; while others say it’s just a iPhone 4S with just a specs bump and no new design, some say both . Here is what I think we will see on Tuesday:

1. New iPhone: Duh It’s on the Invitation

With all the rumors I saw, I’m still not sure if we will be seeing a brand new phone or just a spec bump like the 3Gs. Either way, the new iPhone is a guarantee  and although I don’t have any ideas about the new form factor, if there is one, there are two specs that I think we will be sure to see improvement in. The first is the duel-core A5 processor that we saw earlier this year when then iPad 2 is released, the other is a better camera, although the iPhone camera is already fairly good. I have no other ideas as far as hardware is concerned but, I think those two tweaks are fairly safe bets and if that is all the hardware they update, then I think the 4S moniker is more likely than the iPhone 5.

2. iOS 5

I’m sure that I am not the only one who has been yearning for iOs 5 since Apple previewed it in June. From past experience, I think they will release iOS 5 to the public on Tuesday. They will hopefully also talk about the new Assistant voice command feature that has been floating around the web for the past week. Assistant allows you to control your phone using natural voice commands which could be really nice. Rumor has it that the Assistant feature will only be able to be used on the new iPhone, due to the increase in processing power, but I’m really hoping since it’s software that it will still work on the iPhone 4.

3. iCloud 

This is plain and simple, iCloud will come out the same day as the event or whenever iOS 5 comes out. The one feature I would like them to add to the already announced line-up is sync to the cloud and not just over WiFi to a computer with iTunes but directly to the web! Maybe next year

4. iPods

The fall is typically when Apple releases new their new iPods, although it’s usually a month earlier. This year, I think they are going to take a back seat to the iPhone if they are even mentioned at this event!  There have been rumors that Apple will discontinue all iPods except the Nano and Touch. Here’s what I think we will see are my itemized predictions for the  new or maybe not new iPods.

iPod Classic:  I think if Apple cancels any iPod, this is the first one they will cancel first. They have already pull the click wheel games from the iTunes store earlier today. Honestly, the iPod Classic doesn’t fit in with Apple’s current product line, although music lovers will cry-out that they can’t carry their entire massive music libraries in their pockets and will have to settle with smaller, flash-memory devices.

iPod Shuffle:  Possibly canceled or just not updated

iPod Nano: Minor upgrade or not upgraded

iPod Touch: Upgrade to make on par with new iPhone- hopefully a better camera

What We Won’t See:

1. iPad 3- It’s too soon, I predict early 2012- I’m thinking Mid-March
2. Apple TV (TV Set)- If Apple comes out with this, it will have it’s own event, this is too big to try and cram into the new iPhone event. 

Today is the day that iPhone fans have been waiting for probably for the past 3 and a half years! Verizon announced that they will be selling the iPhone 4 starting February 10th! This is the same iPhone 4 that has been available on AT&T for almost a year but with a CDMA radio and a few other  modifications. The biggest change is that it will operate as a Wireless hotspot over WiFi, Bluetooth and USB a feature that AT&T does have but with data limitations and a up charge. This is free with the data plan which is unlimited! They also will have the white iPhone available in the Spring so for those who have been waiting for the white iPhone, your wait is almost over. I think this is great especially for people who have lousy AT&T service in their area and give customers more choice in which carrier they want. The only concern that I have is that they are putting out the iPhone 4 out in February and they are presumably releasing a new iPhone in June on both Verizon and AT&T so those who want to switch to Verizon might be better off waiting until June. This is of course assuming that Verizon will be on  the same release cycle.  Either way this is great news and hopefully, the iPhone will become available on more carriers in the future.

As I mentioned on Monday, today, Apple gave a preview of what is to comer in the next version of the iPhone Software, iPhone 3.0. There has been a lot of speculation about features will be added to the new software and what will not but, now, now I will determine which rumors came true and which are just rumors.

1. Spotlight Search- Search will be implemented in all appications which is great because it will make data easier to access
2. In-App Purchase- As usual Apple has found a great way to revolution an old business. This time, it was subscription services like newspaers and magazines. The new SDK now allows users to buy addition content such as magazine issues or game levels from with in a third-party application. This will build a large market of mobile content providers and will be very successful.
3. Landscape Keyboard- There is no longer a need for getting third-party applications just to get a horizontal keyboard it will now be built in in all key applications and most importantly, Mail!
4. Peer-to-Peer Connectivity- This is a great feature for both work and play because it allows people to connect devices over WiFi or Bluetooth. This could be used as a method of sharing data for work or playing games against one-another.
5. Stereo Bluetooth- Perfect if you want to use a stero Bluetooth headphone set.
6. Third-Party Accessory Applications- Apple is also opening up SDK support to let third-party accesory developers to develop apps to interact with the accessory. This will greatly expand then accessory market and will really expand the hardware of the iPhone.
7. Push Notification- Finally, Apple has developed push notification and they claim it is due to battery issues that they did not implement background applications. This will push text, audio and badge notifications to the home screen.
8. Turn-By-Turn Directions- Finally users can get turn by turn directions, however, they will only be through third-parties because Apple cannot due to Licensing issues.
9. Cut, Copy and Paste- That’s right Apple has heard everyone’s complaints and they are implimenting a revolutionary method of copy and paste!
10. MMS- Picture Messaging has been added which is great if you have a picture you need to share.

This new software will be released to developers right now, and will be releassed to the public in Summer for free for iPhone users and for $10 for iPodTouch owners, All-in-all it is a worthwhile upgrade! I think that Apple waiting until June indicates that they will be releasing new hardware this summer and leads me to suggest to wait until summer to buy a new iPhone because there is a 90% chance of new hardware being released as well as the software. I definitly will buy the upgrade for my iPod Touch and will write a full review at that time.