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Technology Stocks : Apple Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Cogito who wrote (49922)	1/8/2006 9:15:47 AM
From: William F. Wager, Jr.	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 213177

New Macintosh, IPod Likely On Tap At Macworld Next Week. DOW JONES NEWSWIRES By ANDREW SIMONS January 6, 2006 5:38 p.m. LOS ANGELES -- Just as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas wraps up this weekend, investors will get another dose of tech news next week when Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL) hosts Macworld, the biannual fete focusing on the Apple Macintosh. Given Apple's traditionally tight lips about upcoming products, predicting what the high-flying company will introduce at its showcase in San Francisco is no easy affair. However, the general wisdom dictates that Apple will unveil one or more of the following: new Macs with Intel Corp. (INTC) chips; an upgraded iPod Shuffle; a device that further melds the Mac to other consumer electronics in the living room; and more deals to distribute content for movie and television studios. Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs usually shows off one or two big new products at Macworld during his keynote address. And while rumors about what the company will introduce have some basis in truth, there is always a bombshell that no one expects. "You never really know," said Charlie Wolf, an analyst with Needham & Co. The new iPod ranks among the sure things. The current iPod Shuffle - the lowest end of the music player line - comes with one gigabyte of memory and doesn't have a screen. The new version will likely have a one- or two-line screen, but remain one gigabyte, according to analysts. Keeping a solid string of upgrades for the iPod music player line is important in order for Apple to keep sales brisk, say analysts. Last year, Apple sold about 23 million iPods. Analysts say that Apple could stand to double those numbers in 2006. Another item to count on: A Macintosh with an Intel processor. Last year, Apple announced it was changing its longtime use of International Business Machines Corp.'s (IBM) PowerPC chip with a processor made by Intel. And while Apple's iMac desktop computer lines have often been the computer that gets upgraded first, Apple will likely upgrade one of its iBook or PowerBook laptop lines, said Wolf. "Everybody is saying it, that there will be a new Mac featuring the Intel processor," said Wolf. Analysts are also looking for Apple to make a move in its media strategy. "There is a shift toward a world in which we're able to participate in whatever form of media we want," said Mark Stahlman, an analyst with investment bank Caris & Co. "Apple is both a computer company and a media company and understands the intersection between those two companies. We could find out how Apple is going to tie all these pieces together." That could include a new device, like a television tuner, that more easily ties the media files stored on Apple computers to televisions and other consumer electronics, said Stahlman. Investors might also get an idea of what Apple will do about the DVD format war that has roiled Hollywood for the past year, said Wolf. Both new Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats boast greater storage capacity than current DVD discs, but Blu-ray stores more data and has better copyright security measures than HD-DVD does, which movie studios seem to like. Retailers, worried about confusion among consumers, are hoping that the dispute over the new DVD standard is resolved sometime this year. Computer maker Dell Inc. (DELL) has already said it would support the Blu-ray format. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) has said it's shipping its new Xbox with an HD-DVD drive. The first movies using the dueling high-definition DVD formats are set to be released this spring, setting the stage for a high-pitched battle between the two standards to win consumer support this year. The competing standards have divided Hollywood, with Sony Corp.'s (SNE) Sony Pictures Entertainment and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., Walt Disney Co.'s (DIS) Buena Vista Entertainment, and News Corp.'s (NWS) Twentieth Century Fox supporting Blu-ray, while only General Electric Co.'s (GE) Universal Studios Inc. supports the HD-DVD format. Viacom Inc.'s (VIA) Paramount Pictures and Time Warner Inc.'s (TWX) Warner Bros. said they would support both Blu-ray and HD-DVD. [New all-time high 76.70]