Will Apple introduce iOS 5 at the Worldwide Developers Conference this summer? Will an iPhone 5 make its debut on time? Yes and -- we don't know.
Apple announced its annual WWDC will be June 6 through June 10 at San Francisco's Moscone West. Apple will debut what it's calling the future of iOS and Mac OS X during the five-day event, and offer demonstrations of apps that developers can build using Apple's frameworks. More than 100 technical sessions are planned.
But what the Apple-loving world -- and its competitors -- don't know is whether iOS 5 will be ready in time for the iPhone 5, or if the iPhone 5 will debut on the traditional Apple iPhone summer launch schedule. What is almost certain is that Apple CEO Steve Jobs won't be making the introductions.
A Software-Centric WWDC
Indeed, rumors are abounding that the 2011 WWDC won't focus on hardware, but exclusively on software. With the iPad 2 already making a splash, some observers expected Apple to introduce the next iteration of its iPhone, along with some new Mac laptops and desktops.
But judging by a statement from Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, the rumors may be correct. Schiller said: "At this year's conference we are going to unveil the future of iOS and Mac OS. If you are an iOS or Mac OS X software developer, this is the event that you do not want to miss."
WWDC will have more than 1,000 Apple engineers on hand to help developers with coding, offer insight into development techniques, and tips on how to make the most of iOS and Mac OS in their apps. It's also a networking platform for developers around the world to connect. But what about the iPhone?
Misusing the 'D' Word?
"Based on the press release, it does sound like this year's WWDC is going to be a software-focused event and a platform-focused event. That's not surprising," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at Gartner. "That's usually what WWDC is all about. It's typically not been about hardware in the past. There have been years where timing overlapped and it made sense for Apple to talk about hardware products."
Gartenberg is concerned about news reports that mention the iOS 5 and "delayed" in the same breath. As he sees it, it's difficult to call a product or a platform delayed if it hasn't been announced yet. If a company ships announces it's shipping a product in January and doesn't ship it until March, that is a delay, he said. But just because it typically ships in January but doesn't ship until March doesn't translate to a delay.
"Because Apple has done certain things in the past certain ways, people have come to expect them as fact," Gartenberg said. "That's just not the case, particularly in a fast-changing market where there's new competitors daily. It wouldn't surprise me that Apple is kind of mixing up its moves a little."
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