Major iOS, Mac OS announcements coming at WWDC, analyst claims

By on May 5, 2011 at 11:00 AM
mobile May 5, 2011

Following a meeting with high-ranking executives at Apple, Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty came away with a very positive outlook on Apple’s near term future. In a note to investors on Thursday, Huberty stated her “increasing confidence” in the company and said Apple stock could soon reach $540. Huberty isn’t quite as enthusiastic as Formula Capital’s James Altucher, but her recent positions on Apple are a marked change from her stances a few years ago when she repeatedly lowered her price targets on Apple stock and consistently missed the mark ahead of Apple’s earnings reports. Fast forward to today, and Huberty is very bullish on Apple along with just about every other analyst on Wall Street. Outside of the numbers game, however, Huberty noted that Apple would be making some major software announcements at Worldwide Developer Conference next month. Apple sees its product cycles as being software driven as opposed to hardware driven, the analyst noted, writing that major iOS and Mac OS updates would drive sales even if Apple doesn’t introduce a new iPhone this summer. Huberty also noted that Apple may release an iPhone at a lower price point in the next two years, though many analysts believe the monthly cost of data plans required with Apple’s iPhone could be more prohibitive than the cost of the device itself.

Tags:
, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
58 Comments

Related Articles

  • Bringit

    word.

  • Bringit

    word.

  • SuzieQ

    Maybe Verizon iPhone will finally get iOS 4.3?

    • Joel

      Verizon iPhone will jump straight to iOS 5. Verizon users will never see 4.3

      • Anonymous

        Verizon users are on their own concurrent OS branch, with pretty much identical features, just with a different numbering systems and differences due to the network.

        iOS 5 will unite them.

    • mac os

      dont count on it :)

  • http://profiles.google.com/plazma ryan oakley

    Merge of iOS and Mac OS X?

    • Anonymous

      Not a complete merge, but certainly some very interesting aspects to come here. And it really isn’t much of a secret that Apple has been going in this direction.I would also anticipate that the Apple data center construction, nearing completion, may offer some new “iCloud” possibilities. Should get interesting.

      • Psychogenicscc

        Indeed I can see a merger in OS or at least a bridge ala cloud

    • Anonymous

      iOS is Mac OS X

  • Jamma

    Notifications, true multi-tasking and a ton of other features other phones have that Apple will re-invent or do it better…LMAO

    • Anonymous

      Keywords. Do better.

    • Anonymous

      You lost everyone but androogs when you said “true multitasking”. iOS multitasking is already far better and more intelligent than android.

      • StrayCat

        Please explain as to why you think iOS is better at multitasking than Android. I’m just curious. thanks.

      • Anonymous

        iOS is better at multitasking because it is intelligent about what it keeps running in the background. For instance, a calculator app will not sit in the background consuming resources just because you didn’t open up a task manager to kill it, a la android. iOS allows any kind of multitasking I can think of (data transfers, media playback, online streaming, etc. etc.) while killing processes that don’t need to run in the background. It isn’t necessary to download a task manager just to shut down apps that are killing the battery for no reason. I can’t think of a single instance in which the “true multitasking” of android is better, but perhaps someone can point me to a real-world use scenario in which that may be the case.

      • Anonymous

        1. Your device has limited power.
        2. You don’t use all elements of an app when its minimized.
        3. Microsoft and Apple both approve of this method
        4. You can’t even tell.

      • Anonymous

        Neither Android nor iOS have multiple windows (like desktops OS’es do), so in practice, it works just as well as if it were “true” multitasking.

        In other words, you aren’t going to notice any difference between the Android and iOS multitasking models, other than Android battery life will be worse.

      • Anonymous

        Android doesn’t do true multitasking either. If I am playing a YouTube and I hit the home button to open my mail app, the YouTube stops playing. True Multitasking would keep it running in the background like on a Windows 7 PC.

        Hell.. even when I switch back to Youtube it isn’t even paused where I left off… Android just has another version of quasi-multitasking like Apple and WP7 will….

      • Anonymous

        Really? When I switch from YouTube to another app and then back again, it starts playing right where I left off 99% of the time.

      • StrayCat

        Responding to your quote, “while killing processes that don’t need to run in the background.”. From what I understand, Android keeps those processes running until another app needs that memory. It takes more battery and resources to kill an app from running than it does to keep it in memory. No reason to kill an app if you don’t have too.

        Plus Apple restricts some apps from using their multitasking, which is a catch 22 if you ask me.

        It is not necessary to install any task managers on Android either.. That is a very old preconception. It’s just not true anymore. Maybe 2 years ago, but definitely not now. Android handles killing an app perfectly, if need be.

        www dot dev-smart dot com/archives/75 take a look at this article. (replace “dot” with . ) Seems pretty accurate to me and answers your real-world scenario question.

      • Anonymous

        You say it has improved on android to the point that task managers are no longer necessary, and I will have to take your word for it although I have not heard of any specific significant advancements to back that up. That said, if an app is using resources when it doesn’t need to be (calculator app, for example), and is only shut off when the phone runs out of resources, it is likely that the phone is using way more resources than it needs to.

        Either way, the point is that iOS multitasking works very well, and “true multitasking” is greatly overrated and not without its drawbacks. The argument that iOS multitasking implementation is inferior is simply troll garbage for 99.99% of scenarios, which far outweighs the benefits of the alternative, IMO.

    • ssssssBoom!

      lol. So true. The new Gingerbread is light years ahead of iOS, it’s ridiculous. Apple definitely needs to step up their game.. Less marketing, more functionality.

      • Prof. Peabody

        re: ” … Gingerbread is light years ahead of iOS …”

        using such hyperbole is just a way to make sure that no one (in the entire universe!!!), will believe you (and rightly so).

        Gingerbread is far from “light years ahead.” It would be more correct to say it has a few features which iOS doesn’t have yet. Whether anyone can use them, (or even knows how to) is a whole separate question.

      • Anonymous

        Indubitably.

      • Noops

        Don’t feed the trolls

      • Anonymous

        nice minecraft reference

    • http://profiles.google.com/jptimmons89 Johnathan Timmons

      what if apple changes their mascot to an Android? It would change everything!

  • Anonymous

    normal customers don’t care about updates. There are so many jailbroken non techies deathly afraid of updates. exponentially more people on ATT that don’t know anything about syncing to itunes.

    Hardware drives sales. Software drives usage/apps.

    • Anonymous

      If they enabled OTA updates through the iTunes app, more people would update. Still, if I remember right, a study showed that the update rate for iOS was fairly high in comparison with other products.

      • Acwyau

        I think the reason for that is the need to use iTunes for syncing and very few viable alternatives with that functionality. However, all other platforms don’t force you to use proprietary software to get music, pictures, etc on your phone so less likely that the casual user would know an update is available.

    • Anonymous

      I think the upgrade statistics show that you are wrong in your assumptions.

      • Anonymous

        agreed. 90+% of the iStuff hitting my sites are the current version within about 4 weeks. I deal primarily with non-techies (financial/brokerage site). Apple minions are very good at listening to the mothership.

        Windows…. heheheh… 13% of my logins are from IE6/XP. As of yesterday, on 2% were Win7/IE9, and 5% were Win7/IE8. XP/Win7 is my winner yesterday at 14%. 27% are running obsolete browsers, let alone an OS.

        all my linux logins: 400 logins out of 120,000 yesteday.

        Firefox: 3.0 and higher: 10%.

  • Batteman87

    Winning….Duh!

  • Anonymous

    No shit? What else would they talk about? Thanks iBGR!

    • ssssssBoom!

      iBGR.. lolz

    • John

      LOL

      iBGR!! awesome sir

    • Anonymous

      They talk about the a new android phone that comes out every week.

  • Jeff Pom

    Please Apple… PLEASE – iOS upgrade. MAJOR upgrade is due. MAJOR NOTIFICATION UPGRADE is LONG overdue. But it’s time to redo the iOS. Take it to Android/Windows Phone level and beyond even???

    And – VERY important that it’s fully and completely compatible with iPhone 4. You do not want to have customers thinking “I have to spend ANOTHER 200???? just to get these features????”

    It’s time. Android does good things… Apple can make them great.

    • Anonymous

      Exactly what about the iOS needs to be redone? Make it flashier?

      From my vantage point, I see the following glaring needs:

      - Less intrusive notification system
      - Easy access to things like WiFi, brightness, etc.
      - Dedicated file management system (currently relies on third party apps)

      • John

        iOS has a UI of 2007. They need to get with the program if they want to keep up. Everyone is going Android … as they should be at this point. If they don’t step up their game, they’re screwed..

      • Anonymous

        iOS has a timeless interface. If you don’t like it use the alternatives. They are never going to clutter it up with widgets, Apple are even pulling widgets from Lion, no one uses them. But it is a complete lie if you think everyone is going Android. iPhone sales are increasing each generation. Expect 100 million iPhone 5s.

      • Anonymous

        I asked for specifics. Why exactly needs to be redone?

        “Redone” would mean an overhaul. Other than what I listed, what is so sorely lacking on iOS? Is it not geeked out enough?

  • Gaius

    No shit.

  • DonRSD aka PSN DonVCorleone

    no need for a new phone every year.
    every 2 years should be a new phone, every year in-between we get a MAJOR iOS update

    • Anonymous

      If by “new phone” you mean the change a la the 2G to 3G, or the 3GS to 4, then yes. But I doubt Apple doesn’t upgrade the internals, like with a version of the A5 and better camera.

  • QNX Please

    Man how much more are analysts going to hype up Apple stock… It seems like they are trying to boost it so they can sell off to the electronic herd. Apple needs to have profits approaching Exxon to get a $540 valuation, and to get that kind of profit it needs to sell 3X more product, a big stretch with more and more competition emerging. If it hits $540 without a big increase in profits, just wait for the pin prick to burst the bubble.

    • Anonymous

      You do realize Apple is valued very low based on it’s EPS, right? Like below industry-levels low?

  • http://twitter.com/kuraykanli Kuray Kanli

    Dont need to be analyst to imagine that iOS, Mac OS and anything about Software will be in WWDC 2011

  • Don

    Hey! Wow! New software! Bigger icons! Coverflow 3.0! Organize songs by artist’s middle initial!!!

    Apple, you are so weak. We want a bigger LCD, 8MP camera, 4G radio, etc. Software updates are a poor substitute for advancing the HW.

    What made the iPhone so special when it first came out was that the capabilities – mostly due to HW – were so far ahead of the competition. There were already iPods, there were already cell phones with color screens, but the iPhone’s HW & the SW that it enabled were in a class by itself.

    It seems that Mr. Ive has now won out, and that form & snazz have triumphed over technical innovation & cutting edge hardware.

    Weak.

    • Anonymous

      Because the iPad doesn’t have cutting edge hardware? Some benchmarks would disagree. And the iPhone is likely to get the A5.

    • Anonymous

      Sorry, you lost me at 8MP. The iPhone 4′s 5MP camera is *already* better than other manufacturers 8MP cameras. The quality of the sensor needs to improve before 8MP will help anything.

      Didn’t you learn about the Megapixel Myth yet?

      • Anonymous

        A better lens would do far more wonders than more MPs.

      • Bringit

        Exactly. But in DRRROOOIIIDDD world, BIGGER always = BETTER!

        Except, it’s not.

  • John

    Thanks iBGR!

  • Anonymous

    Apple- Hurry up and buy Sprint so that you can stop datacaps from being implemented in home broadband by offering unlimited mobile plans for about $70- $80 a month that you can tie to up to 5 devices like Apple laptops, iMacs or Airport Extreme routers to through an AppleID, including unlimited 4g speed that is basically as fast as basic home broadband now, through the good ol’ fashion technique of market competition, as no home ISP provider will dare cap consumer data in an attempt to prevent their customers from buying music/movies from itunes rather than through their own services, if they know a consumer can just dump them and use their unlimited 4g data plan they got with their iPhone to provide a data pipe to their entire home without such datacaps…

    Or buy them before Google or M$ do in an attempt to limit your power….

  • Anonymous

    iOS 5 at wwdc then.

  • http://twitter.com/imhike London Snoward

    Was the analyst a middle schooler… I mean DUHHHH

  • http://zealus.com/ zealus

    “many analysts believe the monthly cost of data plans required with
    Apple’s iPhone could be more prohibitive than the cost of the device
    itself”

    ^^^^ This and data caps.

blog comments powered by Disqus