It's been only a little over two months since Lombard, the latest Apple professional PowerBook was introduced at the Worldwide Developers Conference. However, that never stops us from beginning the watch on the next PowerBook offerings.
The next PowerBook, which was at one point codenamed the mundane 102, just one digit after the real codename for the 'bronze' machines, 101. For details on all of Lomby's codenames, visit our extensive article here. However, during our visit to New York at the recently concluded MacWorld Expo, we badgered an Apple employee into admitting that 102 was no longer the codename. However, until we uncover what it is, we'll continue to refer to it as 102.
First, a few disclaimers. It goes without saying that this is mostly a few solid shreds of information filled in with educated guesses. 102 is still a long way off, and Apple's hardware specifications are never final until they ship in boxes from the factory.
That having been said, the first thing everyone wants to know is when is the machine going to be released. Though it might seem a little early, MacWorld Expo San Francisco in a scant five months is the likely projected release date at this point.
What will 102 be? 102 will mainly be a further refinement of the 'Bronze' machines. Apple had a great product with Wallstreet, just with a few problems that were fixed, which resulted in the 'Bronze' machines. They're just going to do that again, just with a few major features added.
First, AirPort 802.11 wireless networking will be included into every 102. Apple is very serious about continuing the widespread adoption of the standard first introduced in the iBook 'Consumer Portable." Apple is also planning to include AirPort in its next iMac, codenamed Kihei, and SawTooth, its next professional PowerMac.
FireWire. Finally it will be included as a standard in 102. FireWire was delayed in coming to portables because the software to implement a FireWire equivelent of SCSI Disk Mode was not ready in time for inclusion in the 'Bronze' machines. Apple will have finally overcome this, and the last Macintosh product segment with SCSI will be replaced by FireWire.
DVD. Apple's DVD implementation has evolved considerably since it was first introduced in the Wallstreet machines over a year ago. The 'Bronze' machine's internal DVD playback is far superior to the job done by Wallstreet's PC Card solution. Just the same, an improvement is expected for 102, with DVD perhaps becoming standard on all but the lowest of low-end models. Also, with both Wallstreet and Lombard, the Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound data on DVD discs was downmixed to a simple stereo for output. All that's changing with 102, and the rest of Apple's product line. All Kihei, SawTooth, and 102 models equipped with DVD will be able to output full 5.1 surround sound to a Dolby-enabled tuner.
The details. The rest of everything is not much but a guess at this point. You can assume all screens will be 14.1" TFT, as Apple does not seem to think a jump to 15.1" is needed. RAM will start at 64 megs on the low end, and 128 megs on the high end. Processors will be 400 MHz and up, running on a 100 MHz bus, since 102's motherboard is part of the unified architecture that both Kihei and SawTooth use, which will have a 100 MHz bus. (In fact, the next iMac will debut at 350 MHz and up). Battery life will be again improved, possibly using the polymer technology used in iBook's long-lasting batteries. Other details like media bays, keyboards, modem, and the array of miscellaneous ports are rather unimportant at this point.
Overall, 102 will be a further refinement of Apple's professional offerings. If they can reduce size and weight, they certainly will. Also, the addition of AirPort technology will significantly boost the potential of the new machine, which, like the current PowerBooks, will likely be the fastest on the planet.
