Rumours Roundup for December 19th

Once again most of the rumours seem to be Apple based and the one that doesn’t seem to be going away is the Apple bringing out a TV. The Wall Street Journal say that Apple have been discussing their vision of the future of TV with TV executives:

In at least one meeting, Apple described future television technology that would respond to users’ voices and movements, one of the people said. Such technology, which Apple indicated may take longer than some of its other ideas, might allow users to use their voices to search for a show or change channels.

Apple is still saying little about what specific software and devices it is working on. The people familiar with the meetings said the Cupertino, Calif., company was “vague” and that Apple hasn’t made proposals to license shows for any new product offering.

Still, the talks—some of which were made at the request of media companies seeking an update on Apple’s plans—suggest that Apple’s TV strategy is advancing. The technology company often keeps its products and ideas, close to the vest until as late as possible.

Also on Apple there are rumours that the next gen iPad will be arriving in the next 3 or 4 moths according to part suppliers:

DigiTimes claims that the Cupertino, Calif., company’s manufacturing partners have already begun delivering parts and components for the third-generation iPad to OEM contractors while preparing to draw down production of the iPad 2, according to its sources.

The firm also recently claimed that the third-gen iPad will arrive in February, a month earlier than DigiTimes’ reported timeline. Analyst Richard Gardner said sources had indicated there were no “significant technical hurdles remaining” for the device.
Apple has thus far preferred to release previous generations of the iPad in the spring. The original iPad was announced in January 2010 and launched in April. The second-generation iPad was announcedin March of this year and shipped later that month.
The next-generation iPad is widely believed to include a display with Retina Display-like quality. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Apple has invested in a Sharp factory for production of LCD panels for the next iPad. Those panels have beenrumored to utilize IGZO (indium, gallium, zinc) technology to help provide a thinner design while improving battery life.

The Windows side of things are very quite with no real rumours but we did see a leak of Windows 8 media screens. Lets hope CES brings us some juicy rumours to talk about.