Apple "Spring Forward" 2015 Live Blog
by Ryan Smith on March 9, 2015 12:57 PM EST- Posted in
- Apple
- MacBook Air
- Wearables
- Apple Watch
02:34PM EDT - And that's a wrap. Off to go try some of these new gadgets
02:33PM EDT - Also thanking Apple team
02:33PM EDT - Tim reiterating Apple's focus on innovation
02:32PM EDT - Recap of today's announcements
02:31PM EDT - Rolling Apple Watch ad
02:30PM EDT - Available April 24th, in a number of countries
02:29PM EDT - Pre-order April 10th. Apple will also have it at their stores for previews on that day
02:29PM EDT - Apple Watch Edition: limited quantities, starts at $10,000
02:28PM EDT - Bands determine price
02:28PM EDT - 38mm: $549 - 1049. 42mm: $599 - 1099
02:27PM EDT - Watch Sport: Aluminium. Watch (no suffix): Stainless Steel. Watch Edition: Gold
02:25PM EDT - Another video: stainless steel
02:25PM EDT - Next: Apple Watch Edition
02:25PM EDT - 38mm: $349. 42mm: $399
02:23PM EDT - Now rolling a video about the Sport and its aluminum shell
02:22PM EDT - 3 watches. First up: Apple Watch Sport. Metal shell with plastic bands
02:21PM EDT - Magnetic charging
02:21PM EDT - 18 hours, to be precise
02:21PM EDT - "All day" battery life
02:21PM EDT - Available today for download
02:21PM EDT - iOS 8.2 will introduce a Watch app
02:20PM EDT - Tim on stage discussing Watch/iPhone integration
02:20PM EDT - Demo time is over. Apple interested in seeing what devs can do with it
02:19PM EDT - Voice dictation, home control through a 3rd party app
02:17PM EDT - Usng watch as room key for W Hotel
02:16PM EDT - Demoing Digital Touch
02:15PM EDT - It even has Uber
02:13PM EDT - BTW, this appears to be a live demo Time is no longer 10:09
02:12PM EDT - Demoing how ApplePay works with Watch
02:11PM EDT - Reminders, ApplePay, notifications, etc
02:10PM EDT - Demoing Siri voice interaction as well
02:09PM EDT - Starting with a demo of how the Watch can be used throughout the day
02:08PM EDT - On stage: Kevin Lynch
02:08PM EDT - Now up, WatchKit and app demonstations
02:07PM EDT - Can receive all notifications from iPhone on watch
02:07PM EDT - ApplePay, music, photos, Siri
02:07PM EDT - Back to the watch
02:04PM EDT - Kristy is now on stage
02:02PM EDT - Ran a half-marathon with it
02:02PM EDT - Apple gave her a watch to demonstate how she uses it
02:01PM EDT - Video: Christy Turlington Burns
01:59PM EDT - Also includes a workout app
01:59PM EDT - Watch can also send reminders
01:59PM EDT - Keep track of your activity
01:58PM EDT - Health and fitness
01:58PM EDT - Digital Touch: transfer between watches. Drawings, heartbeat, etc
01:57PM EDT - Even emails
01:57PM EDT - Messages and calls can be accessed on watch
01:56PM EDT - Swipe up from bottom to access frequently used features
01:55PM EDT - Feature: Glances
01:54PM EDT - Now discussing UI skins/faces
01:54PM EDT - Watch is accurate within 50ms of UTC
01:53PM EDT - Now the main event: Apple Watch
01:52PM EDT - Didn't the previous 13' rMBP use a 28W processor?
01:52PM EDT - Broadwell, Force Trackpad, better battery life
01:52PM EDT - 13" rMBP getting updated as well
01:52PM EDT - Broadwell update
01:51PM EDT - MBA updates, shipping today
01:51PM EDT - Joining MBP and MBA
01:51PM EDT - Shipping April 10th
01:51PM EDT - $1299: 8GB RAM, 1.1GHz CPU, 256GB SSD
01:48PM EDT - So there's no physical clicking mechanism, from the sounds of it
01:48PM EDT - Force Touchpad works via an electromagnet to provide feedback
01:47PM EDT - Aspect ratio is 16:10, BTW. Yay!
01:46PM EDT - Rolling another video
01:45PM EDT - Apple has basically built a 12" tablet with a keyboard
01:45PM EDT - Colors: silver, space grey, and gold
01:44PM EDT - So long, MagSafe
01:44PM EDT - They're using USB Type-C with power delivery
01:44PM EDT - Aha, multi-feature connector. Nifty
01:43PM EDT - Looks like there may be no plugs other than power?
01:43PM EDT - Wireless 802.11ac, dual stream, and BT 4.0
01:42PM EDT - Battery life: 9 hours web browsing, 10 hours media
01:42PM EDT - Layered sheet LiPoly batteries
01:41PM EDT - Fill the rest with batteries
01:41PM EDT - Yep, Core-M
01:40PM EDT - New logic board 67% smaller than 11" MBA logic board
01:40PM EDT - Core-M?
01:40PM EDT - Fanless
01:39PM EDT - Unibody
01:38PM EDT - New OS actions based on click intensity
01:38PM EDT - Sensors can detect click pressure
01:37PM EDT - Not hinged; can be clicked anywhere
01:37PM EDT - New trackpad, "Force Touch"
01:37PM EDT - Discussing how they got around stronger backlight requirements of a retina display
01:36PM EDT - 0.88mm thick panel
01:36PM EDT - 12", retina, 2304x1440
01:35PM EDT - Said to be much more stable than scissor keys, which are known for being unstable
01:35PM EDT - New Butterfly Switch to replace Scissor Switch in keyboards
01:34PM EDT - Full size keyboard, with short function keys
01:33PM EDT - 24% thinner than 11" MBA
01:33PM EDT - 13.1mm thick at thickest point
01:33PM EDT - "New MacBook" weighs 2lbs
01:32PM EDT - On stage: Phil Schiller
01:32PM EDT - New MacBook
01:31PM EDT - Rolling video
01:30PM EDT - Wanted to use what they learned from iPhone and iPad to reinvent the notebook
01:30PM EDT - Apple proud of the fact that they're ougrowing the industry
01:29PM EDT - Next up: Macs
01:29PM EDT - They can't wait to see what researchers do with it
01:28PM EDT - First apps today
01:28PM EDT - Initial release next month
01:28PM EDT - Will be open source
01:27PM EDT - ResearchKit will be added over time
01:26PM EDT - Of course this would be even better with more sensor data...
01:25PM EDT - Researchers discussing how this improves their data collection abilities and bredth
01:24PM EDT - Now rolling ResearchKIt video
01:24PM EDT - Apple making it clear that they want to protect privacy. Users control how data is shared, and Apple never sees it
01:23PM EDT - Privacy
01:23PM EDT - Another demo, Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC looking to use app to cross-reference asthma incidents with measured environmental factors
01:21PM EDT - Theme of also empowering users by allowing them to easily access and visualize their own data
01:20PM EDT - Demonstrating app to help diagnose Parkinson's
01:19PM EDT - Designed to help researchers collect data from participating iPhone users
01:18PM EDT - Announcing ResearchKit
01:18PM EDT - Volunteers, inconsistent symptoms, etc
01:17PM EDT - Discussing how it's hard to get good, objective data
01:16PM EDT - Next subject: iPhone and how it has impacted medical research through HealthKit
01:15PM EDT - Announcing today that every major car brand has comitted to supporting CarPlay
01:14PM EDT - Talking about increasing retailer support, incuding Coke vending machines
01:13PM EDT - Segue: Apple Pay
01:12PM EDT - Now discussing iPhone 6/6+ customer satisfaction
01:12PM EDT - Top selling smartphone in the world (again)
01:12PM EDT - Recently sold 700 millionth iPhone
01:11PM EDT - AppleTV price cut to $69 from $99. Still no new hardware
01:10PM EDT - Tim is back, thanking Richard
01:09PM EDT - WInter Is (Still) Coming
01:08PM EDT - Up now, GoT trailer
01:08PM EDT - Broadband connection required
01:08PM EDT - Will introduce it in early April for $14.99/month, just in time for Game of Thrones
01:07PM EDT - Apple is HBO's exclusive partner
01:07PM EDT - Announcing stand-alone streaming service, HBO Now
01:06PM EDT - On stage: Richard Plepler, CEO of HBO
01:06PM EDT - Discussing how excited they are to have HBO available on the AppleTV
01:05PM EDT - First up: Apple TV
01:04PM EDT - Tim is very proud of his retail team
01:04PM EDT - 6 stores in China in the last 6 weeks; want to be at 40 by next year
01:03PM EDT - Tim Cook now on stage
01:03PM EDT - Opening of latest Apple store in China
01:02PM EDT - Bulk of the video so far is celebrating the Chinese market, which is a big growth area for Apple
01:01PM EDT - The lights have just dimmed and a video is rolling
01:00PM EDT - This time "Spring Forward", which we expect to be about the Apple Watch
01:00PM EDT - We're here at another Apple event
74 Comments
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Peichen - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
Wow, that's some thin MacBook. I like how Apple introduced so many new tech and techniques to get it down so thin and light.illi2014 - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
Curious to know the difference between the $600 ASUS Zenbook UX305 and the new $1300 MacBook. Both sport the new Intel Core M fanless processors, similar displays (res), weight (~1.2kg), build (full-metal), thinness (~13mm) etc. Does the underlying hardware explain the 2x difference in price?jameskatt - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
You forget that the Mac runs OSX and can simultaneously run any other OS virtually. The PC does not run OSX. The difference in price is the operating system and the Apple experience which is simply better than on any PC.Antronman - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
Every time I see a comment like this, I'm instantly reminded as to how it is at all possible Apple gets such huge earnings.People who complain about Windows being inaccessible (lol) and Linux being too accessible.
Where there's a shepherd, there's always sheep.
waldoh - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
$600 trackpad and keyboard technologyaliasfox - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
The new MacBook is about half a pound lighter (0.9 kg vs 1.2 kg), and if other Apple laptops are any indication, offers PCI-E based storage, roughly twice as fast as SATA3 storage that the ASUS uses.Also, for some reason I couldn't find a US distributor for the UX305, but the German price is 999 EUR. Still cheaper, but not 1/2 the price.
Glaurung - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
1. The displays are not similar -- the zenbook only has 1080p, the macbook has 1440p. The mac's display is calibrated at the factory, the zenbook's is not.2. As with all Macs, you're paying extra for several things that don't fit on a spec sheet -- the ability to run OSX, superior build quality and aesthetics, and in-person customer service and support available at any Apple store.
fteoath64 - Wednesday, March 11, 2015 - link
coreM sucks in perf. Target for bussiness people doing email and video only, with minimal weight and volume so they can sneak into baggage. One can do photo upload with wifi and do light photo retouching. Its limited. ipad can do almost as much for lighter!SirKnobsworth - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
So their website is saying that the type c port supports "USB 3.1 Gen 1 (up to 5 Gbps)," AKA USB 3.0 over a type c connection.ezridah - Monday, March 9, 2015 - link
No new AppleTV hardware? No AppleTV app store? No upgraded display for MacBook Airs? Weak. As. Fuck.Everything announced here is ho-hum. If that new MacBook only cost like $800 it might be a bit more exciting. Pricing it the same as MacBook Airs doesn't make any sense...
Could give two shits about the stupid watch.