Apple Specifically Invites Gaming Press to January 27th Event

Before I get into the meat of this article I need to own up to something: Yes, I am one the ones who has been posting all over the internet that Macs are for poseurs and transsexuals.  I have always been repulsed by the pretence of Mac owners.  From the snotty beret-wearing wannabes, who hang out at Starbucks with their Macbooks but never seem to actually get that manuscript completed, to the yoga crowd who have carrying cases with slots that conveniently display the Apple logo, I loathe them all. It isn’t necessarily the technology itself that I find so irksome, it’s the people that are drawn to it.

I have always found it quite rewarding that pinheads who shell out roughly twice the money that PC fans do, for hardware that is rarely upgradeable, have always had limited options for gaming.  That and the fact that Apple seems so committed to screwing their supporters over so regularly by releasing new iterations of their products so frequently, has left quite a sour taste in my mouth.  Sadly, my days as a Mac hater may be coming to an unceremonious end.

Apple recently announced an event to showcase their ‘œlatest creation‘ which is rumoured to be a ‘œ10 or 11 inch touchscreen tablet.’  Cnet has reported that on top of the rumours about the tablet, Apple has specifically invited members of the gaming press to the event at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Centre for the Arts Theatre.  In the Cnet piece discussing predictions and possibilities for the January 27 event, Erica Ogg points out that while this could be more about an iPhone update than a brief or a tech demo on Apps for a tablet Mac, the gaming possibilities for such a device are intriguing.  With whispers about a sub $1000 price tag for this device, and the success of other touch-enabled devices over the last five years, even a hardened Mac hater like myself is somewhat frothy over these gaming rumours.

Let’s be honest, while there is great potential for a reasonably priced tablet, there are still a few hurdles for Apple in the gaming market.  Just because the App Store for the iPhone/iPod Touch is a huge success, does not mean that this system translates well to the laptop market.  People are willing to drop 99¢ to $4.99 on simple games and applications for a handheld.  Just by virtue of being on a tablet the consumer is going to expect more, but is not likely going to want to pay more in the current economy.  Also, and this has more to do with the iPhone, consumers are willing to spend the 99¢ for throw-away software because they are always connected through the wireless service.  Unless Apple is willing to add a wireless service to their tablet product, the impulse buying that has made the iTunes App Store so successful is unlikely to pay off as lucratively.

So stay tuned for more on this event next week.  Despite what I generally think about Apple and their products, they are a significant player in the computer and music industry and have a history of pushing an envelope or two.  Finally, don’t forget that Steve Jobs is back in play and attended a recent iPod event.  One can’t help but think that now that he has returned from a leave for health issues, that he would want to make a fairly serious splash. I can just see him now scrubbing that black turtleneck, and picking up a new pair of jeans from the Gap.