Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) kicks off tomorrow in San Francisco. In the lead up to the event, many sites have made predictions and disseminated purportedly leaked information about what Apple fans can expect from the Cupertino company. According to the well-connected John Gruber, however, “all the leaks are wrong.”
Mr. Gruber’s comments came during this week’s episode of his The Talk Show podcast. Although claiming ignorance of any specific information, Mr. Gruber states that a source within Apple told him that “all the leaks are wrong.” Instead of (or perhaps in addition to) the predicted “flat” interface and new features such AirDrop for iOS, Apple plans to unveil a “polarizing” new release, according to sources.
The dearth of information prior to this year’s WWDC is unusual, and supports Apple CEO Tim Cook’s pledge last year to “double down” on secrecy, something that has escaped the company in recent years.
Despite the secrecy, at least some important details have leaked ahead of the conference. The Wall Street Journal confirmed Sunday that Apple will unveil its long-awaited “iRadio” streaming service on Monday. The Pandora-like service will be free and supported by advertising, with direct links to the iTunes Store which will enable customers to purchase tracks they like directly from within the radio app.
Other expected announcements include a first look at OS X 10.9 and new Haswell-based MacBooks. A reportedly leaked image of a radically redesigned Mac Pro is also circulating, although it references technologies that won’t be available until the end of the year. It’s unlikely Apple would announce a product so far in advance of its expected ship date.
Apple will put an end to the speculation during its keynote on Monday at 10:00 AM PDT (1:00 PM EDT). TekRevue will have a summary of the day’s announcements following the event.
