14 DAY TRIAL // Cupertino, California-based Apple Inc. today took down its web store in what may signal yet another product rollout / upgrade from the fruity company. Last time this happened, Apple introduced a cheaper version of the iMac, and later (without taking its web store offline) introduced a new iPod touch, also priced more attractively.
At around 7:30 this morning (GMT+2), Apple took down its online store, hanging the usual gray banner that states “We’ll be back. We’re busy updating the store for you and will be back soon.”
More often than not this spells maintenance, such as adjustments in the product listings, minor interface tweaks, the addition of new third-party products that we won’t notice at first glance, or holiday promotions.
It isn’t clear what Apple has planned for us next, but it seems that the company is on a rampage slashing prices left and right.
For example, a couple of weeks ago Apple took down its web store to release a budget iMac that sports an inferior processor and less storage, but also a more attractive price tag.
A week later, the Cupertino tech titan introduced yet another cheaper product, the 16GB iPod touch with iSight camera. The player sells for $199 / €199. Previously, the same price would nab you an iTouch without the rear-facing camera.
Apple’s intentions are clear: create choice for every kind of customer. This ties well with the company’s struggle to expand into every key market on the globe.
So what can we expect from the Mac maker today? There’s any number of product upgrades that we might see announced in the next hour (the average downtime is three hours), but you shouldn’t keep your fingers crossed for any iPhone or iWatch announcements.
These products are well reserved for unveiling later this fall, and considering their status, both deserve a ceremonious launch – not just a store update and a press release.
What you can expect to see today is further adjustment of Apple’s pricing across the iPad and iPod lines, new Macintosh upgrades (Mac mini is in dire need of a speed bump), etc.
The store outage could indeed mark a new product release / upgrade as Apple typically couples these announcements with software updates. Just hours ago the company published iOS 7.1.2, OS X Mavericks 10.9.4, a new security update, and new versions of Safari to its Downloads area. We’ll be discussing every update at length throughout today.
Update: Apple store back online featuring Back to School promo. More on this in just a few.