Predictions for 2009?

So, that happened. Twenty-o-eight was a wild one, full of adventure, heartbreak and technology, and now that we're staring down another year of magical phones and netbooks, rumors and half-truths, it's time for the collective wisdom of Engadgetdamus (you and us) to lay down some predictions for 2009 and down a bit of two-week-old eggnog -- not necessarily in that order.

See also: predictions for 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Tim: The economic downturn boosts bargain-hunting HD DVD adoption rates so high that Toshiba resurrects the format.
Chris: A3000 fever sweeps the globe, leaving Motorola with a commanding 37 percent market share.
Darren: ASUS expands Eee line to the ultraportable and traditional notebook market, calls them Eeee and Eeeee, respectively.
Joe: slotMusic will single handedly save the music industry.
Paul: Microsoft will make up for Zune's continued lack of Xbox integration with totally ingenious new methods of locking up the player.
Don: Activision releases Guitar Hero: Air Guitar, Harmonix spends millions trying to play catch-up.
Laura: Tiny iPhone, giant iPod.
Ross: Asimo becomes self-aware, sets off on magical journey to find his true calling
Josh: Steve Jobs lives.

What's your take?

[LD @ Jan 1st 2009 12:18PM]

Dear Don,

Guitar Hero: Air Guitar EXISTS. It's worse than you can imagine.

[Blaine Oliver @ Jan 1st 2009 12:45PM]

'Darren: ASUS expands Eee line to the ultraportable and traditional notebook market, calls them Eeee and Eeeee, respectively'
this corrects to:
'Darren: ASUS expands Eee line to the ultraportable and traditional notebook market, calls them Eeee and Eeeee, respectivEEE'

Much better.

[Blaine Oliver @ Jan 1st 2009 12:48PM]

'Darren: ASUS expands Eee line to the ultraportable and traditional notebook market, calls them Eeee and Eeeee, respectively'
this corrects to:
'Darren: ASUS expands Eee line to the ultraportable and traditional notebook market, calls them Eeee and Eeeee, respectivlEEE'

Now here is a prime example of why we need an edit button...

[i-i @ Jan 1st 2009 1:40PM]

Not only will S.J. live, but he will yet again revolutionize the work with another iPhone!!!!

[ggg @ Jan 2nd 2009 3:11AM]

Microsoft cave in to investor pressure and can the massively loss making XBox/Zune division. They write off that $8Billion debt.

[Jorvay @ Jan 1st 2009 3:38PM]

Engadget readers refrain from posting unrelated replies to the first post on a given subject.



Sorry, my new year's resolution was to be excessively optimistic.

[air12ick @ Jan 1st 2009 6:54PM]

Yes Don, sadly it does exist. I saw it at Best Buy, but it wasn't by Activision, but someone else. Most likely Hasbro.

[Knee to the Groin @ Jan 1st 2009 7:07PM]

@Blaine:

Before that correction, it was just plain the stupidest thing i'd ever read...

But good thing you set the record straight!

/sarcam/

Edit:

/sarcasm/

[Dom @ Jan 2nd 2009 2:10AM]

@Blaine:

That's not a name, that's a major appliance...

[enochproductions @ Jan 2nd 2009 2:12AM]

I agree that steve jobs will live and Apple will revolutionize cable tv with a new an improved Apple tv.


http://www.rockandreview.com

[Eckofish @ Jan 1st 2009 12:20PM]

A business model for Twitter?

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 1:24PM]

My predictions.

Apple will release an iPhone Nano that is 2G, plays music, but doesn't offer apps or Wi-fi.

Engadget will be accused of Apple bias because Apple puts out something that everyone likes and buys in record numbers.

The Zune people will say the Zune is still better, even when the iPod Touch comes out with 128 GB of flash memory.

Steve Jobs lives, but passes on the CEO position to Tim Cook and remains as Chairman.

Windows 7 will be delayed.

[Gnormie @ Jan 1st 2009 1:26PM]

@ Paul Chapel
The reply system isn't there so you can make your comment appear higher up... it's there so you can reply with RELEVANT comments. And considering where you attempted to place this I'd say you were simply trying to attract flame bait.

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 1:46PM]

Well, thanks to helloUser, my "Engadget will be accused of Apple bias" prediction has already come true.

And I guess I should add, "All of my comments will be low ranked for telling the truth."

[cj @ Jan 1st 2009 2:41PM]

Kids these days are sooo obnoxious... sigh

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 2:46PM]

My, my, so much anger on this site. It's just electronics people.

[DRT @ Jan 1st 2009 4:21PM]

High rank me if you think Paul Chapel is a tool.

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 4:39PM]

DRT, you got my vote. That Chapel guy is SO obnoxious with his... his.. WORDS!

[bluesky_v2.01 @ Jan 1st 2009 5:34PM]

@the trolling dude
Just electronics?!?
G . . . get out, get out now! And don't you ever come back!

[chickenator @ Jan 1st 2009 6:43PM]

Paul Chapel is right.

[The Number 1 Cubs Fan @ Jan 1st 2009 11:31PM]

Yes, Chapel is a troll, but may I ask, what is the point of Twitter? A straight up forum is easier to manage.

[ILoveApple @ Jan 1st 2009 12:21PM]

ROFL at Chris' prediction! Motorola at 37%? Now that I HAVE to see!

[bhtooefr @ Jan 1st 2009 1:32PM]

Is it sad that when I saw that the A3000 would supposedly get Motorola 37% market share, I thought this was some prediction for 1990, not 2009?

(For those that don't get it, the Amiga 3000 came out in 1990, and had a Motorola 68030 processor. ;))

[ScooterDe @ Jan 1st 2009 3:49PM]

Indeed, the more prescient prediction would be 'Palm surrenders'.

[Peter @ Jan 1st 2009 12:25PM]

"Harmonix spends millions trying to play catch-up"

Umm, isn't Neversoft trying to catch up to Harmonix right now?

[Luigi193 @ Jan 1st 2009 12:56PM]

Yeah... Rock band is far better then GH...

[Matthew @ Jan 1st 2009 8:02PM]

Meh, I like GH better.. the squares annoy me.

[Mark Anderson @ Jan 1st 2009 12:26PM]

Operating systems - Windows 7 launched to good reviews, Vista continues to increase marketshare, Apple's marketshare flatlines, people still don't care about consumer Linux.

Computer hardware - Netbooks get bigger and bigger until people eventually realise that they're just underpowered laptops. The market dies.

Phones - Apple release a PAYG iPhone Nano which sells millions. The iPhone stabilises but doesn't make much headway despite a release in 32 GB and the iPod Touch's form factor. The 5800 CWM sells millions in Europe and Asia but less so in the US. The N97 is the phone of the year. Samsung get better and better.

Yeah.

[Renegade Fanboy @ Jan 1st 2009 1:36PM]

@Mark: you are making the assumption that Nokia - besides producing the most revolutionary music service in 2008 - will learn how to market and execute their brilliant ideas ;)

[Mark Anderson @ Jan 1st 2009 2:47PM]

They do in Europe and Asia. Not so in the US.

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 2:50PM]

It's supposed to be a prediction, as in something likely to happen, not your hopes and dreams.

[Mark Anderson @ Jan 1st 2009 2:57PM]

Well if there was any doubt that you're a troll it's now been dispelled.

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 3:11PM]

I don't understand why saying things that you don't agree with amounts to trolling? You have just as much right to your opinion as I do, but you did say: "Windows 7 launched to good reviews"

It's the launched part that I have a problem with. I mean, COME ON, how long was Vista delayed? You really think it's likely that it will be released on time this year? I think good reviews are more likely. I mean, Windows 7 is just Vista with a better candy shell, that's all. It's not like it's going to be a completely new operating system, much like OS X.

[KeegdnaB @ Jan 1st 2009 3:22PM]

Windows 7 won't be delayed. Its already in beta and perfectly stable

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 3:27PM]

Yeah, it's stable because it's Vista SP2, but once again, I will get low ranked for telling the truth. So be it.

[Goatee Man @ Jan 1st 2009 3:42PM]

Paul, the reason that people low-rank you is simply because you're an arrogant prick and all you do is bitch. Shut up, dude. No one cares.

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 3:49PM]

Although there is a significant number of Apple haters here, I personally believe there's like three guys who are clearing their cache and refreshing their page every three minutes to low rank me. I would give a crap if I didn't have a life, but I just so happen to be off work today and have some free time.

It's not going to stop me from speaking the truth about Microsoft, Apple or anyone else. I tend to read Low Ranked comments more than other comments and I think a lot of other readers are the same, so no big deal.

[conor @ Jan 1st 2009 7:01PM]

So this is what you do on your day off?

[loocas @ Jan 1st 2009 9:17PM]

It's a Low-Rank fetish.

[cj @ Jan 1st 2009 10:28PM]

Ok, Paul,
I dunno if you understand... I may as well be talking to the wind.

People aren't low ranking you cuz they hate apple. It's cuz they dont like YOU.
Hope that cleared things up.

[CJ @ Jan 2nd 2009 9:39AM]

Hey cj, shoud we like, do battle or something?

there can only be one, etc.

[GON @ Jan 1st 2009 12:26PM]

Touch screen Zune, Windows Mobile 6.5 or 7, WIndows 7 official beta and Zune for Windows Mobile. Perhaps we'll also get the rumored touchscreen Walkman, and Apple will finally refresh the mac mini.

[Jamma @ Jan 1st 2009 12:26PM]

i think 2009 will be bad for Apple...

A) because of other Companies
i)Microsoft release windows 7,
ii)Android support from SE and Nokia

b) because of Apple
i)Apple will block opera, flash and amazon mp3 store apps from app store
ii) new imacs/mac minis will to expensive for current economic climate, and people won't want the same mac as last year only made out of one piece of metal
iii) Apple will continue to charge for updates, that is if they ever do add copy/paste or flash support

[Jamma @ Jan 1st 2009 12:30PM]

Other predictions, albeit a little more unlikely:

GMail goes out of beta
Duke Nukem forever is released
iEye or Clak hit puberty

[Steve @ Jan 1st 2009 12:52PM]

gmail out of beta? thats hoping for alot.

1) Chrome gets plugin support and starts to eat into opera and firefox marketshare.
2) IE keeps market share due to fact that only people currently using it. don't see IE as a program but simply as "The Internet"

[LJKelley @ Jan 1st 2009 2:05PM]

I further predict that Windows 7 will very good stability. Where as Snow Leopard will lack stability.

I back up this prediction that if Windows 7 were released today, stable. Snow Leopard still has many bugs due to the fact #1 Leopard was far from perfect and #2 Snow Leopard was much to ambitious rewrite into 64 bit without trying to understand the root causes of instability in Leopard. (Networking in particular) Windows 7 was reexamining of what consumers wanted out of Vista and what caused people to have issues. In addition I think Vista was the big change Snow Leopard will be. Losing backward compatibility or trying to emulate it. Vista was necessary evil, like UAC which forced software developer to code responsibility.

[Jmh010 @ Jan 1st 2009 2:38PM]

@Steve:
I don't know about the prediction for IE. I think it's going to decrease because Google is already pushing for Chrome to be installed on computers you buy at Best Buy right alongside Google Desktop (have you seen a PC lately that DIDN'T have Google Desktop!? It's crazy!) They pushed Chrome out of BETA a million times faster than any of their normal products (like you said, Gmail lol). And, people want to try out Google stuff just because it's Google.

@LJKelley:
Seriously, you know what you're talking about ;-). I seriously wonder if Snow Leopard (which is the equivalent jump Apple is taking that Microsoft made with Vista) could withstand the heat of all the "new" stuff consumers hate if it wasn't for the economic downturn and Apple's high prices. I mean, we're all so eager to check out their new stuff, and they sure know how to make it appealing...

[dkrift @ Jan 1st 2009 2:44PM]

League one, you're still in league one, you're still in league one, you're still in league one.

[Paul Chapel @ Jan 1st 2009 2:53PM]

@Jamma

Seriously, who is this Clak guy? I know iEye, but this Clak dude I've never even seen him, but people always talk about him.

[knowtrayforever @ Jan 2nd 2009 11:59AM]

@jamma: I really do wish that DN:forever finaly release's this year. 3 different trailers with 3 different graphics engines.