daranpet5: 12 Top Tech Rumors We Hope Will (and Won't) Come True

Monday, July 18, 2011

12 Top Tech Rumors We Hope Will (and Won't) Come True

The tech world loves rumors and spreads them incessantly, thanks to a seemingly endless outpouring of Internet blather about impending tech gadgets and gear.

Each time a new rumor sweeps through the blogosphere, we find ourselves saying "Really hope that happens" on some occasions and "That'll never fly" on others.

For this story, we've assembled a dozen of the hottest rumors in techdom today and separated the real from the surreal, IOHO. See whether you agree.

We Hope Will Come True: An Amazon-Branded Tablet to Ship in 2011

For months now, members of a mysterious cabal of unnamed sources have whispered that online retailing colossus Amazon will soon unveil an iPad-style slate. Though Amazon has been coy about its tablet intentions, company CEO Jeff Bezos has implied that the reports may be true, telling Consumer Reports to "stay tuned." Hey, if the rumors were false, wouldn't he just quash them? With its Kindle e-reader a proven success, we think that Amazon should (and will) make a play in the burgeoning tablet market.

We Hope Won't Come True: A Chrome OS Tablet Is Coming

Let's keep it simple: Android is for tablets; Chrome OS is for laptops. Most people who've used a Chromebook, one of the new cloud-centric netbooks that run Google Chrome OS, recognize that the fledgling UI is best suited for a keyboard and a touchpad, not a touchscreen. And yet persistent reports suggest that Google is developing a modified version of Chrome OS for tablets, too. Prediction: Google will come to its senses and draw a Mason-Dixon Line between Chrome OS and Android, especially since Android is evolving into a very nice tablet OS, despite its initial shortcomings. A Chrome OS tablet would only confuse consumers and muddle Google's Android tablet strategy.

We Hope Will Come True: The Droid Bionic Smartphone Arrives in Early August

The mysterious Motorola Droid Bionic phone made a very public debut at CES 2011 in January, and then pulled a Greta Garbo and went into seclusion. Recent reports, including one showing the Bionic in an alleged Best Buy ad, claim that the phone will finally launch on August 4. A Verizon LTE handset, the Bionic runs Android and has a 4.3-inch qHD display and a dual-core processor. So why did it disappear after CES? Perhaps the Bionic went back to the lab to become better...stronger...faster.

We Hope Won't Come True: Apple iPad 3 to Go 3D

Apple iPad 3D There's no end to iPad gossip, and most of the speculation right now centers on the alleged autumn arrival of either the iPad 3 or the iPad 2 Plus--whichever sounds better--with a vastly improved display. But one oddball rumor claims that the third-generation iPad will sport a 3D display, and that major Hollywood studios are working feverishly to create 3D content for the tablet. This seems unlikely, as today's 3D phones and tablets are gimmicky at best; Apple is more likely to adopt a wait-and-see approach toward 3D technology.

We Hope Will Come True: PlayStation 4 to Have Kinect-Like Motion Tracking

Sony plans to launch the PlayStation 4 next year, according to Digitimes, and the new gaming console will feature motion-sensing controls similar to those of Microsoft's Kinect. The PlayStation 3 has been with us only five years, which is a short life span for a home console, but it's looking more and more dated every day. The PS3's Move motion technology is akin to the now ho-hum Nintendo Wiimote, and the PlayStation platform needs a gee-whiz infusion--the sooner, the better.

We Hope Won't Come True: Google+ Will Beat Facebook

PCWorld Facebook page fan Hoang Xuan Thai called this one, and he's spot-on. Google's slick new social network has a lot going for it, notably the Circles feature designed to simplify the task of subdividing friends, family, and acquaintances into distinct groups. But nothing is stopping Facebook from implementing many of Google+'s clever innovations, and it'll take more than a few cool tricks to persuade millions of Facebook loyalists to jump ship.