iPad 2, iOS 5, MobileMe, and Steve Jobs: What to Expect From Tomorrow’s Apple Event

Apple will be holding an iPad-centric event tomorrow at the Yerba Buena Center in San Fransisco, California. Honestly, that’s all anyone knows at this point.
In the calm before the storm, speculation based on rumors based on leaks are all there is to go on. There’s a good chance that Apple will address other products like MobileMe.
General consensus is that we’ll also see a preview of iOS 5.0. An iOS 5 tease wouldn’t be a stretch, especially with the probable release of the iPhone 5 this June.


Engadget reports,

“It’s also almost guaranteed that we’ll see the next version of iOS (number 5 in all likelihood, along with its SDK for devs), and an expansion of Apple’s cloud services (that part is a little… foggy right now). Of course, that will perfectly set up Apple’s announcement of the iPhone 5 in June, which is when iPad owners can likely expect to be using the new software.”

iOS 5 Pushed Back to the Fall, Preview at WWDC

Some news has surfaced concerning iOS 5 and Apple’s roadmap for the coming year. According to M.G. Siegler of TechCrunch, Apple is going to push back the release of iOS 5.0 to this fall, and the iPhone 5 will launch with a version of iOS 4.x.
Speculation has been that Apple would hold a media event next month for an iOS 5 preview and MobileMe revamp, but TechCrunch’s sources claim otherwise…

“If our sources are right, this would break the pattern of Apple unveiling the latest iOS iteration in the early spring, leading up to a summer launch alongside new iPhone hardware. The spring timetable usually reserved for an iOS roadmap event is why some were hoping Apple may just rope the details into the iPad 2 event. When that didn’t happen, rumors quickly spread that there may be another event in April to talk iOS 5 (and MobileMe). But it’s looking like that will not be the case this year.”

MobileMe is no longer available for purchase, and all signs have been pointing to a revamp of Apple’s cloud-based service in April. Perhaps Apple will address MobileMe before the next event, but a media announcement in April is now looking unlikely.
Major releases of iOS are usually previewed at the beginning of the year (February, March, April), addressed again at WWDC in June, and then launched alongside the newest generation iPhone. This report claims this year’s release roadmap will look a little different, and that iOS 5 will not launch until the fall.
Here’s what TechCrunch has found out from its sources: