Filed under: Apple We’re only days away from the release of the iPad , and that means analysts are doing crazy business — they’re laying out as many predictions as they can before theory becomes actual numbers. Our friend Gene Munster is first — he says that despite the introduction of a brand new category, Mac sales will be even better than investors expect this quarter, with a whopping 26% to 31% year-over-year growth. Apparently retail data suggests that Macs are flying off of the shelves , and that Apple should end up with almost 3 million Macs sold in the March quarter. PC sales in general are also expected to increase , with the iMac carrying a whole quarter of all desktop growth this year. Desktop sales are finally headed upwards for the first time in a few years, and along with bigger sales numbers in terms of netbooks and notebooks, Apple’s iMac platform is leading the charge. International sales are also expected to drive the PC market — if the numbers are right, this will be the first time ever that sales internationally take up 50% of the desktop PC market. Interesting predictions, all. There’s no question, I think, that Apple will make plenty of money this quarter. The question going forward will be whether the iPad steals sales that would have gone to the iPhone or to a MacBook. But if the past numbers with the iPhone are any indication, big interest in the portable devices actually drives Apple’s desktop sales as well. Analysts: iMac to take over 25% of PC sales, Mac to see 31% growth originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 17 Mar 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .

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Take a gander at the clip up there. It’s been forty-odd years since Bobb Goldsteinn coined the term “multimedia,” but I think — and maybe you’ll agree with me — this is the first time I’ve felt that I could easily apply the word and think “yeah, that’s exactly what it is.” In the clip, Alexx

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The money transfer company made infamous by eBay has revamped their app to allow money transfers to happen easier than ever, by adding the "bump" technology feature according to InformationWeek . The feature in Version 2.0 of the Send Money app allows users to move funds quickly between PayPal accounts just by putting the two phones together.  The app also includes a split feature that lets users divide and reimburse each other for the cost of a meal, including tax and tip for up to 20 people. Then there is also a third feature named Collect Money, which lets a person request money from multiple people for collective purchases, like gifts from a group.  Additionally, gifts of money can also be sent immediately. PayPal mobile transactions jumped dramatically in 2009, up to $141 million in 2009 from $25 million in 2008, according to PayPal.  ABI Research predicted that $119 billion will be spent by consumers via their mobile phones through 2015. "PayPal Send Money lets consumers access their wallets through their phones," said Osama Bedier, PayPal VP of platform and emerging technology.  "Because with PayPal, the wallet lives in the cloud — the mobile phone is just one device customers can use to access it." Some other various features of the app include the capability to set up reminders for recurring payments and the ability to manage PayPal accounts.  For international exchanges, the app also includes a global currency calendar as well as 15 languages. The app does require a PayPal membership as well as a PIN or password for every transaction in an effort to prevent unauthorized usage.  The app is free through the App Store. With that, MaclLife readers, have you used PayPal’s app prior to this new update for all your transaction needs?  If not, will you now?  Feel free to leave comments below! Image courtesy of maldonjewellery.com  

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While traditional print publishers are practically falling over themselves to get their product on Apple’s new iPad, the new media has taken the attitude of “Talk to the hand.” Cult of Mac is reporting on an Association of Online Publishers poll which hit up 1,500 members and asked their opinion about where the business is heading this year. The good news is, most of them were optimistic — just not about iPads or even e-readers in general. Half of the poll’s respondents predicted “strong growth” as high as 10 percent, “mainly from display ads and an uptick in video, with a number of smaller revenue streams adding to the bottom line.” But for whatever reason, when asked about tablets and e-readers this year, “that sunny outlook was a bit scarce.” Here’s a sampling of what the Association of Online Publishers had to say in video interviews, courtesy of Cult of Mac : “These are still really really embryonic devices that are great and fantastic, and I want to be at the top of the queue to buy one and play with it,” remarks Mail Online MD James Bromley. “But we’re talking about a very, very narrow subsection of society that will have these in 2010. This is the time that we learn about these devices — ‘11, ‘12, ‘13 is when these might become slightly more mainstream.” Conde Nast Digital UK manager Emanuela Pignataro was even more direct: “E-readers will be the novelty of 2010. I don’t think it is a short-term adoption — it will take years.” “I don’t think we’re quite there yet,” says Thomson Reuters consumer GM Tim Faircliff. Finally, Incisive Media digital manager John Barnes: “The issue with tablets is, they’re not really servicing the needs of color, with graphics and diagrams — it’s a bit like version one of the iPod.” Somebody should tell all of this to the rumored 150,000 people who preordered their iPad last Friday…

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Electronista reports that Wearable began shipping their AirStash wireless flash drive today. Those concerned about the lack of an SD card slot now have a highly portable way of accessing media on SD/SDHC cards wirelessly. The AirStash is effectively a portable WiFi access point with an SD slot. It has a pop-out USB plus for easily loading files from your computer to an SD card. Then carry the small unit with you and access it as a wireless network through the iPhone app. It has its own battery, so it doesn’t add any extra drain on your iPhone. It connects at 802.11g rather than 802.11n, so don’t be expecting 720p HD video on an iPad. But they claim a full 30 frames per second at 640×480. The AirStash supports a wide variety of video, audio, and image formats, but surprisingly also claims support for web pages, Keynote, Numbers, Pages, PowerPoint, and Acrobat files. Since it acts as a WiFi access point, it should let you take extra documents with you on a trip and share them with every laptop in the meeting. Don’t have a DVD system in your car? Your kids in the back can watch movies on their iPod touches streamed from an AirStash as seen in the video below:      

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