Type of Article: MacTech Blog

Will there be new iMacs of any sort introduced this year? And, if there are, will there be a Retina display model?

With no new iMacs or Mac Pros (and, no, the slight processor bump of the latter doesn’t count) introduced at the 2012 Apple Worldwide Developer Conference, several sources — including David Pogue of, among other places, “The New York Times” — hinted that there would be no new desktops until 2013.

An Apple patent (number 20120174010) for media content flocking has appeared at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. It relates to graphical user interfaces and digital video editing in applications such as iMovie and Final Cut Pro X.

An Apple patent (number 20120171964) has appeared at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office showing that Apple is working on a dual-mode wired/wireless headset for the iPhone and other devices. The patent is for a wireless communication headset with wired and wireless models.

An Apple patent (number 20120170758) has appeared at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for a multi-channel sound panner. It shows that the company is working on simplified ways of implementing surround sound — and may hint at a feature of the rumored “iTV.”

The iPad continues its march toward world domination. But Macs will continue to rule, as well, it seems.

Use of tablets such as the iPad and Android-based devices by consumers for viewing TV/video content more than doubled in 14 regional markets surveyed, according to the latest “Global TV Replacement Study,” conducted by NPD DisplaySearch (http://www.displaysearch.com). The widespread tablet adoption was driven by improved connectivity infrastructure has facilitated use of these devices as alternate content-viewing devices, notes the research group.