MacBook touch: no this picture isn’t real, but it’s a great mockup of what a product could look like. (courtesy of Gizmodo)

Apple had its quarterly earnings call on Monday and it revealed that a “product transition” would lower gross margin next quarter because “Apple makes state of the art new products that the competition just can’t match” and that means higher costs. In other words, Apple’s going to release a new product that is really cheap and that costs a lot, this way everyone will buy it, but Apple will make less money from it in the beginning.

Throughout the call, Apple’s CFO Peter Oppenheimer brought up this “new product that [Apple] [couldn't] discuss” or “new additions to the product line.” He also said this new product would have a direct effect on the September/fourth quarter. If this new product has an effect on the September quarter, that would most likely mean it has to come out sometime in the beginning of September/late August. And, if it’s going to have a large impact on gross margins, then it’s probably going to be a big deal.

So what could this new product be? Well, the product that sells really well during the September quarter is computers (notebooks specifically). The reason: this is the time when students are going back to school and need to computers. And if Apple wants to get to the students, they’re going to release this new notebook relatively soon. Not meaning tomorrow, but a mid-August launch is perfect if they are targeting those students getting new computers before school. If Apple wants to make an even bigger splash in the market and one that their competitors can’t match, they’re either going to revamp their notebook line (which is due for a redo in the MacBook and MacBook Pro areas) or release a new inexpensive laptop that will sell like crazy.

Most likely, an Apple event will be announced very soon and will take place in the beginning of August, there Steve will do his normal Keynote and will announce revamped MacBooks and MacBook Pros as well as a cheaper MacBook Air with better specs. Then, the “one more thing…” Everyone is speculating that it will be a MacBook touch, and it very well could be. Something else they could do: a small mini-notebook similar to the Eee PC or the HP Mini Note. If they really want to innovate, then they could use a multi-screen where the keyboard would be that would have haptic feedback for a more tactile keyboard approach. Now, neither a MacBook touch or this mini-MacBook are very realistic, but if Apple is really going to “wow” everyone, they will do it in a big way.

Filed under: Apple, Computers, Laptops, Mobile Devices, Rumors, Technology