Video: Apple's "Grand" plan after Jobs

WorldWide Tech & Science. Francisco De Jesús.

Apple prepares to open a new store in historic Grand Central Terminal as analysts discuss the future of Apple and its biggest challenges.

The historic Grand Central Terminal in New York City welcomes a new resident this week in a marriage of old meets a high tech fast moving all about hype company that hung its famous apple sign from the storied arches at the Terminal. The Apple Store, open to the media before the big reveal on Friday, offers products, workshops for travelers in 5 minutes or less, accessories, and a fix-it shop. 

 "750,000 people go through Grand Central Terminal in New York City each and every day; that is one of the reasons Apple decided to its store in the terminal on December 9th. It says it goes where its users are and timing is everything; during the holidays 1 million people will be passing through the terminal. Apple's hot iPad and iPhone are expected to be big sellers this holiday season, but face increased competition from Google's Android phones and Amazon's Kindle Fire.

 Piper Jaffray expects 27 million iPhone sales this quarter, and 13.5 million iPad sales. But the company, which is finding new footing under CEO Tim Cook, after the death of co-founder and showman Steve Jobs, may be turning up in living rooms...very shortly, according to Piper Jaffray Senior Research Analyst Gene Munster: 

  "We think there is one exciting product to come in the next year, we think it's the actual Apple television." Munster says Apple TV, expected in late 2012, would likely incorporate cable, satellite, DVD players, internet, computer content and gaming in one place. But there are still some areas that are a bit murky for the high tech giant: including securing content from the big studios - and the cloud services. 

 "They are still kind of cutting their teeth in some of these web services like iCloud and iTunes Match as those become a bigger part of what they do, so those are Apple's biggest challenges." Still those challenges don't seem to daunt Apple lovers, who treat the new Apple store like a tourist hot spot.

Source: Reuters.