Apple updates the developer version of Leopard!

Apple just released an update 9A499 to the developer version of Mac
OS Leopard. This seed apparently comes with a number of new bugs,
but it is still seeing a large improvement from the last version.
Leopard is still expected to hit shelves in October.

Third quarter financial results!

Apple will be webcasting the financial results of its third quarter of 2007 that ended June 30th.  It will begin tonight, July 25th at 5 pm ET or 2 pm PT.  You can watch the webcast at http://www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/earningsq307/

Many new updates!

Wow! There are many updates that just came out. First, there is the QuickTime update 7.2 which adds iPhone export capability. The full-screen option is also not a Pro feature anymore! There is also iTunes 7.3.1 which seems to only solve minor bugs. At the same time, Microsoft released the Office 2004 update 11.3.6. The Office update mainly corrects Excel and Entourage bugs.

iTunes 7.3!

Apple released an update to iTunes. It is iTunes 7.3 and it adds iPhone support as well as the streaming of photos from multiple computers to Apple TV. Apple's description:

With iTunes 7.3, you can now activate iPhone service and sync it with your music, TV shows, movies and more. Also, you can now wirelessly share and enjoy your favorite digital photos from any computer in your home with Apple TV.

Safari 3.0.2 and Security Update 2007-006

Apple just released an update to Safari 3. The update applies only to users who have downloaded the Safari 3.0 Beta. Apple also released a Security Update 2007-006 that applies to 10.4.9 or later users. All updates are available through Software Update.

Mac OS 10.4.10

Apple just released the 10.4.10 update to Mac OS Tiger 10.4.  It is available through software update.  The update applies to both Power PC and Intel Macs.  This might be the last revision to Tiger before the release of Leopard.  Another update (10.4.11) is not totally out of question considering 10.3.9 came after the release of Tiger.  Leopard is still fours months away (October release date).

More Info on Leopard!

Steve Jobs also presented many features of the next Mac OS 10.5 Leopard. The Finder will be completely revamped and the brushed metal will be eliminated. There will also be a new feature called Quick Look which will let you preview documents, images and pdf all within the Finder without an extra app (such as Preview). Another interesting feature is that Boot Camp will be fully integrated into Leopard, complementing Parallel and VMWare. Many features presented were already seen at the previous WWDC 2006 in August.

New Games for Mac!

It was announced during the WWDC keynote that some new games are coming to the Mac platform soon. EA Games will launch Need For Speed Carbon, Battlefield 2142, Madden 08, Tiger Woods 08, Command & Conquor 3 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix in July. All games will run natively on Intel Macs.

New MacBook Pros with LED and Santa Rosa, Back-to-School promo!

Apple introduced new MacBook Pros today that include the new Santa Rosa technology with a faster bus (800Mhz) and also the new LED backlighting on the 15" MBP. The base 15" model has the new 2.2 Ghz Core 2 Duo and the high-end 15" and 17" have the 2.4 Ghz Core 2 Duo. All MacBook Pros now have 2GB of Ram upgradable to 4GB.

Apple also launched the Back-to-School promotion at the same time that gives a free 4 GB iPod Nano by Mail-in-Rebate with the purchase of a Mac.

DRM-free music, finally!

According to MacBidouille, Apple would be finally about to release the EMI catalog in DRM free and 256 KBits version on iTunes. Apple announced this deal nearly two months ago, but the music has yet to show up on iTunes. Steve Jobs had previously said May, so Apple is running out of time. The MacBidouille report (in French) states that the drm free music is expected early this week.

New iPod Game, Lost!

Apple just released a new downloadable game for the fifth generation
iPod. The game is based on the "Lost" television show. iTunes
description:

Join your favorite castaways in their quest to seek the truth and
survive in the official iPod game of the hit television series Lost.
Help Jack search for dynamite, tend to the wounded, and avoid the
black smoke. Relive the crash scene, open the hatch, and ultimately
try your best to escape from the Others. Immerse yourself into their
mysterious world with authentic settings and a genuine storyline
created by the writers behind the hit show.

New MacBooks!

Apple released new MacBook configuration. The changes are very modest and do not include any new technology such as Santa Rosa or LED backlighting. New specs are:

White 2 GHz C2D
1GB Ram, 80 GB HD and ComboDrive

White 2.16GHz C2D
1GB Ram, 120 GB HD and SuperDrive

Black 2.16GHz C2D
1GB Ram, 160 GB HD and SuperDrive

The prices remain the same. The midrange white MacBook still remains one of the best value for the price.

Santa Rosa in new portables!

There has been a lot of speculation lately about the new Santa Rosa platform that is expected to come to the new MacBook Pros as well as the new MacBooks. AppleInsider posted late last week that MacBook updates are unlikely to include a new technology such as LED display or the Santa Rosa platform. This seems very probable as the current line-up doesn't have much differentiation between the Pro and the non-pro models. AppleInsider also reports that new MacBook Pros are expected very soon and should come out with both Santa Rosa and LED backlighting.

Photos of the new Apple Store in New York city!

It is now confirmed that Apple is preparing to open an all new huge Apple Store in New York city. This third Apple Store in New York is going to be the largest yet. The store will be located at 401 W. 14th St on the corner of 9th Avenue and Hudson Street. Thanks www.ifoapplestore.com for the picture:

QuickTime 7.1.6

Apple released today QuickTime 7.1.6. The update solve the critical security issue that was found during the hacking contest that was won ten days ago. The update is available through Software Update as usual.

WWDC Keynote with Steve Jobs!

In a press release, Apple announced today that Steve Jobs will kick off the WWDC Keynote on July 11th at 10am PST. A full preview of Leopard is expected and maybe the secret features will even be revealed.

iTunes Movies in Europe!

MacWorld.co.uk reported that Apple's vice-president for Europe, Pascal Cagni, revealed that Apple has plans to add Movies to the iTunes Store in Europe before the end of the year. It was previously reported that the latest version of iTunes includes rating for TV shows and Movies in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the UK. The UK rating had only Movies rating while all other countries have both Movies and TV Shows ratings. This comment by Pascal Cagni appears to corroborate this previous report and should mean that TV Shows and Movies are coming outside the US very soon.

120 GB iPod soon?

Samsung announced today a new 1.8" 120 GB hard drive that could be used in new iPods. Many reports were previously saying that Apple might be looking at releasing Flash only full size iPods. This would make sense considering the advantage of Flash memory, but it is unlikely that Apple will move towards a Flash only iPod lineup so soon. The demand for large video files and higher quality songs is increasing and Apple will not want to release an iPod that stores less songs than its predecessor. Apple could possibly go with a 32 GB flash video iPod and a 120 GB hard drive video iPod.

New version of VLC!

A new version of VLC was released earlier this week. It is now version 0.8.6b (it was 0.8.6 before). I noticed a few improvements including one that was actually stopping me from using it as a full QuickTime replacement. Download it here!

Aperture and Security update!

Apple just released today an Aperture and a Security update. Both updates are available through the "Software Update" software. The security update is recommended to all users and should be done as soon as possible.

Final Cut Server, Final Cut Studio 2 and more!

The NAB conference saw the announcement of a new Final Cut Server that will be priced at $999 US for 10 users or $1999 US for an unlimited number of users. Also released alongside is a new version of Final Cut Pro 6, Motion 3, Soundtrack Pro 2, Compressor 3 and DVD Studio Pro 4. These new versions and the new application called Color will form the new Final Cut Studio 2 that will be sold for $1299 or $499 Upgrade or $699 Upgrade from an older version. Apple also announced an IO-HD box that will convert within the hardware into ProRes 422. The IO-HD box will be available in July and Final Cut Studio 2 will be coming in May.

NAB tomorrow!

Apple already announced that they will hold a special event at NAB tomorrow. After the 8 core Mac Pro that appeared last week, many are expecting Final Cut Pro updates and I think it is safe to assume it is one of the most likely possibility. We will all see what is really coming tomorrow and I will be posting on the site throughout the presentation with updates and news! The event is at 11 am PDT and at 2 pm EDT.

Finder gets a new look!

http://www.hackint0sh.org/ has posted some screenshots of the new Leopard build that was just seeded to the developers. It looks like the Finder is moving away from the brushed metal look to adopt the new look of iTunes 7.0. Copy of the screeshot here:

Leopard officially delayed!

Apple announced today that Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard is delayed until October. The delays are reportedly because of the iPhone. The development of the iPhone apparently occupied Apple software engineer. Apple feels the current version of Leopard has too many issues. They say that even though the features will all be present in Leopard by the WWDC in June, they wouldn't deliver the quality release they usually offers.

MGM and United Artists Movies now on iTunes!

MGM and United Artists Movies appeared on the United States iTunes Store today. The studios now selling movies on iTunes are Lionsgate, Paramount, Disney, United Artists and MGM. Let's hope Apple is planning on offering this great content outside the US soon.

New ad for Apple TV!

Apple started a new ad campaign yesterday. It is about the Apple TV:

Predictions for NAB!

Apple has already announced that they will hold a special event at NAB on April 15th. Many speculations were surrounding an 8 core Mac Pro. The 8 core option was however released this week. We were all kind of taken by surprise but it gives us a lot of information on what to expect at the event. We must keep in mind that NAB is entirely oriented towards professionals, which makes iMac/Mac Mini updates and a Leopard preview very unlikely. The fact that Apple released the 8 core this week also tells us that they wanted to get this out of the way and they didn't want to lose time at the event on this. It is most likely because they have something big coming. The most likely options are now a new version of Final Cut Studio and perhaps a new version of Logic. There is only one thing that is certain however and it's that we'll be impressed by whatever is coming because the circumstances show that it won't be just a regular update.

Octo Core Mac Pro Released!

Apple updated the store this morning with a new option for the Mac Pro: 8 core. This update has been long anticipated. The 8 core option is only an added Built-to-Order and is not in the base configuration. The option is for a 3.0 GHz 8 Core Clovertown and costs an additional $1498 over the base 2.66GHz Quad. There has been no price drop for the 2.0, 2.66 or 3.0 GHz Quad Core Woodcrest. The option is currently only available on the US and Canadian Apple Store. The other store will most likely be updated, but not necessarily today, depending on stock of the Quad-Core Clovertown in different production places.

DRM-free music!

Steve Jobs announced in the press conference this morning that the entire EMI catalog is going to be available DRM free and at a better quality. The encoding is going to be 256 kbps. The options when buying EMI music, starting in May:

$0.99 DRM 128 kbps music
$1.29 no DRM 256 kbps music
$9.99 no DRM 256 kbps album

There will also be a $0.30 option to upgrade the previously purchased track to a no DRM 256 kbps version.

Steve Jobs' press conference tomorrow!

Macworld.co.uk reports that Steve Jobs will be present at a press conference tomorrow, Monday April 2nd. It is a joint Apple and EMI press conference. Macworld confirmed that it is not concerning the addition of the Beatles to the iTunes store catalog. Rumors point to an introduction of DRM-free music on the store.

Office 2008 is now in Beta!

Microsoft launched a private Beta of Office 2008 for Mac! Office 2008 for Mac is scheduled to be released in the Fall of 2007. It's going to be the first Universal version of Office (runs natively on Intel Macs). It'll also add XML compatibility that is required for interopability with the Windows version of the latest Office 2007.

iPhone to be released June 11?

Cnet News reports that the iPhone is going to be released June 11, the first day of Apple Developers' Conference. This came from a Cingular customer service manager. This date might be surprising since Apple said there would be no third-party applications for the iPhone.

Boot Camp 1.2!

Apple released a new version of Boot Camp. This version 1.2 now supports Windows Vista. This definitely proves that Leopard is not delayed until October because of Vista support in Boot Camp like previously reported by DigiTimes.

Booting Apple TV from an external USB hard drive!

An interesting video from awkwardtv.org that shows how to boot Apple TV from an external USB hard drive. This proves that the built-in USB port is not only for maintenance like Apple said:

Leopard still set for Spring!

AppleInsider posted an interesting article about the release of Leopard in Spring. The analyst Shaw Wu stays with a Spring timeframe for Leopard and even says that 10.5 is going to be in Release Candidate(instead of Beta) soon.

Leopard delayed?

Digitimes claims that Leopard is on track for being delayed until October. The only feature holding up Leopard is reportedly BootCamp. Apple would want to add Vista compatibility before shipping 10.5. Apple has historically kept to it's release date pretty well and the delays have rarely been this long. It would be surprising also for Apple to hold up the release of the potentially 10.5 dependant iLife 07, iWork 07 and Final Cut Pro 6 just for the compatibility of a competitive OS. Many current BootCamp users are also pointing out that the installation of Vista through BootCamp is very easy except for the drivers that are not included in the BootCamp file. Most drivers are available however and it probably wouldn't take that long to update the driver part of Boot Camp. Apple is meanwhile still claiming a Spring release on their website.

Unboxing Apple TV!

Gizmodo posted some great unboxing pictures of the Apple TV! The article also points out that the Apple TV doesn't include an HDMI cable to hook it up to your tv.

Unboxing pictures

Installation pictures

Apple TV ship!

Customers have reported that their Apple TV order just shipped and is on track for a March 23rd delivery date.

Apple TV finally shipping?

According to CNN Money, Apple will finally ship the first Apple TV Wednesday March 20. This reports might only be based on the March 20th date Apple is telling their customers at the moment.

New phones supported in 10.4.9 version of iSync!

MacUser reported that Apple added many new supported phones in iSync released Tuesday in 10.4.9. The new supported phones are:

Motorola K1
Motorola K1m
Motorola L2
Motorola V3m
Nokia 6102
Nokia 6103
Nokia 6131
Nokia E61
Nokia E62
Nokia N71
Nokia N72
Nokia N73
Nokia N80
Nokia N91
Nokia N93
Samsung D600
Samsung D900
Sony Ericsson K610i
Sony Ericsson K790i
Sony Ericsson K800i
Sony Ericsson Z525a

Apple also released another update to iTunes today: 7.1.1. The update is only for bug fixes.

Mac OS X 10.4.9 Released!

Apple has just released Mac OS X 10.4.9. According to the long time Apple took before this release, it is very likely that it is the last update before 10.5 Leopard. With this being released, Leopard is definitely around the corner. Also released alongside is an update to iPhoto (6.0.6). The iPhoto update is only for bug fixes.

Laptops with Flash memory!

Reuters reported some predictions by the analyst Shaw Wu. Wu is saying that Apple is working on incorporating Flash memory in their portable line to increase battery life and reduce boot time. Wu confirms that Apple is ready to launch this technology and is waiting for a drop in Flash prices.

TV shows and movies coming to 5 new countries!

iLounge posted an interesting news about the iTunes 7.1 released today. The new version of iTunes now has a country selection for the parental control of Movies and TV Shows. The list includes Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom and the United States. The choice for movies and tv shows is available for all countries except the United Kingdom which only has movie ratings. This could possibly lead to the addition of tv shows and movies in these countries in the near future!

iTunes 7.1 adds Apple TV, QuickTime 7.1.5!

Apple just released an update to iTunes bringing it to version 7.1. The update adds the much anticipated Apple TV compatibility as well as a new full screen coverflow. Also released alongside iTunes was QuickTime 7.1.5.

Creative Suite 3 to be released March 27

Macworld UK has confirmed that Adobe will indeed be launching CS3 at a special event planned for March 27. This is going to be the first Universal Binary release of the professional suite CS by Adobe.

DVD Studio Pro 4.1.2 and Backup 3.1.1

Apple posted today updates for DVD Studio Pro and Backup. Backup is only for .Mac suscribers. Both updates are available through Software Update.

Apple will hold a special event at NAB (confirmed)!

Yahoo News just posted a report stating that Apple will be holding a special event at NAB (National Association of Broadcasters). This could possibly mean the introduction of Final Cut Pro 6 or a new version of SoundTrack Pro. Both Final Cut Pro and Soundtrack Pro were introduced at NAB 2005. An updated Mac Pro is also a possibility as last year NAB saw hardware update such as the MacBook Pro 17". The special event is scheduled for April 15th!

Pacman on the iPod

Apple released a new iPod game yesterday: PacMan. The game is available for sale on the iTunes store for $4.99. Link on the iTunes store.

Apple TV delayed!

According to Reuters, Apple confirmed the Apple TV shipment are delayed until mid-March. People who ordered quickly when the store came back on during MWSF received an email confirming their ship date changed from February 28th to March 20th. More details on the Reuters site.

iPhone ads during the Oscars!

Apple aired some new ads concerning the iPhone during the Oscars Sunday night. You can see the video of the ad over at MacRumors.com.

Steve Jobs Birthday!

This Saturday was Steve Jobs birthday. He just turned fifty-two. Thanks to the forum member TheHunter for submitting this news.

Final Cut Pro 6 and Final Cut Extreme?

Thinksecret reports that Apple is planning to release Final Cut Pro 6 along with an all new Final Cut Extreme at the NAB conference taking place from April 14-19. Thinksecret history is not pointing that this rumor is anything more than a rumor considering that the exact same rumor appeared last year around this time, before NAB.

Apple and Cisco agreement!

Apple and Cisco just announced that they reached an agreement about the trademark iPhone. Apple will apparently be forced to work in collaboration with Cisco for interopability. This is probably a good news for all future iPhone users as it might mean the iPhone will be able to do some VoIP!

Leopard by the end of March?

Financialwire.net reports that Apple is on track for releasing Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard by the end of March. iLife and iWork 07 would reportedly ship at the same time. If this is true, we can expect an announcement in the near future.

Link: http://new.quote.com/stocks/story.action?id=ITR047r4312

Adobe Lightroom is now shipping!

Adobe Lightroom is a competitor to advanced photo retouching software such as Aperture. It has been available as a beta since January 2006. Adobe is selling Lightroom at a special $199 pricepoint until April 2007 where it will raise to $299. More info on Adobe website:

http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshoplightroom/

Ultralight portable?

According to AppleInsider, Apple is currently developping an ultra-light portable that could be released around the WWDC. The portable would reportedly be small enough to only have an external optical drive. This is in contradiction with MacScoop December report that an ultralight would sport an optical drive. More info on AppleInsider.

DST, Security and Java update!

Apple released many updates today. The Daylight Saving Time Update will update the system for the changes observed in Canada and the US. Also released is a Java and a Security update. Security update are considered critical and should be installed as soon as possible. Alongside these updates, Apple also released an update to it FInal Cut Pro editing software. All the updates are available through Apple's Software Update (in the Apple menu).

Wireless charging?

According to this report by AppleInsider, Apple requested a patent for wireless charging and data transmission. The charging would use inductive coils similar to the wireless charging present on rechargable electric toothbrushes. This patent could be used on future iPod or iPhone devices.

15.4" Macbook (not pro)

According to Digitimes, Apple is on track for shipping in the 2nd quarter an all new portable: a 15.4" MacBook. This would definitely help the comparison of prices between Mac and PC. Mac has always been loosing on the bigger screen computer as PC manufacturer produces 15" and 17" laptop for a very low prices. A lower priced 15" is most likely a necessary step to attract more switcher.

11.3.4 Update for Microsoft Office

Microsoft posted a new update for the Office suite. It is available for download here on the Microsoft site. Considering the issues with the last Office update, it might be a good idea to wait and see if the update causes any problem especially as these updates are not considered critical.

Lionsgate movies on iTunes

Apple just annouced that Lionsgate movies are coming to the iTunes music store before the end of the month. Unfortunately, the movie downloads are still only available in the US. If Apple wants to have a worldwide success with Apple TV, they are going to have to start thinking of expanding their movie and tv show sales to the worldwide market.

Leopard in March?

A rumor is circulating on the web as Thinksecret reports that Leopard is due to be released in March. iLife and iWork '07 would reportedly be released at the same time.

Is Apple TV becoming a gaming platform?

According to an interview with Wired, the Apple TV will be able to offer game on your TV. Will Apple TV become a Media Center with gaming capabilities and XBox a Gaming Console with Media Center capabilities? Most likely! Greg Canessa of PopCap says that they will develop games for all platforms including Apple TV and the iPod.

Worldwide Developers Conference coming June 11-15th

Apple just annouced that the Worldwide Developers Conference will be taking place from June 11th to June 15th. Last year WWDC was in August and saw the release of the Mac Pro, the announcment of the XServe and a Leopard preview.

Apple Inc. agreed with Apple Corp.

Apple Inc. (formerly Apple Computers) agreed on the issue of trademark infringment with Apple Corporation. The dispute has lasted a long time but it seems it is over for good. Apple Inc. will now own the trademark and will license the rights to Apple Corporation.

10.4.9 might be coming this week or next week

Apple reseeded 10.4.9 today for the fourth consecutive week. This version also reports no known issue.

Forum down!

Our forum is currently down because our hosting 110mb.com is down. Sorry for any inconvenience. I hope the situation will be resolved asap. MacGeek.

Edit: The forum is back now!!

The new "Mac News" forum!!!

A great news, we now have our forum! I noticed that we had more and more comments every day and the flexibility offered by the comment page is not always the best. That is why I decided to create the forum. It is easy and free to register. Another great thing about the forum is that I never knew when a comment was posted in the previous news and I had to go back through all the posts daily to see if there was anything new. Now, it will be easy to quickly see new posts. To keep the comments clean, I disabled the comment page so all further comments will be posted in the forum. There is a new link at the end of every post called "Comments on the forum". The url for the forum is tips4mac.110mb.com Thanks to all of you and don't forget to take a look and sign up on the forum!

MacGeek.

Installing iTunes on Vista

Apple just published a guide explaining how to install iTunes on the new Windows Vista. Apple also recommends to wait for the next version of iTunes (supposedly 7.1) as it will fully support Vista. There are currently many known issue with the current version of iTunes on Vista. The next version of iTunes, 7.1, will also supposedly add Apple TV support. The guide is available here:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305042

Mac market share growth

Macworld.co.uk just published an article that shows the strong progression of the Mac market share. According to the report, Mac constituted 6.22 % of the online traffic in January while it was only 4.33 % in August 2006.

Update to Microsoft Messenger

Microsoft just released an update version 6.0.2 to the instant messaging program Microsoft Messenger. It is available for download here.

For all Harry Potter fans and Mac users!

With all the hype surrounding the announcement of the release date for the seventh Harry Potter book, I decided to create a countdown widget. It is available for download here. Hope you enjoy it!

Blogspot is experiencing technical difficulties!

Blogspot is currently experiencing technical difficulties. The website is working on and off. Sorry for any inconvenience.

Airport Extreme now shipping

According to our sources, the new Airport Extreme Base Station is now shipping. It will most likely appear in store this week.

802.11n enabler released

Apple quietly released the 802.11n enabler today at the same time as the new shuffle. It is sold for $1.99 US on the Apple Store. It works for all Core 2 Duo (Except 17" 1.83 GHz) and Xeon Mac.

New colored iPod shuffle

Apple just released four new iPod shuffle. The specs are the same and they come in pink, green, blue and orange. The price point is the same at $79 in the US.

Apple Store is down!

It seems that the rumors were true as the Apple Store is down!

More iPod shuffle or new softwares?

MacRumors claims to have received more reports confirming new products for tomorrow, Tuesday. There would be four new products at $79. The most possible options are new colored iPod shuffle or new softwares. It could also possibly be the introduction of iWork 07 and iLife 07. They weren't released at Macworld and these products have always been released in early January. Despite the speculation, only tomorrow will tell! Stay tuned!

Possibility of a new iPod for tomorrow?

AppleInsider reports that Apple may be launching a new iPod model tomorrow, Tuesday. According to the report, this would not be a complete new model such as the widescreen iPod but more a complement to the existing line. The rumor includes the possibility of a 2GB Red Nano or a Beatles special edition iPod.

45 nm Intel chips

According to the NY Times, Intel demoed the new 45 nm chips that are scheduled to be released by the end of the year. Apple is apparently involved in the testing on Mac OS X. The 45 nm chips will be a lot more powerful and run cooler compared to the existing 65 nm chips.

Apple launches new ads in the UK

Most of the new ads are the same ads already shown in the US refilmed for the UK. It seems that there is one ad that is exclusive to the UK however. You can see the ads here on the Apple UK site.

Possible event for February 1st

MacRumors has just posted an image of a possible invitation for a February 1st special event. There is no confirmation yet as to whether it is a fake or not.

Airport Extreme Update 2007-001

Apple just released an Airport Extreme update for Intel Mac. It weighs 7.4 MB. Apple description: This update is recommended for all Intel-based Macintosh computers and provides compatibility with AirPort Extreme base stations and networks.

10.4.9 expected very soon

Apple has once again released a new version of the 10.4.9 update today. Unlike previous versions, Apple reports three known issues with this version. The pace at which Apple is releasing the beta to the developers points to a release in the near future.

WWDC 2007 in June?

According to AppleInsider, the 2007 Worldwide Developers' Conference will be taking place from June 10th to 15th. Last year WWDC saw the introduction of the Mac Pro and a lengthy Leopard preview. AppleInsider also reports that a new Mac will be introduced at this year Developers' conference.

Leopard screenshots

Some brand new Leopard screenshots were just posted on Flickr. Some of the new features shown in these screenshots include: new screensavers based on Core Animation, tabbed Terminal and new options in Parental Controls.

Security update 2007-001

Apple released a security update today to solve security flaws in QuickTime. Security updates should be installed as soon as possible.

802.11n draft to be compatible with the final version

According to Infoworld, the draft version 1.1 of wireless standard 802.11n has been approved. A draft version 2 is expected to come before the final approval in 2008. The approval of the draft 1.1 is a good news for Apple and would mean that a simple firmware upgrade would make their n card compatible with the final version.

New features in Keynote 4 require Core Animation

MacRumors reports that the Keynote presentation Steve Jobs presented at MacWorld San Francisco was based on the version 4 of Keynote. The Keynote reportedly included some new transition based on Core Animation, one of the big new feature in Leopard. This could explain why iWork '07 hasn't been released yet as most of the new features seem to be dependant on the new 10.5 operating system.

Led blacklight on MacBook Pro

AppleInsider reports that Apple will update the 15" MacBook Pro to a Led backlight. This would greatly improve light eveness, colors and energy efficiency. It might raise the cost however. The 13" and 17" model will reportedly by updated later in the year.

iPhone ringtone

MacRumors.com posted the iPhone ringtone. It is pretty cool.

Also some more site posting the iPhone skin and ringtone were sent cease and desist letters.

SATA Xserve RAID prototype

AppleInsider reports that a SATA Xserve Raid prototype escaped the grip of Apple. This is very suprising when taking into consideration the high security surrounding unreleased Apple product. The pictures are very impressive. I suggest you take a look.

Leopard 10.5 update for Developers

An update to Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 is now available to developers. The last update date as far back as December 13th. This indicates that Leopard is well underway and should ship in time. Apple is still talking of Spring 2007 for the release.

802.11n update price confirmed at $1.99

Apple confirmed that an upgrade price of $1.99 will be required for all owner of Core 2 Duo and Xeon Intel Mac who want to upgrade to the wireless 802.11n standard. A simple firmware update will be needed.

iPhone margin

According to the analyst group iSuppli, the components in the iPhone will totalize a cost of $230. This doesn't take into consideration the cost of manufacturing, research, development, adverstising, warranty, etc... It is still quite a good markup since the $500 price tag requires a two years contract. This leads to the possibility that there could be future price drop!

Possible Apple announcement on February 4th

According to the TorontoSun, Apple has a special announcement planned for February 4th with a SuperBowl commercial. This announcement could possibly refer to the Apple/Beatles rumors here:

The TorontoSun reports that Apple and the Beatles would be about to announce the release date for the Beatles catalog on iTunes. There are two possibilities according to the article: release the songs gradually in the next months or release all the content at once at the beginning of June.

Intel sales are sky high but profits are down

The chip maker Intel Corp. reached a peak in processor sale but their profits are surpisingly down by 39 %. According to AppleInsider, this could be associated with the ongoing price war between Intel and AMD.

No iPhone theme on other brand

Apple's lawyers requested from website offering iPhone style theme for other mobile phone to stop selling them immediately.

10.4.9 coming soon

The Mac OS X update 10.4.9 will be released very soon as a new version of the update was released to developer this week for further testing.

802.11n update

The new base station introduced last week includes installer to upgrade the latest Core 2 Duo and Xeon Mac to 802.11n wireless. Many were wondering why you were forced to buy this new base station to get the high speed n wireless capability. According to iLounge, a law limits Apple power to add a new functionality for free after the product shipped. It still doesn't explain why it is not included with the Apple TV. It is rumored that Apple will sell this wireless n unlocker for $4.99 at a later date.

Apple TV is Intel based

AppleInsider just reported that the chip located in the Apple TV is a portable Pentium M processor. It is apparently Yonah predecessor called Crofton. It is a 1GHz chip with 2 MB of cache. The Apple TV also includes 256 MB of ram and an nVidia G72M with 64 MB of video ram.

iTunes and QuickTime update

A new version, iTunes 7.1 and QuickTime 7.1.5 are planned to be released within the next month and it will add AppleTV compatibility.

While our sources had previously reported that the Apple TV would begin shipping at the end of January, some customers have just informed us that they received an estimated shipping date of late February when ordering.

iPhone info

David Pogue posted additional information on the iPhone.

Interesting points are:
- No Java
- The iPhone will charge with a white dock similar to the iPod
- The iCal for iPhone is not finished yet but it will be present on the iPhone when it's released
- The screen is made of the same material then the iPod screen but apparently it's been enhanced
- The screen only reacts to skin and cannot be used with nails or a stylus

Microsoft Office 2004 update

Most of us were so engaged by the Macworld announcement this week that we missed this Office 2004 and Office X update. This update is recommended to all Office user and it's available here:

Office 2004
Office X

It can also be downloaded through Microsoft Updater.

Additional iPhone information

According to Macworld.co.uk, the iPhone OS X is only 500 MB in size. Also, one of the biggest complaints regarding the lack of third-party developer was that there would be no way to run Microsoft Office on the iPhone. Apple will apparently respond to this problem by releasing iWork for the iPhone. This could be as early as the next version, iWork '07, which was expected at the keynote but didn't appear.

Negotiations between Apple and Cisco

According to our latest informations, Apple and Cisco were negotiating until the last minute before the keynote, hoping to get an agreement regarding the trademark infringment. It seems that Cisco didn't budge, wanting interopability between the two devices. This was an unacceptable option for Apple.

Some lawyers also mentionned that Cisco might not be the owner of the iPhone trademark anymore as they didn't prove they were using it by the required deadline last year.

4 layers Blu Ray

Just after the presentation of the new 3 layers HD DVD with a possibility of 51GB, the Blu-Ray camp answered with a 4 layers disc capable of holding 100 GB of data. Best of all this four layers disc can be read with the regular Blu-Ray drive currently sold with a simple firmware update. Clearly, if the market adopts the best product, Blu-Ray will be the winner. There are many other things to consider, however, such as which format has the best movie offering. This will probably be the determining point as many consumer are not aware of the technical information and will base their decision on the choice of movies.

iPhone details

Some more information reveals that Cingular has an exclusive contract for the iPhone but also for all future models. According to this reports, other models could join the rank of the iPhone "very soon". It is also rumored that Cingular could release a new data plan exclusive to the iPhone, something that is probably necessary to the success of the iPhone as so many features are dependant of this and data prices are sky high right now.

It's not quite certain yet which carrier will have the iPhone in Europe but possible candidate are O2, Vodafone, Orange and T-Mobile. There is still no word yet about Canada and Apple didn't speak of any possible release date but one of the most likely choice of carrier is Rogers Wireless/Fido.

Apple TV might start shipping in January

According to the manufacturer, the Apple TV will probably begin shipping in January. Apple would be able to ship the first 100,000 this month.

More iPhone info

Many peoples were wondering if third-party apps would be able to run on the iPhone since according to the keynote, the iPhone runs a stripped down version of OS X. It seems that there is very little left from OS X in the iPhone and it is more like an iPod because there won't be any third-party apps except for application developed in collaboration with Apple. Apparently the situation will be very similar to iPod games.

Microsoft announces Office 2008 for Mac

Microsoft has just annouced that the Mac version of Office 2007 will be called Office 2008 for Mac and will be released in the second half of 2007. It will be the first Universal version meaning that it will run both on PowerPC and Intel Mac natively.

Cisco sues Apple for Trademark Infringement

Apple surprised many yesterday with the introduction of the iPhone scheduled to be released in June in the US. Another surprising thing is that Cisco currently holds the iPhone trademark and they released a product called iPhone in December. Many speculation were that they had an agreement. It doesn't seems like it's the case however and Cisco now sues Apple for trademark infringement. Apple will most likely have to deal a financial agreement or it will be forced to change the name. All the details here: http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070110006120&newsLang=en

Keynote QuickTime

The Keynote QuickTime is now available at
http://events.apple.com.edgesuite.net/j47d52oo/event/

No iLife and iWork 07' and new Airport Extreme Base Station

One of the first MacWorld San Francisco Keynote since a few years without update to iLife and iWork. They are probably dependant on new features in Leopard and will then probably be released alongside 10.5.

There is also a new Airport Extreme Base Station supporting high speed 802.11n networking for five times the speed and two times the range of regular 802.11g. It also comes with three ethernet ports for hooking up wired computers. The base station comes with an enabler that adds 802.11n capability to all Core 2 Duo and Xeon Mac (except the 17" 1.83GHz).

iPhone announced, shipping in June

It is a widescreen iPod, a mobile phone and an Internet Communicator all in one. It runs a stripped down version of OS X.
Syncs photos, music, music videos, podcasts, movies, calendars.
WiFi
GSM/EDGE
Bluetooth
Runs with a regular SIM card
Runs Safari, Mail, Google Maps, Widgets
4 GB $499 US (with 2 years contract with Cingular)
8 GB $599 US (with 2 years contract with Cingular)
Exclusive to Cingular in the US
Available in Europe by the fourth quarter this year
Available in Asia in 2008
More information will be added as it's released.

Apple TV announced, shipping in February

The iTV has just been announced and it is shipping in February. Its brings all your content, music, photos, podcasts, music videos, tv shows and movies from your computer to you tv. Its official name is Apple TV.

USB2, Ethernet, Wifi (b/g/n)
HDMI
RCA
Component
720p HD video
40 GB Hard Drive
$299 US

Apple Store is down!

The online Apple Store is now down for all the updates that will be announced during the keynote.

Mac News!

Is there a better day to introduced this all new "Mac News" website than today when today is the day where many new products will be announced by Apple? Yes, you guessed it, today, we will have a Keynote presented by Steve Jobs at the Macworld San Francisco Expo.

This blog was created because there was no place to find Mac related news in a clear and concise way. It is also following suit with our other site "A New Mac Tip Everyday', created last week. Its web address is tips4mac.blogspot.com

Regarding the keynote, some people like to have the news right away along with great products explanation while others prefer to watch the Keynote QuickTime stream. We decided to please everyone, on this blog, you will have all the news, dissected and explained while on "A New Mac Tip Everyday", we will post the link to the QuickTime stream as soon as it's available without posting any spoiler.

See you later today for all the info on the new Apple products.