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!