That's it, all Mobile Browsers other than the Windows Mobile browser are WebKit based, Apple have made a great browser engine.

In an uncharacteristic move, Research in Motion held a media event Tuesday in New York City to generate buzz for its new BlackBerry Torch 9800 smartphone, an AT&T handset with a multi-touch screen and slide-out keyboard.

The new BlackBerry Torch has a 5 megapixel camera and 8GB of internal memory -- 4GB flash and 4GB MicroSD. The hardware also includes a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and optical trackpad, and has support for 802.11n. The touchscreen is a 480x360 pixel display.

The Torch features BlackBerry OS 6, the latest mobile operating system, which packs a completely revamped Webkit-based Web browser with multi-touch input gestures. The new operating system offers integrated connectivity with social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, and has integrated search and a new user interface.

The name of the product came from the company Torch Mobile, which RIM acquired. That company's Iris mobile Web browser laid the foundation for the new BlackBerry 6 OS browser.

Eliminating some of the surprise RIM hoped to generate, however, were a number of leaks that occurred before Tuesday's event, including approval by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for the device, and posting of the handset on AT&T's site moments before RIM's event. Videos, pictures and details on the smartphone were available on AT&T's official site before the announcement was made official.

RIM showed its first glimpse at BlackBerry OS 6 in April, revealing that the software will include multitouch input for its Web browser, e-mail, media player and more. The mobile operating system also has iPhone-like features such as pinch-to-zoom.

By Katie Marsal Published: 11:10 AM EST

Microsoft has added official notice of a variety of key features in the upcoming release of its Office 2011 suite for Mac users.

The feature roundup on Microsoft's Office Blog includes a brief video of developers talking about the new release, along with four primary features:

• A new Template Gallery "allows you to quickly and easily pick a template from the built-in designs to the thousands of templates online -allowing you to create a great-looking document right from the start."
• The new Outlook for Mac" includes a Conversation View to easily sort emails" and uses a new database format designed to support Spotlight search and Time Machine backups.
• A Vista-like Ribbon UI "designed as an evolution of the Office 2008 Elements Gallery," still retains the familiar Mac menu bar and Office toolbars, providing a hybrid UI that melds Windows and Mac features. The ribbon and toolbar can both be minimized "for more screen space or for the more advanced users who rely on keyboard shortcuts."

Microsoft officially unveils key Office 2011 for Mac features By Daniel Eran Dilger

Apple's iLife '11 suite will launch in August for $79, with all included applications being 64-bit, including a new "mystery" addition, a rumor suggests.

French Apple website Mac4Ever (via Google Translate) reported last week that iLife '11 will launch soon, on Saturday, August 7. The updated application suite is said to include improvements in the Faces and Places features in iPhoto, and will reportedly add greater integration with social networking sites.

Citing a "well informed" source, the site also said that iWeb will be brand new, and iLife '11 will include a new "mystery" application. It also said that iDVD will not be included, and instead will be downloaded like iMovie HD. Finally, the update will also reportedly include a MobileMe gallery beta with Faces and Places.

The iLife suite currently includes iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand and iWeb. The software is included on every new Mac. The last update, iLife '09, launched in January of 2009, with major upgrades to all of its applications, including the Faces and Places features in iPhoto, and the addition of the Precision Editor to iMovie.

In January, Apple was rumored to introduce iLife 2010, a report that didn't pan out. Instead, the Cupertino, Calif., company held a special event to introduce the iPad.

By Katie Marsal Published: 10:20 AM EST

Mozilla Corporation on Tuesday released the first external beta of Firefox 4.0 for Mac users, the latest version of the firm's popular web browser built atop its new Gecko 2.0 layout engine.



The 20.2MB update introduces crash protection that kicks in when there is a crash in the Adobe Flash, Apple Quicktime or Microsoft Silverlight plugins, allowing users to continue their browsing session unfettered.

It also delivers a new Addons Manager and extension management API, WebSockets support, a new HTML 5 parser, a Web Console analysis tool, native support for the HD HTML5 WebM video format, and more responsive page rendering using lazy frame construction.

Cosmetically, Firefox 4 jettisons the individual stop and reload buttons for a single unified button, replaces the Bookmarks Bar with a Bookmarks Button, and places tabs at the very top of the browser window in a newly designed interface theme.

The latter change isn't fully implemented in the Mac distribution just yet, however, as the development team continues to work on the Mac theme. "Although you can customize Firefox to show tabs on top for OSX, it really doesn't look good," the team said in a set of release notes. "We suggest you wait."

Other changes include partial support for CSS Transitions, full WebGL support (currently disabled), support for more HTML5 form controls, and a Core Animation rendering model for plugins on Mac OS X.

(read more via AppleInsider)

Here’s the entirety of Apple CEO (AAPL) Steve Jobs’ D8 interview with Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg. The wide-ranging chat runs for more than 90 minutes, and covers everything from Jobs’ fraying relationship with Google (GOOG) to his stance on Adobe’s (ADBE) Flash, to his lack of interest in the TV market. And, of course, a lot of iPad talk. Enjoy.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Apple chief executive Steve Jobs took the stage at D8 Tuesday evening to discuss his company's opposition to Adobe Flash on the iPhone OS, as well as the prototype fourth-generation iPhone that turned up in a high profile exposé by Gizmodo.

Jobs was interviewed Tuesday evening by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher of of The Wall Street Journal. The talk served as the opening event for the annual D: All Things Digital Conference.

Jobs' segment was preceded by an introduction given by News Corp. chief executive Rupert Murdoch, who went overtime speaking about the future of content creation and the iPad while, somewhat ironically, speaking from notes written on letter sized paper.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Engadget on Friday revealed alleged details on a forthcoming update to the Apple TV set top box, which will reportedly be based on iPhone OS 4, will be powered by Apple's custom-built A4 processor, and will offer 1080P cloud-based streaming content -- all starting at just $99.

Editor Joshua Topolsky said the information came from a tip and was confirmed by a source "very close to Apple." The new hardware will reportedly have just 16GB of storage, but will be capable of full 1080P HD video.

"Not only will this be priced to sell (like hotcakes), it seems that Apple is moving away from the model of local storage and will be focusing the new ATV on cloud-based storage (not unlike Amazon's streaming scheme, though we're talking instant-on 1080P, a la Microsoft)," the report said. "For those still interested in keeping their content close, there will be an option to utilize a Time Capsule as an external storage component, but the main course will be about streaming."

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Google has announced the first stable release of Chrome for Mac users, now available for download.

Mike Smith, the product manager of Google's Chrome Team, said in a blog announcement, "Today, I’m happy to announce that Google Chrome for Mac is being promoted out of beta to our stable channel.

"We believe that it provides not only the stability, performance and polish that every Mac user expects, but also a seamless native Mac application experience that Mac users will feel instantly at home with."

The new release can be downloaded from google.com/chrome. It requires Mac OS X 10.5 or later, and only supports Intel Macs.

Chrome is based on the WebKit rendering engine and APIs maintained by Apple, but in contrast to Safari, it offers a variety of unique features such as extension plugins that can modify how the browser works.

(via AppleInsider)

Microsoft has issued a third release of its private beta program for Office 2011 for Mac, which is expected to reach production by the end of the year.

The new release overhauls the suite's icons, which haven't significantly changed since Office v.X appeared in late 2001 with bubbly translucent icons intended to reflect the Aqua appearance of Mac OS X.

The new 2011 icons are toned down and more serious looking (below). Also refined are the splash screens for each app.

The new suite works to bring more visual harmony between the Mac and Windows versions; Microsoft just released Office 2010, the Windows equivalent of the upcoming 2011 Mac version.



(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

As expected, the first day of Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference will include a keynote from Steve Jobs, when it is believed the chief executive will introduce the fourth-generation iPhone.

Apple announced on Monday that Jobs will deliver the keynote on Monday, June 7 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time. WWDC 2010 runs from June 7 to June 11 at Moscone West in San Francisco, Calif. The five-day conference will include the first-ever iPad development sessions and hands-on working labs for iPhone OS 4, as well as Mac OS X core technology labs.

Apple said Monday that the event will focus on providing advanced content for skilled developers in five key technology tracks: Application Frameworks, Internet & Web, Graphics & Media, Developers Tools, and Core OS. Apple's engineers will deliver over 100 solutions-oriented technical sessions and labs, and the primary focus will be iPhone OS 4, suggesting an advanced preview of Mac OS X 10.7 may not be a part of the event.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Apple has ended its long-running and highly successful "Get a Mac" ad campaign, and this week the company finally pulled the series of commercials from its website.

Actor Justin Long first revealed in April that the ads, which began with his trademark "Hello, I'm a Mac" tagline, were finished. Long's "Mac" character was the straight man in the routine, flanked by comedian John Hodgman's portrayal of the bumbling "PC" character.

"It was so much fun to go do that job, because there's not a lot to it for me," Long told The Onion's A.V. Club last month. "A lot of it is just keeping myself entertained between takes, and there's no one I'd rather do it with than John (Hodgman)."

On Friday, MacRumors first discovered that Apple had removed the "Get a Mac" commercials from its website. The last three ads were released in October 2009 to counteract Microsoft's release of Windows 7.

Apple replaced the ads with a new campaign, with the theme "Why you'll love a Mac," featured at apple.com/why-mac/. The site touts buying a Mac as making the "ultimate upgrade."

The successful "Get a Mac" campaign, which began with six commercials in May 2006, portrayed Windows PCs as machines that are prone to issues that frustrate consumers, and lack the simplicity and ease of use of the Mac. Many of the commercials attacked Windows for being susceptible to viruses and system crashes.

The commercials proved to be extremely successful, and aired during a period of tremendous growth for the Mac platform. Last year, Adweek named the "Get a Mac" campaign the best ad campaign of the decade.

Last year, Microsoft stepped up its own advertising campaign and made an effort to reclaim the "I'm a PC" tagline from Apple. Television spots for Windows 7 have featured customers taking credit for the improvements in the new operating system, with the slogan "I'm a PC, and Windows 7 was my idea."

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Google on Thursday announced Google TV, a new platform that aims to integrate both Web browsing and cable TV with one device running its Android operating system, set to arrive this fall.

As with Android smartphones, Google TV hardware will not be made by the search giant. Instead, hardware partners and HDTV makers will create devices that will run Google's operating system.

Google said that TV today is too complicated, with too many channels and a poor interface for finding the shows you want to see. They said many people these days end up watching videos on the Web, because it's much easier to find what you're looking for and watch it on your own schedule.



(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Adobe on Thursday responded to Steve Jobs' "Thoughts on Flash" with an open letter of its own, and also began a new ad campaign in which the company says it "loves" Apple -- but dislikes "anybody taking away your freedom" to use the Web freely.

In a letter from Adobe cofounders Chuck Geschke and John Warnock, the chairmen asserted that a "single company" does not control the Web. They argued that Adobe's Flash technology is the market leader "because of the constant creativity and technical innovation" of the company's employees.

"We believe that Apple, by taking the opposite approach, has taken a step that could undermine this next chapter of the web -- the chapter in which mobile devices outnumber computers, any individual can be a publisher, and content is accessed anywhere and at any time,"

they wrote.

Warnock and Geschke said that fragmentation of the Web into "closed systems" with content applications "behind walls" will result in the loss of the creativity and innovation that has made the Internet a global revolution.

"We believe that consumers should be able to freely access their favorite content and applications, regardless of what computer they have, what browser they like, or what device suits their needs," the letter reads. "No company -- no matter how big or how creative -- should dictate what you can create, how you create it, or what you can experience on the web."

Starting Thursday, Adobe began a new advertising campaign based on its beliefs, and intended to counter Apple's attack on Flash. Banners across the Web with the Adobe logo display in big, bold letters "We [Heart] Apple."

It continues:

"What we don't love is anybody taking away your freedom to choose what you create, how you create it, and what you experience on the web."

The ads feature a "Learn More" button that takes visitors to a page on Adobe's Web site that says "We [Heart] Choice" and links to the letter from Warnock and Geschke.

"We believe open markets that allow developers, publishers, and consumers to make their own choices about how they create, distribute, and access content are essential to progress," the promotional site reads.

"That's why we actively support technologies like HTML4, HTML5, CSS, and H.264, in addition to our own technologies."

In addition to advertisements on major tech blogs like Engadget, Adobe has also bought a full-page print ad in Thursday's Washington Post.

(read more)

(via Apple Insider)

Apple is advertising the iPad in a new spot that breaks from previous iPod an iPhone product ads to present the new device as magical and revolutionary.

The new spot, which Apple today posted to YouTube, asks "What is iPad?"

It then portrays users interacting with the thin new tablet, noting that it is "thin, beautiful, goes anywhere, and lasts all day."

The ad ends with the line,

"It's already a revolution, and it's only just begun."

(read more)

(via Apple Insider)

Valve's highly anticipated release Mac OS X release of Steam, its cloud-based game store and service, is set to be released as a public beta this week. AppleInsider offers a first look at the software with hands-on impressions and screenshots, including the first available titles: Portal and Team Fortress 2.

Steam comes to Mac OS X

A longstanding criticism of Apple's Mac OS X has been the limited availability of games for the platform. While some major franchises have seen ports to the Mac, they often come months -- and sometimes years -- after their PC counterparts.

Boot Camp has allowed Mac users to install Windows in order to run their favorite titles, but the cost of buying the operating system at retail along with the hassle of rebooting to switch to another OS has made the option less than ideal. And there are emulators, such as Crossover, Parallels and VMWare Fusion, but they offer mixed results with game performance and reliability. What Mac gamers have longed for is major support from a first-rate publisher to bring games natively to the Mac.

Enter Valve, who just a few months ago announced that not only would many of its popular titles be coming to the Mac, but it was also bringing Steam, its digital game distribution platform which has more than 25 million users and offers access to 1,100 games on the PC. The release of Steam for Mac could potentially pave the way for other publishers to release their content for the Mac, with a popular and established platform readily available for all Intel Mac users. In fact, Valve has said it has already received interest from other publishers who want to bring their titles to Steam on the Mac.

Valve has also promised that it will treat the Mac as a "first-tier" platform, meaning major new titles developed for the PC will release day-and-date with the Mac. In other words, no more waiting months and perhaps years for the latest major titles.



And in what is perhaps the biggest benefit to the Mac gaming community, Valve has done something unprecedented: All Valve-made titles that gamers already own on the PC can also be played on the Mac for free. That means gamers won't have to buy new licenses for a title to play it on the Mac. In a way, this would be like if a publisher were to offer users who buy a game on Xbox 360 a free copy of the title for the Playstation 3, a competing platform. Valve could have easily charged full price for Mac titles and followed the status quo, but this move will allow PC users to more easily make the switch to Mac without having to re-invest in their favorite games.

The games

About those games: Valve is renowned for making some of the biggest titles in PC history, with the Half-Life series its biggest accomplishment. The company is also behind some of the best-reviewed games of all time, including Portal, Team Fortress 2 and Left 4 Dead. And with Valve treating the Mac as a first-tier platform, new titles are on the way.



One of the most anticipated games of 2010 is Portal 2, which will ship simultaneously for the Mac this holiday season. Other popular titles like Left 4 Dead 2, released last fall for the PC, are said to be coming to the Mac, but are not yet available on Steam.

Steam for Mac has a new feature called "SteamPlay," that allows Mac users to play against PC gamers. That means online fragging in Team Fortress 2 isn't restricted to one operating system: Mac and PC users can play with or against each other with no discernible differences.



In March, John Cook, director of Steam development at Valve, told AppleInsider that that Valve worked closely with Apple as the developer became more acquainted with the Mac platform. He called Apple a "great partner" in the process of bringing Steam to Mac.

Valve's games are built on the Source engine, which has been modified to support OpenGL on the Mac. Valve has worked with Apple and GPU suppliers for Macs to make sure its titles take full advantage of the hardware capabilities on Macs, including giving feedback on opportunities to extend OpenGL to better support not only Source games, but also third-party games that are expected to come to the Mac.

Steam for Mac: the beta

The beta release of Steam for Mac will look familiar to anyone who has used Steam on the PC. The main window is divided into four categories: Store, Library, News and Community. Users can easily view their Friends list to see what games others are playing, what achievements they have unlocked, or quickly join them in an online game.



Still, this does not feel like a PC application ported to the Mac. This is a true, native Mac application. For example, the software also features Growl support, with notifications displayed on the screen while in a game. Steam also has its own notification system for when downloads have been completed; these display in the same manner as Growl.

The Steam Store is currently nonexistent with no titles available for the Mac, though Valve expects that to change in the future, with its own games being ported along with third-party titles. A note in the storefront placeholder currently says the Mac game store is "coming soon," once the Steam beta ends.

While Valve has said all of its games will support SteamPlay, allowing gamers to access their titles on either the Mac or PC with just one purchase, other developers who sell their titles through Steam may not opt to offer this feature. To help Mac gamers know which titles will offer this feature, a SteamPlay symbol for Mac and Windows will be featured when shopping in the Store.

Like Steam on the PC, running the client on the Mac makes sure all of your games are up to date. Patches and updates for titles are instantly downloaded when Steam is launched, ensuring that all users have the latest version of a title.

In addition, users can also access the Steam in-game overlay, by pressing Shift+Tab. The in-game Steam Community offers notifications for users when their friends sign on, and allows them to initiate text or voice chat with others on their Friends list.



(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

For more, see AppleInsider's additional coverage:

Valve, Apple worked closely to bring Steam natively to Mac
Game developers eye the Mac after Steam's jump to Apple
Valve sets public Mac Steam release for May 12, 2010
Valve announces Steam for Mac, games will allow Mac-PC online play

Tickets to Apple's Worldwide Developer Conference have sold out just eight days after the company announced the date and began selling tickets last week.

The conference, held in San Francisco's Moscone West center, can only accommodate around 5,000 attendees. This year, the event's ticket prices rose from $1295 to $1599, and the dates were announced about a month later than the previous year, despite WWDC being scheduled for the same second week of June.

Apple's marketing graphics for WWDC 2010 and scheduled sessions indicate this year's conference will focus on iPhone OS 4, likely delaying any advanced preview of the next version of Mac OS X 10.7.

This year's annual Apple Design Awards will also focus exclusively on iPhone and iPad apps, without even a category for Mac entries. The event's IT track has also been discontinued to focus upon entirely software development.

In addition to releasing iPhone OS 4, Apple is expected to debut the next version of the iPhone at WWDC, with new iChat features supported by a front facing camera.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

A rare relic from Apple's past surfaced this week, when a prototype Apple Interactive Television Box from 1995 -- a primitive device tested more than 10 years before the release of the Apple TV -- was sold on eBay for $46.

Stickers on the internal components of the Apple Interactive Television Box, which was listed for sale on eBay, show that it was manufactured in 1995. It features chips from Motorola, Texas Instruments, and the now-defunct VLSI Technology. The back of the unit features a composite video and audio output, serial and S-Video ports, an Ethernet network input, and RF coaxial input and outputs.

"A friend who is a former Oracle employee gave this to me in the late '90s, and I just came across it again after going through some boxes that were in storage for 10 years," the seller, "macdeals," wrote. "Does it work? I don't know. Back in the day, I kept it on a shelf as a conversation piece. It is supposed to come with a remote, but I was never given one."

Development of the interactive TV set top box began in partnership with British Telecom in 1993, according to The Apple Museum. In 1994, the companies launched a trial of the product in Britain with about 2,500 households, followed by a six-state trial in 1995. The product was eventually canceled later that year.

The device included 4MB of RAM, 2MB of ROM, an MPEG-1 decoder, and a operating system that was a subset of Mac OS with QuickDraw and QuickTime. The hardware was also compatible with a remote control, mouse, and CD-ROM drive.

The Apple Interactive Television Box was part of a subscription data service that would allow users to connect to a server and download content to show on their TV.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Read AppleInsider' summary and key points from the letter here.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Jobs' letter is republished here in its entirety:

Thoughts on Flash

Apple has a long relationship with Adobe. In fact, we met Adobe’s founders when they were in their proverbial garage. Apple was their first big customer, adopting their Postscript language for our new Laserwriter printer. Apple invested in Adobe and owned around 20% of the company for many years. The two companies worked closely together to pioneer desktop publishing and there were many good times. Since that golden era, the companies have grown apart. Apple went through its near death experience, and Adobe was drawn to the corporate market with their Acrobat products. Today the two companies still work together to serve their joint creative customers – Mac users buy around half of Adobe’s Creative Suite products – but beyond that there are few joint interests.

I wanted to jot down some of our thoughts on Adobe’s Flash products so that customers and critics may better understand why we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. Adobe has characterized our decision as being primarily business driven – they say we want to protect our App Store – but in reality it is based on technology issues. Adobe claims that we are a closed system, and that Flash is open, but in fact the opposite is true. Let me explain.

First, there’s “Open”.

Adobe’s Flash products are 100% proprietary. They are only available from Adobe, and Adobe has sole authority as to their future enhancement, pricing, etc. While Adobe’s Flash products are widely available, this does not mean they are open, since they are controlled entirely by Adobe and available only from Adobe. By almost any definition, Flash is a closed system.

Apple has many proprietary products too. Though the operating system for the iPhone, iPod and iPad is proprietary, we strongly believe that all standards pertaining to the web should be open. Rather than use Flash, Apple has adopted HTML5, CSS and JavaScript – all open standards. Apple’s mobile devices all ship with high performance, low power implementations of these open standards. HTML5, the new web standard that has been adopted by Apple, Google and many others, lets web developers create advanced graphics, typography, animations and transitions without relying on third party browser plug-ins (like Flash). HTML5 is completely open and controlled by a standards committee, of which Apple is a member.

Apple even creates open standards for the web. For example, Apple began with a small open source project and created WebKit, a complete open-source HTML5 rendering engine that is the heart of the Safari web browser used in all our products. WebKit has been widely adopted. Google uses it for Android’s browser, Palm uses it, Nokia uses it, and RIM (Blackberry) has announced they will use it too. Almost every smartphone web browser other than Microsoft’s uses WebKit. By making its WebKit technology open, Apple has set the standard for mobile web browsers.

Second, there’s the “full web”.

Adobe has repeatedly said that Apple mobile devices cannot access “the full web” because 75% of video on the web is in Flash. What they don’t say is that almost all this video is also available in a more modern format, H.264, and viewable on iPhones, iPods and iPads. YouTube, with an estimated 40% of the web’s video, shines in an app bundled on all Apple mobile devices, with the iPad offering perhaps the best YouTube discovery and viewing experience ever. Add to this video from Vimeo, Netflix, Facebook, ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ESPN, NPR, Time, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Sports Illustrated, People, National Geographic, and many, many others. iPhone, iPod and iPad users aren’t missing much video.

Another Adobe claim is that Apple devices cannot play Flash games. This is true. Fortunately, there are over 50,000 games and entertainment titles on the App Store, and many of them are free. There are more games and entertainment titles available for iPhone, iPod and iPad than for any other platform in the world.

Third, there’s reliability, security and performance.

Symantec recently highlighted Flash for having one of the worst security records in 2009. We also know first hand that Flash is the number one reason Macs crash. We have been working with Adobe to fix these problems, but they have persisted for several years now. We don’t want to reduce the reliability and security of our iPhones, iPods and iPads by adding Flash.

In addition, Flash has not performed well on mobile devices. We have routinely asked Adobe to show us Flash performing well on a mobile device, any mobile device, for a few years now. We have never seen it. Adobe publicly said that Flash would ship on a smartphone in early 2009, then the second half of 2009, then the first half of 2010, and now they say the second half of 2010. We think it will eventually ship, but we’re glad we didn’t hold our breath. Who knows how it will perform?

Fourth, there’s battery life.

To achieve long battery life when playing video, mobile devices must decode the video in hardware; decoding it in software uses too much power. Many of the chips used in modern mobile devices contain a decoder called H.264 – an industry standard that is used in every Blu-ray DVD player and has been adopted by Apple, Google (YouTube), Vimeo, Netflix and many other companies.

Although Flash has recently added support for H.264, the video on almost all Flash websites currently requires an older generation decoder that is not implemented in mobile chips and must be run in software. The difference is striking: on an iPhone, for example, H.264 videos play for up to 10 hours, while videos decoded in software play for less than 5 hours before the battery is fully drained.

When websites re-encode their videos using H.264, they can offer them without using Flash at all. They play perfectly in browsers like Apple’s Safari and Google’s Chrome without any plugins whatsoever, and look great on iPhones, iPods and iPads.

Fifth, there’s Touch.

Flash was designed for PCs using mice, not for touch screens using fingers. For example, many Flash websites rely on “rollovers”, which pop up menus or other elements when the mouse arrow hovers over a specific spot. Apple’s revolutionary multi-touch interface doesn’t use a mouse, and there is no concept of a rollover. Most Flash websites will need to be rewritten to support touch-based devices. If developers need to rewrite their Flash websites, why not use modern technologies like HTML5, CSS and JavaScript?

Even if iPhones, iPods and iPads ran Flash, it would not solve the problem that most Flash websites need to be rewritten to support touch-based devices.

Sixth, the most important reason.

Besides the fact that Flash is closed and proprietary, has major technical drawbacks, and doesn’t support touch based devices, there is an even more important reason we do not allow Flash on iPhones, iPods and iPads. We have discussed the downsides of using Flash to play video and interactive content from websites, but Adobe also wants developers to adopt Flash to create apps that run on our mobile devices.

We know from painful experience that letting a third party layer of software come between the platform and the developer ultimately results in sub-standard apps and hinders the enhancement and progress of the platform. If developers grow dependent on third party development libraries and tools, they can only take advantage of platform enhancements if and when the third party chooses to adopt the new features. We cannot be at the mercy of a third party deciding if and when they will make our enhancements available to our developers.

This becomes even worse if the third party is supplying a cross platform development tool. The third party may not adopt enhancements from one platform unless they are available on all of their supported platforms. Hence developers only have access to the lowest common denominator set of features. Again, we cannot accept an outcome where developers are blocked from using our innovations and enhancements because they are not available on our competitor’s platforms.

Flash is a cross platform development tool. It is not Adobe’s goal to help developers write the best iPhone, iPod and iPad apps. It is their goal to help developers write cross platform apps. And Adobe has been painfully slow to adopt enhancements to Apple’s platforms. For example, although Mac OS X has been shipping for almost 10 years now, Adobe just adopted it fully (Cocoa) two weeks ago when they shipped CS5. Adobe was the last major third party developer to fully adopt Mac OS X.

Our motivation is simple – we want to provide the most advanced and innovative platform to our developers, and we want them to stand directly on the shoulders of this platform and create the best apps the world has ever seen. We want to continually enhance the platform so developers can create even more amazing, powerful, fun and useful applications. Everyone wins – we sell more devices because we have the best apps, developers reach a wider and wider audience and customer base, and users are continually delighted by the best and broadest selection of apps on any platform.

Conclusions.

Flash was created during the PC era – for PCs and mice. Flash is a successful business for Adobe, and we can understand why they want to push it beyond PCs. But the mobile era is about low power devices, touch interfaces and open web standards – all areas where Flash falls short.

The avalanche of media outlets offering their content for Apple’s mobile devices demonstrates that Flash is no longer necessary to watch video or consume any kind of web content. And the 200,000 apps on Apple’s App Store proves that Flash isn’t necessary for tens of thousands of developers to create graphically rich applications, including games.

New open standards created in the mobile era, such as HTML5, will win on mobile devices (and PCs too). Perhaps Adobe should focus more on creating great HTML5 tools for the future, and less on criticizing Apple for leaving the past behind.


Steve Jobs
April, 2010

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

New photos of an alleged fourth-generation iPhone surfaced over the weekend, with a handful of reports claiming the device is indeed a prototype device that somehow slipped away from Apple, sporting dual cameras with flash, a high-resolution screen, and a slot for a MicroSIM card.

Though Engadget showed initial skepticism when it received photos of the device, editor Joshua Topolsky filed another report hours later, claiming "proof" that the photos of the device -- allegedly found laying on the floor of a San Jose bar -- being an authentic fourth-generation prototype iPhone. That proof is the same information AppleInsider's own sources provided in February: a leaked photo of the iPad before the device was revealed also shows the forthcoming iPhone model inside Apple's top-secret labs.

The discovered device sports a front-facing camera, 80GB of storage, and aluminum sides. Daring Fireball's John Gruber spoke with his own sources who reaffirmed to him that the device is legitimate, and "Apple is very interested in getting it back."

"I am not certain this is the actual production unit Apple intends to ship to consumers," he wrote. "I think it's a testbed frame -- thicker, with visible (un-Apple-like) seams, meant to fit into 3GS cases so as to disguise units out in the wild. It's hard to tell from the photos. But i think it is the real deal in terms of the internals and the display being next-gen hardware, and the new glass back."

He also went on to mention a patent AppleInsider covered in 2006 regarding radio-transparent zirconia CE casings. Such casings could allow wireless signals to pass through an enclosure uninhibited and could improve reception on future iPhone models. Gruber theorized that the glass-looking back seen on the iPhone prototype could be a "high-durability" ceramic enclosure, similar to what was mentioned in the patent, as having glass on both sides of the new iPhone would make it very fragile if dropped.



(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Adobe on Monday formally announced Adobe Creative Suite 5, the latest release of its design and creative workflow software that delivers full-version upgrades to all of the company's flagship creative tools in order to offer workflow enhancements to designers and developers.

Featuring integration with online content and digital marketing measurement and optimization capabilities for the first time, Creative Suite 5 products include access to Omniture technologies, to capture, store and analyze information generated by Web sites and other sources. Additionally, a brand new component, Adobe Flash Catalyst, joins the Creative Suite, ushering in the ability to design interactive content without writing code and improve the collaborative process between designer and developer.

"While Creative Suite 5 continues Adobe’s storied history of delivering astonishing new creative features, this release puts us front and center of the big issues facing publishers and creatives worldwide – how to build businesses around digital assets and content," said Shantanu Narayen, president and chief executive officer, Adobe. "With Omniture Web technology we’re integrating critical business analytics directly into the creative process, shortening the time it takes to create and deploy high-impact content."

Due to to ship within the next 30 days, the Adobe CS5 product family also enables the creation of content and applications for Flash Player 10.1 and Adobe AIR 2, which Adobe says are optimized for high performance on mobile screens and designed to take advantage of native device capabilities for a richer, more immersive user experience.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Brightcove's partnerships with The New York Times and Time magazine will allow HTML5 to seamlessly replace Adobe Flash video content on the publications' Web sites for compatibility with Apple's iPad.

The Cambridge, Mass.-based online video platform announced Monday its new Brightcove Experience for HTML5, a framework for publishing and delivering interactive and advertising-supported Web video. The platform is available free to the more than 1,000 Brightcove customers in 42 countries.

Two major clients of Brightcove are The New York Times and Time magazine, both of which are reportedly already using the product. The platform provides support for intelligent device detection, playlist rendering, and playback of H.264 encoded video content.

(read more)

(via AppleInsider)

Apple this summer will go a long way towards silencing critics and catering to one of the most prevalent demands of its iPhone user base, when it introduces a multitasking solution through the handset's 4.0 software update that will finally allow several third party apps to run concurrently and in the background.

People with a proven track record in predicting Apple's technological advances tell AppleInsider that the Cupertino-based company has developed a "full-on solution" to multitasking on the iPhone OS but offered no specifics on how the technology would optimize resource conservation and battery life -- two of the most critical issues surrounding the matter, alongside security.

From a user-facing perspective, Apple plans to deliver a multi-tasking manager that leverages interface technology already bundled with its Mac OS X operating system, according to those same people. It was requested that specifics be withheld at this time, as the iPhone Software 4.0 remains under development and reportedly has a quite 'way to go' before it's ready for prime time.

Today's iPhone 3.x software is a fully preemptive multitasking operating system, but it artificially restricts apps (other than specific ones bundled with the system by Apple) from running in the background.

(read more)

via AppleInsider

RoughlyDraftedVideo — February 17, 2010 — Ninth segment of ten looking at fallacious criticisms of Apple's new iPad multitouch tablet computer. Daniel Eran Dilger of RoughDrafted Magazine: roughlydrafted.com

Hitler has been dreaming about the day that Apple's tablet will be announced. That day has come and he is not pleased.

Edit: Thanks for the support everyone! I never thought that my video would get this popular but I'm certainly glad it has. Keep spreading it and let everyone know about how fail the iPad really is!

Edit 2: Over 50,000 views! You guys are amazing! And to the people saying there's a Bloons app, I figured there was but I don't own an iPod, iPhone or iTunes so I wouldn't know =P But it's good to know.

Edit 3: I see people are complaining about the fading subtitles. Sorry about that! From a stylistic standpoint I thought it looked better but I can see how it'd be hard to read a few of the lines.

Like the video?
reddit:
http://reddit.com/tb/av50w

digg:
http://digg.com/d31H0Qq

by midnightblade via @kiyothehusky

By Neil Hughes on Apple Insider
Published: 09:10 AM EST

Adobe announced this week that it has not tested and will not support its Creative Suite 3 line of products, including Photoshop CS3, on Apple's new Snow Leopard operating system.

John Nack, the principal product manager for Photoshop at Adobe, announced on his official blog that CS3 and earlier have not been tested on Snow Leopard. He provided a link to a compatibility document from Adobe that went even further.

"While older Adobe and Macromedia applications may install and run on Mac OS X Snow Leopard (v10.6), they were designed, tested and released to the public several years before this new operating system became available," the document states. "You may therefore experience a variety of installation, stability, and reliability issues for which there is no resolution. Older versions of our creative software will not be updated to support Mac OS X Snow Leopard (v10.6)."

General support for CS3 applications, the company notes, exists through Adobe's paid support program.

Adobe released Creative Suite 4 in 2008, effectively replacing CS3. Clearly this latest move is designed to encourage users to upgrade to the latest version of Adobe's software. The Mac upgrade retails for $699.99.

Nack said that there are a few minor problems with CS4 in Snow Leopard, though most of the suite works fine under Apple's new operating system. He said that problems remain in Flash panels and Adobe Drive/Version Cue.

The company's support document states it will support and upgrade CS4 within Snow Leopard. Currently, none of the applications in the CS4 suite require an upgrade to work within the new operating system, to be released Friday.

"Adobe will support Creative Suite 4 software running with Snow Leopard according to its standard customer support policies," Adobe said. "Older versions of Adobe Creative Suite software were not designed to run on Mac OS X Snow Leopard (v10.6), so you may experience issues installing and using the software for which there are no solutions."

AT&T Navigator turn-by-turn GPS solution hits the App Store
By Slash Lane on AppleInsider

TomTom/AT&T on Tuesday became the latest player to attempt to capitalize on what's sure to become a multi-million dollar market for iPhone-based turn-by-turn GPS driving solutions, launching its AT&T Navigator software on the App Store.

Like similar offerings for other AT&T handsets, the software was developed by Sunnyvale, Calif.-based TeleNav and branded as AT&T Navigator. The application itself (AppStore) is free, but requires a $9.95 monthly service subscription, which the exclusive U.S. iPhone carrier plans to market alongside new iPhone sales at its retail and online stores as a bolt-on service.

Compatible with the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S running iPhone Software 3.0, the software promises voice-guide, 3D on-screen navigation with automatic rerouting incase users miss a turn. The monthly subscription fee also covers automatic map updates that will be downloaded to the iPhone and real-time traffic updates.

Users of the software can also search for the lowest gas prices, and the closest coffee shops and AT&T WiFi hotspots along their driving routes. Trips can be planned by entering addresses on the iPhone itself, or from a Mac or PC, where they'll then be synced over to the the Apple handset.

Early reviews of the software have been relatively positive, though one reviewer notes that maps are not stored in the application itself, which means they're download in real-time, which could pose a problem in areas where wireless service is unavailable.



AT&T Navigator is bound to face off against an upcoming offering from GPS device maker TomTom, the software for which is being developed with the help of Apple engineers. It will be sold alongside a TomTom car kit accessory, which enhances the iPhone's GPS signal through its dock connector thanks to third-party accessory support built into the iPhone SDK 3.0.

The kit also charges the iPhone, includes a built-in loud speaker for spoken turn-by-turn directions, and comes equipped with a microphone for hands-free calling. TomTom has yet to announce pricing for either the software or the car kit.



On Monday, Navigon released its own MobileNavigator for European residents. The software fetches £54.99 and includes built-in 2D and 3D maps of Europe, allowing it to function without a wireless connection.

AT&T's plans to introduce a TeleNav-developed AT&T Navigator solution to iPhone owners for a $9.95 monthly subscription fee were first reported by AppleInsider earlier this month.

Apple lays claim to greenest notebooks ever in new ad campaign
By Aidan Malley on AppleInsider

Not one for modesty, Apple on Monday night launched a new campaign and TV spot touting its new aluminum MacBook lineup as the most environmentally friendly portables ever.

The freshly posted campaign page backs up the confident stance by centering on the unibody aluminum and glass displays of the MacBook designs, which together cut down on the number of parts and are easy to recycle versus the plastic and other materials used by rivals.

It also touts the elimination of brominated flame retardants and PVC from the insides of all three models, better power management that includes the LED-backlit displays, and the smaller packaging that lets Apple ship and store more units in a single space than earlier models as well as competitors.

A new TV ad, posted below, not only marks the start of a public campaign to promote the systems under their new green role but also Apple's first commercial for the new MacBooks outside of the minutes-long promo video found on its own website.

The new initiative continues a green turnaround for Apple, which has been the target of Greenpeace and other environmental groups for historically neglecting the eco-friendliness of its products, with gradual improvements to Apple's manufacturing process often accompanied by criticisms and threatened lawsuits. Company chief Steve Jobs has promised to clean virtually all toxic materials from Apple's hardware by the end of 2008 but hasn't yet signaled that it has achieved this goal.



Even so, a marker of progress made has been Greenpeace's recent response to the new MacBooks, which praised Apple for its new portables but is urging the electronics firm to finish the job with its desktops.

Microsoft parks "I'm a PC" recording booth outside Apple Store
By Sam Oliver on AppleInsider

Microsoft Corp., engrossed in multi-million dollar marketing blitz to counter comical ads from rival Apple, Inc., is now using a portion of its budget to fuel guerilla retail tactics near the Mac maker's stores.

AppleInsider reader Tom submits the following photo, which shows a large Microsoft-branded kiosk parked outside a shopping center-based Apple retail store.

"It's a friggin booth where you can record your own I'm a PC video," he said. "This is outside the Apple Store, Bullring, Birmingham, England." He added that a trio of Microsoft staffers will be on hand to turn patrons off from the Mac for the next three days.

The move is an extension of the Redmond-based software giant's $300 million advertising campaign aimed at cleaning up the image of its Windows Vista operating system, which has been tarnished at the hands of Apple's long-running "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" ads.

Last month, Microsoft tapped advertising firm Crispin Porter & Bogusky to use Apple's assault as a foundation for a direct counter-strike with its own series of "I'm a PC" ads, which open with a John Hodgman lookalike character who declares that he's been "made into a stereotype."

As part of the campaign, Microsoft invited visitors to its website to upload videos and photos that demonstrate "how they, too, are PCs." The company has since select a handful of those clips for inclusion in television commercials that can be seen airing on network television this week.

Microsoft now appears to be taking its initiative to the streets.

The "I'm a PC" ads are actually a second phase of the company's rebuttal efforts. An initial series of ads was dominated by a pair of offbeat teaser skits (1, 2) featuring Bill Gates and comedian Jerry Seinfeld. Those efforts were postponed indefinitely amid mixed reviews.



Ironically, market research data cited by AppleInsider earlier this week revealed that the first series of deliberately eccentric ads dwarfed both Apple's and the new "I'm a PC" ads in viral views, suggesting Microsoft may have been better off sticking with Gates and Seinfeld.

Jobs responds to outrage over MacBook's missing FireWire By Prince McLean on AppleInsider

In one of his characteristically terse email replies, Apple chief executive Steve Jobs has reportedly told one Mac user that changes in video camera technology have reduced the need for FireWire on his company's 13-inch MacBooks.

The one-line response to a fan complaining over the lack of FireWire on the new entry level aluminum MacBooks is blunt but also points out that technology has changed since the company began including FireWire with Macs in 1999.

"Actually, all of the new HD camcorders of the past few years use USB 2," Jobs supposedly wrote in an email, a copy of which was posted to the popular Flickr image sharing website.

Jobs is likely not pleased about the current state of FireWire himself. Apple invented the standard in the late 80s as a hot pluggable replacement for SCSI, with a special emphasis on supporting media streaming with isochronous, real-time data transfers. The company then released the specification through a standards body to become IEEE 1394, where others including DEC, Texas Instruments, and Sony contributed to its development as well.

Upon returning to the beleaguered Apple in 1997, Jobs hoped to earn Apple some licensing royalties from the technology, which was quickly becoming an emerging standard not just to replace SCSI but also in video and music applications. Jobs' plan resulted in Intel offering to upgrade its USB standard to speeds approaching FireWire at a lower cost. The 'master to slave' USB 2.0 protocol was cheaper to implement than the 'smart peers' design of FireWire because USB required less intelligence in the controllers.

Somewhat ironically, Apple's 1998 iMac originated the push behind USB that allowed it to gain rapid adoption among consumers. USB 2.0 built upon that ubiquity to push into the peripheral territory that had been wholly owned by FireWire. In 2001, Apple's iPod began to popularize FireWire as an interface that was much faster for syncing the then relatively large MP3 files compared to existing players that used USB 1.0. However, by 2003, Apple started adding USB 2.0 support to target PC buyers, where FireWire ports were rare. By the end of 2005, Apple had removed FireWire sync from the iPod line as a cost savings measure.

While USB 2.0 ate into the casual peripheral market for consumer hard drives and web cams, FireWire retracted to support applications where USB 2.0 wasn't suitable. It retains clear advantages over USB 2.0 among higher performance hard drives, but in that market, FireWire is now competing against eSATA, which developed from ATA cabling. Historically, FireWire has been the way to import video from digital cameras, but as Jobs' purported email announced that is no longer always the case.

A glance at the product pages for Canon, Hitachi, JVC, Samsung and Sony as well as Amazon's top camcorder list indicates that virtually all new compact consumer HD cameras now use USB 2.0 to transferring footage directly to a computer instead of the FireWire. Some camcorders also offer the option of burning directly to DVD and a few can transfer video over a USB-to-FireWire bridge cable.



That reality is little comfort to those who fall outside of Apple's market for the new entry-level portables, many of whom are vocal in their opinions in Apple's support discussions as well as AppleInsider's own forums.

Support for older cameras, many of which (particularly DV tape models) depend on FireWire, is ruled out by Apple's aluminum MacBook update; so too are prosumer cameras such as Sony's HDR-FX1000, which needs the faster throughput of FireWire (called i.LINK by Sony) to deliver raw content if a card reader isn't used. To serious amateurs or professionals who prefer a smaller system, the loss of FireWire on the new entry level MacBooks is a vexing problem.

"I am a video producer and use my MacBook on site to ingest footage taken from FireWire cameras, even occasionally hooking the camera right up to the MacBook," says one Mac user with the previous generation system. "Well, it looks like there isn't a FireWire port on it anymore... how the heck am I supposed to do that? I am sure I am not the only one with this concern."

Professional musicians also use FireWire in recording equipment. Others have noted that the lack of FireWire additionally rules out Target Disk Mode for managing files or cloning systems, as USB 2.0's architecture lacks the capacity to support that feature. Apple's Migration Assistant software now alternatively supports importing files from another machine over Ethernet, from USB drives, or Time Machine backups, however.

Even so, many argue that Apple's move appears built to upsell any serious user to the MacBook Pro, which starts at $800 more than the entry level new MacBook, despite the fact that Apple continues to sell the previous-generation white MacBook, with FireWire intact, for $300 less than the new aluminum MacBooks.

There's no doubt that the removal of FireWire from the MacBook was as difficult of a decision for Apple as it is a mourned loss for many Mac users. With FireWire increasingly receding into the professional space, Apple had to weigh several variables, including the cost of incorporating another port to its entry level laptop that many of its new users wouldn't even recognize. After all, half of the buyers Apple is selling to in its retail stores are new to the Mac. Being able to offer them a lower price will likely help more than trying to sell them on the concept of Target Disk mode, which is entirely foreign to PC users.
The future of FireWire is still up in the air. Apple retained the FW800 version (running at 800Mbps, twice the speed of the original specification) on the new MacBook Pro, providing substantially faster throughput than USB 2.0. On the MacBook, FW400 doesn't offer most users enough of an advantage over USB 2.0 to warrant taking up the limited space on the port panel and on the logic board.

"Many of us don't have great confidence that FireWire is here to stay on MacBook Pro, Mac Pro, or iMac, either," one forum user wrote.

With the advancement of USB 2.0 on the low end, erosion from eSATA among hard drives, and a migration away from FireWire even in its home field advantage among digital video users, Apple is probably wondering the same thing.

Briefly: last minute rumors on the AppleInsider blogs By AppleInsider Staff on AppleInside

With just hours to go before Apple's 2008 notebook event, several unconfirmed reports have cropped up regarding new Apple part numbers and prices, the MacBook Air, the 17-inch MacBook Pro, Blu-ray drives and more.

Historically, AppleInsider has refrained from publishing these rumors in order to maintain focus on information that we believe is most accurate. However, the recent launch of our Backpage blogs affords us with a forum to present some of the more sound but unconfirmed tips solely for the sake of reader discussion.

Readers can find blog posts on:

• Eight rumored Apple notebook part numbers and pricing ranging from $899 to $2799.

• Rumored updates to Best Buy's inventory system listing six new models with color codenames.

• Rumors about the MacBook Air, 17-inch MacBook Pros, Blu-ray, and video ports.

• FileMaker to announce Bento 2 as early as Tuesday (this is more of a certainty and less of a rumor).

Again, AppleInsider stresses the unconfirmed nature of these reports, which it is publishing solely for reader discussion. Reports of higher conviction have been highlighted on our main page for months, and were recently aggregated in links at the end of this article.

RSS Feeds

For those readers who missed our announcement last month, best way to keep up with the blogs, and AppleInsider in general, is to add one or more of our RSS feeds to your news reader. An AppleInsider Twitter feed is also available.

	Main page	Our existing feed containing all the day's top stories.
	iPhone blog	A new feed exclusively featuring iPhone blog page stories.
	Backpage blogs	A new feed featuring stories from all blogs except the iPhone blog (for non-iPhone owners).
	Every blog	A new feed the contains a list of every single blog story (iPhone, Mac, General).

 

Apple launches "Field Trip to the Apple Store" program By AppleInsider Staff on AppleInsider

Apple continues to come up with innovative ways to introduce younger generations to its family of products, the latest of which invites teachers to book a field trip to a local Apple retail store ahead of the holiday shopping season.

"Take your students on a Field Trip to an Apple Store for an unforgettable learning experience," the company says on a new website dedicated to the initiative. "On their Field Trip, students can create something amazing right on the spot. Or they can bring in a project they’ve already created and turn our store into a theater, sharing their achievements with parents, teachers, and friends."

The goal is to introduce K-12 students in the US and Canada to the world of Apple products right before they'll be filling out their holiday wish lists. As such, the company said it will be taking reservations from teachers from now through November 21st. Teachers can request up to three date options and an Apple Store specialist will contact them by telephone within 48 hours to seal the deal.

Apple also asks that teacher name a "School Champion" who can gather and present their school’s content, help distribute invitations to the event, and act as the key contact for the Apple Retail Store hosting their Field Trip. In return, the company will provide the School Champion with a complimentary one-year One to One personal training membership.


During their field trip, Apple said students can use Macs to create photo albums in iPhoto, edit video in iMovie, build websites in iWeb, make Keynote presentations, or even compose their own songs in GarageBand. Apple Store Trainers and Specialists will be on-hand to answer questions and give expert, on-the-spot advice, the company said. Every participating student will also leave clad in a free Apple T-Shirt.

Of course, parents are welcome to accompany students on the one-hour field trips.

WebKit becomes first browser engine to fully pass Acid3 test
By Prince McLean on AppleInsider
Published: 12:30 AM EST

Maciej Stachowiak of the WebKit team has announced that the browser engine behind Safari is the first to fully pass the Acid3 test, including the test's condition of smooth animation rendering.

Acid3 is a test page from the Web Standards Project that scores how well a rendering engine follows defined web standards, particularly DOM and JavaScript. The test provided a metric for standards compliance that has resulted in rapid advancement among various rendering engines as each works to earn the top score.

In March, both Safari's WebKit and Opera's Presto announced earning a 100% score in developer builds of their browser. In addition to the numbered score, the test also requires the browser render a test page with pixel perfect accuracy using its default settings and that it render a smooth test animation.

Today, the development build of WebKit passed that last hurdle, which Stachowiak reported was due to "recent speedups in JavaScript, DOM and rendering."

Actual shipping builds of the world's various web browsers haven't yet reached 100%. According to figures in Wikipedia, the latest Safari 3.1.2 has a score of 75, while Firefox 3.0.2 has reached 71, Opera 9.52 has reached 84, and Internet Explorer 7 is at 14.

In internal builds, the Safari 4.0 Developer Preview has reached 100, while the latest build of Firefox Gecko engine has reached 87, the latest build of Opera earns 99, Google's new Chrome beta has reached 79, and the Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 scores 21.

Among mobile browsers, the shipping version of Safari in iPhone 2.1 reaches 74, while the Netfront browser hits 11, Opera Mobile reaches 2, Opera Mini has hit 79. Pocket Internet Explorer can't run the test due to a lack of JavaScript support.

Microsoft's 'I'm a PC' campaign created with Macs
By Prince McLean on AppleInsider

Metadata found on Microsoft's creative copy used in its 'I'm a PC' ad reveals that the graphics were actually produced using Macs running Adobe Creative Suite 3. After the details were published on the Flickr photo sharing site, Microsoft scrambled to polish off the embarrassing details last night.

Microsoft's new ad features contrasts a "stereotyped PC user" dressed up like John Hodgman in Apple's Get a Mac ads with a number of people who say, "I'm a PC" apparently to affirm that they run Windows.

However, not even Microsoft itself can wean itself off the Mac, as the metadata discovered by Flickr user LuisDS points out. Microsoft was not only using Macs but also Adobe's software in place of its own Expressions Studio, which the company bills as software that "takes your creative possibilities to a new level."

By Aidan Malley on AppleInside
Published: 06:30 PM EST
Microsoft's promised campaign to restore Windows Vista's reputation has begun in earnest through a special promo website.

Now nicknamed the "Mojave Experiment," the promo campaign hosts videos of Windows XP owners who Microsoft says had a very negative perception of Vista but were shown the current version of the operating system under the fake "Mojave" name to gauge their reactions without media- and friend-made preconceptions in the way.

According to Microsoft, over 90 percent of these users came out with a complete changed, positive outlook on the operating system now that its initial kinks have purportedly been resolved a year and a half after its debut.

The company doesn't, however, say what customers were allowed to try during the test. While performance has been improved with recent patches, other complaints have centered around backwards compatibility with hardware and software.

Photoshop Lightroom 2 released as Adobe's first 64-bit Mac app

By Sam Oliver on AppleInsider
Published: 09:45 AM EST

Following an earlier open beta, Adobe on Tuesday released version 2.0 of its Photoshop Lightroom post production photography software, which stands as the company's first application to run 64-bit-native on Apple's Mac OS X Leopard operating system.

The San Jose-based software developer is particularly proud of the accomplishment given that Lightroom's main competitor, Apple's Aperture, has yet to see native 64-bit support.

Adobe has committed to delivering 64-bit versions of Photoshop and its other Creative Suite applications, but said earlier this year that those updates will take considerably longer due to Apple's decision to scrap plans for a 64-bit version of its Carbon developer tool set.

For Lightroom 2.0, 64-bit support will allow the application to address large amounts of memory in excess of 4 gigabytes, which will speed up overall performance for photographers dealing with large scale images that must be swapped into and out of memory during processing-intensive operations.

The software also aims to streamline and accelerate photographers’ workflows through an enhanced Library module featuring the ability to visually organize images across multiple hard drives. A Library Filter Bar and Suggested Keywords feature work towards simplifying the search and retrieval process.

Two other highly touted features of Lightroom 2.0 are dual-monitor support for maximizing workspace and more efficient printing tools. For instance, the software now arranges photos of multiple sizes on one or many pages with customizable templates to maximize paper and ink. Intelligent algorithms then automatically determine optimal sharpening for screen or print, producing crisper images faster.

Adobe is also rolling out new RAW technology that gives photographers access to flexible camera profiles that will help reduce unexpected changes in the quality of their photographs.

"Camera profiles are the visual starting point for the raw processing workflow, but image preferences vary for every photographer," the company siad. "To minimize surprises, Adobe is supplying default camera profiles that closely emulate the visual looks that photographers are used to seeing from their favorite camera, while also providing the ability to create highly customized profiles to suit different tastes."

Camera profiles are available for immediate download on Adobe Labs for use with Lightroom 2 and Camera RAW 4.5, along with a DNG Profile Editor for the community to test and create their own profiles. The tools currently support over 190 camera models including the Olympus E 420 and E 520 models.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 is available for immediate download (or shipping) through the Adobe Store in English, French and German with the Japanese language version planned to be released at a future date. New licenses cost $299 and upgrades fetch $99.

Apple's next-gen Macs to have something special under the hood By Kasper Jade on AppleInsider Published: 03:00 PM EST A new generation of personal computers on the way from Apple Inc. may sport some of the most significant architectural changes since the Mac maker made the jump from PowerPC processors to those manufactured by Intel Corp., AppleInsider has learned. As part of its move to Intel chips in early 2006, the Cupertino-based company largely abandoned its practice of using custom motherboard chipsets to support the primary CPU in its Macs. Instead, it began to rely on slightly tweaked versions of industry-standard chipsets offered by Intel to the broad range of PC manufacturers that develop Intel-powered systems. For instance, while Apple's existing line of MacBook and MacBook Pro notebooks are unique in that they run the Mac OS X operating system, they're architecturally based on the same run-of-the-mill processors and chipsets from Intel's Santa Rosa mobile platform also employed by Windows-supporting rivals, such as Dell and HP. However, with Apple striving to maintain Mac sales growth of more than two times the industry average, it's again looking to differentiate the architecture of its personal computer systems through alternative technology that will afford it an advantage beyond the reach of its competition. As such, people familiar with these plans say an upcoming generation of Macs, lead by a trio of redesigned notebooks, won't adopt the Montevina chipset announced as part of Intel's Centrino 2 mobile platform earlier this month. What's more, those same people suggest the chipset employed by the new wave of Macs may have little or nothing to do with Intel at all. (This should not be confused with the primary CPU, which will continue to come from Intel.) Exactly what alternative Apple has chosen remains unclear. However it's believed that Intel, which declined to comment for this story, would need to have established a licensing agreement with the firm responsible for manufacturing an Intel-compatible chipset, be it Apple or one of the company's third party suppliers. Assuming the chipsets in the new Macs are not based on Intel technology, that would leave Apple with only a handful of viable options. The company could return to a practice common during the years of PowerPC-based Macs in which it developed proprietary chipsets to support the primary processors in its systems. Another option is that Apple could forge a relationship with one of the other established third party chipset manufacturers, such as NVidia, AMD or Via, in a move that would allow the company to build its next-generation systems using technology cherry-picked from the best of both worlds.

A move by Apple away from Intel chipsets may also be tied to concerns over the power-hungry nature of the chipmaker's more recent mobile chipsets. The Mac maker has been working to reduce the size and weight of its notebook offerings while simultaneously extending battery life and introducing new features not accessible to its rivals. During a recent quarterly conference call, Apple chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer uncharacteristically made references to ongoing investments in new product technologies that would pressure the company's profit margins but leave competitors scrambling by the side of the road. "We have some investments in front of us that I can’t discuss with you today where we’re going to be delivering state of the art new products that our competitors just aren’t going to be able to match," he said, "and as a result, I would see gross margins being about 30 percent and that’s – that’s all I can tell you at this point." Since Apple's new Mac notebooks aren't necessarily following the same rollout schedule as competitive offerings based purely on standard Centrino 2 components, people familiar with the next-generation systems say it will be at least another 6 to 8 weeks before the company makes an official announcement.

An authentic photo of Apple's next-gen MacBook Pro casing.

Apple recently de-committed on notebook inventories for a two-week period to retail partners such as Best Buy, which spurred speculation of imminent upgrades. The move, however, is believed to be a result of orders related to the ongoing educational buying season, which typically puts a strain on Mac supply for a period of several weeks each year beginning in mid July.

Virginia Tech's Mac Pro supercomputer to crack 29 teraflops
By Aidan Malley on Apple Insider
Published: 07:30 PM EST

A switch to newer Intel-based Apple Mac Pro workstations for an upcoming rekindling of Virginia Tech's supercomputer efforts will more than double the performance to as much as 29 teraflops and will once again put a Mac cluster in the limelight -- this time, placing it among the top 100 supercomputers in the world.

When it's completed in the next several weeks, the new project discussed with Ars Technica will rely on 324 eight-core, 2.8GHz Mac Pro towers to achieve the result, joining them across a quad-speed InfiniBand link that offers three times as much room for network traffic as the original model, dubbed System X.

Although the school is using just a third of the computers found in the earlier cluster, which at its peak has used 1,150 Xserve G5s, the fresh cluster will have a total of 2,592 cores that individually operate faster than each of the 2,200 PowerPC chips found in the older rackmount computers. The old system at most processed 12.25 teraflops and itself eclipsed the original System X, based on 1,100 PowerMac G5s.

The performance of the new Xeon-based cluster at its theoretical peak of 29 teraflops would be enough to take 65th place in the Top500 supercomputer charts from June, outpacing famous supercomputer designers such as Cray and SGI as well as scientific institutions that include CERN in Switzerland and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the US.

Real-world performance is likely to dip due to performance overhead, but record-setting isn't its only reason for being, according to Dr. Srinidhi Varadarajan, director of Virginia Tech's Center for High-end Computing Systems. Instead, the Mac Pro edition will sit aside System X and will be dedicated to researching power-efficient software as well as shared-memory computing.

Even if it doesn't smash performance barriers, the new, unnamed cluster will still serve as an example of how technology has advanced both for Apple and the industry at large. While the sheer amount of power and heat from the Xserve group requires a specialized liquid-air cooling in an equally special building, the lesser power demands of the Xeons and their looser spacing in a tower format means that the institution can house the new cluster in a conventional room.

And it may also serve to humble Apple's rivals in the workstation space, according to Dr. Varadarajan. Since the Mac Pro includes so many sensors to monitor heat and power levels, it's considered better than many workstations for research where both measurements are critical to the tasks at hand. The Macs are likewise said to be fundamentally less expensive for the same level of performance than similar systems from Apple's competitors.

"The Mac Pros are highly competitive even against building a white box off the cheapest prices," the researcher notes.

Apple's Mac OS X 10.6 code named "Snow Leopard" - report by Aidan Malley on Apple insider

Apple is indeed well into the development of Mac OS X 10.6, which the company has internally code-named "Snow Leopard," according to ArsTechnica.

Citing a person familiar with the situation, the technology website confirms several details of the next major Mac OS X upgrade first reported on Tuesday, including a scheduled release as soon as Macworld 2009 this coming January, and that it will not introduce any major new features.

Instead, Snow Leopard is said to focus heavily on performance optimization and security, a move that will in all likelihood widen the gap between Mac OS X and Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system in those areas.

"Things like the MacBook Air, iPhone, iPod touch, and other mysterious devices that have yet to be announced need better performance for better battery life, and that's definitely something Apple wants to excel at in the years to come," wrote Ars' Jacqui Cheng.

Unconfirmed is whether the software will be shown off or discussed at the company's annual developers conference next week. However, AppleInsider in recent weeks has been told to expect discussion of "another big cat" at the event.

Also unconfirmed, but somewhat likely, is that Apple will completely wrap Snow Leopard in its Cocoa application programming interface (API) set, meaning that applications written via the company's legacy Carbon API will fail to run on the new system.



Adding corroboration to an AppleInsider report published last September, Ars adds that Mac OS X 10.6 is expected to support only Intel-based Macs, leaving owners of PowerPC-based systems of yesteryear out in the cold.

Update: Ars updates its report saying: "There may be some disagreement here as to what exactly "Cocoa-only" means, so take that into account when thinking about this. For example, Apple may only axe Carbon UI stuff."

Apple delivers movies to iTunes Stores in UK, Canada By Sam Oliver on Apple Insider

Apple on Wednesday announced that movies from several major film studios are now available for sale and rent on its iTunes Stores in the UK and Canada.

Among the studios serving up films on the UK store are 20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney Studios, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Entertainment, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM), Sony Pictures Television International and Lionsgate UK.

Apple said the service is already pre-loaded with 700 films available for rent or purchase, with titles available for purchase on the same day as their DVD release, including favorites such as “Hitman,” “I Am Legend,” “National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets” and “Into the Wild.” Over 100 titles are also available in high definition for viewing on a widescreen TV with Apple TV.

“We’re kicking off movies on the iTunes Store in the UK with over 700 films for purchase and rent,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of iTunes. “We think customers in the UK are going to love being able to enjoy their favorite movies on their iPod, iPhone or on a widescreen TV with Apple TV.

In Canada, Apple said over 1,200 films are available for rent or purchase, including 200 titles in high definition. Movies are available from all the same studios as those in the UK, with the addition of those from Canadian film house Maple Pictures.

With iTunes Movie Rentals, once a movie is rented, it starts downloading from the iTunes Store directly to iTunes or Apple TV, and users with a fast Internet connection can start viewing the movie in seconds. Customers have up to 30 days to start watching it, and once a movie has been started customers have 48 hours to finish it—or watch it multiple times.

In the UK, iTunes movies are available at £6.99 for library title purchases and £10.99 for new releases. iTunes Movie Rentals are £2.49 for library title rentals and £3.49 for new releases, and high definition versions are priced at just one pound more.

In Canada, iTunes movies are available at CAN$9.99 for catalog title purchases, CAN$14.99 for recent releases and CAN$19.99 for new releases. iTunes Movie Rentals are CAN$3.99 for library titles and CAN$4.99 for new releases, with high definition rental versions priced just one dollar more.

By Aidan Malley on AppleInsider.com

By AppleInsider Staff on AppleInsider
Published: 12:00 PM EST

An unusual .Mac website believed to belong to an Apple employee has been revealed to include promotional images depicting an all aluminum 13-inch MacBook design in addition to a MacBook Pro that takes design cues from the company's existing line of all-in-one iMac computers.

The images, which were passed on to MacRumors by an eagle-eyed viewer, largely match descriptions of new MacBook and MacBook Pro designs recently detailed by AppleInsider in a report on notebook makeovers due out from the Cupertino-based company a little later this year.

Specifically, the renderings show a 13-inch multi-touch MacBook clad completely in aluminum with the exception of the keyboard, which is black to match that of the one that recently began shipping on the MacBook Air.

Meanwhile, a new MacBook Pro depicted in the images appears to share the same kind of display bezel as Apple's current iMacs, completely with black trim that frames the notebook's LCD display.

Earlier this month, AppleInsider reported that the existing MacBook and MacBook Pro would be the last of their breed, as both product families were destined for major design changes upon their next refresh.

It was reported that the 13-inch MacBooks would undergo the most significant metamorphosis, shedding their plastic enclosures for ones constructed from more eco-friendly materials such as aircraft-grade aluminum and stainless steel.

Meanwhile, the 15- and 17-inch MacBook Pro were also reported to see aesthetic revisions, which like their upcoming MacBook counterparts were described by those familiar with the products as borrowing several design cues from the August 2007 aluminum iMacs and all-new MacBook Air.

By AppleInsider Staff on AppleInsider

Published: 12:00 PM EST

As rumors swirl over the possibility of a 3G iPhone with video conferencing capabilities, it may be of some interest to recall an earlier patent filing from Apple for an 'integrated sensing display' capable of serving as both a display screen and a digital camera.

The filing, which predates the iPhone's release by nearly three years, describes a new breed of LCD display that could simultaneously take photos while continuing its role as the primary display screen of an electronics device or computer monitor.

The idea behind the invention is to wedge thousands of microscopic image sensors between the LCD cells that make up the display, where each sensor would be responsible for capturing a piece of the overall photo. Those pieces would then be stitched together by software to recreate the complete image capture.

According to the filing, made back in June of 2004, the tiny image sensors could also have variable focal lengths in order to zoom and focus the image: "The lens might either be physically moved or have its properties altered. In the latter case, the lens might be made of a material that changes its refractive index in response to electrical stimulus or a magnetic field."

The filing has a newfound relevance given recent claims by Digg founder Kevin Rose that Apple's forthcoming iPhone revision will include a camera mounted on the face of the unit to coincide with a mobile version of iChat suited for handheld video conferencing.

While Rose's track-record on predicting Apple's future directions is akin to a hit or miss affair, the advent of video conference via iPhones is seemingly inevitable given time. Therefore his proposals, as well as those outlined in the patent, could potentially surface slightly further down the road should they not be part of Apple's more immediate plans.

Of particular interest in this regard, is the electronics maker's claims that 'integrated sensing displays' are ideally suited for video conferencing on handhelds, where the available real estate limits the number of components -- such as a front mounted cam in addition to a rear-mounted cam -- that can fit into the devices.

"A panel created from an integrated, embedded macro charge-coupled devices (CCD) would thus be able to both display and record visual information simultaneously, without the use of an external video capture device. Simply put, the same panel could display a video conference while also recording the participant sitting in front of it," the company said in the filing.

"A video panel that has an embedded macro CCD is no longer just a display. It can be used to transmit as well as receive visual information. One use and benefit for such a panel is video conferencing: a user can maintain eye contact with someone on screen because the camera is 'in' the screen. In addition, portable devices, such as portable digital assistants (PDAs) and cell phones, have very limited space for displays and would benefit if additional real estate were not used for a camera."



The patent filing was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office in April of 2006 alongside three other filings pertaining to wireless iPods, iChat whiteboards, and virtual touch-screen keyboards -- technologies which were all later implemented in shipping Apple products.

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 10:20 AM EST

Following up on a previous set of 2.8GHz Mac Pro benchmarks, Geekbench developer Primate Labs has expanded its report on the latest Apple workstations to include performance measures for all three models, including the 8-Core 3.2GHz configuration.

Each of the three machines were configured identically with 2.00GB of 800 MHz DDR2 FB-DIMMs, Mac OS X 10.5.1 build 9B2117, and pit against a baseline, where a score of 1000 represents the performance of a Power Mac G5 running at 1.6GHz.
Additionally, each model was tested under Geekbench 2 running both 32-bit and 64-bit code for a more in-depth comparison of the systems' capabilities.

"What’s interesting about the charts [below] is that the performance difference between the 2.8GHz and 3.2GHz Mac Pro isn’t as great as the difference between running 32-bit code and 64-bit code," the firm concluded following the tests. "In fact, the 2.8GHz Mac Pro running 64-bit code is faster than the 3.2GHz Mac Pro running 32-bit code."

Here's a fresh Apple rumor in the run-up to MacWorld: a TomTom GPS module for the iPhone. We just received this supposed photographic "evidence" of said device from a Dutch tipster. Our take? Might be, might not. TomTom is a Dutch company and a righteous, straight-talkin' Dutchman would never tell such a fib, would he? On the other hand, that device is clearly not in a car heading to Rotterdam. Still, it could be a route demo and that stretch of highway (A13/E19) is a favorite for internal TomTom validation studies. Surely a move towards GPS is a logical next step for Apple -- particularly after that little VW concept. And with Apple on the verge of opening the iPhone to third party developers, well, anything goes, eh?

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 10:15 AM EST

O2, the largest mobile carrier in the UK and exclusive provider of Apple's iPhone for the region, says it expects the touch-screen handset to become its fastest selling phone yet when it goes on sale this Friday at 6:00 p.m.

Speaking to the Financial Times, O2 chief executive Matthew Key estimated a "a couple of hundred thousand" iPhones would be sold in the first two months, adding that his firm along with its retail partner have ordered "hundreds of thousands" of units from Apple in preparation for the Nov. 9 launch.

Carolina Milanesi, an analyst at Gartner, found Key's forecast to be on the conservative end, and instead believes between 350,000 and 400,000 iPhones could be sold in the UK by January. Part of that success will have to hinge on O2's retail partner in the region, Carphone Warehouse. 

In a separate interview with the Telegraph, Key recalls openly admitting to Apple chief executive Steve Jobs that O2 would need to use Carphone Warehouse as a retail partner to maximise distribution if it were selected as the exclusive iPhone carrier for the UK.

Key's openness reportedly chimed with Apple, which later revealed to have already mystery-shopped all O2's stores in the UK -- something Jobs also did for himself before Apple formally announced its intention to use O2 as its exclusive provider for iPhone in the region. 

"He's a hugely impressive guy, hugely impressive guy," Key said of Jobs. ''He clearly knows his stuff in a level of detail that for someone at that level is mindblowing, and he has a great incisiveness in terms of what the customer wants and needs in products."

The O2 chief said he knew immediately after his first two-hour meeting with Jobs that iPhone was a device he absolutely had to offer to his customners.

"In the UK market, where the top four networks have pretty much equal shares, it offers a great way for me to get a hell of a lot of high-value customers on to O2 and drive up data usage," he said.

By Prince McLean

Published: 02:00 PM EST

Bloggers and hackers aren't the only ones sticking it to iPhone maker Apple Inc. for its closed minded approach to user-customization of the touch-screen handsets -- Nokia has taken advantage of the situation by launching a print and web campaign dubbed "Open to anything."

"We believe the best devices have no limits. That's why we've left the Nokia Nseries open," the Finland-based handset maker wrote on its new "Open to anything" website. "Open to applications. Open to widgets. Open to anything. So go ahead and load it up. What is does is up to you."

The campaign, which was accompanied by the posting of similarly-worded bills in New York City this past weekend, is an obvious response to the latest iPhone update on Thursday. As Apple had warned, the software patch disabled versions of the Apple handset that had been "unlocked" to operate on wireless carries other than AT&T, while adding a couple of new features like the Wi-Fi iTunes Music Store.

In addition, however, the update wreaked havoc on a number unmodified iPhones and those iPhones which had been only modified to run third-party software applications but had otherwise remained locked to the Apple-approved carrier. Users who reached out to Apple for help in reactivating those phones were turned away (video) in the same manner as those users who had unlocked the devices against Apple's stated policy.

The Cupertino-based firm's harsh stance was met with considerable outrage because, unlike unlocking, users who had installed third-party applications simply to increase the usefulness of their pricey handsets -- in addition to those who had done nothing at all -- were suddenly being informed that they had voided their warranty on the handset as a whole and were on their own in attempting to somehow reactivate those phones.

The matter is complicated by a number of factors, primarily what is now being perceived by some as a poor job on Apple's part to convey its stance on third-party applications to iPhone users earlier in the handset's lifecycle. Recent comments from an Apple executive even made it appear as if the company was taking an indifferent stance to the development and installation such third-party apps. Additionally, Apple's public warning seemed only to target unlockers rather than those installing applications.

What's more, third-party iPhone apps and simple point-and-click applications to easily install them had become as commonplace on the Internet in recent weeks as shareware applications. Therefore, some iPhone owners may have used such applications without a full understanding of the consequences.

As a result of these and other gripes with Apple's iPhone policies, users are now banding together in an attempt to drum up support for a class-action lawsuit against the company under three theoretical classes.

The first class would contain iPhone owners who have used third-party software to access the flash storage on an iPhone, without having altered firmware or installed a program on the device. A second would include owners who had installed third-party apps in the past, but who have since restored their phones to factory defaults but are still suffering from hardware problems such as bad touchscreens.

A third and final class would challenge the whole unlocking issues, which is reportedly legal under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act but discouraged by Apple, which states on the iPhone's packaging and marketing material that an AT&T contract is required for usage.


In the meantime, the whole iPhone mess is garnering national recognition from the the mainstream media and slowly snowballing into a public relations nightmare for Apple. The New York Times recently ran a piece that quotes Apple spokesperson Jennifer Bowcock as saying those iPhone owners who are experiencing problems following the recent iPhone update should "purchase a new iPhone." And overseas, the Guardian syndicated Gizmodo's updated recommendation to its readers, which is "Don't Buy" an iPhone:

"Screw the unlock for a second. Let's talk about the those third-party apps," wrote Brian Lam, an editor at the widely read and Apple "approved" gadget blog. "While my 4GB iPhone is a brick, and the 8GB phone, which I kept on a totally legit AT&T contract, is now stripped down. Programs like the faux-GPS, IM clients, Flickr Upload, and NES emulator -- what did they ever do but make the iPhone far better than the stock original? They made it far more competitive with open-platform superphones like the Nokia N95, to which I will now be switching."

While Apple likely mulls a response, Nokia and other would-be rivals are sure to be having a field day with this one.

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 11:00 AM EST

A new line of Apple notebooks believed to be nearing release have been spotted in both black and traditional aluminum enclosures, according to a new report.

The systems are said to be thinner than the company's existing MacBook and MacBook Pro offerings, while also sporting a more compact footprint that includes a thinner display bezel.

Outside of this information, details appear to be scarce. It's not entirely clear whether the notebooks are part of an upcoming revision to Apple's consumer-oriented MacBook line or are simply one-in-the same with the much rumored "ultra-portble" design first detailed back in February.

The latter systems are expected to include L.E.D-backlit 13-inch LCD panels, on-board NAND flash (for faster application launching and boot times), and lack a traditional optical disc drive.

It's believed that Apple had originally intended to launch the slimmer notebook line alongside its next-generation Leopard operating system back in June, but subsequently pushed the release out to "late 2007 or early 2008" when Leopard's expected release date slipped to October.

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 01:00 PM EST

Apple plans to extend business hours at its London-based flagship retail store following Tuesday's press conference. Meanwhile, Best Buy is being stocked with the new iPod touch this weekend, NewsCorp. has a change of tone, talks are underway to bring the iPhone to Spain, and Apple has updated its iPhone credit terms.


Extended London Store Hours

Apple has called a press conference at its London-based flagship shop on Regent Street for next Tuesday. As a result, the store will not open to the public until 4:00 p.m. that day.

Employees of the store, however, have been asked to arrive at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday for a 90 minute briefing. They say Apple plans to extend the store hours till 10:00 p.m. that day and that employees will be asked to remain on site until 11:00 p.m.

Additionally, Apple at around 10:00 p.m. last night is said to have begun some modifications to the store's theater area. No further details were available. It's widely expected that the Cupertino-based company will use the press conference to divulge plans for its iPhone launch in Europe.

Best Buy gets Touch'd

Meanwhile, several Best Buy stores -- Apple's new best friend in the retail business -- began receiving their first shipments of Apple's new iPod touch player on Friday. A source at the retailer tells AppleInsider that all locations should have both the 8GB and 16GB models on sale over the weekend, or no later than Monday.

A change of tone for NewsCorp.

Over at NewsCorp., executives appear have tweaked their tone regarding iTunes video licensing talks with the iPod maker. President and chief operating officer Peter Chernin, who on Tuesday said his firm enjoyed a "perfectly good relationship with Apple," later told Reuters that the two companies have a "pretty limited relationship."

"[W]e'll see how it goes," he said. "I assume it will be prickly and dicey and contentious like all negotiations are and like all negotiations should be."

The change in tone may spell trouble ahead for Apple, which, amid growing opposition from content providers, has failed to advance its iTunes video download service with any significant improvements since last fall. NBC Universal's recent decision not to renew its video licensing agreement with the electronics maker may have been the first sign of backwards progress.

Those sentiments were outlined in recent piece over at Forbes titled "the iFlop," where columnist Scott Woolley called out Apple chief executive Steve Jobs for his failure to follow through on promises to evolve Apple TV into the future of television.

iPhone in Spain

Meanwhile, Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica SA has acknowledged that it is in talks with Apple over the right to sell the iPhone in Spain. On Wednesday, Spanish news agency Efe quoted Telefonica's Chairman, Cesar Alierta, on the matter, adding that Apple is sealing exclusive contracts to sell iPhone with only one operator in each country

$100 iPhone credit good for iTunes gift cards

Finally, Bloomberg reports that Apple incorrectly stated Friday that its $100 iPhone credit couldn't be used towards the purchase of iTunes gift cards and has since updated its terms. While it remains true that users can't add the credit directly to their existing iTunes accounts, they can use it to purchase new gift cards, the publication said.

By Slash Lane

Published: 09:55 AM EST

NewsCorp., which umbrellas Fox TV, will not pull its television shows from Apple Inc.'s iTunes Store as rival media group NBC Universal has done over a pricing dispute, a company executive said Tuesday.

In an interview with Reuters, NewsCorp President and chief operating officer Peter Chernin said Rupert Murdoch's media group was not in a dispute with Apple, but would like a bigger voice in pricing its shows.

"Right now we have a perfectly good relationship with Apple," he said. "But let me say this, we're the ones who should determine what the fair price for our product is, not Apple."

Some industry watchers had expected NewsCorp and other media groups to follow the lead of NBC Universal, which said last month it would not extend its agreement to sell television shows on the Apple download service because it wanted more flexibility in offering different packages and pricing.

Reuters reports that NewsCorp's decision to keep popular Fox shows such as 24 and Prison Break on iTunes should be welcomed by Apple chief executive Steve Jobs, who is facing growing opposition from media companies over who should mandate the pricing structures for their original content.

Following a standoff in negotiations earlier this summer, Universal Music Group of Vivendi -- the world’s biggest music label -- said it would not renew its annual contract to sell music through iTunes. Instead, Universal said it would market music to Apple at will, allowing it to yank its songs from the iTunes service on short notice if the two sides do not agree on pricing or other terms in the future.

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 11:45 AM EST

Paul McCartney, one of the founding members of The Beatles, is scheduled to to appear on BBC Radio 1 later this afternoon to make "very special announcement," AppleInsider has learned.

McCartney, whose appearance is likely to coincide with announcements from Apple Inc. around the same time, will join BBC Radio 1’s Edith Bowman at approximately 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Rumors that Apple and the Beatles have finally reached terms to bring the Fab Four's music catalog to Apple's ubiquitous iTunes Store received a shot in the arm last week when Apple issued digital invites to its special media event on September 5th, with the caption "The beat goes on."

As was previously noted by AppleInsider, "The beat goes on" phrase appears to have been borrowed from the trailing line of The Beatles' final press release, which was issued by Apple Records on April 10, 1970, following the band's split.

"Spring is here and Leeds play Chelsea tomorrow and Ringo and John and George and Paul are alive and well and full of hope. The world is still spinning and so are we and so are you," read the 1970 Beatles release. "When the spinning stops -- that'll be the time to worry, not before. Until then, the Beatles are alive and well and the beat goes on, the beat goes on."

Apple's event begins today at 10:00 a.m. Pacific, 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

By Aidan Malley
Published: 07:20 PM EST

NBC Universal has rejected claims by Apple that it wanted to more than double the price of TV shows on iTunes -- and has also contradicted threats that new NBC shows would disappear from the iPod maker's online store.


In a statement to the press, NBC flatly dismissed Apple's contention that the TV studio's ultimate goal had been to charge $4.99 per show, more than twice as much as today's $1.99 rate. The actual goal has been to institute "flexibility in wholesale pricing" and bundle shows together in more "attractive" ways, said NBC's executive vice president of communications, Cory Shields.

The studio also insisted that all of its existing shows would see new episodes available for sale through iTunes in spite of Apple's declaration mid-Friday that it wouldn't carry updated NBC programming for the fall season. The company did not say how it intended to force Apple to agree to the terms, but appeared to use its existing contract as leverage.

"We want consumers to know that all our returning series, including new episodes, will be available on iTunes through the remainder of the contract, which expires in early December," said Shields. "Our content is also available on NBC.com, Amazon.com, and the soon-to-launch hulu.com."

The statement reiterates NBC's cautious approach to renewing its contract with Apple, leaving a window open for the the two firms to resolve their dispute before the end of the contract. But in a counter to Apple's own allegations, NBC argued that its would-be partner was the unreasonable firm in the dispute, attempting to keep prices at its media store fixed in a way that favors sales of iPods and iPhones above the shows themselves.

"It is clear that Apple’s retail pricing strategy for its iTunes service is designed to drive sales of Apple devices," Shields asserted," at the expense of those who create the content that make these devices worth buying."

The confirmation of variable pricing as a sticking point for NBC reveals the seriousness of the issue for its parent company Vivendi. July saw NBC's sister company Universal Music Group drop its long-term contract for iTunes music, choosing instead to offer music "at will" so long as Apple maintained its flat 99-cent song pricing. Warner Music and other larger labels have also made similar arguments, but aren't known to have abandoned their own contracts.

By AppleInsider Staff
Published: 07:00 PM EST

Apple Inc. will use a special media event on September 5th to introduce a new array of digital media offerings, according to digital invitations issued to analysts and members of the media Tuesday afternoon.

The invites, which arrived by e-mail, depict an enlarged CoverFlow interface with the caption, "The beat goes on." The wording appears to have been borrowed from the trailing line of The Beatles' final press release, which was issued by Apple Records on April 10, 1970, following the band's split.

"Spring is here and Leeds play Chelsea tomorrow and Ringo and John and George and Paul are alive and well and full of hope. The world is still spinning and so are we and so are you," read the 1970 Beatles release. "When the spinning stops -- that'll be the time to worry, not before. Until then, the Beatles are alive and well and the beat goes on, the beat goes on."

Apple's event is scheduled to take place at the Moscone West in San Francisco on September 5 at 10:00 a.m.

Apple is widely expected to use the gathering to usher in a new breed of Mac OS X-based iPods. Additional announcements relating to the company's iTunes software and digital media download service are also expected.

By AppleInsider Staff
Published: 03:25 PM EST

Apple Inc. has reached an agreement with three separate European wireless carriers to act as exclusive iPhone partners in the UK, France and Germany, the Financial Times is reporting.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the financial paper said T-Mobile of Germany, Orange of France and O2 in the UK, have each in recent days signed agreements that afford them exclusive rights to market the Apple handset to customers within those respective nations.

In return, the Cupertino-based electronics maker has reportedly succeeded in committing the phone operators to fork over 10 percent of the revenues made from calls and data transfers by customers using iPhones.

"The deal gives manufacturers of handsets for the first time a direct share of the revenues a mobile phone operator makes from calls and data transfers, marking a shift in the relationship between the parties," the Financial Times reported.

Thus far, mobile operators have campaigned fiercely against such an approach. However, experts told the Times that Apple’s success in securing the deals could spur other handset manufacturers to try to secure similar terms.

All three of the European wireless carriers are said to be hoping for a significant boost in their image from the exclusive deal with Apple, as well as a pool of attractive customers with high rates of spending on calls and data transfers.

Among the tactics used by Apple to lured the mobile operators, according to the Times, was the prospect of a financially risk-free business -- as it will not allow for common subsidies on the sale of handsets.

The operators will reportedly announce the partnerships at the IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin, which runs August 31st through September 5th.

By Slash Lane
Published: 09:35 AM EST

Apple Inc., which is expected to introduce a widescreen ultra-portable in the coming months, may compact the notebook's I/O ports into a collapsible connection receptacle on the rear of the unit in order to conserve space, a new design patent has revealed.

"Mobile devices such as notebook computers are becoming increasingly thinner," Apple explained in the 11-page filing published for the first time Thursday. "As a result, connections systems need to be reduced in size to accommodate smaller form factors."

However, the Cupertino-based systems designer notes that one limitation when reducing the size of a connection system is that the reduction is limited by the size of the largest port (which usually include Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports, FireWire ports, RJ-11 ports, and RJ-45 ports).

For example, RJ-45 ports are relatively large and thus may be a challenge to accommodate, Apple said. To remedy this situation, the company has proposed a "connection system" that includes a connection receptacle comprising a first component coupled to a chassis and a second component coupled to the first component.

"The connection system includes a connection receptacle that is implemented as two separate components. One of the components is fixed in that it is coupled to the chassis, and the other component is rotatable or coupled to a moving mechanism," the company explained. "The combination of the fixed and rotating components are adapted to receive a plug when the connection receptacle is in an open position, and the fixed and rotating components are collapsed into a compact configuration when the connection receptacle is in a closed position."

Under Apple's design proposal, the ports maintain their original form whether the connection system is in an open or in a closed position. When the connection system swings to the closed or stowed position, the ports also swing into a stowed position such that they are flush with the mobile device chassis.
Although the filing primarily describes a concept where multiple ports are integrated into a single connection system, it may also apply to other configurations. For example, Apple said each port (e.g., the RJ-45 port 122) can be separate from other ports such that a single port can be moved into open and closed positions independent from other ports.

In general, and by minimizing the space requirements of the stowed position, larger ports such as standard RJ-45 ports no longer limit the potential reduction in connection systems, the company said.
"Accordingly, this collapsing function enables a substantial reduction in the size of the connection system and thereby enables a substantial reduction in the form factor of a device implementing the connection system," Apple added. "For example, a notebook computer may have a highly tapered chassis shape."

The April 17, 2007 patent filing -- credited to well-known Apple interface designers Gavin Reid, Chris Ligtenberg, and Bartley Andre -- could hint at design concepts that may make their way into Apple's upcoming ultra-portable notebook design.

Sometime later this year or early next, Apple is expected to introduce its first ultra-portable notebook in some time. Sources have said the unit will lack a traditional optical drive, include on-board NAND flash, and sport a 13-inch widescreen LED-backlit display.

By AppleInsider Staff
Published: 01:00 PM EST

Apple's new 24-inch iMac taps a faster Intel Core 2 Duo processor and front-side bus to post modest speed gains over its predecessors, a series of Geekbench benchmark tests has revealed.

Primate Labs recently pit the new 2.4Ghz 24-inch iMac against previous generation 2.33GHz and 2.16GHz 24-inch systems, each of which was running Mac OS X 10.4.10 with 2GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM.

The new 24-inch iMacs sport two major advantages over the older 24-inch iMacs; they have faster processors, and they use the new Santa Rosa chipset (instead of the Napa chipset used in the older 24-inch iMacs).

After running a set of Geekbench tests on the three systems, Primate Labs reports that the new iMac's faster processor helps increase both integer and floating point performance, while its faster front-side bus on the Santa Rosa chipset helps increase memory and stream performance.

"So if you’re running memory-intensive applications (like Aperture or Photoshop) you’ll certainly notice an increase in performance with the new 24-inch iMac," the firm wrote. "Heck, the fact that the new 24-inch iMac supports 4GB of RAM while the old 24-inch iMac supports 3GB of RAM might be enough to convince you to get one."

In reporting the benchmark scores for the systems, Primate opted to use the baseline score, rather than the raw score. The results follow:

By AppleInsider Staff
Published: 01:00 PM EST

The Wi-Fi implementation within Apple's new iPhone handset appears to be the source of a big headache for network administrators at Duke University, according to a published report.

Writing for Network World, John Cox claims that the built-in 802.11b/g adapters on several iPhones periodically flood sections of the Durham, N.C. institution's pervasive wireless LAN with MAC address requests, temporarily knocking out anywhere from a dozen to 30 wireless access points at a time.

"Misbehaving iPhones" are reportedly flooding the access points with up to 18,000 address requests per second, or nearly 10Mbps of bandwidth. As a result, the access points show up as "out of service" for 10-15 minutes at a time, in which there's no way to communicate with them, said Kevin Miller, assistant director, communications infrastructure, with Duke’s Office of Information Technology.

“Because of the time of year for us, it’s not a severe problem,” Miller said. “But from late August through May, our wireless net is critical. My concern is how many students will be coming back in August with iPhones?"

Duke's network team is reported to have identified the Apple handsets as the cause of the issue after capturing wireless traffic for analysis. Cox said the requests are for what is, at least for Duke’s network, an invalid router address. However, the source of the bad router addresses have not yet been isolated.

"Devices use the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) to request the MAC address of the destination node, for which it already has the IP address," he wrote. "When it doesn’t get an answer, the iPhone just keeps asking."

Duke's IT department is said to have filed a help desk ticket with Apple over the matter but so far communication with iPhone maker has been "one-way," Cox added.

While Apple is reported to have "escalated" the university's help request, it hadn't yet provided anything substantive as of Monday afternoon.

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 07:00 PM EST

Despite some flaws and feature omissions, the iPhone is, on balance, a beautiful and breakthrough handheld computer, writes the Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg, who on Tuesday published the first official review of the inaugural Apple handset.

In particular, the renowned technology columnist praised the Apple device's software for setting a new bar for the smart-phone industry, noting that its clever finger-touch interface works well, though sometimes adds steps to common functions.

"[iPhone] offers the best Web browser we have seen on a smart phone, and robust email software," he wrote. "It has the largest and highest-resolution screen of any smart phone we've seen, and the most internal memory by far. Yet it is one of the thinnest smart phones available and offers impressive battery life, better than its key competitors claim."

Excerpts and points of particular interest from the review have been compiled below, though readers are encouraged to check out Walt's full review, which was compiled over a two-week period with help from fellow journalist Katie Boehret.

On the upside

• The iPhone's virtual keyboard "turned out in our tests to be a nonissue." After five days of use, Walt "was able to type on it as quickly and accurately as he could on the Palm Treo he has used for years."
• iPhone does work overseas, but only via an AT&T roaming plan.
• The initial iPhone model cannot be upgraded to use the faster [3G] networks.
• When you have access to Wi-Fi, the iPhone flies on the Web. "Not only that, but the iPhone automatically switches from EDGE to known Wi-Fi networks when it finds them, and pops up a list of new Wi-Fi networks it encounters as you move."
• iPhone is thinner than the skinny Samsung BlackJack.
• While iPhone does pick up smudges, it didn't acquire a single scratch during the two-week period, even though it was tossed into Walt's pocket or briefcase (and Katie's purse) without any protective case or holster. "No scratches appeared on the rest of the body either."

On the downside

• "The phone is about as long as the Treo 700, the BlackBerry 8800 or the BlackJack, but it's slightly wider than the BlackJack or Treo, and heavier than the BlackBerry and BlackJack."
• "While the iPhone uses the standard iPod port on the bottom edge, it doesn't recognize all car adapters for playing music, only for charging." Walt claims Apple is considering a software update to fix this.
• "There's no overall search on the iPhone (except Web searching), and no quick way to move to the top or bottom of pages (except in the Web browser)."
• "There's also no way to cut, copy, or paste text."
• "If you are playing music while doing something else, the lack of hardware playback buttons forces you to return to the iPod program to stop the music or change a song."
• "The error-correction system didn't seem as clever as the one on the BlackBerry, and you have to switch to a different keyboard view to insert a period or comma, which is annoying."
• "It can also handle corporate email using Microsoft's Exchange system, if your IT department cooperates by enabling a setting on the server."
• No BlackBerry email services but Yahoo Mail's free BlackBerry-style "push" email to iPhone users "worked fine."
• iPhone can view, but can't edit or save Word or Excel files.
• "Its battery life is excellent. In our tests, it got seven hours and 18 minutes of continuous talk time, while the Wi-Fi was on and email was constantly being fetched in the background."
• Under the same conditions, Walt got 22 hours of music playback, over 9 hours for Internet usage, and seven hours -- enough to watch 4 average movies -- for video.
• The phone interface takes more taps to reach than on many other smart phones, because there are no dedicated hardware phone buttons. You also cannot just start typing a name or number, but must scroll through a list of favorites.
• "Voice call quality was good, but not great. In some places, especially in weak coverage areas, there was some muffling or garbling."
• "While its two megapixel camera took excellent pictures in our tests, it can't record video."
• "Its otherwise excellent Web browser can't fully utilize some Web sites, because it doesn't yet support Adobe's Flash technology."
• Can't use songs on iPhone's iPod as ringtones.
• "Apple says it plans to add features to the phone over time, via free downloads, and hints that some of these holes may be filled."

Read Walt's review in full over at The Wall Street Journal.

David Pogue of the New York Times has also posted his own iPhone review.

By AppleInsider Staff

Published: 11:00 AM EST

Vodafone may not be the only European wireless carrier under consideration for Apple's iPhone contract in Europe. Meanwhile, a prominent market research firm says video services like iTunes are just a "temporary flash" along the way to better alternatives. And it's official -- one Beatle is on his way to iTunes.

T-Mobile's iPhone play

Germany-based T-Mobile may become the iPhone's official carrier for Europe, according to those close to the negotiations. Although it had been suggested that Vodafone would win -- an implication the carrier publically denied -- MarketingWeek reported last week that its rival at T-Mobile is favored as the sole outlet for iPhone sales in the continent.

Other Europe-wide providers such as O2 and Orange were said to have been in the running but unsuccessful in reaching the later stages of contract discssions. Terms of a possible deal weren't discussed but may be different than the multi-year exclusivity agreement Apple has signed with AT&T in the US.

"It would be in Apple's best interests to get more than one operator to distribute the phone because the European market is more fragmented than the US," one analyst told the publication.

T-Mobile does not operate in as many countries as Vodafone, and would be locked out of key European countries such as France, Italy, and Spain.

iTunes video service a dead-end?

Online video sites that sell shows and movies such as Apple Inc.'s iTunes will likely peak this year as more programming is made available on free outlets supported by advertising, claims the latest study from Forrester Research.

According to the firm, sales of movies and television shows are expected to almost triple to $279 million in 2007 from an estimated $98 million last year. But unless the average consumer begins paying for their online video en masse, growth in sales will likely peter out next year.

"In the video space, iTunes is just a temporary flash while consumers wait for better ways to get video. They're already coming," said Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey, the author of the study, who also called the paid download video market a "dead end."

The firm estimated that sales growth is not likely to triple or even double in 2008 and beyond, after early adopters and media addicts have already started using the services.

iTunes lands a Beatle

Meanwhile, Macworld UK notes that EMI has confirmed plans to release the entire Paul McCartney solo catalogue through online music services for the first time (as first reported last week by Ars).

EMI Music has retained the former Beatles' solo catalogue and is preparing a comprehensive re-launch, including new digital campaigns as well as physical re-releases.

"Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles catalogue, spanning four decades, is one of the great treasures of popular music," said Tony Wadsworth, chairman and CEO, EMI Music UK. "EMI is proud to be introducing Paul’s music to the digital marketplace."

The catalogue includes Paul’s first solo album ‘McCartney’ through his releases with Wings to his latest critically-acclaimed studio album ‘Chaos And Creation In The Backyard’.

Singles to be released digitally will include: ‘Band On The Run’, ‘My Love’, ‘Let ‘Em In’, and ‘Jet’.

By AppleInsider Staff
Apr-25-2007
05:00 PM

Apple said Wednesday it will leverage its proven capability in the area of software development to gradually add new software features and applications to its iPhone and Apple TV products free of charge, providing its customers with the "greatest possible experience."

"We are taking this bold step to leverage what we do best," chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer said during a conference call with analysts and members of the media.

Oppenheimer offered few additional details on the initiative, but implied that the new features and applications would be made available through automatic software updates to both iPhone and Apple TV.

During the call, executives for the Cupertino-based company also revealed that Apple retail store personnel are "putting a lot of energy into preparing for the launch" of iPhone and how to best market the revolutionary device to customers.

Although Apple has yet to begin taking iPhone orders through retail or its online store, it said to expect an announcement at a later date. It remains on track to introduce the device in Europe during the fourth calendar quarter (Oct. - Dec.) and Asia in 2008.

In the United States, iPhones will be sold via Apple.com, Cingular.com, Apple retail stores, and Cingular/AT&T retail stores. It will not be sold through Cingular/AT&T partner stores such as Best Buy.

Apple said it will report iPhone-related payments from AT&T/Cingular on a quarterly basis. It also appears, from the company's comments, that it will be breaking out iPhone unit sales each quarter.

Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook would not comment on initial iPhone supply, explaining that the company had not yet begun manufacturing ramp of the device.

"It's very difficult to tell what demand is until you're shipping the product," he said.

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