Apple TV, News/Rumors

Apple to stream WWDC 2013 keynote to Apple TV

For those who are not attending WWDC 2013, Apple offered to watch it live and added an “Apple Events” channel to users’ Apple TV main screens on Monday.

The company is panning to allow the public to view a live stream of today’s Worldwide Developers Conference keynote.

The company offered the Apple Events channel in October of last year ahead of Apple’s iPad mini event.

Today’s WWDC 2013 keynote is expected to announce iOS 7, Apple’s next-generation mobile operating system for the iPhone and iPad, . OS X 10.9, and a streaming music service.

Apple probably presents new Macs with a refresh of Apple’s MacBook Air lineup and gives the new notebook Intel’s new Haswell processors and new dual microphones.

screen-shot-2013-06-10-at-3-47-21-am wwdc_2013_apple_tv_1

Apps Lists, Mac, News/Rumors

Sim City for Mac pushed to August

SimCity was originally set to arrive on the Mac on June 11, but the company has announced that the release will be delayed as the app is not ready.

SimCity is planning to offer Mac users a chance to experience the gameplay which was sold to three million units after its first launch in March.

“We are announcing that we are moving the release date of the Mac version of SimCity to August. We have made this tough decision because we do not believe it is ready for primetime yet. We want to ensure the Mac is a great experience for our players and that is why we are taking more time”- said senior producer Kip Katsarelis.

To make up for the delay, EA said that it will extend the availability of the SimCity Launch Park, so those who were expecting to get the game on June, still can purchase the Mac version.

sim-city-130606
To provide the Mac version with a smooth running, Maxis overworked its software by means of OpenGL. It will guarantee cooperation between players, even placed in different devices.

For those who can’t wait until August, PC version of SimCity is available right now. Moreover, if you are a PC SimCity player, you’ll be automatically offered a free copy of the game to your Mac.

iPod, News/Rumors

Apple launched new 16GB iPod touch priced at $229

Apple on Wednesday launched a new iPod touch variant featured a 4-inch Retina display, dual-core A5 chip, and Apple EarPods. Previous Apple’s iPod touch included a 5th generation model with 32GB or 64GB of memory and a 4th generation model with 16GB or 32GB memory. According to KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who gave his predictions concerning new Apple’s products early this year, the new version would be available only in a black-on-silver design. That’s just the way it is! The new model only comes in one color.

What the new variant doesn’t have is a rear camera but it retains the front-facing FaceTime camera. One more change is the 16GB model’s weight, which drops down to 3.04 ounces due to the camera removed.
Note, that the fifth-generation iPod touch was presented in September of 2012 without a 16GB option with the third-generation player.

The new device replaces the 4th generation models, so Apple has already stopped selling new 4th-gen iPod touch models. You can get it in Apple’s online store with the shipping time being 24 hours .

13.05.30-iPod_touch_16

Mac, News/Rumors

Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock for Mac is finally here

The Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock, a docking station, which lets you use a single connection to create high-speed, reliable transfers between your laptop and up to eight other devices, is now available for purchase for $299. It should be noted, that firstly it was announced in January of 2012, more than a year after the Mac accessory was unveiled. At the time, the company said the accessory would become available last September, but it wasn’t launched then. With Thunderbolt Express Dock, all your drives, networking, input and output devices connect to the 8 ports on the back.

In short, eight cables become one cable with Thunderbolt Express Dock. It provides the user with the high speed, that allows to download a film in a short time. Taking your laptop when you go, and bringing it home when you return means connecting with only one cable. Thus, everything is faster, easier and better! The hardware has been upgraded to include three USB 3.0 ports. The firstly announced hardware featured USB 2.0 ports running at slower speeds. Can a single cable really handle all that I/O? Yes, but it’s difficult to beleive until you see Thunderbolt Express Dock with our eyes.

belkin-130430

The BelkinThunderbolt Express Dock includes:

  • One Firewire 800 port
  • One Thunderbolt port for daisy-chaining up to five additional Thunderbolt devices
  • One 3.5 millimeter headphone output jack
  • One 3.5 millimeter audio input jack
  • Three USB 3.0 ports with max data transfer of 2.5Gbps
  • Cable management channel
  • One Gigabit Ethernet port

belkin-130430-2

 

Apple, Mac, News/Rumors

Tim Cook about iMac “significant shortage”.

During the Q&A portion of today’s earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook was asked about the number of product releases in the fall of 2012 and whether he wished Apple had done things differently.
Cook said:” Looking back, I would have delayed the release of the new iMac until 2013 to avoid some of the the delays that many customers experienced after ordering a new Mac. I don’t spend a lot of time looking back except to learn from it. If we could run it over, I’d announce the iMac after the turn of the year. We felt customers had to wait too long for that specific product.”
The problem is Apple’s new iMacs experienced significant delays in shipping, due to the thinness of the machine. The displays required a new manufacturing process along with advanced welding techniques, causing some customers to wait for weeks before receiving their orders. During Apple’s Q1 earnings call, Tim Cook admitted that the iMac was constrained for the entire quarter, resulting in a “significant shortage”.

newimac-500x372

Apple, News/Rumors

“Download later” option added to iTunes 11

Quite recently Apple added a number of new download options for customers of its iTunes Store, among them possibility to save music and video content a little bit later. The option is available for users in countries where iTunes in the Cloud has support. A full listing of those countries is available on Apple’s site.

Now iTunes customers selecting movies, TV episodes and Season Passes, and completed seasons will can download the content either immediately or in the future through the iTunes in the Cloud feature. The new option also applies to music box sets and other music content which could take more time to download than a single track or album.

When you make a large purchase, a pop-up window will offer you the option between “Later” or “Download.” If “Later” is selected, the content is moved to the Purchased section, allowing customers to download at their leisure. They say that such an option requires an iOS device running iOS 6 or later or a Mac or PC running iTunes 11.

 

download-later-130422

 

 

Apple, News/Rumors

Apple returned 8 million iPhones to Foxconn

According to the latest reports 8 Million iPhones were returned “due to appearance of substandard or dysfunctional problems.” This could cost Cupertino’s top manufacturer up to $1.6 billion.

Anyway, the report doesn’t point out any specific problems with the handsets. Besides, ther’s no concrete information which models were returned.If the party was made up of existing models, such as the iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S, this could eventually show up as a hole in Apple’s supply chain. However, if these defective models were in fact “iPhone 5S” models, Apple may be forced to delay the launch of its newest handset.

Foxconn reportedly began production of the iPhone 5S earlier this month. As of now, Apple is expected to announce the seventh-generation iPhone at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

apple_foxconn_071344562615_640x360

 

Apple, News/Rumors

Apple’s stock collapsed below $400

A decline of more than 6% on the day and the first time that the stock has fallen below that milestone since December 2011. The stock went as low as $398 a share, but as of publication it was hovering right below the $400 mark. Mainly it hapened because of Cirrus Logic, one of Apple’s suppliers for the iPhone and iPad, reported a lower-than-expected revenue forecast, which investors took to be a sign of weaker demand for Apple’s products. Peter Misek, an analyst with Jefferies, reported hearing that Apple is having production issues that could delay its next iPhone models and Digitimes, a publication with a mixed track record on rumors, reported hearing from supply chain sources that iPad Mini shipments are expected to decline by as much as 30% in the second quarter of this year. The fact is Apple reports its earnings for the March quarter next week, thus,investors are preparing for disappointing iPhone sales and profits.

aaapl-2

Apple’s stock has suffered a steep drop in the past six months. It hit an intraday trading high of $705 in late September after the release of the iPhone 5, but then started to decline on concerns about supply constraints, executive shakeups at the company, increasing competition from Samsung and Google and a growing skepticism that Apple has another breakthrough product up its sleeve.

 

 

 

Apple, News/Rumors

Apple’s iTunes Store is the driving force behind digital music

 

NPD’s “Annual Music Study 2012″ revealed consumer opinions and habits in music buying. The study found out that Apple’s iTunes held 63 % of the market for paid music downloads in the fourth quarter of 2012, followed by AmazonMP3 at 22 percent.

According to the study results 44 million Americans bought at least one song track or album download last year. Per-buyer spending on music downloads was up six percent year-over-year, thanks to teens buying more tracks.

The fact is about 40 percent of U.S. consumers still are sure it’s important to own their music. 30 percent believe that listening to whole albums is important. The belief in the importance of owning music is actually somewhat stronger among consumers that listen to Pandora and other free streaming services. Those listeners, NPD found, were more likely to buy downloads of things they’d heard on a radio or on-demand service.

iTunes11.102012.001

What began as a simple, legal music repository for owners of Apple’s iPod 10 years ago has grown into a powerful force in the music industry. In 2012, iTunes and other download providers boosted music industry revenue for the first time since the Napster era. Worldwide, digital music revenues are at $5.6 billion, and Apple’s iTunes accounts for a large portion of that. The service recently sold its 25 billionth song, with 15 billion of those sales coming in the last three years.

Apple

The most comfortable home you could give your MacBook.

If you’re looking for something special for your beloved MacBook than you should have a look at this handmade, wool felt sleeve from MyBanana aims to give your notebook a home of its own, away from sharp keys, USB cables, chargers, and all the other things you might need to pack into your bag when you’re on the road. The slimline design holds your MacBook Air or Retina MacBook Pro — depending on which size you go for — plus smaller items in a pocket on its front.

mybanana_macbook_air_pro_dark_grey_nude_leather_strap_fele_case_4_1024x1024

This is perfect for carrying Lightning cables, an iPhone, or even an iPad mini. Anything you stick inside the sleeve is secured by two vegatable tanned leather traps with snap fasteners. Another thing I love about this case is its build quality. It’s super tough, and everything feels solid and secure, and the stitching and straps are more than strong enough.

mybanana_macbook_air_pro_dark_grey_nude_leather_strap_fele_case_7_1024x1024
The price starts at £48 ($56) for the 11-inch MacBook Air sleeve, then rises to £54 ($63) for the 13-inch MacBook Air or Retina MacBook Pro models. If you have a 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro, it’ll cost you £58 ($68).

mybanana_macbook_air_pro_dark_grey_nude_leather_strap_fele_case_8_1024x1024
If you want a MacBook sleeve that’s unique and well made, then this sleeve from MyBanana is certainly worth a look.