Sep 13, 2007 Sep 15, 2007 Friday September 14, 2007
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Apple's iTunes Ringtones and the Complex World of Copyright Law
Daniel Eran DilgerWhile I’m no huge fan of the “all singing, all dancing� mobiles that announce every incoming call by belting out a section of a song--particularly since they tend to use songs that I don’t want stuck in my mind for the next hour--ringtones are extremely popular and a big money business, so they’re not going away anytime soon. The latest version of iTunes now allows users to select from a half million songs in the iTunes Store that can be “upgraded� from a regular 99 cent track to a ringtone by paying another 99 cents to carve out a user-defined, 30 second clip as a ringtone that can be synced to the iPhone. Suddenly, everyone who was cool with Verizon Wireless charging $2.50 and up for individual ringtones came out of the woodwork to castigate Apple for selling ringtones as a 99 cent upgrade, and only for songs it sold within iTunes; by default, you can’t make a ringtone from songs ripped from your own CDs using iTunes. Of course, you actually can do this by changing the filetype of the song and assigning it a metadata tag, but Apple doesn’t tell you this, and doesn’t really want users to exploit this because it will send it back into negotiations with the labels again. [iPhone Ringtones - What Did iTunes 7.4.1 really do? - gryphondwb]The Ringtone Circus.Remember that Apple appeared poised to deliver a ringtone sync function in iTunes back in January, but then pulled the feature and later backed away further by adding new legalese to the iTunes terms of service that excluded downloads from being used as ringtones. Clearly, the record companies jumped on ringtones as a whole of stack of potential profits that could not be allowed to go without remuneration. Apple makes very little from sales of music in iTunes; the vast majority of revenues are funneled back to the record companies, which then devise how to avoid paying their talent and keep as much as they can.At stake are the complex copyright laws involving derivative works, performing rights, and reproduction rights. Apple’s iTunes breaks open a whole can of worms because it is changing the market for music and video.[Universal vs Apple in the iTunes Store Contracts]The Complex World of Copyright.Copyrights were designed to make sure that the creator of an original work would be compensated for copies, whether they be exact copies or derivative works based on their original. For example, a movie based on a play or a novel has to respect the copyrights held by the original work, because much of the value of that derivative work comes from the original.In the music industry, groups like ASCAP license performing rights of music created by composers, songwriters, lyricists, and music publishers. Bands playing their music have to pay royalties, which are commonly split between the writer of the song and the author of its lyrics. In addition to live bands, any commercial playback of music also requires performing rights licensing. Music played during a TV show, over the radio, or even in a restaurant requires obtaining a license and paying fees. Publishing music requires a different set of permissions referred to as mechanical rights. CD and record manufacturers pay music owners fees to create copies of a given work. When musicians perform and their work is captured as a “master recording,� the reuse of that work must be licensed under master use rights. There are also synchronization rights involved in incorporating a music recording into a film or video performance or a commercial, and grand rights for using recordings as part of a dramatic performance such as a musical, opera or ballet. The music business is therefore based upon a series of complex legal relationships between writers, performers, distributors, and the groups that represent each of their rights and their legal obligations.Consumers Left Mystified; Fair Use Left Undefined.Outside of the complex world that funds artists and their work, the idea of paying a license to play or use a song in different contexts is hard to grasp. Laws to define protections for producers were worked out long ago to make sure artists would get paid, but the rights of consumers haven’t been so carefully defined. Consumers’ rights are based on the general idea of “fair use,� which isn’t a right defined in law. Instead, its a general defense against claims of copyright infringement. If the recording industry were to sue an individual for copying music from their CDs onto their iPod, they would likely lose because the idea of fair use generally determines that consumers can use their own music in reasonable ways. Unfortunately, fair use has not been upheld in clear court precedents or in law to the point where it can really be called a right. This leaves things enshrouded in a grey fog where consumers assume that anything they can do with “their music� is fine, while the music industry seeks to find new ways to sell its products. Ask Not For Whom the Ring Tones.Writing about Apple’s iTunes ringtones, John Gruber of the Daring Fireball cited Engadget, which reported that “the RIAA wanted to be able to distribute ringtones of its artists without having to pay them big money to do so (surprised?), and it won a decision last year before the Copyright Office saying that ringtones weren’t ‘derivative works,’ meaning they didn’t infringe on the copyright of the songwriter.�Engadget, known for shooting from the hip rather than the brain, didn’t really understand whole story. From its report, Gruber concluded, “So if you have the right to play a song, you have the right to use it as a ringtone on your phone.�Gruber blamed a “complicated, confusing mess of a ringtone policy� on Apple, and suggested the company should have simply handed out tools to create ringtones from any users. Incidentally, that’s apparently what Apple was going to do back in January. 
Derk Nek of Epplegacks explained that--unfortunately--what the RIAA actually won in the case cited by Engadget was instead the right to collect money for ringtones without distributing those fees to the artists they represent. There was no establishing that ringtones are not protected intellectual property, so the RIAA will continue collecting royalty fees, because distributing songs or portions of songs requires mechanical rights. Playing a ringtone might also--in the mind of the RIAA and the letter of the law--require performing rights. [The Ringtones Racket - Daring Fireball]Ringtone Performing Rights.Nek added, “I produce porn for a smattering of online websites. In one of our scenes, a ‘talent agent’ gets a phone call on his cell saying the girl will be right up, and of course the scene continues as expected. We put this file online and no complaints... until we went to release it on DVD.“With the internet if there's a complaint, you simply pull the file like it never existed, or re-edit it like it never existed in it's previous form. With a DVD there's a hard copy that's on retail shelves, which means a retailer, distributor, production company and owner of the content is liable. We were told the ringtone had to go because we didn't have the rights to have to redistributed in our DVD release. Dumb, but understandable.�“The thing about studios, networks, and labels, is they'd like nothing better but to track every pair of eyes and ears that views or hears their content, and charge based on that rather than unit. They consider a ringtone, which could be heard in a crowded cafe, subway, or street corner, something that would be a public performance of the work, and thus feel they need to be compensated. Dumb, but the truth as far as I can deduce.�[Letter to DF in regards to The Ringtone Racket article - Epplegacks]Do You Have A License for that Ringtone?In addition to carefully watching every performance in order to catch any playback of any bit of music that was not paid for with the appropriate license, music industry also monitors Apple to make sure it does not confer any suggestion that users might use the labels’ music in ways that might leave money on the table. When they saw that Apple might allow users to put songs on phones, they flipped a nut and sent in lawyers to iron out a contract covering iPhone ringtones. Apple negotiated a far lower price than any other ringtone distributor, but the labels are worried that consumers might figure out how to create their own ringtones, just as they were able to figure out how to put music from CDs onto computers and MP3 players, a practice that got out of hand and resulted in more music being handed around for free than legally paid for. Nek added, “The iPhone is a hardware product which Apple derives substantial profits from, ringtones are something people want but the current state of copyright law in the states makes much more unfair than it should be.�[Ringtones - Apple]The Wrestling Between Apple and the Labels and Studios.Nek also outlined another example of the distribution skirmish between Apple and its content producers: the fight over TV downloads from NBC/Universal.

“NBC just demanded of Apple that to get Heroes for the iTS, they'd need to buy two episodes of those shows no one downloads like Passions or Friday Night Lights. Apple says that this would force them to sell Heroes at $4.99 not because NBC wants that much for each episode, but because Apple isn't in the business of losing money selling a popular show for $1.99 when they had to buy two very unpopular shows at $1.49 each on which they won't make back their investment. So instead of going ahead and selling video files of less resolution than are available at no cost on torrent sites for that $4.99 price to keep them in the black, Apple told NBC to walk.“NBC also expressed that they wanted Apple to crack down on their customer base who were walking around with devices full of stolen content, read: ‘iPods can play unprotected AAC and MP3, MPEG-4 and H.264 video files and we want you to switch to only DRM'd content so we know that every track and video file on those devices was paid for’. Again, Apple told them to walk. If all Apple was concerned with was profit, then they would've accepted the terms because it costs them nothing to keep files on the iTunes Store and a certain percentage would keep on buying TV Shows at the inflated price, which in turn would keep selling iPods and Apple TVs so people could view them. But Apple saw in these terms from NBC a very anti-consumer agenda, and made their stance on any such terms by NBC or other studios plain.“For Apple to put a ringtone editor into iTunes and have it work with the user's existing library would be in a consumers best interest definitely, but it would also be illegal as far as I understand the mickey mouse laws. Apple didn't become number three in music sales by pursuing illegal business plans, they did it by offering a better product at a competitive price. They competed against piracy with the iTunes Music Store and won. They're now competing against current mobile service providers ringtone products and are going to win.�A Legal Problem Your Representatives Don’t Care About.It is fortunate that it is in Apple’s own interests to defend the rights of consumer. The reality of copyright law isn’t going to go away however. Its complexity is seldom discussed in the simpleton arguments that suggest that the RIAA should vanish and “that artists� are somehow magically going earn a living without a complex system to funnel money back to them as their work is copied and performed, particularly when most music is traded around for free.If the government had any interest in representing the rights of citizens as consumers, we’d have clear and fair consumer rights spelled out in law, and the music industry would have to respect them. Instead, the government is working for the industry, setting up a police state of criminal codes designed to enforce the anti-consumer laws already on the books. It doesn't help that they’re also distracted by efforts to legislate morality and criminalize free speech. Until citizens start to care about what their government is doing, these problems won’t be solved, and we’ll be stuck having to sweat copyright infringement when our mobiles ring. Of course, that should really be the least of our worries when our government is serving the moneyed interests of industry before the rights and protections of its citizens. What do you think? I really like to hear from readers. Comment in the Forum or email me with your ideas. Like reading RoughlyDrafted? Share articles with your friends, link from your blog, and subscribe to my podcast! Submit to Reddit or Slashdot, or consider making a small donation supporting this site. Thanks!
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iPhone SIM unlock giveaway: round 5
Filed under: Announcements, CellphonesSorry we're running a little bit late on today's contest, but here it is! If you haven't (or don't want to) hit up iUnlock, the free, open source iPhone SIM unlock solution (which is still early on yet, but does indeed work), why not try your hand at taking home one of our iPhoneSIMfree "retail" unlocks? The IPSF crew has hooked us up with five iPhone unlock licenses to give away to you, our faithful, iPhone obsessed readers, so just hit up the simple rules below if you want to give it a shot. Here's how it works:Details about the unlock Bring your own iPhone. We're not supplying the device, just the unlock. You must send us your iPhone's IMEI; you can't resell the unlock. If we don't receive your IMEI in a timely manner, we may award the unlock to someone else. We will not be offering tech support on the unlock. Once you've got it, it's out of our hands, ok? We do not make any guarantees about the unlock. We're not guaranteeing that it will work when your phone gets the next Apple update later this month, that it will work with your SIM or your carrier, or even that it will work on your phone. We're not even going to guarantee you won't end up with a bricked phone. We're just handing it off to the winner, the end. The other regular rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. That's it! Who loves you, baby. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Duh. Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next 24 hours. After that we'll move on to the next iPhone unlock. Good luck! Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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iPod Touch’s Display Not as Good as iPhone’s
Photos from Macworld, comparing the iPod Touch’s display to the iPhone’s: The touch is noticeably darker, lacks fine detail, and blows out dark “highlights” into the negative. I didn’t expect this — I figured the Touch would use the exact same display. ★
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Where The iPhone Works When Unlocked
The recent victories in unlocking the iPhone whether it be free or a paid solution the fact remains that anywhere with GSM coverage an iPhone can be used but there might be a few compatibility problems. Currently the number is about…
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To-Do lists get funky with LifeShaker
Filed under: Software, Odds and endsOkay, I couldn't resist posting about the new to-do list app LifeShaker from Funky Cloud, if only to comment on their clever marketing. This is the first piece of software I can remember to have a movie-style trailer (not just a screencast).LifeShaker is an interesting take on to-do organizing. It presents a 3x3 grid into which you can dump your various goals, action steps and categories. As the name suggests, you can "shake" your grid to re-arrange your goals (presumably as a kind of self-motivation). It's an unusual approach; how effective it might be I can only imagine. In my brief testing, I found the interface to be a bit annoying, requiring excessive use of on-screen buttons for data entry t(instead of just letting me double-click on blank list entries). Still it's worth a look if you're interested in a non-traditional to do list.LifeShaker is $29.00US and requires Mac OS 10.3.9 or higher. A demo is available (points off, however, for the use of an installer).[via MacMinute]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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One-time City darling Applegarth rode his one-trick pony too hard
Adam Applegarth joined Northern Rock as a management trainee from university chiefly because the job did not start until the autumn after his graduation, leaving him free to spend the summer playing cricket ? he still turns out at a high level for his native Sunderland.
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Jeremy Warner's Outlook: Northern crisis rocks financial system
Little more than six months ago, shares in Northern Rock were trading at an all-time high and the chief executive of Britain's fourth largest mortgage lender, Adam Applegarth, was feted by analysts as the banking sector's pin-up boy. Today, Mr Applegarth's reputation lies in tatters and the Northern Rock brand is very likely toast.
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iPhone firmware v1.1.1 with "international" support coming soon?
Filed under: Cellphones With the launch of the iPod touch and the iTunes WiFi Music Store this week, it's pretty obvious that the iPhone is due for an update soon -- Apple can't leave all those iPhone users wondering what song is playing in Starbucks, after all -- but what's not certain is how much of an update we're going to see. The eagle-eyed posters at HowardForums might have spotted a clue, though -- the iPhone early-adopter $100 credit signup page clearly shows an iPhone running firmware v1.1.1, with a couple interesting additions: a setting for "Home Button," and another marked "International." The Home Button setting will likely bring the iPod touch's nifty double-tap music controller to the iPhone, but we have no idea what the International menu is for -- maybe for reducing some of those crazy roaming bills? Either way, we should know soon.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in][Via HowardForums] Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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Why the Magnifying Glass Doesn’t Work in Some iPhone Web Apps
Justin Williams: We designed PocketTweets so that scaling isn’t necessary. Unfortunately, setting user-scaling to false is what is causing the magnifying glass to not work in tags. Taking the user-scalable parameter out of the equation allows me to magnify as I please. ★
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High quality album art (from Apple)
Filed under: Odds and ends, iTunesWith Apple emphasizing Cover Flow more and more in the new iPods, etc., the need for good quality album art is ever increasing. I know iTunes is supposed to grab art for songs that are in your library and the iTunes Store, but in my experience it hasn't worked that well. Fortunately, Josh Powell has cooked up a nice little site called Josh's iTunes Album Art Grabber that lets you search the iTunes album art repository and download high quality jpgs from Apple's servers. In my brief test (with Springsteen albums), most of the cover art came back as 600 x 600px. However, some albums featured art up to 1425 x 1425 or higher. The search engine is rather strict ("White Stripes" returned nothing, it had to be "The White Stripes"), but this looks like an excellent resource for filling in holes in your collection.[via Digg]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Walt Mossberg gives Ubuntu the cold-shoulder
Filed under: Desktops, Laptops Captain Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal Brigade delivered a pounding frontal attack to the good folks in the Ubuntu bunker today, sounding off about the Linux OS distribution that's been taking a lot of people (but not old Mossy) by storm. According to his review yesterday of the burgeoning (and free) Canonical operating system, Walt Mossberg says that although Ubuntu is, "Relatively slick," he feels that there are too many, "little complications and hassles that will quickly frustrate most people who just want to use their computers, not maintain or tweak them." Apparently, after testing on a stock Dell system with the software pre-installed, Walt argued that the lack of codecs for playing some audio and video formats, trouble connecting iPods, and a trackpad which can't be adjusted, are just a few of the problems that most people will find intolerable in the open-source OS. Mossberg talks about users who, "...simply want their digital products to operate as promised, with as little maintenance and hassle as possible," and feels the answer for them is Windows or OS X, not the new, untested, and unpolished Ubuntu. While we don't agree on every point, perhaps this will push Canonical to tighten up its OS and really target the mainstream. [Warning: read link requires subscription][Via Crave] Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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comiXology releases MobileSafari interface for comic browsing
Filed under: Software, Cool tools, Odds and endsMacenstein has posted about a cool feature from comiXology for us comic book geeks out there. They're created an iPhone MobileSafari (have to remember that the Touch is out there now) interface for their database of the latest comic book releases. It looks great, allows users to browse both the current and following week's releases in a touchscreen-specific interface. It also displays summaries and cover art for every book on the list. It's like browsing a comic store without actually being there (unless you are actually in a comic store while you use it-- in which case, whoa, I'd have to sit down for a while, that's heavy).While we're at it, I'm currently poking around for comic book collection software for the Mac (the folks are selling their house, and they asked me to clear the old collection out of their closet). So far, it seems like Comics 2 is the pick of the litter. Does anyone want to share a good tip on an app that will help me organize the few boxes of books I've got? I would love if Delicious Library did it, but while I'm sure it could handle my graphic novels, I doubt it would be able to do individual issues. Anyone have a recommendation?Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Liveblogging the iPod Touch
Filed under: iPod Family, HacksWell, it's here. And here's all the dish on my first hours with the iPod Touch. Impressions Feel. Man, this thing definitely has a completely different feel and weight from the iPhone. It feels way way thinner. Squeeze Control. It seems to be confirmed that the iPhone headset squeeze control does not work with the touch. I'll test when I have time. Didn't work the first time. A lot of people are reporting flaky iTouch behavior. The first time I connected my new iTouch to iTunes, this was the error I got. Removing the USB and reconnecting it made it work. Calculator. Same as iPhone. Absolutely the most boring accessory ever shipped. Keyboard. All the sounds on the Touch are clickier and lighter than on the iPhone. It's a very palpable difference. Safari. Works great--once you remember to switch on WiFi. All my Javascript bookmarklets are working fine. Hacking Join us. I'm chatting over at irc.osx86.hu on #iTouch. User Agent. According to the iPhoneWebDev list, the iPhone user agent string is like the iPhone's with iPod instead of iPhone, with 420.1 instaed of 420+ for AppleWebKit and with 3A100a Safari instead of 1C28 Safari: Mozilla/5.0 (iPod; U; CPU like Mac OS X; en) AppleWebKit/420.1 (KHTML,like Gecko) Version/3.0 Mobile/3A100a Safari/419.3 Visual Hub. TUAW reader RMS notes that Visual Hub 1.28 adds iPod Touch support. Firmware. First up: Firmware. Get the iPod Touch restore files here. I'm downloading mine now. iPhoneInterface 0.3.3 works. Not jailbroken and when I try to put files, I get "Problem with AFCFileRefOpen: 7". I can however see the main disk and the iTunes files in the public Media folder, presumably /var/root/Media. Firmware again. The firmware images seem really similar to those used for 694-5259-38.dmg on the iPhone. Recovery mode. Press & hold power button (that's on the top-left, not the top-right) AND Home button for about 25-seconds. New restore mode screen looks like USB cable pointing to iTunes icon. Attempting Jailbreak. I got into recovery mode and am running jailbreak with the original iPhone firmware. Doesn't seem to be working. Confirmed as not working, unfortunately. The hunt for the firmware password. There's an ongoing hunt, looking for the key to the encrypted firmware. Running strings on the dmgs did not work for me. Leaving Recovery Mode. The iTouch makes it easy to leave recovery mode. Press and hold just the power button for about 5-10 seconds until the iPod powers off. Then tap it again to restart. Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Friday afternoon Apple links, Woz reliving the past edition
This week's Friday Apple links contain thoughts on both the resemblance of Steve Wozniak to a caveman, his inability to stay out of the news, software updates, CoverSutra, and terrible games.Read More...
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★ Interesting Tidbits Gleaned From the iPod Touch Features Guide
Notes from the PDF iPod Touch Features Guide: p. 7 — The screenshot from iTunes shows system version 1.1 for the iPod Touch. Presumably version 1.0 was the version of mobile OS X that shipped with the iPhones. p. 10 — The sleep/wake button is on the top left. On the iPhone, it’s top right. Wonder why they moved it? Also worth noting that on the iPod Touch, the headphone jack is on the bottom. p. 13 — You can double-click the Home button to bring up on-screen playback controls, even when the screen is locked. Nifty. But, unlike the iPhone, the Touch has no hardware volume buttons, and it doesn’t have a play/pause/next-track clicker on the headphone cable. That clicker is my very favorite thing about the iPhone’s music player; I think it’ll be a pain to use an iPod Touch that’s in your pocket. (AppleInsider notes that you can’t just plug iPhone headphones into an iPod Touch, either — the Touch doesn’t support the clicker.) p. 16 — iPod Touch supports several keyboard layouts: QWERTY, QWERTZ, AZERTY, QZERTY, and Japanese IME. p. 17 — Double-tap the space bar while typing to enter a period followed by a space. That shortcut isn’t available (yet?) on the iPhone. p. 50 — You really can’t add events in the Calendar app on the iPod Touch. Lame. p. 52 — You can, however, add and edit address book entries in the Contacts app. p. 63 — Support for closed captioning. The iPhone doesn’t (yet?) have this. p. 65 — Optional Debug Console for MobileSafari. The iPhone doesn’t (yet?) have this.
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MakeiPhoneRingtone hits 1.1, further obsoletes the ringtones racket
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Software, iTunes, Apple, iPhoneRogue Amoeba has already updated their MakeiPhoneRingtone application to 1.1, in order to bring in the Cleverboy hack that was discovered the other day. If you missed it, they also posted a guide on how to turn any audio file into an AAC file with their product Fission (but don't forget that iTunes will also do it for you as well, it just won't cut your file for you). We're still waiting on someone to make a program that turns any file into a ringtone by itself (Rogue Amoeba is talking about adding the functionality straight to Fission), but all the tools are there.So Apple's whole ringtone system is completely, totally, and devastatingly broken. Why would anyone possibly pay money for ringtones from iTunes when it's so incredibly easy to make your own? As Gruber said in his great and very thorough commentary, the whole Ringtone racket is just that -- a racket. There's no such thing as a "ringtone" -- a ringtone is exactly the same as a song, in a different context. The idea that studios should charge more for you to choose which 30 seconds of a song you want to listen to is complete bunk.And if you think ringtones are a joke (and I do -- I've been rolling my own ever since my first cellphone), just wait until you hear about "ringles". Unbelievable.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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News: Sennheiser intros four new in-ear eaphones
Sennheiser has introduced its latest in-ear earphones, which join the company's Classic, Street, and Style lines. The CX 400 and 500 join the Classic line, and both include a pouch, cord winder, cable clip, and ear adapters. The CX 400 feature a short cord, extension cable, and sell for $100. The CX 500 feature a wider frequency response, special flange ear adapters for a better seal, and will be available in glossy black, glossy white, or titanium…
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News: Sennheiser intros four new in-ear earphones
Sennheiser has introduced its latest in-ear earphones, which join the company's Classic, Street, and Style lines. The CX 400 and 500 join the Classic line, and both include a pouch, cord winder, cable clip, and ear adapters. The CX 400 feature a short cord, extension cable, and sell for $100. The CX 500 feature a wider frequency response, special flange ear adapters for a better seal, and will be available in glossy black, glossy white, or titanium…
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Interview with Penny Arcade game dev
Filed under: Gaming, Humor, HolidaysGamasutra has a nice interview with Darren Evenson, the lead designer of the Penny Arcade game with the long title that's set to hit Macs at the end of the year.The interview's got me more excited than ever about this thing-- apparently Penny Arcade and Hothead studios actually polled people on their site about what their favorite games were, and based on that, they came up with a point-and-click interface (a la the old LucasArts adventure games) combined with an RPG-style battle system (as in Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger, which is one of my favorite games ever). That sounds great!As stated before, the game will be available in episodes downloaded from the website, and you'll be able to create a character that you play across the episodes. Sounds really fun-- the end of the year never seemed so far away.[ via Inside Mac Games ]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Jiminy, That’s Thin
Side-by-side, the iPod Touch is a lot thinner than the iPhone, which itself is pretty thin. From AppleInsider’s unpacking photos and tour. ★
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Apple Gazette Daily 119 - iPod Touch vs. iPhone Screens, iPhone overseas and more
iPhone overseas, iPod Touch vs. iPhone screen, and more You can subscribe via iTunes, or by RSS feed, or… you can directly download the episode right here. In addition to that, you should be able to play every episode of the podcast directly in your browser by using the widget which is now located in the side column of the site. Just click on the headphones to play the podcast inside the widget with full audio controls.
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A week with the new iPod Nano
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPod Family, iTS, Reviews Dear TUAW readers, I have a confession. Normally I am not a person who spontaneously buys an iPod . However last Thursday morning was, well, a little different. Upon seeing the new Nanos, Shuffles and iPod Classics on display at an Apple Store I just happened to be passing (convenient, eh?), I was torn. Do I buy a new Nano? Do I need one? Do I want one? Can I even justify purchasing one, given that I have a (RED) 4GB Nano that I love dearly? The answer to all those questions was close enough to 'yes', almost exclusively because I wanted a video-playing iPod. And more importantly, because I had 7 days of travel that would allow the Nano to prove its worth. Well, after a week of video-playing, music listening and more, the jury is in.Continue reading A week with the new iPod NanoPermalink | Email this | Comments
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The final grand prize round of the hundred gadget giveaway
Filed under: Announcements, Cellphones, Digital Cameras, HDTV Ok, it's here: the final round of the hundred gadget giveaway. We've got three grand prizes -- one for each Engadget site -- ready for the taking, listed below. Yes, you most definitely can enter all three. Read the rules and put in your entries before Sunday night. Good luck!P.S. -Thanks to everyone who entered our 37 other rounds in the hundred gadget giveaway! Winners have been contacted and should be receiving their prizes shortly.Engadget classic: Nikon D40 DSLREngadget Mobile: unlocked iPhone (4GB)Engadget HD: Insignia NS-LCD37 LCD HDTV Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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iPhone Store Credit Page Shows Screenshots of iPhone OS X 1.1.1
The screenshots that show you how to check your iPhone’s serial number are based on the as-yet-unreleased 1.1.1 version of the OS. (The current release version is 1.0.2; no idea what happened to 1.1.0.) One change is an additional setting under General for “Home Button”; my guess is that it’ll let you select an action for double-clicking. The iPod Touch uses a double-click of the Home button to bring up music player controls. ★
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News Corp. changes its tone in describing relationship with Apple
In contrast to previous statements, the president of News Corp. said that he expects future negotiations with Apple to be "contentious."Read More...
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News: Mix: Euro iPhone, iFlop, Palm, News Corp.
As next week's Apple UK special event nears, separate reports have surfaced linking rumored European carriers to the iPhone. Reuters reports that Deutsche Telekom has clinched a deal to offer the iPhone in Germany through its T-Mobile unit, while MarketWatch has a report from Spanish news agency Efe that claims Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica SA acknowledged it is in talks with Apple over the right to sell the device in Spain.…
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Obvious: Analyst Predicts 3G iPhone Before Christmas
As we all know a 3G iPhone is imminent, it’s not a question of how but a question of when. Coupled with the fact that Apple worked something out with Interdigital regarding 3G patents, it all but confirms the…
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Weekend Project: Hack an IPhone
If you are willing to gamble with your $400 baby, here are step by step instructions to unchain it from the control of AT&T (at least for a while).
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Pixelmator beta 2 lands with new tools, more snap
A second beta of Pixelmator, a "Photoshop for the rest of us," has landed, bringing new tools and a paint bucket full of fixes.Read More...
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iPhone firmware 1.1.1 may break unlocks
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hacks, Software Update, Apple, iPhoneMac Rumors is reporting that iPhone 1.1.1 is due soon (duh), and they say that it'll bring an International Keyboard, some extra settings for the Home button, the likely WiFi store update, and an update to the Modem Firmware. As usual, this is a rumor, so don't hold your breath-- this could be coming next week or next month.But there is a little twist that Mac Rumors missed. An iPhone hacker birdie tells me that their open source software unlock actually patches the Modem Firmware to do its thing. Which means that if the Modem Firmware gets a significant upgrade, it's very, very likely that it's game over for the current unlocks.Now, I'm not sure how iPhoneSIMFree's unlock works-- as far as I know, this might only affect the open source iUnlock app. But while Apple has said they're taking a neutral stance against hackers, AT&T may have pressured them to push back against an unlock. As we've known all along, Apple could choose to update the firmware and break any hacks so far, and with a large upgrade to the Modem Firmware, that could be exactly what they've done.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Send us your iPod and iPhone comments
Another podcast is coming up, which means another chance for Macworld readers to make their voice heard about recent Apple product releases.
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1st-gen iPod nano lanyards work with new "fatty" nanos
Filed under: iPod Family, The WozIn case you were wondering, the old lanyards for the 1st-gen iPod nanos work with the current 3rd-gen (aka "fatty" or "video") nanos. Apple moved the dock connection and headphone port away from each other in the 2nd-gen nanos, thus ruining the party for a lot of 3rd-party accessory manufacturers. But now all is well again, unless you just despise the look and shape of the new nano, of course.And before a wiseacre chimes in with "slow news day, huh?" we'll be honest and say, that yes, it IS a slow news day. Apple has an event next week, which generally means a quiet period beforehand. So until someone sends us pictures of Steve Wozniak showing Larry the Cable Guy a magic trick, we're just going to have to deal with a fairly sparse day of posting.[thanks to moo for the Woz link and Atariboy for the lanyard tip]Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Fred Anderson Slipping Into Palm, iPhone Credits Start While Unlocking Chatter Continues, and The iPod Obsolete?
Former Apple CFO presses the Palm [sorry], while iPhone credits start today amid continuing skepticism and locking out the unlockers looms. Plus: iPod obsolescence and more.
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Samsung's SGH-F700 gets (really) official on Vodafone
Filed under: Cellphones Those paying attention should know full well by now that Samsung's SGH-F700 (you know, the Croix) is set to make everyone not a Vodafone customer uber-envious here soon, but just in case you missed it, Sammy is making sure you're up to speed. The handset will boast a three-megapixel camera, a 3.2-inch 432 x 240 resolution touchscreen, QWERTY keypad, Bluetooth 2.0, USB, a microSD expansion slot, HSDPA, and an integrated media player that handles H.263 / H.264, MP3, and AAC formats. We know what you're really after, so check out a bit more eye candy after the jump.Continue reading Samsung's SGH-F700 gets (really) official on Vodafone Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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Open Thread Weekend: We answer tech questions, too
Although we at The Apple Blog like to hand down our knowledge and opinions on all things AAPL (sometimes a little too self-righteously, sure, but aren't bloggers supposed to be snarky and provocative?), the real reason we're here is to serve cool readers like you. Yep, you! Whether through the articles we write, or by answering the questions you post in open threads, our purpose as TAB bloggers is to offer you assistance and insight into the Apple world and the Cult of Mac. Is there some technical topic about OS X that has been bugging you for a while? Prof. MacLovin is here to help! Whether it's configuring launchd(8) services or getting that issue resolved with your blinking AirPort Extreme status light, run it by me. Having problems getting your favorite GNU software to compile? I've been there and done that: I feel your pain, and I will ease it. If you accidentally break down your software RAID-1 device in Disk Utility, though, you're out of luck. I've been there and felt that pain, too, and there's nothing that can be done. So have it: What's on your mind? Anything that you've been trying to accomplish with your Mac that you can't quite figure out? We'll work through it together. Answers to your questions are just a comment away. open thread, os x, technical advice
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Video: iPod Touch Diagnostic Screen
See the video in all it's blurry glory.
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Why can't I connect my old G4 to my new iMac?
I installed Chicken of the VNC on my iMac and opened the VNC ports on the G4 (5900-5902 in the Sharing preferences). To my surprise, I could not get this to work. I had to download VINE and load it on my G4 as the VNC server.
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Over 100 Games for your iPhone
The fine folks at iPhonegold.org have compiled a list of over 100 games that are designed for, or compatible with, the iPhone. There is no shortage of software for the iPhone, and these games are a perfect example of homebrew at its finest. Some of them are very polished, ready to be commercial games…others are…um…not. Still, if you're looking for a great way to try out some different games for your iPhone, this is the perfect place to start. My favorite? Duck Hunt. Click here for the complete list.
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How will you spend your Apple Store credit?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPhoneAttention, reckless fanboys with no will power or self control early iPhone adopters. You've certainly heard by now that your $100US Apple Store credit is available. Now that you've got it, the question is, what will you do with it? We're guessing that most customers will use the credit towards something that costs more that a hundred bucks (softening the financial blow for Apple - if you could even call it that).What's your decision? iPod nano? Slick new keyboard? Maxed out Mac Pro and cinema display? The comments are open.While we're on the subject, remember that the deadline for the full $200 claim is 9/19.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Cultural cage match in the office: Boomers vs. Gen X vs. Gen Y
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- If you've ever griped about your 20-something co-worker who is always attached to her iPod or the 30-something who never seems to be working at his desk, you're probably a baby boomer -- and those same workers are probably griping about your penchant for face-to-face meetings.
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Boycott iTunes Ringtones.
Seriously. The Macalope's not starting a campaign or anything, but is this not the worst "feature" you've seen from Apple since the iTunes update that removed Internet streaming? It's overpriced (the way it's implemented -- for iTunes-purchased tracks only -- it should be free), buggy and ultimately just another way to let the record companies screw you. And, frankly, no one wants to hear how clever you are in assigning Rick James' the Commodores' "She's A Brick House" to your wife's contact anyway. Ringtones are to this decade as skins were to the previous decade. UPDATE: If you must use ringtones, use iToner or Rogue Amoeba's tools. Don't pay again for part of a song you've already paid for.
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iPhone $100 Credit - Beautiful
I just walked through the 3-step process to receive my $100 credit for being an early iPhone adopter. The process couldn’t be easier. You enter your phone number and serial number on the Apple web site, they SMS you an access code, you enter the code and receive the credit that you can use online or in person at an Apple Store. I haven’t commented much about the early-adopter penalty. Maybe because I’ve been one for a long time. But I can’t ever remember receiving a credit because I bought technology on the first day it was available.
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iPhone Tip: Unclog Your Screen
Every once in a while your utilities need maintaining, sinks unclogged and toilets plunged. Your iPhone is no different and often needs some sprucing up now and then but nothing major. If you’re like me, someone who is constantly…
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Random album flash in iPod Classic
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPod Family, Retail, Odds and ends, AppleWhile a lot has been said about the iPod Touch, not much has been said about the new old standard, the iPod Classic. Kirk McElhearn has written a pretty scathing review of a feature that I didn't even notice-- that album artwork on the side while you're browsing music. Apparently it's not related to what you're listening to at all (which is what I originally suspected it was): it's completely random.Why would this be the case? I thought it was a cool feature to put what you're listening to on the side, so even while you browse through the music, you could have a static reminder of what's playing. But no. Kirk says it's flashy and moving and random-- just like (gasp) a Flash ad. Apparently you can turn it off, and have just a static graphic sit there. But that doesn't explain why anyone thought it was a good idea in the first place.To be completely fair to Apple, I haven't actually used the iPod Classic myself yet-- maybe there's some useful function that can come out of showing random, moving art (suggestions for what to listen to next, maybe?). But flash for flash's sake like this seems a weird decision on Apple's part, especially in a device that's supposed to be a Classic iPod.[via Tsai]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Don’t be a jerk about ringtones
I was excited to learn that Ringtones were now a part of iTunes. I thought it would be great if I could mash up some stuff in GarageBand, or shoot, even my current iTunes tracks, and easily get them on my iPhone. I hurriedly downloaded my new copy of iTunes to get this ability to work. So I right click on my Vanilla Ica song and I'm told I can't create this ringtone because it isn't available. Wha? I own this song! I bought the CD and imported it. Its mine, not AT&T's or Apple's. Mine, and yes of course I share it with the Vanilla Ice and their label. Other than that, it shouldn't cost me a thing to throw this on my $599 iPhone. Secondly, if I can buy the whole song for a buck, why would I want 30 seconds of it for the same price? In short, Apple and AT&T, stop being jerks about ringtones. Sure, I get that we as a society probably don't want to hear an individual's bad chop job of Ice Ice Baby. While I appreciate your efforts to protect ourselves from ourselves we are still in the land of the free. As in freedom to do what we want within the laws that bind us. This case, however is a blatant attempt at capitalist extremism. Gruber says it best: “Yes, this might have further antagonized Apple’s already-contentious relationship with the music labels (and with the entertainment media conglomerates in general; cf. NBC), but the reason these relationships are rocky is that the executives running these companies are stubborn fools who are only willing to consider ways to keep things the way they were, and who hold their own customers in utter contempt. You can’t reason with the masterminds behind “ringlesâ€?.” Guys, you've been blazing the trail and getting these old hats to see the future the way we want it. Why ruin the song with this dance? It seems like this took a significant more amount of logistics and infrastructure to put out ring tones than needed. So, let us do what we want with what we already have. If I feel like it is worth a buck I can just buy the ring tone. Take my dollar in that case, otherwise let me enjoy what those dollars already provided me. business, legal, ringtones
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Apple sets iPhone store credit terms
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- One week after Apple Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs apologized for abruptly cutting the price of the iPhone, the company on Friday detailed the terms of how iPhone buyers can go about getting their $100 store credits.
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iPod touch in the house: obligatory unboxing pictures
As reported yesterday, the 16GB iPod touch has begun to arrive at local Apple Stores. We got ours, and here's what it looks like.Read More...
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YouTube Find: Computer Connections 1985 Apple Commercial
A local ad from Tulsa Ok for an Apple II from 1985. This is not only a “great” Apple commercial, but it's a great local commercial as well. This we all had local commercials growing up, with some ridiculous guy making an ass out of himself…ah memories…
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News: Apple image points to iPhone firmware v.1.1.1
An image appearing during the early iPhone owner credit process has revealed iPhone firmware version 1.1.1, along with two extra menu options in Settings. The image, which appears on the second page of the process, below where users enter their phone number and iPhone serial number, is meant to show customers how to find their iPhone serial number. In the Settings menu, under General, appear options for “Home Button” and “International”…
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Article: iPod touch diagnostic mode, revealed in pictures
If you've wondered how the classic iPod diagnostic mode has changed for Apple's newer touch-screen-based iPods, we now have answers. Thanks to iLounge reader Joseph Olenick, the iPod touch's complete diagnostic mode has been laid out in this series of pictures, which step through the following test features: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Battery, Accelerometer, Buttons, Speaker, Touch, Serial Number, Ambient Light, Headphones, and Temperature.…
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Apple Could Spill Guts on Euro iPhone Next Week
Apple plans to hold a press conference Tuesday whose subject is a secret -- sparking intense speculation by telephone companies as to who will be named to distribute the iPhone in Europe. The computer and consumer electronics company sent invitations to journalists on Thursday with the line, "mum is no longer the word." Apple is known for shrouding its announcements in mystery. After many weeks of guessing in the press, Apple is slated to announce its choice as to which companies will exclusively distribute its tactile-screen telephone, the iPhone.
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iPhone Early adopters: Claim your store credit!
Filed under: Apple Corporate, Other Events, Apple Financial, iPhoneFor all the iPhone buyers who waited in line and eagerly snapped up the first round of phones, who are wondering "How on earth, or rather when on earth, will we be able to claim our $100US store credit?" -- you needn't wonder any longer: you can run over to this page on Apple.com and follow the instructions on how to claim it. The site states "Requests for the $100 credit must be submitted by November 30, 2007. You must activate your iPhone with AT&T prior to submitting your claim," meaning folks who circumvented the iTunes AT&T activation process, perhaps to use their iPhone on another network, would appear to be out of luck when it comes to claiming their store credit.Thanks to everyone who sent this in.[Via MacRumors]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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This Day: September 14, 1999: Keynote Comes and No New Products?
Apple fans are used to keynotes bringing something new and, possibly, something great. So, as usual, all eyes were on the keynote in Paris. And the big revelation for this keynote was? Absolutely nothing. Pundits were expecting a new version of the iMac or, well, something. People…
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Early iPhone Adopters…Say Hello to $100 in Store Credit
Apple has released the details on how all of you early iPhone Adopters can get your store credit. So get ready to dig out that reciept, find your box, and go through to serious paperwork, right? Wrong. Well, surely it's going to take 4 to 6 weeks to get a gift card in the mail, right? Wrong again. All you have to do is click here. Enter your phone number, and the serial number located on the back of your iPhone. You'll get a text message in a minute or two with a code in it. You enter that code onto the website and…BOOM…you have $100 in Apple Credit that you can use online, or at your local Apple Store. You'll get a credit number and pin number (like a gift card) for you to use. I recommend, since you have an iPhone, that you copy it into your Notes, so you'll always have access to it. Man…that was easy.
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iPhone's $100 Apple Store Credit program goes live
Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio, Portable Video Call 'em suckers or Apple faithful, early adopters or cutting edge, any way you slice it those who shelled out for a full-priced iPhone before August 22 can now enter their digits and get a $100 Apple Store Credit for use online or at an Apple Retail Store, just like Jobs promised. The process couldn't be easier, and you don't need a receipt, just enter your phone number and serial number, the latter which can be found on the back of your iPhone, and Apple will SMS you an access code. Once you enter that you're home free, and can finally go on that iPod accessory shopping spree you've always dreamed of -- or if you're a true fanboy, put the credit towards an iPod touch just to see what all this "iPhone without the phone" fuss is about.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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$100 iPhone rebate only for AT&T customers
Sorry hackers. If you purchased an iPhone and have not activated it with AT&T you won’t be eligible for Steve Jobs’ Mea Culpa US$100 rebate for early adopters. If you read the fine print on Apple’s freshly posted store credit page you’ll see that anyone not registered with AT&T (i.e. unlocked phones) will not get a rebate. The [...]
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iPhone for T-Mobile Germany announcement on the way?
Filed under: Cellphones Ever since (and perhaps before) the iPhone hit the US market, we've been hearing rumors of an imminent European release, which was confirmed by the company many, many months ago. Of course, there's been no movement besides rampant speculation and high-school style gossiping... but that may all be changing. According to the ridiculously-respected Reuters in an article published today, the German telephone giant Deutsche Telekom (T-Mobile to you and me), has inked a deal with Apple to release the iPhone in the Fatherland (AKA Germany), with an official announcement to be made next week. The report (which is still considered rumor) claims that the phones will go on sale for the initial price of 399 ($554), and that Apple and T-Mobile will split voice and data revenue generated by the phones. Additionally, Reuters says that Apple will make similar arrangements with O2 for the UK, and Orange in France. If this news is accurate, it all but squashes the Vodafone deal rumors, but still leaves questions as to whether Apple will introduce a 3G version of the iPhone when it makes its announcements. Only El-Jobso knows for sure. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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T-mobile named again as German iPhone carrier (Updated)
Although the newest iPhone Europe rumors don't offer significantly more information than previous rumors, the available information is finally starting to converge on a couple of main carriers.Read More...
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Details of $100 iPhone credit published
Last week after the announcement of the iPhone price drop, Steve Jobs posted an open letter to iPhone owners telling them they'd get a $100 in-store credit for being “early adopters.” Apple has now posted the full details of exactly how to get that $100 credit. It involves text messaging and electronic access codes. How high tech of them. iphone, store credit
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iPhone Reinvents the Term “Product Killer�
Every week it seems like we hear the same thing: “The iPhone Killer is out!� or “Company X Unveils the New iPhone Killer.� “iPhone Killer�? This term is being thrown around the blogosphere as frequently as an athlete says the phrase “overcoming adversity.� In every case,…
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FFOSS (Freeware/Free & Open Source Software) Friday
Rogue Amoeba SoundSource 1.3 Thu, 06 Sep 2007 22:30:06 Just noticed that Rogue Amoeba updated their free Mac OS utility… SoundSource 1.3 This utility lets you easily redirect audio input and output sources. Mozilla Eudora 8.0.0 Beta 1: Project Penelope Tue, 04 Sep 2007 22:42:33 I used a paid version of the Eudora email client about, hmm, 10 years ago maybe. Stayed with it for a couple of years. I use Mozilla Thunderbird for email these days. So, I was interested to learn about the first public beta release of… Mozilla Project Penelope: Eudora 8.0.0b1 Open Source Version read more
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iPhone $100 Store Credit Redemption
Easy as pie: Just enter your iPhone phone number and serial number, and Apple sends you an SMS with a 6-digit passcode. Enter the passcode on Apple’s web site, and you get your $100 store credit. Took about two minutes, start to finish. ★
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The Power of Six
I wrote a few weeks ago about Google’s attempt to influence the rules for redeployment of the 700-MHz radio band in the U.S. for voice and data applications. Google said it would agree to pony up the $4.6 billion auction reserve price if only the FCC would first guarantee to force any eventual winner to keep the frequencies open in a variety of Google-defined ways — ways that were decidedly unpopular with incumbent U.S. mobile operators. It seemed to me to be lunacy for Google to deliberately po the mobile carriers if it wasn’t going to spend the big bucks to actually WIN the auction. But what if Google DOES plan to spend the big bucks and win the 700-MHz auction? What would they do with it? I now think I know. Google didn’t get what it asked for from the FCC, which opted for a different definition of “open,” promoted by the FCC commissioner. The commissioner’s definition of “open” was also opposed by the incumbent carriers and, in fact, Verizon is apparently taking the issue to court, but I think they doth protest too much. The carriers can probably live with the existing auction rules. Fighting them in court is intended as much to signal Verizon’s determination to win the auction as it is to actually overturn the auction rules. The last thing Verizon wants is for Google to enter the auction AT ALL, because doing so can have only two consequences, neither of them good from the perspective of the telcos: 1) Google might actually win the auction and impose the very rules it tried earlier to get with the FCC, and; 2) the mobile carriers might still win the auction but Google’s involvement would cause them to bid much more for the spectrum than they otherwise might. Google could make it VERY expensive to hold together the existing U.S. mobile phone oligarchy. Remember that none of the existing U.S. mobile phone companies is currently lacking in bandwidth. They would love to own the 700-MHz band if they can do so cheaply, but they don’t apparently have any real intention to USE it, which would mean building out a whole new infrastructure at the cost of several billion dollars. They just want to bank the spectrum and keep it away from Google. It seemed to me that the greatest impediment to Google actually spending the big bucks to win the auction (they could clearly afford it) is that the mobile phone and data businesses aren’t as profitable as Google’s own search and advertising businesses, which means making such a move would hurt Google’s earnings and be a drag on the price of its shares. This seemed to be the difference between Google posturing and Google actually doing something. But then this week Apple began to bluster about entering the 700-MHz auction, which makes even less sense. Could this have something to do with Google? Like a lot of other pundits, I keep facing the fact that Google CEO Eric Schmidt is on the Apple board and expecting that association to manifest itself eventually in some form of product or service alliance, but that has yet to happen. Could this finally be the time? Apple AND Google have together more money than anyone except God, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates. Could the two companies be intending a joint bid of such grand proportions as to guarantee a win? And if they did, what way could they find to use the spectrum that wouldn’t be a drag on Google’s earnings after all? So I thought and I thought and I came up with what you are about to read. As usual this is just guessing on my part, but I’m a pretty good guesser. To start, I don’t think Apple will actually bid with Google or even against Google in the 700-MHz auction. It would overcomplicate the five-year iPhone deal between Apple and AT&T - a deal that is already strained by the rise in third-party iPhone unlocking tools. (What was the chance Apple didn’t see those coming? Zero.) While it is possible that Apple would deliberately go against AT&T because Apple is, well, Apple and likes to stir things up, I think there are limitsto how much Hell Steve Jobs is willing to raise in the wireless space given the string of global iPhone deals he is still putting together. And Steve is cheap, too, meaning that he might not see this as a good use for Apple’s free cash. Besides, Apple has enough trouble on its hands with the new iPod classic, which doesn’t work very well at all and is going to shortly create some PR problems for Apple. Rather than actually being a legacy device as the name implies, the iPod classic uses new innards and the software is creating headaches for early users. The complaints I am hearing about the new iPods classics are (in no particular order): VERY Slow menu switching response Display of clock rather than song info when “Now Playing” Inability to use existing AUTHORIZED 3rd party dock products (including Apple-advertised) Audio skipping during operation Slow connection to Macs and PCs Inability to disable “split-screen” menus Lagging and unresponsive Click Wheel Camera connector not working Inability to use EQ settings without skipping and distortion This product was clearly shipped before it was ready, so we can expect a significant firmware upgrade Real Soon Now, especially since the iPod classic is now Apple’s ONLY solution for users who want to store more than 16 gigabytes worth of songs, pictures, TV shows, and movies. So Apple will have its corporate hands full between now and Christmas, which is yet another reason why I seriously doubt the company will be involved in 700-MHz auction action. Apple’s current rumblings about the 700-MHz band are more likely Jobs helping Schmidt. If the mobile carriers interested in the 700-MHz band think that it might cost them $16 billion rather than $6 billion to win the auction, they might not bid at all, allowing Google to get the property for less than it might have had to pay in a contested auction. At some price the deal becomes uneconomic for the mobile carriers and, given their small minds and squinty eyes, they’ll see it as uneconomic for Google, too. “Let Google take the fall,” they’ll think. But Google won’t be falling. The huge expense of buying the 700-MHz band and building out the infrastructure could be made a lot less huge if Google didn’t have to build out the infrastructure. No traditional mobile company could get away with this, but I think Google could. I have written about nearly all the individual parts of this before and even wrote a column putting it all together, though as my idea, not Google’s. Maybe they have been reading me after all. First let’s start by looking at the infrastructure Google has already built or committed to building — the largest fiber backbone in the world and the largest and most widely distributed data center build-out in the world. Both are FAR in excess of Google’s current or even future requirements UNLESS they are also intended to work with a massive 700-MHz wireless network. Imagine a hybrid wireless broadband mesh network using 700-MHz connections for backhaul and some truly mobile links and WiFi for local service. Google has enough experience with WiFi in Mountain View to know that it isn’t, by itself, a good solution for wide area networks. The key failing of metro WiFi networks is backhaul to the Internet backbone. But if Google used its 700 MHz band for that AND implemented it as a true mesh network, there would easily be enough capacity to serve almost any size network given a suitable number of backbone connections. You can find my old column about just such a network in this week’s links. Google has experience, too, with hybrid wireless networks. Every Google employee has the chance to take a company bus to work and every Google bus has an EVDO-to-WiFi bridge so Googlers can surf the net on their way to work. It would be really cool if this Google hybrid network was truly flat and could be maintained entirely within a single address space like, for example, the 76 billion billion billion IPv6 addresses Google already owns. The sudden existence of a massive IPv6 network would throw other ISPs into a tizzy and quickly drag the rest of the net into the 21st century, something else I could see as a Google ambition. Finally, what links all of this together is something else I wrote about long ago — the Google Cube. This is an access device that contains 700-MHz and WiFi radios, a tiny Linux or Linux-likeserver, and a few gigs of flash RAM memory cache. It’s these Google Cubes that will mesh together, acting as both WiFi access points and 700 MHz mesh backhaul devices. Throw in some local caching, video preloading, and truly local DNS service and suddenly you have a pretty substantial network infrastructure that is not only massive and self-healing, IT IS ENTIRELY PAID FOR BY CUSTOMERS. All Google needs to provide are several thousand points-of-presence (cell towers) to connect the local mesh to the Internet backbone. Google couldn’t do this with WiFi alone, but with 700-MHz meshing and backhaul they could make it work fairly easily and the entire network could be deployed in a couple months. For those who can’t think past search, imagine this also as Google’s key to dominating local- and location-based search. Forget about net neutrality and forget about making nice-nice with broadband ISPs OR phone companies. Google would overnight become the largest U.S. ISP with direct and very high-performance access to its customers, including those using the new Google Phone or any other phone that supports WiFi connections, like the iPhone and many others. Google becomes the biggest and lowest-cost ISP and potentially the biggest and lowest-cost mobile phone company in the bargain. Heck of a deal.
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The first iPod nano clone rears its fat head
Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video Of course, we all know that the knock-off producers in China never rest, but this new iPod nano clone you're looking at was definitely turned around in an impressively short period of time. Right now we have only this photo -- apparently taken at a Shenzhen factory for use in piquing importer's interest -- to go on, but it certainly isn't any kind of surprise that the copy-cats have already put the dirty deed in motion. Just remember guys, you're taking food off of Steve Jobs' table... which is made of diamond-studded platinum.[Via GenerationMP3, thanks BrianB] Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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One way to detect hardware keyloggers
Hardware keylogging devices create serious issues for all security-conscious computer users. A hardware keylogger is a small, inconspicuous USB device that can be hot-plugged into any computer between the keyboard and the host controller. Some actually function as USB hubs that can be connected anywhere in the bus. A keylogger may be physically indistinguishable from a USB extension cable or some other innocuous device. Once installed, it automatically begins to capture all keystrokes into its internal NVRAM, which may be up to 2MB in capacity. The device is completely self-contained and platform independent, needing no software to operate apart from its own firmware. It works just as well on a Mac as on a Windows box.The weakness of the hardware keylogger, at least the kind that's available on the open market, is that it's not remotely accessible. The attacker who installed it has to return to retrieve the device or the data. Therefore, if you detect the keylogger before th...
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Prevent the creation of profiles.bin in the home folder
I was looking to solve the mysterious auto-creation of a file creation of profiles.bin in my Home folder. I found this hint useful for deleting the file with AppleScript. In that hint, the author attributes the file to non-English versions of Microsoft office. I did a bit of poking around and was able to find another solution and information about the source on this post on the Macitynet.it forums.The page is in Italian, but for those of you who can't read it, clever user 'faxus' explains that Microsoft Office is most likely only part of the problem. He continues to explain that there is problem with the Display profiles being out of sync with certain applications, and profiles.bin is therfore created by necessity upon restart. User 'marcodal' notes then that creating a new Display profile on the affected machine ...
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A perl script to find large directories in a given folder
Here's a little perl script that can be used to find the top ten largest directories from the argument directories. To use it, save it as dirsize in your user's .bin folder (and make it executable with chmod a+x dirsize), modify your .bashrc to add ~/bin to your path, then run something like this in Terminal: dirsize ~/*. Here's the code:#!/usr/bin/perluse strict;die "usage: $0 n" unless @ARGV;@ARGV = map { "'$_'" } @ARGV;my @results = `du -hs @ARGV`;@results = sort human_sort @results;@results = @results[0..9];print @results;#---------------------------------------------------------------------------sub human_sort { my ($size_a) = $a =~ /^(S+)/; my ($size_b) = $b =~ /^(S+)/; $size_a = $1 * 1024 if $size_a =~ /^(.*)k$/; $size...
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More cautionary tales of iPhone roaming
Anders Brownworth has some excellent (and cautionary) details of his experience taking his iPhone to Argentina. He noted that even if you select one of AT&T's international calling plans, you then are in a quandry about what to do about the exorbitant international data charges. And given that the iPhone was designed with an unlimited data plan in mind, the phone seems to be a little more cavalier about using EDGE than many users will be happy with.Personally, I don't find this experience restricted to the iPhone. I don't have an unlimited data plan, yet my Nokia E61i Internet phone with WiFi just loves to make connections to the EDGE network even when I have a WiFi network selected. My solution there has been to completely delete the EDGE access points from my access point list, and then insert them when I think I may want to use the EDGE data network. But I can't claim that this is either user friendly or convenient. And I would expect Apple to come up with a better solution in its re-invention of the cell phone experience.Anders speculates that this may be a class-action lawsuit in the making. Given US legalistic propensities, I wouldn't be surprised, but I think a better outcome would be for Apple to come up with a "restrict data access" setting and push that out to iPhone users via a software update in advance of seeing such a lawsuit filed. This problem isn't limited to AT&T, and we're going to see more of this type of complaint as the iPhone moves into more geographies and more types of roaming. This is one issue Apple should be getting ahead of before it requires a letter from Steve Jobs and rebates to fix.Technorati Tags:Apple, iPhone, Marketing, ATT, International roaming
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Mac Rumors’s Preview of Ambrosia Software’s WireTap Studio
Impressive stuff. Stores your original recordings in a library: Another related feature is lossless editing. No matter how many changes you’ve made to the recording, you can always go back to the original recording (at the highest quality). This feature is similar to how Apple’s iPhoto and Aperture applications work on digital photos, keeping the originals intact while you apply edits over time. The LivePreview feature has to be seen to be believed. ★
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iPod Touch Now Available
The iPod Touch is showing up all over the place. You can find unboxing photos on Flickr, a 5/5 Editor's Choice review at PC Mag, and a new Features PDF guide at Apple.com. All good stuff. I'm not planning to buy an iPod Touch, but I do plan to make the trek down to an Apple store soon to get my hands on one. I'm eager to see just how thin it is. I know there are a lot of you looking for the iPhone without the phone, and while I think that moniker can be a bit misleading, since Apple is limiting the iPod Touch in other ways, I think this may end up being Apple's biggest year yet….thanks in no small part, to this little device.
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Apple posts details on $100 iPhone credit
Apple has posted details on its website about the $100 credit being given to early adopters of the iPhone. You must have the phone in your possession and it must be activated in order for you to make a claim.Read More...
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Would A Manageable And Mobile iTunes Makes Sense?
The iTunes Wi-Fi Store is nigh upon us for not only the iPhone but also the iPod Touch. What seems to be missing from the equation is a manageable iTunes library in that you no longer need a Mac to maintain…
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Movie Rentals Will Significantly Increase iPod and iPhone Storage
It can be speculated why Apple hasn't introduced a subscription based music service and the yet-to-be movie rental system. Whatever the reason, I believe it will force Apple to increase the storage of their iPods drastically, something that won't be easy to do anytime soon. But there seems to…
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iMac Software Update 1.1 contains "important bug fixes"
Apple has released a software updater, version 1.1, for aluminum iMac owners. Although Apple is vague about what the update does, at least it's important!Read More...
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Kenwood's high-end Media Keg features gold plating... on the internal frame
Filed under: Portable Audio Gold plating is often used as a means to lower the electrical resistance (and substantially increase the price) of so-called, high-end audio cables and plugs. Fine, we're used to that. This is the first time, however, that we've seen it used on a internal DAP frame as a basis to tout superior sound achieved through superior fit. We kid you not, that's Kenwood's pitch for their new 60GB, HD60GD9EC audio player. The Media Keg series was already acclaimed for its superior sound quality and the introduction of AAC support is a welcome addition to Kenwood lossless and WMA/MP3 compressed formats. Still, a gold plated internal chassis demanding a ¥57,800 (about $503) premium? Puhlease. Oh, and since you don't seem to be paying attention Kenwood, slim 160GB 1.8-inch drives are now available. Yeah, really. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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News: Apple reveals details of $100 Apple Store iPhone credit
Apple has posted details of Apple CEO Steve Jobs' promised $100 Apple Store credit for early iPhone owners. The program is for customers who own a qualifying iPhone purchased prior to August 22, 2007, and who haven't yet received any compensation from Apple or AT&T. To receive a credit, which can't be used on iTunes — only at Apple retail or online stores, or Apple Telesales — users need to Identify their iPhone by…
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Surprised and delighted?
Folks, I noticed some strange issues with Apple over the last 6 months and I wonder what's up. First, our friends in Cupertino introduce the iPhone a full 6 months before it is ready (they almost always aim for an immediate availability after a major product announcement.) This leads to uncontrolled hype that any company - even Apple - can't live up to. Then they announce they will sell 10 million iPhones by the end of 2008 BEFORE they have sold a single one. One would think they would give the product a few weeks on the market before making such claims (they really have nothing to gain but now a lot to live up to.) Finally they release the iPod touch yesterday and one of the key features - WiFi music downloads - isn't working. In fact we're seeing that even the ringtones in iTunes seems to be broken. How uncharacteristic for a company who has a history (as I mention in my free eBook available on the right of this page) of surprising and delighting its customers. Right now many of those customers are asking "what's going on?" Surprised for sure. Not delighted. In my next post I'll give you my answer - what's yours? Sent from my iPhone
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News: iPod classics exhibit random crashes, lockups
A number of iPod classic owners, a majority of whom purchased the 160GB model, are experiencing random crashes and lockups, which appear to be linked to album art. iLounge forum member Justin Horne has posted two videos documenting the problem on YouTube, and in posts on Apple's Disscussion boards has said that Apple is aware of the problem, and is working on a fix. In the meantime, a workaround is available: simply disable all album artwork…
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News: iPod touch owner receives testing unit
A new 16GB iPod touch purchased by blogger Peter Allen appears to have shipped from the factory with a test program installed, instead of the standard iPod touch interface. Screenshots show several rows of icons, some with checkmarks, some with red x's, and some with no added iconography. In particular, icons are present for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Battery, Accelerometer, Buttons, Speaker, Touch, Serial Number (whose icon is, playfully, a box of Cheerios…
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Nike + iPod: How Many Runners Actually Use It?
Jogging for me has always been a form of exercise that sounds better than it feels, and judging from the numbers Steve Jobs offered last week on sales of the Nike + iPod Sport Kit, I'm not alone. It's been almost a year and a half since Apple (AAPL) and Nike (NKE) introduced the system that combines a small accelerometer (embedded in a pouch in specially equipped Nike running shoes) that communicates wirelessly with a receiver plugged into the bottom of an iPod nano. iTunes keeps track of such things as elapsed time, pace and calories burned and issues celebrity congratulations (pre-recorded by the likes of Lance Armstrong and Paula Radcliffe) at the end of workouts and whenever personal best goals are reached. The system is not cheap. The Sport Kit costs $29 and must be replaced when the battery runs out. The shoes start at $80 and can run as high as $140. The new 4 gig nano costs $149; the 8 gig goes for $199. Before you take your first step, you're already out a minimum of $258 plus tax. To keep you motivated, Nike has built an elaborate website with forums where runners can set goals, join distance clubs, ask questions and give feedback. Some of these forums are pretty lively. "Challenges," the most popular, has racked up nearly 80,000 messages and more than 745,000 page views. No wonder Steve Jobs bragged at the iPod special event last week that Apple had sold about one million Nike + iPod Sport Kits and that runners had logged more than 12 million miles on them. That slid right by me. But Phil Leigh, president of Inside Digital Media, an avid runner, did the math and calculated that by Jobs' numbers, the average runner has actually used the device for only 12 miles. Given the number of members in Nike+'s 100-mile, 500-mile and (gasp) 1,000-mile clubs, that suggests that a lot of people who bought or were gifted the Nike + iPod Sport Kit like the idea of running with it better than they like to run. UPDATE: According to the constantly refreshed world map on Nike's site, its members have actually logged, as of today, more than 28 million miles. Either they got very busy in the past week, or Jobs got his numbers wrong. For me, just thinking about running 28 miles makes my knees hurt, but I suspect Phil Leigh is still not impressed.
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Do you care about the idea of an “iCar�?
So, I've been kind of ignoring this whole iCar business, primarily out of a lack of interest on my part. However, after reading about it again today, I though that I better at least bring it up here. I have to say that I don't really see what the big deal about this is. If VW or anyone else intergrates an Apple built car stereo system into a car, I don't think that's going to affect my buying decision on a car in any way, shape or form. Since I work at home, and don't really spend too much time in a car, I may not be the best person in the world to judge this type of thing, but to me, if Apple wants built-in car stereos, I don't see why they don't just build a car stereo. Sure, it'd be nice to get it integrated into a factory vehicle, but doing that is going to take years. It'll be 2012 or later before we see something come from those talks…even if they start the paperwork today. I don't know, I guess I can see where it would be appealing to some buyers, but I'm sure that a fully integrated system like that is going to have a serious luxury price tag behind it. Maybe that's why I'm not interested…I'm already convinced that I won't be able to afford it. Regardless, I just can't seem to get interested in this idea. What do you think? Would an Apple integrated system in a VW make you buy them over another brand of car?
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Singing the Praises of Opera: Fast and Flexible Browsing
Got any idea which Mac browser is the fastest? How about the most configurable? Opera has released an Alpha of its next major update that is more Mac-friendly than ever before. Find out more about... ....Read more on MacMerc.com
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Organizing a Personal Media Library, Part 1: Getting It
Few intrepid souls dare tread into the deep archives of amassing an organized and useful personal digital media library. There are spiders among those old home videos, movies, photos from childhood, recorded TV shows. However, what if you wanted all of your CDs, even the old ones, on your Mac? The answer is easy enough, you just rip them with iTunes. What about everything else, though -- DVDs, VHS tapes, photos, TV, and miscellaneous video clips taken with your cell phone? The answers get complicated, but it's all doable.
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Thank you TABÂ sponsors
Thanks to this week's sponsors for keeping the hamsters fed and the wheels turning: CDW CoreCases Crucial Etymotic OWC PowerMax Qdea ResQ Systems SmallDog No Tags
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Mac OS Ken: 09.14.2007
Apple Hosts UK Event Next Week / Ovum: iPhone Faces Challenges in Europe / iSuppli: Apple VW iCar Would Face Challenges / Apple Grabs 3 Spots on CoolBrands Top 20 / Winamp Takes Aim at iTunes / VMWare Announces VMWorld Europe 2008 / iPod Integration a Standard in Sunseeker Yachts
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An iPod touch ships without OS X -- hints at disabled Bluetooth
Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video You can argue that the iPod touch is an iPhone without the phone. So what's an iPod touch without OS X? You're looking at it. That's Dave's swanky new iPod touch, fresh off the boat and out of the box with nothing more than a diagnostic utility. Ha, Cheerios icon for the cereal serial number -- clever Apple. Not quite as clever as shipping a working product though. Now besides a temperature sensor, what's interesting here is that Bluetooth icon showing a disabled radio. Does that mean the hardware is there like we heard but disabled in firmware? Not sure. Still, we'll chalk this little snafu up to first production run jitters unless you tell us differently, dear readers. More after the break.Continue reading An iPod touch ships without OS X -- hints at disabled Bluetooth Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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iPod Touch requires iTunes account to use
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPod Family, iTS, Software, AppleIf you're planning to run out and grab an iPod Touch from an Apple Store this weekend (they're on sale there now, doncha know), Deep Thought has an important tip before you go. Before you even get chance one to use your new gadget, you'll have to make an iTunes account.Of course it's not that surprising when you think about it (since you'll need an account for the WiFi store for sure), but an account just to use the iPod Touch? A little strange, no? The Touch might not have a contract like the iPhone, but clearly Apple wants you to check in on the signup form before you get to play with your new iPod.[via MacBytes]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Maccast 2007.09.13
A podcast about all things Macintosh. For Mac geeks, by Mac geeks. Show 199. Apple updates Quicktime and keyboard software, Apple releases Logic Studio, iPhone unlocking continues, iPod Touch available now, Secretive Apple UK Press event. I am a new iPhone owner. Creating Ringtones for free. iPod Touch vs. iPhone. "I have something to say…" Apple EU perspective. Recovering Finder sidebar icons. Photobooth mini review. Dock organiztion and tricks. Simple audio recording and iPod syncing question. 200th show coming and I'm giving gifts. Maccast coloring book giveaway at Podcast Expo. New music, Yeah Yeah Yeah by Once Just [ iTunes ]. Special thanks to our sponsors: Circus Ponies NoteBook, your your free 30-day trial. The Gadget Locker, pick up a new iPod case today! Everybody starts out as strangers, Ted. It's where we end up that counts. -- Four Rooms (1995) Shownotes in: HTML or OPML Subscribe to the Podcast Feed or Get the MP3
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Article: Ten Things You Need to Know About iPod touch
The iPod touch has arrived, and as always, we immediately started to put it through its paces. In advance of our comprehensive review, we wanted to help early potential buyers get some quick important facts on how it performs and compares with other iPods, and the iPhone. (10) Screen Differences: Though it shares the same resolution and size, the screen isn't exactly the same as iPhone's. The screen's contrast initially seems a bit…
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Zicplay's Microkey MP3 player is barely there
Filed under: Portable Audio We've seen a lot of DAPs claiming to be the "world's smallest MP3 player," but Zicplay's Microkey take the concept to a whole new level, featuring 1GB of storage in a package just 1.7 inches long and a half-inch wide -- slightly longer than an iPod shuffle but half as wide. The half-ounce player gets six hours of playback off its lithium-ion battery, and apparently just shows up as a USB 2.0 flash drive -- no media software required. No word on pricing or availability, but these were just shown off at IFA, so should be soon now. Read | Permalink | Email this | CommentsOffice Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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Apple, lay off the ringtones a bit
Putting aside my general feelings about how annoyed I am by the constant noise of ringtones in any public place, Apple is obviously free to offer any type of product they want. What does it in for me, however, is that Apple is pushing their ringtone product at me when I don't even own an iPhone. In the iTunes store for every album that has any ringtones available for its songs it shows the little bell next to the songs I could purchase as a ringtone as well as an entire section in the sidebar dedicated to ringtones. You could call it cross selling/marketing but I call it overcrowding and unnecessary. It wastes valuable screen space pushing a product I have absolutely no possible way of even using. Maybe Apple is doing it in the hopes that some poor soul without an iPhone will accidentally purchase it thinking they can use it or maybe the marketing guru's think a few 30 second loops of a song will make me buy an iPhone. I'm not sure. I am sure that I'd like a Preference option to turn off any and all traces of ringtones in the store though. If they're really looking to cross sell some things, maybe a more useful feature would be suggesting the movies and TV shows that certain songs by that artist include. itunes, marketing, ringtones