Macworld2008
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OWC intros dual-bay quad interface Mercury Elite-AL Pro RAID drives
OWC's Mercury Elite-AL Pro hasn't changed much since May of 2007 in terms of design, but the latest models offer up two bays for that sweet, succulent RAID action. The Mercury Elite-AL Pro Dual-Bay drive offers up four interface options (USB 2.0, eSATA, FireWire 400 and FireWire 800) and comes in an aircraft-grade brushed aluminum housing. Pre-configured models are available now from $219.99 (500GB) to 3TB ($499.99).
Survey finds Apple users have sense of superiority -- no wait, hear us out
Wait up, hang on here -- you're telling us a personality profiling conducted on 7,500 people at Apple's biggest tub-thumping event of the year, Macworld, yielded results that would suggest Apple users "are more liberal, less modest, and more assured of their own superiority than the population at large." And this so-called survey says Apple users have high indexes for "low modesty," "high perfectionism," and "high superiority," and low indexes for things like "humility," and "self esteem"? Lies and half truths. We don't know a single Apple user that fits anything remotely similar to that profile. Plus, we hear this poll totally had some hanging chads.
iTunes Digital Copy from Fox DVD goes under the microscope
Where the failed promise of Managed Copy on Blu-ray and HD DVD left us all hanging, Apple, iTunes, and Fox have oddly picked up the pieces. As paradoxically quietly announced at this week's Jobsnote, the new Family Guy Presents Blue Harvest DVD comes with an included movie file that one can pull off the disc onto their machine -- but only by making use of an included code (and a copy of iTunes with a valid account, of course), which ensures the DRM is still there. What's unclear is whether the movie file is DRMed before being pulled off the disc, or is encrypted specific to one's account during the process of download from the disc. Ultimately these details won't change the fact that iTunes Digital Copy is a ripe target for people who wants to legitimately buy their media, yet doesn't think it should be friggin' rights managed. Crazy, we know.
Way too much Apple coverage at Macworld -- it's all here
It was a big first day at Macworld -- maybe not iPhone big, but certainly big enough. We know most anyone who's not into Apple (and even a few who are) is ready for their regularly scheduled programming to return, and the good news is, for you, the Apple glut is over. But if you're not quite ready to let go (or missed the real-time wall to wall coverage), check it all out below.Keynote Live from Macworld 2008: Steve Jobs keynote Stevenote video now live on Apple's site MacBook Air The MacBook Air Apple MacBook Air first hands-on Video: MacBook Air hands-on MacBook Air: plenty more details MacBook Air doesn't have a user-replaceable battery MacBook Air battery replacements: $129, free install! MacBook Air features Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR The MacBook Air SuperDrive Apple USB Ethernet Adapter brings RJ-45 to your MacBook Air Apple MacBook Air and MacBook Pro size showdown Apple offers up Micro-DVI to DVI / VGA / Video adapters for MacBook Air Apple announces Remote Disc to wirelessly install software on MacBook Air Meet the new MacBook family Apple's MacBook Air is available for pre-order First Macbook Air multi-touch control panel screenshot Poll: Did you pre-order a MacBook Air? iPhone / iPod Touch Apple's sold 4 million iPhones since launch Apple adds five apps to the iPod touch -- for a price iPhone firmware 1.1.3 update announced: it's just like we heard Updated firmware 1.1.3 is available for iPhone and iPod touch, sort of The skinny on iPhone and iPod touch firmware 1.1.3 Apple iPhone firmware 1.1.3 hands-on Video: iPhone firmware 1.1.3 doing its thing Apple TV (Take 2), iPod touch, and iPhone: yep, more details here, too Poll: Are you spending $20 on new iPod touch apps? More (groan!) after the break.
First Macbook Air multi-touch control panel screenshot
That's right, it's like you're looking into some crazy crystal ball, one which is showing you how all your future interactions with your Mac will be carried out... probably. Feast your eyes on this glimpse into the soon-to-arrive apocalyptic nightmare-world of gestures.
Axiotron Modbook tablet Mac hands-on
Live from the heart-pounding, pulse-racing showfloor of Macworld 2008, we bring you a full frontal hands-on of Axiotron's long-awaited Modbook -- the MacBook tablet conversion. After all the waiting and wondering, we're not totally blown away by the end result, though if you're an artist or designer, this could be a real boon to your productivity. The build is sturdy, and the screen feels solid beneath your stylus (stylus only that is -- no touchscreen here), though the pressure sensitivity seemed to give out at really soft touches... of which there were many. Check the gallery and see for yourself.%Gallery-13934%
Video: Apple TV Take 2 menu hands-on
We got a quick runthrough of the Apple TV's new menus, and we liked what we saw. Everything seems crisp and intuitive, and Transformers looks oh-so Transformer-ey. Unfortunately we couldn't see an actual rental transaction take place, but we'll take Apple's word for it on this one. Video is after the break.
Apple Macworld booth tour
Apple's Macworld 2008 booth is naturally gargantuan this year, but practically empty -- that is, if you don't count the teeming hordes of people surrounding the MacBook Air table and watching the presentations on the big screen. Apple only has its new product on display, which means mainstays like regular iPods, iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros were nowhere to be seen. The booth is fairly dominated by an end-to-end table filled with MacBook Airs and their respective Apple guardians. Time Capsule seems a bit of an afterthought, as does Apple TV.%Gallery-13922%
Video: MacBook Air hands-on
Now with real-live multitouch action! Check out the video after the break.
Updated firmware 1.1.3 is available for iPhone and iPod touch, sort of
Well, seems Steve wasn't fibbing when he mentioned we'd see the iPhone and iPod touch update today, as it does seem to have landed. Hit the link below to get at the package if the auto updater just isn't doing it for you -- and judging from our luck so far, there are some issues. Note that you're going to need iTunes 7.6 to roll this update out.Read - 1.1.3 update package for iPhoneRead - 1.1.3 update package for iPod touch
Apple Time Capsule hands-on
Here's the new Time Capsule NAS from Apple. Not much to say about this one. It's a bit larger than we expected, but still pretty well sized for a NAS.%Gallery-13901%
Apple's iTunes 7.6 plays nice with 64-bit Vista
Not only is the latest version of iTunes (v7.6 for those keeping count) required to enjoy those brand new movie rentals, but users with 64-bit Windows Vista machines can now look forward to using the software without issue. According to a number of tips, owners of said setups are apparently having no issues with it as of now. So, 64-bit Vista users -- for any of you courageous enough to give it a whirl, why not install iTunes 7.6 and report back with how things worked out?[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
More details on Apple's iTunes movie / HD rentals
It wasn't exactly crystal clear during Steve's keynote today, but apparently, there's a fair bit of red tape attached to these movie rentals. First off, since the Apple TV hardware is remaining the same, users can still only expect 1,280 by 720 resolution on the high-end, and although 100 HD movies are reportedly ready to be viewed, not a single TV show can say the same. Furthermore, a note at the bottom of the Apple TV's revised tech specs points out that "Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound is not available with all HD rentals," so there's that. We've also learned that HD movie rentals will be available exclusively through the Apple TV, and considering that only rentals made from iTunes can be moved to other devices, any downloads originating from the Apple TV (including everything in high-definition) won't be making their way onto your iPod, iTunes library, etc. Depressing, we know.
Yeah, about those server problems...
Long time Engadget readers know it's been a while since we've seen a service outage during Steve Jobs keynotes, which basically come close to making asplode the internets. Today, unfortunately, we did see some issues -- we're hosted by AOL, which obviously has more bandwidth than God, and yet still two data centers went out. Of course, there are far more data centers hosting us than just two, so a lot of readers saw no issues whatsoever. We are already in the midst of a post-mortem, but it's pretty clear you all must really love what we've got going on here, because this was easily our most trafficked live coverage to date.The upshot, of course, is that we're fully back online right now and anticipate zero further issues throughout the day. So head on over and hit up our hands-ons and check out all the news of all the new Apple gear! Don't worry, we can handle it.Apple MacBook Air first hands-onApple TV Take 2 hands-onThe MacBook AirThe MacBook Air SuperDriveMeet the new MacBook familyApple introduces Time Capsule, a NAS companion to Time MachineApple unveils the Apple TV, take 2iPhone firmware 1.1.3 update announced: it's just like we heardApple introduces iTunes movie rentals, HD rentalsLive from Macworld 2008: Steve Jobs keynote
Meet the new MacBook family
Here they are! Your oh-so-recently refreshed family of MacBooks. From left to right, we've got the tried and true MacBook, the all new showstopper (you can call it MacBook Air) and the MacBook Pro. Unfortunately, the two wingmen aren't seeing any updates today, but that fellow in the middle sure is getting a lot of attention. %Gallery-13885%
Live from Macworld 2008: Steve Jobs keynote
Thanks for joining us for our live Macworld 2008 keynote coverage! We're in, so click on, all our real-time updates are posted just after the break.
The MacBook Air
Apple just announced the .16-inch thin MacBook Air -- a laptop so thin it fits in a manila envelope. The new machine features a full-size keyboard and LED-backlit 13.3-inch display with built-in iSight, and the new larger trackpad supports multi-touch gestures. Just like the iPhone, you'll be able to pan around, pinch to zoom, and rotate with two fingers, and move windows with a flick. Apple got the size down by using the same 1.8-inch 80GB drive that's in the iPod classic, but you'll be able to order a 64GB SSD as an option. The Air eschews optical media, but there's a separate external you can snag for $99 and Apple's also announced a feature called Remote Disk that'll let the Air get data off the optical drive in any PC or Mac running the Remote Disk software. Pricing starts at $1799, and the Air will be shipping in two weeks. We'll have a hands-on with the MacBook Air here in a just a few, stay tuned!%Gallery-13872%
Apple and Fox announce iTunes-ready digital copies on discs
It's not exactly a new idea, but Apple and Fox have just announced that DVDs from the studio will include iTunes-ready digital copies of the movies from here on out. That feature (which thankfully comes at no extra charge) will first be available on the Family Guy Blue Harvest disc, which will pack a file that you can "instantly move to iTunes." From there, you'll be able to view it on your computer, iPod, iPhone or Apple TV, with a unique code provided to ensure that you don't spread it around any further. Somewhat interestingly, while Fox's Jim Gianopulos mentioned both DVD and Blu-ray in his presentation, the official press release (linked below) seems to indicate that the digital copies will only be on DVDs, at least for now.
Apple unveils the Apple TV, take 2
Apple just admitted that the first Apple TV didn't quite work out -- so it's back with a new model that can access iTunes directly, and streams movies from the new rental store in both DVD quality and HD with 5.1 surround. HD rentals cost a dollar more than SD content -- $3.99 and $4.99, and they'll sync back to your computer as well. The YouTube selection has also been expanded to 50M videos, there's now Flickr support in addition to .mac, and what's more, the entire UI has been revamped. The new single menu interface offers quick search of all available titles, and includes access to 600 TV shows that are available for $1.99, as well as your iTunes library and HD podcasts. Current owners aren't left out in the cold, though -- Apple's offering the new software as a free download. That's not all, either -- to lure you in to the frightening world of HD rentals, Apple's dropped the price to $229, down from $299. We'll have a hands-on with the updated Apple TV in just a few right here -- stay tuned!%Gallery-13879%
iPhone firmware 1.1.3 update announced: it's just like we heard
If you saw the 1.1.3 leaked firmware then this isn't a surprise. The new iPhone firmware features Google maps with location, up to 9 total home screens, Webclips, the ability to SMS multiple recipients, and more. That more being lyrics, subtitles, languages, chapters, in your iPod media. To customize a screen you just touch and hold the icon for a couple of seconds and it begins to "shake." Right, just like we saw in the video. Flicking your finger across the screen moves to the next screen. iPod touch users, it's all yours (minus the phone related apps, naturally) for $20. No, we're not kidding.
