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Daily Update for October 7, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Macworld 2011: Kanex brings full HDMI capability to Macs
This morning I spoke with Jessica Cole from Kanex, a two-year-old company which offers many products that add HDMI capability to your Mac. The current generation of their line adds audio pass-through via HDMI. The offerings range between the iAdapt HDMI V2 (US$29.95), a small box that plugs into Mini DisplayPort and allows you to plug in an HDMI cable, giving you audio support and 1080p video to a TV, projector or anything else with an HDMI input. I was shown the Mini DisplayPort to HDMI 10-foot cable ($44.95), which is sold exclusively at Apple stores and contains a 10-foot HDMI cable so that you don't have to buy and plug in your own. "We're very excited to have our product as an Apple Store exclusive," said Jessica (whose favorite three apps are Facebook, Pandora and Facegoo). The most interesting product that I found was the Kanex XD ($149.99), a magical box that gives you the ability to connect the HDMI output of a Blu-Ray player, PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 and have resolution of up to 1920x1200 appear on your iMac 27". This lets you use your 27" iMac display as a full HD display device. The Kanex HD is controlled by the iMac keyboard. A press of Command-F2 switches the display between the computer and the HDMI device, and both sound and brightness are controlled with the usual keys on the Apple Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard.
Apple paying back bonuses on cost of defective 27-inch iMacs
Gizmodo is reporting that Apple has begun refunding up to an extra 15% of the purchase price of the 27-inch iMac to those customers who bought defective units. The news broke yesterday with a UK-based Apple Authorized Service Provider/Reseller claiming that Apple is out of 27" screens in Europe, and they're dealing with a waiting list of customers already. So they're now offering up (to only certain customers so far, not an official policy) not only a full refund, but an extra 15% on top of the price, roughly $300 on the cost of a $2000 iMac. Gizmodo also points out that the refund doesn't include sales tax or shipping costs, so some of the 15% covers that as well. You won't be able to make money on this, but Apple is apparently offering up a small bonus to customers inconvenienced by the issues. Earlier this week Apple released another firmware update to address the flickering screen issues with the 27-inch iMacs but it seems that has not alleviated all the issues.
27-inch iMac shipping delays extended 3 more weeks
Did you order one of those sweet 27-inch iMacs from the Apple online store recently? Well, if you did, expect to see a delay in getting it. AppleInsider is reporting that the 27-inch models currently have a three-week shipping time. Earlier this week, Apple's web store showed estimated shipping times of less than a week. The delay could be due to several factors. First, initial users of the 27-inch model had been experiencing screen flicker issues, which caused orders made in December to be delayed about two weeks. Apple released a software patch for the big-screen iMac on December 21st that was meant to resolve the screen flicker issues, but many purchasers are still experiencing the problems. It could be that Apple is slowing the pace of manufacturing until the situation is resolved. Another possibility not addressed in the AppleInsider post could be that the demand for the 27-inch iMac is reaching a new peak. The iMac line made up the best-selling desktop computers in the U.S. in the last quarter of 2009, with the 21.5-inch model topping the charts. It's not entirely out of the question that demand at Apple resellers, including the Apple Stores, is finally being met by the supply of the 27-inch model and that fewer of the machines are available for purchase online. If you're looking for a 27-inch iMac, we'd recommend visiting a local Apple reseller rather than attempting to purchase it directly through the online Apple Store.
27-inch iMacs reported to have Flash playback issues
If you were contemplating buying one of those shiny new 27-inch iMacs, maybe don't pull the trigger just yet: according to Engadget, many proud new owners of the computer have become annoyed new owners, reporting pronounced problems in particular with Flash playback. The problem doesn't appear to be a few isolated cases, as two separate threads (here and here) have popped up in the Apple support forums, nor is it a pandemic, as Engadget reports their iMacs are fine. The suggested causes have ranged from a corrupted Snow Leopard build, to a bug that spins down the hard drive, to the nebulous "bad permissions." In the meantime, though, those big beautiful 27-inch screens are playing video like a 128K trying to run Crysis. A user on the first thread reported that Apple phone support said the problem was with the graphics card, and that it should be fixable in a software update, though another customer who opened a ticket was instructed to exchange the computer itself. Is Apple going to have to smack down another of its chip partners? We shall see.
