Some important notices from AppleCentral

AppleCentral Blog terminates all service(s) today (18/04/2011) as the blog owner (AppleCentral Publications) is no longer a company.

In the positive side, AppleCentral just reached a 5 months milestone on 7 April.

This blog will no longer be updated from 18.04.2011. 

Apple's iPad 2 launch predicted to have stronger sales but shorter lines

Initial sales of the iPad 2 are expected to surpass the first-generation device, but numerous new points of distribution for Friday's launch are predicted to dilute lines of people.

Analyst Gene Munster with Piper Jaffray noted Tuesday that the original iPad launched at 221 U.S. Apple retail stores and most of Best Buy's about 1,100 American stores last year. The iPad 2 will debut with much greater availability, at more than 10,000 stores of retail partners in addition to 236 current Apple retail stores.

The iPad will also go on sale in the U.S. Friday at Walmart, Target, and AT&T and Verizon stores. Munster expects the new model to outsell its predecessor, which reached a million sales in just 28 days.

"Generally, the length of the lines at Apple retail stores on launch day have been a helpful early indication of demand," Munster wrote in a note to investors. "However, factors like online pre-orders, simultaneous international launches, weather, timing in the day and the day of the week can all impact a consumer's willingness to go stand in line, but may not necessarily be indicative of immediate purchase intentions."

Apple's launch and expansion of the iPad 2 will occur much faster than with the original iPad. Both the Wi-Fi-only and 3G-capable models will be available for purchase from day one, as opposed to 2010, when the 3G model launched a month later in the U.S.

International expansion will occur more quickly too, as Apple plans to have the iPad 2 available in 27 countries in the first two weeks. Last year, iPad shortages forced Apple to delay the international launch of its touchscreen tablet by a month.

Munster has predicted that Apple will sell 5.5 million iPads in the device's launch quarter. That would easily best the 3.27 million iPads it sold in the same frame one year ago.

He also sees sales of the iPad 2 increasing to 5.6 million in its first full quarter of availability. During the company's fourth fiscal quarter of last year, it sold 4.19 million of the first-generation iPad.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Neil Hughes

Adobe releases Flash-to-HTML5 conversion tool to support Apple's iOS

Adobe's newly released "Wallaby" application aims to expand support for Apple's line of iOS devices, including the iPhone and iPad, by converting Flash files into HTML5.

The new application available from Adobe Labs carries a codename and is dubbed "experimental technology." It converts artwork and animation contained in Adobe Flash Professional files with the ".fla" extension into an HTML format that can be opened on the mobile Safari Web browser on iOS devices.

"This allows you to reuse and extend the reach of your content to devices that do not support the Flash runtimes," Adobe wrote.

Once Flash files are converted to HTML, they can be edited with an HTML editing tool, or by hand. Content can then be viewed on a supported browser like Apple's Safari.

Adobe noted that not all Flash Pro features are supported in the HTML5 format, like 3D transforms, ActionScript, streaming sound, and embedded or external video. Supported features include images, layers, scenes, font embedding and FrameSets.

Wallaby is best used with Apple's iOS 4.2, as previous versions of the mobile operating system have known masking issues with HTML files converted from Flash. Remaining issues, Adobe says, are a result of a bug in the mobile Safari browser, and include artifacts when zooming and borders around masked artwork.

The lack of support for Adobe Flash on the iOS platform has been a major point of contention between Adobe and Apple. The debate came to a head last year, when Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs penned an open letter in which he slammed Flash as technology unfit for the modern era of low-power touchscreen computing devices like the iPhone and iPad.

Apple even went as far as to stop shipping Macs with Flash preinstalled, claiming the change ensures that users will install the latest version of the software for enhanced security and performance. But tests also found that the removal of Flash from the new MacBook Air boosted battery life by two hours.

As an alternative to Flash, Apple has pushed the HTML5 standard for its mobile devices, as it does not require any special plugins for a browser. Flash was also touted as a major feature of the new Motorola Xoom tablet, though the hardware shipped last month lacking support for Adobe's plugin.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Sam Oliver

Commercial airlines look to Apple's iPad for paperless cockpits

With the Federal Aviation Administration granting early approval for the use of the iPad in airplane cockpits, major commercial airline companies like Delta are exploring the possibility of using Apple's touchscreen tablet to ditch paper maps entirely.

Delta Air Lines, the second-largest carrier in the world, is pursuing approval to test iPads and other tablet-style devices in its airline cockpits next quarter, a spokesman for the company told Bloomberg. The news comes just after the FAA endorsed the use of the iPad in a test project at Executive Jet Management.

The FAA began granting approval for "electronic flight bags," or computers for aviation use, in the last decade. But current options are bulky and heavy, with one aviation computer from Astronautics Corporation of America weighing 18 pounds. Apple's new iPad 2 weighs just 1.3 pounds.

On Feb. 1, the FAA granted the first approval for professional cockpit use of the iPad to Executive Jet Management. The Cincinnati-based company, owned by billionaire Warren Buffett's NetJets, made 250 flights as part of the certification process with maps and accessories created for the iPad by Boeing's aeronautical and charting company Jeppesen.

The FAA decision only applies, for now, to Buffett's company. But the report noted that "commercial carriers now have a template for winning permission for iPad use."

While Delta plans to begin exploring the use of the iPad next quarter, other major carriers like Alaska Airlines remain largely paper driven for charts. But the Alaska Air Group operation, with 116 aircraft, said it is already testing the iPad for some functions.

Officials with Jeppesen said they began developing iPad flight navigation software partially because pilots themselves requested it. The company said it plans to release similar software for tablets running the Google Android mobile operating system.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Katie Marsal

Apple ships over 1 million MacBook Airs in new notebook's first quarter

The streamlined and lightweight family of MacBook Airs introduced by Apple late last year are a hit with consumers, who combined to demand shipments of more than 1 million of the new notebooks during the fourth quarter of last year.

Concord Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo tells AppleInsider that his most recent checks in Asia indicate Apple shipped a total of 1.1 million of its 11- and 13-inch MacBook Airs during the three-month period ending December, making the new breed of ultra-thin portables one of the company's most successful Mac product launches ever.

Those figures are about 63% higher, or 400,000 units more, than the 700,000 units that Kuo had initially estimated. The figures also support an earlier claim by AppleInsider that the new MacBook Airs quickly grew to comprise more than a third Mac maker's notebook business in the fourth quarter, selling at a 1 to 2 ratio to the company's flagship MacBook Pro offerings.

For example, Apple, which doesn't break down its Mac or device sales by product family for competitive reasons, said it shipped just over 2.9 million notebook systems during the fourth quarter of 2010. At 1.1 million units, the new MacBook Airs captured a 40% slice of the company's notebook business and accounted for just over a quarter of its Mac business as a whole.

Sales of MacBook Airs remain robust during the current quarter but are tracking down about 40% from the levels seen in their introductory quarter to just shy of 700,000 units according to Kuo. However, he estimates the Cupertino-based company may still set a new Mac sales record during the quarter with strong sales of its new MacBook Pros more than offsetting the decline in MacBook Air units.

In particular, he said, discussions with Apple's suppliers indicate the company's build plans call for the manufacture of upwards of 4.5 million Mac systems during the three-month period ending March. At those rates, Apple is likely to stand out as the only worldwide PC vendor to report material growth on a quarter-to-quarter basis, he added.

Brisk sales of the new MacBook Airs only serve to fortify claims that the design of the new portables can be seen as a harbinger for the future direction of Apple's other notebook families, which are similarly expected toadopt smaller footprints and shed yesteryear technologies -- such as hard disk and optical drives -- by the second half of 2012.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Kasper Jade

Apple iOS App Store blamed for too many apps as Sony NGP is called "dead on arrival"

Speaking at the Game Developers Conference held in San Francisco this week, Trip Hawkins railed at Apple's App Store for having too many titles, while blaming Nintendo for inventing the concept of licensed games as Ngmoco proclaimed Sony's Next Generation Playstation "dead on arrival" due to the App Store's success.

My failures, your fault

Hawkins, once Apple's director of strategy and marketing, left the company in 1982 to found Electronic Arts. In 1991 he left EA to launch the failed 3DO gaming platform, which after attempting to transition itself into a games developer, went bankrupt and sold off its assets to French game publisher Ubisoft.

He's now running Digital Chocolate, which creates scores of games for mobile platforms, including Apple's iOS. However, he's not happy about the App Store, complaining that the company has "over-encouraged supply."

Hawkins told CNN that on average, the App Store earns publishers "$4,000 per application. Do you see a problem with that? That doesn't even pay for a really good foosball table," he told the audience from his conference panel post.

Apple now has over 400,000 iOS apps in its library, and recently said it has paid out $2 billion to developers. About a third of those are free, so even on average apps make far more than the $4,000 Hawkins said, even before advertising revenues are included. But more importantly, the App Store is a meritocracy, where good apps make a lot while thousands of junk apps make little or nothing.

"If we can't figure out how to make it a healthy ecosystem, it's not going to be a great business for developers to be able to remain employed in," Hawkins complained, before turning his attention to Nintendo, which originated the concept of a hardware platform creator licensing third party development and charging a cut of software developers' revenues.

"We used to have a free and open game business, and then Nintendo came along and introduced a thing called a licensing agreement," Hawkins said.

In 2008, Hawkins praised Apple's new App Store after his Digital Chocolate successfully launched several apps to "spectacularly pleasant surprise," but today he's changed his tune to say that the "overcrowding" of the App Store makes it hard for many games to get noticed.

He has set his sights on web-based games, saying "there is a place that we can all gravitate to over the years. Think more about the browser. The browser will set you free." Hawkins didn't elaborate on how the number of web pages compare with App Store titles, how gamers will discover web-based games any easier than in Apple's App Store, or how developers will make money from web games.

Nintendo fears change

Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime panned the market for mobile games (which competes with dedicated handheld devices like the Nintendo DS), saying "the only thing that concerns us is that it becomes a distraction for developers, and it ends up driving development effort down a path that potentially has very little return."

Nintendo global president Satoru Iwata stated earlier in the conference keynote that "the objectives of smartphones and social-network platforms are not at all like ours. Their goal is just to gather as much software as possible, because quantity is what makes the money flow. Quantity is how they profit. The value of video-game software does not matter to them."

"When I look at retailers, and I see the $1 and free software, I have to determine that the owner doesn't care about the high value of software at all," Iwata later added. "I fear our business is dividing in a way that threatens the continued employment of those of us who make games."

Nintendo has refused to make games for iOS or other platforms after shifting its business from software development on early 80s consoles from Atari, Coleco and the Mattell Intellivision into an integrated platform business that sells console hardware, creates first party games, and earns licensing revenue from third party game developers, a model very similar to Apple's iOS.

A market for mobile apps and games

Apple entered the mobile software market and revolutionized how smartphone software was sold, creating the first viable market for mobile software. Speaking at the company's shareholder meeting last month, the company's leader of iOS development Scott Forstall pointed out that Apple has, in the iOS App Store, "created the best economy in software in the history of the planet."

Apple also brought its smartphone market to the iPod touch, which focused on games, and later expanded to the iPad, which supports a wide range of games, productivity apps and creative media titles, including Apple's own Pages, Keynote and Numbers, and the soon to be released iMovie and GarageBand titles.

Like Nintendo and every other game console developer, Apple licenses third party development and imposes a platform cut that helps support the App Store market. The difference is that Apple runs its App Store near break even, while other game platform makers rely upon licensing for the bulk of their profits, often selling hardware at a loss, as Microsoft and Sony have historically done.

The console makers' business model, which imposes a much steeper cut and fees upon developers, also makes it far harder for small indie developers to launch titles. Apple's App Store turned the tables, allowing individual programmers to launch iOS apps on a level playing field with big game development companies.

Consoles head toward online gaming, indie developers

Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have more recently attempted to address the needs of indie developers via new download-based online stores, ranging from Nintendo's WiiWare to Sony's PlayStation Network and Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade.

Last month, the developer of World of Goo noted that it launched its popular title for iPad to find much higher sales and revenues compared to the console online stores and even the Steam store for desktop Mac and PC games.

"In the short term, we still think that if an independent developer can get their game on a console it’s a safer bet than playing the App Store lottery," the company said, "but one might wonder whether, in the long run, it even matters who wins the PSN / WiiWare / XBLA race."

App Store predicted to kill PSP and leave NGP 'dead on arrival'

Other game developers are even more supportive of Apple's App Store model, with Ngmoco's chief executive Neil Young saying "I think [Sony's] PSP is done and the new [NGP successor] is dead on arrival.

"It’s really difficult to compete with an App Store that has hundreds of thousands of applications and a wide range of options where the average price paid is around $1.20 and there are tens, if not hundreds of thousands of free applications that are really high quality. So I just don’t think Sony’s going to be able to compete with that."

Nintendo has seen enthusiastic sales for its new 3DS handheld gaming device, but has been clearly pinched by the growth of Apple's iPhone, iPod touch and now the iPad in taking over territory in a space it has almost exclusively dominated for decades.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Daniel Eran Dilger

Apple negotiating for repeat downloads of iTunes music purchases

Apple is in negotiations with the major record labels to allow repeat downloads for music purchased through the iTunes Music Store, according to a new report.

According to people familiar with the matter, Apple is in talks with music companies, including Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and EMI Group, to change its download policy to provide greater flexibility to iTunes customers, Bloomberg said on Thursday.

An updated agreement, which sources said could come as early as the middle of this year, would allow users to re-download purchased music, even after losing the original copies. Currently, Apple's iTunes Music Store does not offer free re-downloads of previously purchased music.

The service would allow downloads to iPads, iPhones and iPods linked to the same iTunes account, the report claimed, adding that such a move would be "a step closer to universal access to content centrally stored on the Internet." Apple has also "weighed plans" to revamp its MobileMe online storage service later this year, said one source.

Rumors of a centralized streaming media service from Apple through iTunes and MobileMe have persisted for years, gaining strength on news that Apple planned to spend over $1 billion on a massive data center in North Carolina.

Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer revealed last month that the center will indeed be used for iTunes and MobileMe when it opens this spring. The server farm had originally been slated for completion by the end of 2010.


One recent report has suggested that Apple is planning a MobileMe digital online "locker" that would grant users access to their files, while a separate rumor claimed that iTunes media would be stored on a home computer and streamed over the Internet to connected devices.

Over the years, Apple has sought to leverage its continued success with the iTunes Music Store to negotiate more favorable contracts with the record companies. For example, Apple was successful in reaching a deal to remove DRM copy protections from iTunes music purchases in exchange for a variable pricing model.

More recently, Apple negotiated the extension of iTunes music previews from 30 seconds to 90 seconds.

Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com

(C) 2011 Josh Ong

New iPad 2 dock revealed; Apple offers $100 refund to recent iPad buyers

Customers who bought a first-generation iPad in the last two weeks can opt to return their device to Apple, or request a $100 refund, now that the iPad 2 has been announced. Also, the company will release a new dock designed to fit the smaller form factor of the iPad 2, though no new keyboard dock has been shown.

As first reported by Electricpig.co.uk, Apple will refund the price difference to anyone who has their original purchase receipt and makes the request in the company's standard 14-day return window. With the iPad 2 announced on Wednesday, that would mean buyers as far back as Wednesday, Feb. 16 would be eligible.

Of course, with the purchase also within the 14-day return window, customers could also opt to return the first-generation iPad entirely. For the same original purchase price, those buyers could wait for the iPad 2 to go on sale on March 11, as the second-generation device has the same six price points as the first iPad.

Though the iPad 2 starts at $499 for the 16GB Wi-Fi-only model, like its predecessor, Apple on Wednesday began to clear its inventory of last year's model. With the old iPad now on clearance from Apple, the starting price has dropped by $100, meaning customers can buy the 16GB Wi-Fi-only model for just $399.

Following yesterday's iPad 2 announcement, Apple also updated its official accessories page for the iPad to feature new products designed specifically for the second-generation device. Among them is a new dock made to fit the new, thinner profile of the iPad 2.

"This sleek dock stand is your personal hub for all things iPad," the product description reads. It is not yet available for order. "Get easy access to a port for syncing or charging, and an audio line out port for connecting to powered speakers via an optional audio cable. The iPad 2 Dock also supports other accessories, such as the Apple Digital AV Adapter and the iPad Camera Connection Kit."

Both the iPad 2 dock and the Smart Cover are new products designed for the second-generation device. The company on Wednesday also announced a new HDMI adapter that will allow 1080p output from the iPad 2, but the $39 "Digital AV Adapter" will also support 720p video output on the iPhone 4, fourth-generation iPod touch, and first-generation iPad.

Unchanged accessories from the first iPad include the Camera Connector, SD Card Reader, Apple Wireless Keyboard, Apple VGA Adapter, iPad 10W USB Power Adapter and more. Unlisted on the official accessories page is a keyboard dock designed to fit the iPad 2.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 

Apple announces iPad 2 and iOS 4.3

Apple just today introduced the iPad 2, the "sequel" to the iPad. It's is superbly thinner than the current generation iPad and way thinner than the iPhone 4. The iPad 2 also features a long awaited camera, on the front and back. They also introduced the successor to the Apple A4 chip, the Apple A5, which features a dual core processor, up to 2x faster CPU, up to 9x faster graphics but it still uses the same low power as the Apple A4 chip.

Take a look at some of the pictures below (courtesy of Engadget)

More pictures are available on Facebook (no account required)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=36775&id=100000950557026&l=35a2dd8ca0

Last-minute iPad 2 mockup surfaces in China with flat back, larger speaker

Just hours before Apple is set to announce its second-generation iPad, new images representing the anticipated design of the device, complete with a flatter back and larger speaker grille, have surfaced online.

The high-quality mockup from DGtle.com could offer users an idea of what the new iPad will look like only hours before the official unveiling at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, Calif. The device, also listed on eBay as a "dummy," is shown with a new thinner design, as well as an anticipated larger speaker on the second-generation device.

The mockup also includes the anticipated addition of two cameras to the iPad for FaceTime video chat and augmented reality applications. And the new iPad is also shown with a flatter back, allowing the device to sit flat on a table, unlike with the slightly curved design of the first-generation device.

Though the mockup uses a white space for the integrated 3G antenna, the report notes that, like with the current iPad, the strip along the top will be black for the final shipping product. The headphone jack and power button are also shown as part of an "inclined plane" across the top of the device.

On the left side of the device when facing forward is a SIM card slot. AppleCentral first reported in January that the space on the new iPad design would be used for a SIM card on the left side.

Interestingly, the mockup does not include a space on top for a Mini DisplayPort-size connector. Some third-party cases suggested that another port could be added to the top of the new iPad, and last week's release of new MacBook Pros with a high-speed Thunderbolt port in the shape of Mini DisplayPort fueled rumors that the new iPad will feature support for the new connector.

From the front, both the first-generation iPad and the mockup of the anticipated model show the same screen size and look largely the same, with the exception of a new FaceTime camera located above the 9.7-inch display. Apple is set to officially unveil the real iPad 2 at 10 a.m. Pacific, 1 p.m. Eastern, and AppleInsider will have full live coverage.

Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com

(C) 2011 AppleInsider Staff

Apple expected to ship 6.5M iPads in first quarter, 40M in 2011

Shipments of the iPad, including the second-generation model to be announced by Apple today, are expected to be between 6 million and 6.5 million in the first quarter of 2011, on their way to 40 million for the calendar year.

The numbers from DigiTimes on Wednesday show that Apple expects to significantly ramp up production of the iPad as 2011 wears on. For the initial launch of the iPad 2, Apple is expected to have between 300,000 and 400,000 units available.

Apple reportedly ordered between 1.7 million and 2 million iPads in January and February. Order volumes for March, including the to-be-announced iPad 2, are expected to top 2 million.

Citing industry sources, the report said there were between 1 million and 1.5 million units of iPad inventory in the channel in January. It added that Apple is "already set to phase out the first-generation iPad and let iPad 2 take its place."

In a separate report, DigiTimes also reported that gallium arsenide (GaAs) power amplifer suppliers, including TriQuint Semiconductor and Skyworks Solutions, are expected to benefit from the iPad 2 launch. Visual Photonics Epitaxy Company and Advanced Wireless Semiconductor Company of Taiwan are also said to be GaAs foundry suppliers for the iPad 2.

In February, it was said that more than 60 percent of Apple's initial iPad 2 production would be 3G-capable models. The company is expected to produce three versions of the new iPad: a Wi-Fi-only model, a GSM/UMTS version, and a CDMA/EVDO model.

Apple's official unveiling of its second-generation iPad will take place Wednesday at 10 a.m. Pacific, 1 p.m. Eastern. AppleInsider will have full, extensive coverage.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Sam Oliver


The live coverage will be available from 1PM EST (6PM GMT) at http://live.appleinsider.com/

No 'Sir:' UK government denied Apple's Steve Jobs knighthood in 2009

Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs was close to being knighted by the Queen of England in 2009, but the plans were reportedly scrapped by the U.K. government because of Jobs' absence at a political conference.

Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown blocked the proposed knighthood of Jobs in 2009, according to The Telegraph, because the Apple co-founder apparently turned down an invitation to speak at a Labour Party conference. Jobs was said to be knighted for his services to technology.

The plans were apparently so far along that Apple was aware of the proposal and it reached the final stages of approval. But Jobs was apparently denied the honor because Brown and other officials reportedly felt snubbed by Jobs' absence.

"The former MP was told by Downing Street that the decision was related to a failed attempt to attract Mr. Jobs to Labour's annual conference," the report said. "Given his status as a superstar of business and technology, such an appearance would have been viewed as a coup for Mr. Brown."

Bill Gates, former CEO of Apple's rival Microsoft, was named an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005. Because he is not a citizen of Britain's Commonwealth realms, Gates does not carry the title of "Sir." Jobs, too, would not have been eligible to be a "Sir."

Though Jobs was not knighted, he can boast many other accolades and titles bestowed upon him. In recent years alone, he was named "CEO of the Decade" by both Fortune and MarketWatch. He was also named theFinancial Times Person of the Year, in a profile that called his presentation unveiling the iPad a cap to "the most remarkable comeback in modern business history."

Apple's iPad 2 unveiling viewed as 'crucial' to stay ahead of competition

With over a hundred tablets expected to come to market this year looking to take on the iPad, Apple's unveiling of its second-generation tablet on Wednesday will be a critical moment for the company, one analyst believes.

Brian White with Ticonderoga Securities said in a note to investors on Tuesday that he believe's Apple's iPad 2 event, to be held on Wednesday, is a "crucial product launch." In particular, he said, analysts will look to see how well Apple handles the debut of its second-generation iPad with Chief Executive Steve Jobs on a medical leave of absence.

"We estimate there are well over one hundred tablets coming to market around the world this year," White said. "Assuming a new iPad is unveiled at this event, we believe Apple must make a convincing case for why the iPad 2 is better than the plethora of competitors coming to market, while at the same time persuading iPad 1 buyers to upgrade to iPad 2."

With 15 million iPads sold in calendar year 2010, the new device has become a very important product for Apple. White noted that the iPad and related products and services generated $4.61 billion in sales in the first quarter of Apple's fiscal 2011, amounting to 17.2 percent of the company's revenue.

The analyst has given a "conservative" estimate of 27.36 million iPad sales in fiscal 2011, generating $16.92 billion.

"In fact, we estimate that iPad sales will contribute nearly one-third of Apple's $36.8 billion in incremental revenue that we are modeling in (fiscal year 2011)," he wrote. "If we exclude iPad revenue from Apple's (fiscal year 2010) results and our FY11 model, our revenue growth rate projection for Apple would be 41% in FY11 versus our current projection of 56%."


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Neil Hughes

Security firm details new Trojan written for Apple's Mac OS X

Hackers have written a new "backdoor Trojan" targeted specifically at Apple's Mac OS X operating system that can allow remote operations and password "phishing," as Mac sales and market share continue to grow.

Security researchers at Sophos have taken the appearance of the "Remote Access Trojan" known as "Blackhole RAT" as a sign that hackers are beginning to take notice of Apple's continued success with the Mac platform. The unfinished malware, said to be based on the Windows RAT "darkComet," allows hackers to remotely send commands or attempt to deceive a Mac user. The darkComet source code is freely available online.

One of the potential uses for the BlackHole Trojan, which the security firm has dubbed OSX/MusMinim-A," is the ability to pop up a fake "Administrator Password" window to phish a target. It can also be used to place text files on the desktop, or remotely send a restart, shutdown or sleep command to the Mac.

Using the Trojan, hackers could also run arbitrary shell commands, send URls to the client to open a website, or place a full-screen window with a message that only allows the user to click reboot. MusMinim is said to be "very basic," and the user interface has a mix of English and German.

The full-screen window with reboot button displays default text to the user of the affected system. It states that the Trojan is "under development," and promises "much more functions" when the final product is released.

The lack of viruses and Trojans on the Mac has long been a selling point of Apple hardware. Just last week, it was revealed that Apple has begun inviting security experts to examine its developer preview of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, the company's forthcoming operating system update due out this summer.

Prominent security researchers including Charlie Miller and Dino Dai Zovi were asked to analyze security countermeasures included in the first beta of Lion. Apple's invitation to researchers marks the first time the company has expanded beyond its core developers to expose its software to community scrutiny.

Last October, a Java-based Trojan targeting Mac OS X spread through social networking sites by baiting users into clicking a link. Though the Trojan gained some attention, it did not affect a large number of Mac users.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Katie Marsal

Inside Mac OS X 10.7 Lion: New Dock, Finder & Desktop

Mac OS X 10.7 Lion reverses a trend toward user interface complexity, delivering a desktop computing environment that not only incorporates graphical elements of iOS, but also copies the intuitive simplicity of Apple's mobile operating system.

This overall simplification of the Lion user interface doesn't strip away existing features as much as it streamlines the process of using them, making it easier to actually access the power of various components. Two prime examples are Dashboard, a widget feature added in 10.4 Tiger, and Spaces, a virtual desktops feature Apple added to 10.5 Leopard.

While both features added new kinds of functionality to the Mac OS X desktop, they also involved more complexity, requiring users to remember special key commands to invoke and dismiss them while also creating new modes that can be difficult for non-technical users to visualize and comprehend. For many users, that complexity barrier simply means that Apple's development efforts go untapped.

In Mac OS X Lion, Dashboard and Spaces are integrated visually into the "all windows" view of Exposé, which Apple is now calling Mission Control. Additionally, the concept of Full Screen Apps is expanded into what is essentially a single app Space, which like Dashboard and other defined Spaces, is just as easy to call up and then escape from with a four-fingered swipe of the trackpad.

A simpler new Dashboard

Under Lion, instead of depicting Dashboard as a special mode that whisks in above the desktop as a visual overlay, the widget layer simply a panel that slides in from the left (evoking the left-most strip of audio playback and screen orientation lock controls accessible from the iOS multitasking bar).

This strips the desktop of some whizzy eye candy (including the watery layer that since Tiger has rippled when you drag out a new Dashboard widget, and the translucent background of the Dashboard itself), but it simplifies the user experience so that its very easy to remember how to get in and out of the Dashboard interface quickly; it can even be done via an intuitive multitouch gesture (very similar to the one Apple is experimenting with as an iPad gesture for switching between its full screen apps).

There's now no distractingly busy desktop behind your Dashboard widgets, just a simple panel that looks like a starting point for constructing Lego buildings. The Widget strip from Tiger is still there for grabbing new widgets to arrange in the Dashboard area, and the Dock is always available as well, making it even easier to jump back out to a particular app. Movie on page two.


Automatic Spaces and Mission Control

Apple indicated that it worked hard in Leopard to deliver a new virtual desktop feature without introducing too much additional complexity. The problem, however, is that virtual desktops are innately confusing for most users because they act as modal representations of parallel worlds, each with its own desktop of icons.

Apple's implementation, named Spaces, shares the same desktop for each Space, merely grouping a set of app windows (or apps themselves) into different screens. Spaces work for power users who switch between different types of tasks, but they're confusing for most users because there's an explicit, invisible step required to move between each space.

Mission Control, a renaming and enhancement of the F9-invoked "all windows" Exposé screen, simplifies Spaces by making it visually simple to see each space in the context of running apps and all document windows. An important part of this simplification is the use of multi-fingered gestures to navigate through the screens visually. This makes Spaces much easier to visualize and navigate between.


Full Screen Apps

Additionally, Apple has added Full Screen controls to content-oriented apps such as Mail, Safari, iPhoto, and iCal which effectively turn their single window into a full screen app reminiscent of the iPad. When an app goes full screen, it creates a private space for itself rather than simply obscuring other windows. This allows the user to take specific apps full screen and then easily switch between them, the Desktop, Dashboard, and other defined Spaces using intuitive gestures.

In Lion, apps lose the upper right pill icon, with many now getting a Full Screen button that takes the window and turns it into a fully utilized private space. This also trims away the window's title bar and close buttons, erasing all the windowing chrome to present just the app's functions with as broad of an open canvas as possible. To jump out of Full Screen, the user can mouse up to display the hidden Menu Bar, where a new Full Screen button in the top right returns the app into its normal window view. Or alternatively, the use can swipe between full screen apps, Dashboard, the Desktop and other Spaces via gestures.

Integrating Full Screen Apps, Spaces, Dashboard and Exposé, Mission Control is a welcomed point of Singularity that builds upon ideas that have been evolving within Mac OS X over the past decade, and within the iOS, iPhone and iPad over the last few years, finally delivering a cohesive, intuitively familiar way for non-technical users to handle several desktops of active content without getting lost looking for key commands, keyboard shortcuts, or mousing around through menus.


Launchpad

One final step in merging the iPad experience with the Mac OS X desktop is Launchpad, a new app that simply blurs the Mac desktop out and displays an array of app icons very similar to the iPad Home page. Multiple screens of apps can be slid between with a two-fingered swipe navigation, each with rows of icons that can be grouped into iOS-style Folders by dragging them on top of each other.

There's no need to touch and hold apps to enter a "jiggle" mode in order to rearrange them; the user can simply click and drag apps into their preferred location, or within organizing Folders. Using Launchpad is still a bit rough around the edges, with some remaining quirks related to dragging apps around, and no obvious way to remove apps you don't want to appear. The app shows every application you have installed within your Applications folder, so there is currently going to be a lot of stuff you probably don't want to access quickly.

Despite its work in progress status, Launchpad is a welcomed improvement over trying to find an app (that's not in your Dock) manually, particularly for users who don't understand the concept of digging through the filesystem to locate a program, and aren't aware they can use Spotlight to call up an app by name (or for users who want to launch an app they recognize by icon, but can't recall the name). The new feature is essentially the Applications folder as a Dock Stack, but with more simplicity and familiar commonality with iOS.

Finder icon dragging

In addition to the flexible new window controls that appear everywhere in Lion, and the new source list and view controls present in the Finder, the new update also enhances how selections of files are dragged between or within Finder windows.

New in Lion, when a selection of files is dragged to the source sidebar, or to the desktop, or to another window, the selection is represented as a collection, badged with a count of the items in the selection, and with a display that transforms to reflect the view settings it is dragged over.

For example, a selection of icons dragged to the source sidebar is shifted to a set of small icons listed in a an easily readable row, but when dragged to the desktop, the icons morph into larger sized representations in a stack. Dragged to a different Finder window, the same stack takes on the characteristics of its destination.

Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 AppleInsider Staff

AppleCentral takes a week rest

AppleCentral will be taking 1 week off to allow rest to publishers. In that period, no news will be posted on this blog.

However, while we're gone, check out these sites:

http://www.appleinsider.com
http://www.macrumors.com


Thank You,
The People At AppleCentral @ 20 February 2011

AT&T reportedly provisions iOS 4.3 beta Personal Hotspot feature

AT&T has reportedly provisioned the new Personal Hotspot WiFi sharing feature of iOS 4.3 beta 3 for a developer, indicating it will follow Verizon's lead in offering the feature to its subscribers.

Apple added the Personal Hotspot feature in iOS 4.2.6, a build that only runs on the Verizon iPhone 4. It takes advantage of a feature Verizon has long offered that enables multiple WiFi clients to share a phone's mobile 3G connection.

AT&T hasn't committed to supporting the new feature yet, but is expected to in the face of the competitive threat issued by Verizon. Other carriers can choose whether they will support the OS feature.

The individual reporting AT&T's acquiescence in provisioning the feature on his phone running the developer build says the carrier agreed "after I mentioned Verizon a few times."

AT&T similarly balked for months before finally supporting the MMS and Bluetooth tethering features Apple added to iOS 3.0, but could hold up support for those features because it lacked any direct competition in the US. Personal Hotspot is Wi-Fi tethering.

Activating the feature is subject to additional fees. Verizon charges an extra $20 per month for WiFi tethering, and AT&T is expected to offer similar plans

Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com

(C) 2011 Daniel Eran Dilger

iPad 3 with Retina display, new device sized between iPad and iPod in Apple's pipeline

While conflicting rumors have described both a larger screen and a smaller, cheaper iPhone model purportedly planned for this summer, one connected industry expert tells AppleInsider that Apple is also working to expand its tablet offerings with a Retina Display iPad 3 and new device that may be either a smaller iPad or larger iPod touch.

Word of the so-called "tweener" tablet from Apple arrived last month, when Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of Concord Securities informed AppleInsider of detailed component plans attributed to iPad 2. The analyst also outlined Apple's expected production ratios of WiFi, CDMA and GSM/UMTS iPad 2 models.

iPad 3: double resolution IPS/FFS display

A third point relayed by Kuo was that a successive iPad 3 model would incorporate a 9.7 inch IPS panel with FFS (fringe-field switching) technology, which enables a wider viewing angle and clearer visual quality under in sunlight. Kuo previously reported last May that the upcoming iPhone 4 would incorporate a double resolution, 960x640 display using IPS/FFS, which Apple subsequently released under the name Retina Display. He was also correct in nailing down in advance that iPhone 4 would supply twice the RAM of the iPad.

Kuo now claims that iPad 3 will deliver a Retina Display-like quality and resolution doubling to 2048x1536, an enhancement originally thought to make it into the more immediate release of iPad 2.

However, Kuo told AppleInsider last month that iPad 2 isn't getting the new panel yet because of limited manufacturing yield rates. "At this point," he said in January, "making a high resolution and bright IPS/FFS panel is not easy and the production volume and cost couldn’t meet Apple’s requirements." Upcoming iPad 2 models are instead said to be using a thinner panel with "anti-reflection" to deliver a better experience in bright sunlight.

iPad mini, or big iPod touch

Kuo also described a new iOS device that is undergoing evaluation for a potential release during the second half of 2011, with a screen size between that of the current iPad and the iPhone. Speaking of this new product, Kuo said he was "not sure" whether it would be "a 'Super iPhone' or a 'iPad mini.'" Subsequent speculation by a variety of Apple observers, including a new posting from Vláďa Janeček of Czech site SuperApple, similarly suggest an iPad with a screen close to 6 inches.

Given the company's regular criticisms of competitor's half-sized tablet offerings, Apple will almost certainly not deliver a tweener iPad with a 5 to 7 inch screen size.

However, Apple may be interested in delivering an oversized iPod touch intended to fill the gap between its 3.5 inch, smartphone sized iOS devices and its full sized 9.7 inch iPad.

The company has strongly expressed its contention that "tweener" sized tablets smaller than the iPad are not capable of delivering a real tablet experience. However, there does appear to be a market for oversized smartphones, with some Android models offering 4 inch or larger displays that simply blow up the screen rather than offering more to see. Some consumers, particularly older individuals with limited vision, have expressed keen interest in these larger phones.

With a 5 inch screen, a "big iPod touch" at its existing resolution would offer a 230ppi screen density; stretched across a 7 inch screen the same resolution would deliver 164ppi, still higher than the existing iPad's pixel density of 132ppi. Rather than trying to crush the full sized iPad's resolution into a smaller screen, something Apple's chief executive Steve Jobs quipped last fall would require filing down users' fingers, such a device could simply serve as an expansion of the iPod family, offering a larger view of the simpler iPod touch user interface.

Along similar lines, between 2001 and 2006 Apple offered two iBook models offering the same 1024x768 resolution on either 12.1 and 14.1 inch screens, aiming the larger model at people who simply wanted a bigger view of the same desktop. The company now sells its 15.4 inch MacBook Pro and 13.3 inch MacBook Air with the same 1440x900 resolution.

A 4 to 7 inch iPod touch could serve to expand Apple's iPod offerings, enabling the company to more directly compete with handheld gaming devices by leveraging iTunes media, compatibility with third party apps, and iOS' existing support for features like push email, FaceTime video calling, Game Center, and upcoming features such as expected music and photo cloud features and voice activated assistance services.

Expanding the definition of tablet

Apple's iPod touch is currently not counted as a tablet (not even a "media tablet") by market research firms such as IDC and Gartner, but that practice would be harder to maintain if Apple were to ship a larger version of the device with the same 960x640 resolution. Other companies, including Dell and Samsung, have delivered devices with lower resolutions on "tweener" sized tablets, which are counted as "media tablets," even though they have found minimal interest among consumers.

A new, larger iPad touch model could potentially deliver an additional competitor to the low end tablet market currently represented by the Samsung Galaxy Tab and Dell Streak, while still remaining well differentiated from the more sophisticated iPad in order to avoid direct competition. Such a strategy would resemble Apple's efforts to expand the market of the original iPod with the iPod mini, a product which targeted the lower end of flash RAM music players while leaving the iPod to service its original market as a high capacity device.

A big iPod touch would also help differentiate the general purpose, full sized iPad from other smaller, low end tablet devices, forcing them to compete against Apple's media-centric iPod touch rather than being drawn into comparison next to iPad. Both IDC and Gartner group include media-centric tablets as small as 5 inches in the same category as the iPad while completely ignoring the tens of millions of iPod touch devices Apple already sells.

An iPod-branded small tablet strategy would also explain why Kuo cited a delivery target of the second half of 2010, likely coinciding with Apple's fall iPod event rather than being connected to the firm's spring launch of iPad 2 or the summer debut of iPhone 5.

At the launch of the original iPod touch, Apple worked to differentiate the new model with a unique physical design and limited software features compared to iPhone. While the iPod touch continues to be styled as uniquely different than iPhone, Apple has since relaxed its artificial limitations related to functionality, cultivating the product with a focus on gaming. This has resulted in iPod touch sales helping to support the iOS development platform, an element missing from most other smartphone platforms.

Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com

(C) 2011 Daniel Eran Dilger

Apple CEO Steve Jobs photographed at dinner with President Obama

Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs sat directly beside President Barack Obama at a special dinner featuring some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley on this week.

In a photo posted on the official Flickr account of The White House, Jobs can be seen sitting to the left of Obama as the table of tech luminaries engages in a toast. Others at the dinner included Google Chief Executive (and soon-to-be executive chairman) Eric Schmidt, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerburg, Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz.

Another picture shows Zuckerberg talking with the president, with Bartz and Genentech Chairman and Apple Board of Directors member Art Levinson in the background. In that picture, a figure standing behind Obama is obscured, but could also be Jobs.

However, none of the pictures uploaded offer a clear look at the Apple co-founder, who reports this week claimed has been spotted looking extremely thin. It was claimed that Jobs was seen at California's Stanford Cancer Center, prompting speculation that he has relapsed and requires additional treatment in his ongoing fight with cancer.

Jobs and other Silicon Valley executives met with Obama on Thursday at the home of John Doerr of venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. The meeting was aimed at promoting technological innovation in an effort to boost the U.S. economy and increase the number of jobs available.

Also this week, Gizmodo hired a plane to view the recent demolition of the Jackling House mansion owned by Jobs. A flyover of the property shows the building razed to rubble with construction equipment onsite.

After years of holdups and problems, Jobs finally got the OK to demolish the property, a process that began earlier this week. The 17,250-square-foot building was a decade-long controversy between Jobs and preservationists.

Local historians sought to protect the Spanish colonial revival mansion, built in the 1920s by copper baron Daniel Jackling. They argued that the home was historically significant.

The property has been vacant since 2000, as Jobs has been involved in several back-and-forth filings with the city of Woodside and preservation group Uphold Our Heritage. The CEO reportedly plans to build a smaller, more private home in place of the mansion.

Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com

(C) 2011 Slash Lane

New Shanghai store will be Apple's biggest retail venture in China yet

With its highly successful retail stores constantly crowded in China, Apple is slowing down and thinking bigger starting with its new Shanghai store, planned to be the biggest yet in the nation.

According to China Real Time, Apple is planning its fifth store in China, to be located at Nanjing Road. It will be the third store in Shanghai, joining two stores in Beijing.

Ron Johnson, Apple's senior vice-president of retail, reportedly revealed that the company's stores in China are now visited by more than 40,000 per day, which is four times the average traffic Apple retail stores in America see. Because of that, the company is now looking to build bigger stores that can accommodate customer interest.

The company had previously revealed plans to open up 25 retail stores in China, but Johnson indicated the openings may occur slower as Apple revises its plans and concentrates on bigger stores.

Apple executives revealed in January that its stores in China now attract the most traffic in the world, and also earn the highest revenue. At the time, Apple had a total of 323 stores worldwide, with 87 of them outside the U.S.

Johnson revealed years ago that Apple discovered its stores were too small, resulting in an initiative that has resulted in new locations being at least three table widths wide. Apple also intends to focus on creating more "significant stores" that attract attention, like its flagship location in New York City which is covered by a glass cube.

Apple's retail store opened in Shanghai last July similarly features a stand-out entrance with a massive glass cylinder. When the company began its initial push into China, executives said they were more focused onbuilding the Apple brand in China than achieving strong sales right off the bat.

iPad's growing competition from Android could quell Apple antitrust talk

Growing competition from tablets running the Google Android operating system may help Apple and its iOS subscription plans for the iPad avoid antitrust probes, at least in the eyes of the European Union.

Regulators with the European Commission have said they cannot yet judge whether Apple has a dominant position in the tablet market, according to Bloomberg. Though Apple sold millions of iPads last year and took the vast majority of touchscreen tablet sales, it is a market that is "relatively new and evolving," they said.

Apple caught the ire of European newspapers before it even formally announced its iOS recurring subscription plans, of which the Cupertino, Calif., company takes a 30 percent cut of all sales. Concerns from European publishers prompted Belgian lawmakers to file formal antitrust complaints with the European Union.

But in a response from EU commissioner Andris Piebalgs earlier this month, the possibility of an antitrust probe was downplayed: "Alternative applications platforms exist and several companies have recently launched or are expected to launch in the near future a number of devices similar in terms of functionality to the iPad."

On Tuesday, Apple unveiled its subscription plan for the iOS App Store on the iPad and iPhone. In addition to allowing content providers to offer recurring subscription billing, the company also takes a 30 percent cut of all sales and has banned links within App Store software to external websites that would allow users to purchase content or subscriptions at a lower price and without Apple's share.

Android-maker Google quickly countered by announcing its "One Pass" service for subscriptions just a day later. In the competing product, the search giant takes a smaller 10 percent cut of transactions and offers users the ability to view content in a Web browser on a variety of devices with a single login. But Google has also agreed to allow publishers to control subscribers' personal data, while Apple gives customers the option of providing a publisher with only their name, e-mail address and zip code when they subscribe.

While regulators in Europe for now do not seem convinced that Apple is engaged in antitrust practices, The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission are currently looking into Apple's terms in a "preliminary stage." However, a formal investigation has yet to be launched. The report also cited the European Commission as saying it was "carefully monitoring the situation.

Use of RFID in Apple's iPhone 5 expected to have a 'unique' twist

Apple is expected to include near-field communications technology like radio-frequency identification (RFID) in its next-generation iPhone, but with a different approach to the feature than has been seen in RFID-powered Android phones, according to a new report.

Analyst Brian White with Ticonderoga Securities issued a note to investors on Thursday from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. He noted that there has been a rising interest in near-field communications (NFC) at this year's show.

White said that his sources have indicated to him that the next iPhone will include NFC technology. However, Apple's approach will reportedly have "a twist that will make it unique versus his peers." White did not give any indication as to what the "twist" could be.

He did note that earlier this week, it was revealed that the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy S II will feature NFC technology, while he said Google has pushed RFID as technology that "has the opportunity to revolutionize electronic commerce and payments." But the rumor would suggest that Apple is looking to offer more than an e-wallet for payment processing at retail stores.

Last November, one rumor claimed that Apple could use NFC technology in both its future iPhones and Macs to allow RFID-enabled "remote computing." It was said the rumored technology would allow users to securely turn a nearby Mac into their own personal computer, complete with custom settings, personal passwords, and even desktop backgrounds.

Apple has also filed patents related to NFC technology, including one discovered last July which would allow users to obtain information about a range of products wirelessly and instantly. Examples of potential uses for the service, called "Products+," included obtaining information about a product to receiving promotions and coupons.

The Cupertino, Calif.-based iPhone maker has also hired experts on near-field communications, and was even rumored to be testing iPhone models with RFID chips as recently as August.

Also in his note issued on Thursday, White noted that Softbank has issued all 20,000 of its employees both an iPhone and iPad from Apple. He said the news is "a sign of things to come across enterprises," predicting further corporate adoption of Apple's iOS devices.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Neil Hughes

With 60% of world's touch panel capacity, Apple squeezes competitors

Apple has reportedly locked up 60 percent of the world's touch panel capacity, which has led to "tight supply" among competitors hoping to take on the iPad.

According to DigiTimes, Apple is expected to cause an industry-wide component shortage in 2011, which is causing issues among tablet PC makers. The most serious shortage has reportedly occurred with touch panels, as Apple holds the majority of capacity from major suppliers Wintek and TPK.

Major companies Research in Motion, Motorola and Hewlett-Packard are said to be competing for related components with Apple, pushing "second-tier players" out of the market entirely. Specifically, glass capacitive touch panels, like the one found on the iPad, are the most constrained component.

"Sources from iPad distributors pointed out that in 2010, Apple's order forecasts to its OEM partners were all high and the biggest problem on the supply side was not capacity, but low yields of touch panels," the report said. "In 2011, Apple's strategy of taking up most of the capacity should help the company quickly expand its sales, while reducing its competitors' shipment growth."

Apple Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook revealed in January that his company committed $3.9 billion to secret long-term component contracts. The company would not reveal what the money was put toward, citing a competitive disadvantage in doing so, but it has been widely speculated that the money has been put toward LCD screens and touch panels for devices like the iPhone and iPad.

Analyst Katy Huberty of Morgan Stanley said the investment could allow Apple to buy 60 million iPad touch panels, or 136 million touch displays for the iPhone.

Apple's secret investment is similar to 2005, when the company prepaid for NAND flash memory, allowing it to leverage pricing and garner supply for devices like the iPhone, iPad and new MacBook Air. Much like the anticipated control over the touch panel market in 2011, at numerous points in the past Apple caused a shortage of NAND flash, leaving competitors out while products like the iPhone dominated components.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Sam Oliver

Apple's Steve Jobs to meet with President Obama on Thursday

Apple CEO Steve Jobs will reportedly join Google chief executive Eric Schmidt and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in a meeting with US President Barack Obama in San Francisco on Thursday.

Though recent reports have alleged that Jobs' health has continued to decline, the executive is scheduled to attend a business leaders' event with President Obama Thursday evening, a source told ABC News.

Google's Schmidt, who will step down as CEO in April; GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt, the newly named chairman of the White House Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, and Facebook's Zuckerberg will also be in attendance, according to sources familiar with the meeting.

“The president and the business leaders will discuss our shared goal of promoting American innovation, and discuss his commitment to new investments in research and development, education and clean energy,” a White House official said.

Jobs and President Obama met in October of last year to discuss the US technology industry and the economy. At the time, White house press secretary Robert Gibbs said that the President was "eager" to talk with the CEO.

In December 2010, Obama cited Jobs as an impressive example of the American dream.

"Something that's always been the greatest strength of America is a thriving, booming middle class, where everybody has got a shot at the American dream. And that should be our goal. That should be what we're focused on," the President said. "How are we creating opportunity for everybody? So that we celebrate wealth. We celebrate somebody like a Steve Jobs, who has created two or three different revolutionary products. We expect that person to be rich, and that's a good thing."

Though Jobs has kept a relatively low profile during his medical leave, which he announced in January, rampant speculation on his condition continues to abound. Jobs stayed on as Apple's chief executive and continues to be involved in major strategic decisions as he works from home.

RadarOnline reported Wednesday that Jobs had been spotted at the Stanford Cancer Clinic in Palo Alto, Calif. According to a recent report, Jobs, who turns 56 next week, had been in a "down cycle" for weeks and appeared "increasingly emaciated."


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 AppleInsider Staff

Unaffected by Intel chip issues, Apple increases notebook orders - report

Shipments of notebooks reached Apple's expectations in January, and the MacBook maker plans to increase its orders for the first quarter of calendar 2011, providing further evidence that the company is largely unaffected by an Intel chipset design error, according to a new report.

DigiTimes reported Wednesday that Apple's notebook shipments are expected to "remain strong" in the first quarter of 2011. It noted that retail channel vendors indicated a widely publicized design flaw in the chipset accompanying Intel's latest-generation Sandy Bridge processors "did not impact" Apple, and the company is expected to increase orders.

The Mac maker was reportedly aided by the fact that it is slower in upgrading its products to the latest platform. The report said that Apple is still using Intel's Calpella chips for "most" of its current models, allowing it to "completely" avoid the impact.

"The sources pointed out that because Apple's products have high (average selling prices), even if the company is slow in upgrading its products to the latest platform, it will not see a significant impact on its pricing or gross margins," the report said.

"However, for Hewlett-Packard (HP), Acer and Dell, which heavily depend on their economic scale, the new platform will help raise their ASPs and therefore, these makers will try to launch notebooks with new platforms as early as possible."

The report follows an exclusive scoop from AppleInsider published on Tuesday, as people familiar with Apple's plans indicated that the company's new MacBook Pros are in production and on track for release in early March. The company reportedly anticipates an introduction of the new models in about two weeks' time.

Intel disclosed earlier this month that it discovered an error in its series 6 chipsets, dubbed Cougar Point, which causes the performance of serial ATA ports numbered 2 through 5 to degrade over time in extreme conditions. The issue applies to both mobile and desktop processors, and does not affect SATA ports 0 and 1.

Just a week after the error was revealed, Intel announced that it had resumed shipment of chipsets for Sandy Bridge-powered PC system configurations not impacted by the design flaw. The company also said the new, fixed version of its support chip would begin shipping for systems that relied on SATA ports 2 through 5 in mid-February. In addition, the company confirmed it will meet its deadline to begin shipping dual-core Sandy Bridge chips on Feb. 20.


Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Sam Oliver

Apple's new MacBook Pros in production, due by early March - sources

The first major overhaul to Apple's MacBook Pro line in nearly a year is on the cusp of fruition, with production actively underway and volume shipments to begin as early as the first week of March, AppleInsider has been told.

A person familiar with the matter said the Mac maker currently anticipates an introduction of the new models within about two weeks time, which would represent a delay of just a couple of weeks from when the company initially hoped to usher the new models onto the market. The setback was attributed to a widely publicized design flaw in the chipsets accompanying Intel's new Sandy Bridge processors, which the new MacBooks are expected to employ.

That latest revelations appear to support a rumored timeframe shared last week by Danish blog KennethLund.dk (via MacRumors), which identified Tuesday, March 1st as a prime candidate for the notebook launch. It should be noted that while both reports are believed to be on point as of Wednesday, Apple's product launches are often a moving target that can see last minute delays of several days due to unexpected anomalies in manufacturing or the company's supply chain.

Meanwhile, a second person familiar with the matter has hinted that a move to Intel's new Sandy Bridge architecture won't be the only highlight of the new notebook lineup, as Apple appears poised to up the value proposition of the new models through the addition of some enhancements of its own.

It's unclear, however, whether those enhancements are related to the "slight changes" in the notebook's unibody chassis design that the Cupertino-based company is rumored to have implemented, or something entirely different.

One thing that is clear is that Apple's new line of redesigned MacBook Airs are serving as an indicator for the future direct of the company's notebooks in general, with features such as instant-on, standard SSD drives, slimmer enclosures, and the omission of optical drives expected to become more prevalent in many of the models planned for future design cycles over the next 12 to 18 months.

The new MacBook Airs are so hot, in fact, that a third person familiar with Apple's supply chain recently revealed to AppleInsider that the ultra-thin portables are now selling in volumes roughly half that of MacBook Pros after being on the market for less than six months.

Last week, AppleInsider exclusively reported that a design error in Intel's Sandy Bridge chipsets, dubbed "Cougar Point," would have a immaterial impact on the next-generation MacBook Pros. One person familiar with the situation indicated that some, but not all, of the new notebook designs were affected by the situation, but minor tweaks to the logic boards of those models would result in delays of a couple of weeks at most.

Intel's Cougar Point chipsets support a total of six serial ATA ports, but Intel revealed earlier this month that it discovered an error that causes the performance of ports numbered 2 through 5 to degrade over time in extreme conditions. The issue applies to both mobile and desktop processors powered by Sandy Bridge technology.

Just a week after it disclosed the error, Intel announced that it had resumed shipment of chipsets for Sandy Bridge-powered PC system configurations not impacted by the design flaw. The company also said the new, fixed version of its support chip would begin shipping for systems that relied on SATA ports 2 through 5 in mid-February.

A refresh to Apple's MacBook Pro line is long overdue, with the last hardware update coming in April 2010. At the time, the high-end notebook line was outfitted with Intel's first-generation Core i7 and Core i5 processors.



Information retrieved from: http://www.appleinsider.com


(C) 2011 Kasper Jade & Neil Hughes