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Apple TV: What happens now?
Filed under: Accessories, Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Multimedia, Video, Apple TV
As Steve Sande has reported, Apple has discontinued the 40 GB Apple TV unit, and dropped the 160 GB unit U.S. $100.00. The large capacity set top box now sells for $229.00, the price that the now-eliminated 40 GB unit used to sell for.

Apple has continuously referred to the Apple TV unit as a 'hobby', perhaps a way to explain less than stellar sales figures. It's way overdue for some kind of update and new features; perhaps an 'all you can eat' rental program similar to the Netflix model.

At the same time, the Apple TV service has had plenty of issues: everything from failures to authenticate users, to (for the last few days) an inability to browse the HD rentals beyond titles starting with the letter 'B.'

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster had recently predicted that Apple would drop the 40 GB unit and lower the price of the remaining 160 GB unit, a prediction that turned out to be spot on. Munster has also predicted Apple would add DVR capabilities to the device.

Now, if only Apple would let that mysterious USB port on the back of the Apple TV allow more storage, and fix the service glitches, a lot of people would celebrate.

Some price adjustments for rentals would also be welcome. It is cheaper to rent Blu-ray titles at Blockbuster overnight then get the same title from Apple. Yes, you have to go get it, but the picture quality is better on the Blu-ray disk.

It's hard to figure out exactly where Apple should go with this device. I don't find the YouTube content compelling on a hi-def screen. Rentals are fine, but severely limited by the MPAA rules that only let me keep the rental for 24 hours. We're starting to see YouTube and Netflix being built into both TV sets and some new DVD/Blu-ray players, which will further diminish the Apple TV value. Hopefully Apple is up to something, or the 'hobby' will remain a half-baked idea that never took off.

Thanks to Jeremy for the the tip.
TUAW Apple TV: What happens now? originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Sponsored Topics: Apple - Unofficial Apple Weblog - Netflix - YouTube - Blockbuster
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What exact processor is inside the new iPod touch? TUAW digs deeper
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Rumors, iPod touch
Sure, the biggest mystery around the new iPod touch is the omission of the heavily-rumored camera, like the one found on the new iPod nano. However, there is some speculation and wondering in what is actually at the heart of the new iPod touch.

As you may know, all devices that run iPhone OS are powered by a processor based on the ARM architecture. These processors, like Intel and PowerPC processors, come in many different speeds. As Apple did with the iPhone 3GS, improved performance (including OpenGL ES 2.0 support for better gaming and graphic support) is touted as a feature in the new 32GB/64GB iPod touch models (the 8GB iPod touch retains the same performance as it did last year). It's still unclear what the exact details are for the new processor, but here at TUAW, we've done some digging to find out more information about it.

Read on for more technical details on the processor in the new iPod touch.

Continue reading What exact processor is inside the new iPod touch? TUAW digs deeper
TUAW What exact processor is inside the new iPod touch? TUAW digs deeper originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Apple TV gains hard disk capacity, loses weighty price
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Apple TV
Less than a week after the Apple TV was studiously ignored by Steve & Phil at the music event, a tipster has pointed us in the direction of the Apple online store where the device has suddenly gained some capacity and become less expensive.

The original 40GB model has been dropped altogether, and the 160GB model is now available for US$229, down from the previous price of US$329. Is Apple doing this to move inventory in anticipation of a new device, or to clear things out before dropping the Apple TV line?

Regardless of what direction Cupertino is taking, the existing Apple TV needs a software update stat! AppleInsider has speculated that the iTunes LP format and iTunes Extras released last Wednesday are specifically designed to deliver content to Apple TV. They've noted that the content is designed for 1280 x 720 resolution, fitting the native resolution of the Apple TV. There are even html meta tags in the new content -- "hdtv-fullscreen" and "hdtv-cursoroff" -- that seem to indicate that these new formats were designed for the Apple TV.

If Apple is planning on doing something with their "hobby" device, it would behoove them to announce it before the Christmas buying season. Does anyone want to take bets on whether or not there will be an Apple TV event before the beginning of November?

Thanks to twofedoras for the tip!
TUAW Apple TV gains hard disk capacity, loses weighty price originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Why iTunes needs to offer an album-based subscription service
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iTS
One of the key announcements to come out of Apple's "It's only rock and roll, but I like it" event on September 9th was iTunes LP. As implied in its name, iTunes LP seeks to provide a more rich album experience, something that has taken a backseat given the decline of physical albums.

iTunes LP includes features typically found on physical albums, such as liner notes and photos, as well as exclusive video content. One of the goals of iTunes LP is to resuscitate album sales, which have been struggling in the iTunes age of à la carte individual track sales. While iTunes LP provides a means to resuscitate the album, an album-based subscription service would further this goal even more.
Continue reading Why iTunes needs to offer an album-based subscription service
TUAW Why iTunes needs to offer an album-based subscription service originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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AT&T & MMS: So close, some of us can taste it
Filed under: iPhone
Well, it looks like they were telling the truth, for once. Last weekend, a friend of mine just happened to forget that my iPhone couldn't receive MMS messages, and sent me a picture he had taken. So needless to say, I was surprised when I saw the MMS notification, complete with picture, show up on my phone.

I was fully prepared to hop on to TUAW and write up a post, letting everyone know that MMS was turned on a full three weeks ahead of schedule. To be on the safe side, I decided to check with others to see if MMS was working for them. Unfortunately, everyone I asked said MMS was still not working on their phones.

Here at TUAW, we have received several tips over the past few months from individuals who have indicated MMS had suddenly started working for them. Many of these were from people who had also installed an updated carrier settings profile to their phones, which has produced mixed results across the board, ranging from MMS actually working to accidentally removing Visual Voicemail and even the basic ability to make phone calls. Even with these profiles installed, however, most people were still unable to use MMS due to settings on their AT&T account which prevent iPhones from sending media messages and filter incoming messages through their web-based "Multimedia Messaging" platform.

For the record, I was running the iPhone 3.0 software, and I had previously modified my carrier settings, although that hadn't really made much of a difference until now. I had been lucky, in that I had found a profile that did not break anything, and had even temporarily enabled tethering on my phone, which I successfully used for about five minutes to try it out (although when I later tried to use the tethering during a recent power outage, the option mysteriously disappeared from the settings panel after I turned it on). So I had to draw the conclusion that my newfound ability to send and receive MMS messages was probably related to the carrier settings I had previously tinkered with, and I was doubtful that it would last.

Now here we are a week later, and MMS is still working for me. But what's even better: reports are flowing in from around the country that MMS has started working in different markets. There are still quite a number of people out there that don't have it yet, but it looks like AT&T is actually serious about meeting the September 25th deadline. Yeah, it's definitely not "later this summer" as promised, but at least we are finally seeing some progress instead of just vapor dates and promises.

For those who are wondering where MMS has landed, HowardForums has a thread running with many people reporting which locations are up and running. Also, it's worth mentioning that the majority of users who have reported MMS as working have the "AT&T 5.0" carrier profile installed, which is included as part of the iPhone 3.1 update. So be sure to update if you haven't already!

Thanks to everyone who has sent tips in regarding MMS in their area.

TUAW AT&T & MMS: So close, some of us can taste it originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Infectious 'Cut to the Core' design challenge winners
Filed under: Accessories, Odds and ends, Graphic Design
We reported the Infectious "Cut to the Core" design contest a while back, but the winners have just been announced and their designs are truly gorgeous. I rarely sticker my computers, but the Infectious skins are vinyl and won't leave a mess behind when you remove them. These designs are created to work around the glowing Apple logo on the top half of your notebook computers, and the winners really hit the mark.

Congratulations to Jun Nuñez who takes home first prize of $1000 for his vision of the Apple logo as the pulsing heart of a robot with ReCharged. Kudos as well to Aren Vandenburgh and his design "Creative Workflow, Dimo Trifonov and his old-school rainbow striped Back to Basics and to Jamal Issawi and his arcade game-inspired Mac Man.

You can buy the winners' designs directly from Infectious for your 13", 15" and 17" Mac laptops. Skins cost $29.99 each. Check out the winners in the gallery, below.

Gallery: Cut to the Core Winners

TUAW Infectious 'Cut to the Core' design challenge winners originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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