Apple Offers .Mac Users More 'Stuff'

by , 11:00 AM EDT, September 26th, 2003

With many .Mac subscriptions coming up for renewal, Apple has been once again adding to the benefits offered to subscribers. The company is now offering a free subscription to VersionTracker Plus, a free download of iBlog, an online journaling application, and a US$30 discount on FireLite FireWire hard drives. From Apple's .Mac site:

Free VersionTracker Plus Subscription

Sign up today to keep your software up-to-date and running smoothly with a free VersionTracker Plus subscription. VersionTracker.com (chosen by Time as one of the most useful Web sites of 2002) tracks more than 36,000 software products, so you'll never miss an update. The subscription gives you a custom page for tracking your software, a download cart, e-mail alerts, and advanced search -- plus membership in one of the most knowledgeable Mac communities online.

Need even more? Try VersionTracker Pro , the must-have for power users. Now .Mac members get half off the US$49.95 retail price.

Free iBlog Software

You've heard about blogging, now's your chance to try it. Keep a journal, publish your movie reviews, or be a political commentator with easy-to-use iBlog publishing software (a US$19.95 value), now free for .Mac members. iBlog lets you focus on what you want to say without worrying about formatting, archiving, or site maintenance. With iBlog you can publish your weblog right to .Mac, and integration with iLife makes it easy to add photos and movies, too. Find out more .

Save US$30 on FireWire Drives

The new Backup 2 Public Beta makes it easy to backup your data to nearly any location, including external hard drives. To make this even more convenient, .Mac and the online Apple Store are offering discounts on three SmartDisk FireWire drives, just for .Mac members. Save US$30 on the super-portable FireLite 40GB drive and the 80GB and 120GB desktop drives. Supplies are limited, so take advantage of the .Mac discount today.

.Mac user can take advantage of these offers immediately. For more information stop by Apple's .Mac Web site.

The Mac Observer Spin:

These are all very welcomed discounts, and no doubt many will believe that Apple is doing this to sweeten the mix and entice those .Mac users thinking about dropping the service to stay on another year.

We're among those people, but that doesn't mean we don't like the new freebies. We just wish the company would stay focused on this throughout the year. Mind you, Apple has occasionally added new freebies in the last year, but it seems as if they are coming faster now that the initial subscriptions are near to expiring. Again, if that's what it takes, then bring it on, because these new benefits are definitely welcome.

Apple's .Mac