Forbes writer David Ewalt on Friday published an article that posits an interesting idea: “[Apple CEO Steve Jobs] might be planning a move that will leave even his biggest fans surprised — becoming a phone company.” Citing Disney’s plans to launch a wireless phone network next year, along with the existence of ESPN’s own service,…
A-POD: A PC Case That Looks Like an iPod
The A-POD (as posted by PC Watch) Japanese PC manufacturer Scythe has cut to the quick for Windows using iPod fans: The company is marketing a PC case whose white design and front looks like an iPod, according to a report from Japanese site PC Watch (found via The Register UK). Not too coincidentally, the…
Apple Hot Deals Update for CDW MacWarehouse
< a href="https://www.apple.com">Apple Computer has updated the Hot Deals pages for CDW MacWarehouse at the Macintosh Product Guide. The Mac Product Guide is a list of Mac compatible hardware and software products on the market. The Hot Deals section of the Product Guide features several Mac retailers and special offers that one can only get,…
TMO Reports - BofA Adds to Apple's Projected EPS, Drops Stock Target Price by $1
Bank of America Securities analyst Keith Bachman on Thursday released a brief research report obtained by The Mac Observer. In it, Mr. Bachman states that the “two key metrics” to focus on regarding Apple are iPod units and computer sales growth rates. With 5.4 million iPods in his sales forecast and a Mac sales growth…
Mac Gaming News - Feral Announces Fable: The Lost Chapters Game For the Mac
Feral Interactive on Thursday announced that later this year it will publish Lionhead Studios’ Fable: The Lost Chapters for the Mac. The role-playing game was released for Xbox last year and is also currently in development for the Windows XP operating system. Feral said in a statement that the title represents “a significant strengthening” of…
TMO Reports - AmTech Research Raises Apple Earnings Estimates on Tiger Strength
American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu on Wednesday issued a research report that raised estimates for the quarterly financial numbers Apple will reveal on July 13. In the note, a copy of which was obtained by The Mac Observer, Mr. Wu writes: “From our checks with industry and channel sources, we believe AAPL will exceed…
TMO Reports - Apple Starts iTunes Countdown Campaign to Half Billion (UPDATE)
Apple Computer announced Tuesday a promotional campaign counting down to half a billion songs sold on its iTunes Music Store (iTMS). As part of the countdown, Apple plans on giving away an iPod mini and an iTunes gift card for 50 songs to the iTunes customer who purchases the winning song at each 100,000 interval.…
TMO To Go Podcast - Mac Geek Gab: Bluetooth Bonanza
Show notes for TMO To Go: Mac Geek Gab, week of July 4th, 2005 Podcast Link: TMO To Go: Mac Geek Gab, July 4th, 2005 Bluetooth is this week’s major topic from Dave Hamilton and John F. Braun. They chat about cell phone connections, headsets, and other related peripherals. Additional points of interest include some…
Star Wars Battlefront To Start Shipping July 18
Sporting gameplay similar to Aspyris Battlefield 1942, Star Wars Battlefront features 20 different soldier types, each with unique strengths and weaknesses, as well as over 25 air and ground vehicles — including X-Wings, TIE Fighters, AT-ATs and AT-STs — that players can use to turn the tide of a battle. Players can test their mettle…
Amnesty Widget Browser Runs Widgets Directly From Desktop
Widgets loaded in Amnesty Widget Browser run completely outside of Appleis Dashboard environment, maintain their own preferences and feature expanded capabilities such as adjustable window level (desktop, standard or floating) and opacity. Widgets can also be arranged into multiple virtual workspaces that can be called to the screen at any time. The utility will also…
IBM, Microsoft Settle Antitrust Suit
According to an article by Grant Gross and published at the IT World Web site, Microsoft and IBM on Friday announced a settlement to the antitrust claims filed by IBM after the U.S. government took action against Microsoft in the mid-1990s. Microsoft will pay US$775 million to IBM and extend a $75 million credit for…
Business Week: Lots of iPod/Tunes Phones in the Works
Apple Computer and Motorola intend on announcing a variety of new mobile phones with iPod/iTunes capabilities over the next year, according to a published report by Business Week magazine. The magazine said the range of phones will include low end and high end phones available “before Christmas”, and that the first phone out of the…
TMO Reports - iTunes 4.9 Confirms Existence of iPod Phone
Dialog instructions buried inside version 4.9 of Apple’s iTunes software give clear evidence that some type of “iPod Phone” does exist and will use iTunes to synchronize not only music but contact information as well, The Mac Observer has learned. A resource file that is included with iTunes 4.9 contains instructions that will be displayed…
Motion Picture Academy Invites Steve Jobs to Join
Current Academy members propose new candidates for membership, with committees from the organizationis 14 branches deciding whether or not to extend invitations to them. Individuals nominated for Academy Awards are automatically considered for membership, but theyire not guaranteed an invitation. The Academy recently made a change last year that limits growth by 30 new members…
Cingular Considering Selling iTunes-Ready Phone, Report Says
US mobile phone provider Cingular Wireless is considering selling Motorola’s soon-to-be-released iTunes-ready phone, a published report said Saturday. The Reuters news agency quoted an un-named source as saying, “Motorola and Apple have been talking to Cingular about it using the iTunes phone.” RBC Capital analyst Mark Sue said in a recent research note that Apple…
Mac mini, shuffle Take Gold in 2005 Best Product Design Awards
Apple Computer’s Mac mini and the iPod shuffle told first place gold in this year’s Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEAS), with the Airport Express receiving a second place silver recognition. The competition, sponsored by Business Week magazine and the Industrial Design Society of America (IDSA), gave a total of three awards to Apple and its…
TMO To Go Podcast - Mac Geek Gab: Wireless Base Stations Revealed
Show notes for TMO To Go: Mac Geek Gab, week of June 27th, 2005 Podcast Link: TMO To Go: Mac Geek Gab, June 27th, 2005 This week, John F. Braun and Dave Hamilton have each had a crazy week, but come together anyway to talk about wireless/airport connections, focusing on base stations, options available, and…
Coldplay Ups Apple Quotient with Solar iPod Charger
iPod-wielding Coldplay fans can exercise both loves with a new Coldplay-branded Solio, the solar-powered iPod charger that was introduced at Macworld San Francisco 2005 (see TMO’s Solio review for more product information). As The Unofficial Apple Weblog noted with the site broke he Coldplay story, the band has a history with Apple that includes releasing…
'Mad as Hell' Author Winn Schwartau Explains How He Got There, Where He's Headed
“Iive had it with the amount of downtime,” he recalled saying. “Letis go try this [switching to the Mac] experiment. I had a fit and started writing about it. Then Network World wanted my next article, so I published iMad As Helli and started the blog at the same time.” Mr. Schwartau is currently in…
Fortune's David Kirkpatrick Asks 'Can Apple Afford to License OS X?'
Last week, Fortune magazine columnist David Kirkpatrick reported that Michael Dell would like to sell PCs loaded with Mac OS X. This week, Mr. Kirkpatrick digs deeper into the possibility, musing that while he doubts Steve Jobs will license his operating system to anyone, “in the past he has been known to say he won’t…
Mediaboard ONE Manages All Media Files in One Place
The software also includes image and movie viewers, with the latter offering full-screen mode and the ability to display 16:9 or 4:3 aspect ratios. Users can also define their own automated workflows, such as importing images from iPhoto or burning files to a CD. Mediaboard ONEis database can be stored locally or on a network…
CodeWeavers' CrossOver Will Support Intel Macs
CodeWeavers on Wednesday announced that its CrossOver technology, which enables Linux users to run Windows applications on their computers, will support Macs once Apple makes the move to Intel processors next year. CrossOver was built on UNIX, as was Mac OS X, but the technology wasn’t previously available in the Mac world because it requires…
Latest User Group Podcast Features 'Mac News Brain Trust' Roundtable Discussion
Macintosh User Group (MUG) Center editor Chuck Joiner has posted the latest edition of his weekly Internet radio show, The User Group Report. In it, he features a “Mac news brain trust” roundtable discussion featuring MacCentral’s Jim Dalrymple, Macsimum News’ Dennis Sellers and The Mac Observer’s Bryan Chaffin. The three chatted with Mr. Joiner about…
MakeMusic to Ship Finale 2006 in July
Upgrades from earlier versions of Finale will be US$149.95, except for Finale 2005 users, who will pay $99.95. Suggested retail price for the full version is $600, with discounts available for volume license purchases and educational users. System requirements call for Mac OS X v10.2, a G4 processor, 256MB RAM and 200MB hard drive space.…
