T he folks at MacWireless have added a new Ceiling AirPort Antenna to their offerings, designed to provide maximum coverage in a room and to floors beneath it. The 6 dBi antenna, which replaces the AirPortis built-in antenna, mounts to the ceiling, ideally alongside your ceiling-mounted (or close to it) AirPort Base Station. “Why put…
TMO Reports - Analyst: Concerns About Sony & Napster Hurting Apple are "Overdone"
Concerns about Napster’s subscription service and Sony’s flash memory-based portable music players eating into Apple’s iTunes Music Store and iPod sales is overdone, according to a Wall Street analyst. In a research note obtained by The Mac Observer, JP Morgan’s Bill Shope raised his estimates for the March quarter to earnings per-share (EPS) of US$0.24…
Doom 3 for Mac Ships
< A href="https://www.aspyr.com/">Aspyr Media announced Monday the long-awaited released of Doom 3 for the Mac. A continuation of the original Doom series, Doom 3 is a first person shooter (FPS) that was built on an entirely new 3D engine developed by id Software. "DOOM 3 has instantly become a must have title for any game…
Microsoft Discontinues MSN for Mac OS X Software
A fter May 31, 2005, MSN customers will no longer be able to access Microsoftis Internet service using its Mac OS X software, the company announced Friday. Mac customers who want to continue using the service will be able to tap into MSN and read their e-mail through any Web browser. “MSN for Mac OS…
Motorola Cancels iTunes Phone Launch; Rollout Possibly March 23 (UPDATE)
Motorola spokeswoman Monica Rohleder told the Chicago Tribune that the company decided not to unveil the phone Thursday at the CeBIT electronics convention in Hannover, Germany after discussions late Wednesday night with “our operators”, meaning carriers such as Cingular, Vodafone, Verizon and T-Mobile. “Motorola discussed the logistics of this product with our carriers across the…
Piper Jaffray: Sony, Yahoo No Quick Match for iPod, iTunes Dominance
Despite a 12% drop in its share price over the last week, Mr. Munster said he believes Appleis competitive position “is strong and in some segments may become even stronger.” Speaking of Sonyis Monday announcement of nine new flash-based portable audio devices, Mr. Munster said, “Sony will only be successful at chipping away at iPod…
Just a Thought - Blackberry and Bluetooth
On a recent Monday morning, as I plodded, zombie-like, to the break room at work to get a cup of joe, I passed Elizabeth in the hallway. Being the ever friendly guy that I am, I offered my traditional morning greeting, "mornin’." "Good morning," Elizabeth chimed; she is a diminutive, perennially upbeat person who can…
Linux Creator Switches to Mac, Sort Of
D onit call it a Mac, because it runs Linux exclusively, but Linus Torvalds has switched to Apple hardware for his main desktop computer. The creator of the Linux operating system said in a Linux mailing list that he was no longer using an x86 (Intel processor) machine, and ZDNetis Australian branch took the opportunity…
Yahoo Close to Launching iTunes-like Music Service
Sources told Silicon.com and Cnet News that Yahoo has been working with digital-music wholesaler MusicNet for some time after its buyout of Musicmatch last September for $160 million. The Mac Observer was also privey to similar reports from analysts who had been briefed by Yahoo last week. Analysts familiar with the service were shown software…
Reuters Examines Subscriptions vs. iTunes
T he effect of subscription music services being a threat to Appleis iTunes dominance in the music download business is the subject of an article by Reuters. The article postulates that iTunes is facing pressure from subscription services, which it says "may be on the verge of explosive growth." The article comes on the heels…
TMO Exclusive - Average iPod Owner Shelling Out $150 on Accessories, Study Finds (UPDATE)
The average U.S. iPod owner is spending about $150 on cases, cables, adapters and other accessories and there is little evidence that trend will subside any time soon, a consumer survey has found. A survey by the market research firm Envisioneering Group found that American consumers who own an iPod are spending on average half…
iPod Chip Maker Boosts Battery Life With New Processor
P ortalPlayer, the company behind the processing brains in Appleis iPod and iPod mini, announced its next-generation solution Thursday, the PP5022 System-on-Chip. Building off of the PP5020 featured in current iPods, the PP5022 has dramatically lower power requirements, which the company says could extend battery life by up to three times in devices that use…
Library Offers Audio Books on iPod shuffle to Patrons
T he South Huntington Public Library on Long Island, New York is one the first libraries in the country to loan out audio books on iPod shuffles, according to Wired News. Members of the library can currently check out one of 11 books in audio format that the library obtained through the iTunes Music, each…
Duke to Decide Fate of iPods in Two Weeks
D uke University will deliver the final decision on its iPod initiative in two weeks time, The Chronicle reports. The university, which outfitted 1,650 freshmen with 20GB iPods six months ago, has had mixed experiences incorporating the music players into the curriculum. While the number of teachers using the iPod has increased this semester from…
Jef Raskin, Father of the Macintosh, Dies at 61
Jef Raskin, Apple employee #31 and father of the Macintosh, died Saturday at age 61. Mr. Raskin died at his home in Pacifica, Calif. A family statement said he had recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. A professor turned consultant, Mr. Raskin wrote the BASIC manual for the Apple II in 1976 and joined the…
Synaptics Admits its Technology Part of New iPods
Synaptics filed a Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission saying that while it believes itis inappropriate “to comment on unconfirmed rumors and speculation” about its business dealings, “we are confirming that our interface solutions are being used (by Apple Computer)” in the new 6 gigabyte (GB) iPod mini as well as the 30GB…
Playlist Offers First Look at Second Generation iPod mini
C hris Breen has posted a First Look at Appleis new iPod mini for Playlist magazine. Apple introduced new 6 gigabyte iPod minis on Wednesday, and lowered the price of the original 4GB units. The Playlist First Look examines the new features Apple added to the product line. "Seriously, there are some important differences between…
Seagate, Hitachi Announce 6GB, 1-Inch Drives; Competition to Escalate
Seagateis new 6GB ST1 Series hard drive range can hold up to 150 hours of high-quality music files, equating to some 3,000 tracks, encoded at a bit rate of 128 kilobits per second, the company said Wednesday. The drive incorporates RunOn technology to ensure consistent music playback while in a high-motion environment, such as jogging,…
Class-Action Lawsuit Accuses Dell of Bait-and-Switch Tactics
W intel computer giant Dell has been slapped with a class-action law suit accusing the company of bait-and-switch tactics, false advertising, and fraud. The lawsuit was filed in Francisco County Superior Court on February 14th, though Dell itself is based in Round Rock, TX. CNet News reported Wednesday that the suit accuses the company of…
Top 100 Gadgets, Octavo, Online Taxes on Inside Mac
The show, hosted by Scott Sheppard, has a feature by Ken Ray on Mobile PCis “Top 100 Gadgets of All Time.” In addition, there is an interview with Octavo CEO Chet Crycz about its rare book collection on CD. This episode also features the popular Podcasters Dawn and Drew who join Sam Levin and Laura…
Apple Shows Off New Tiger Logo; Yanks Within Hours
Mac users in Great Britain, Ireland and Scotland were treated to a worldwide exclusive Wednesday when their periodic Apple eNews e-mail arrived showing what appears to be a re-designed logo for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. The release appears to have been an accident, as the logo was pulled from other versions of the newsletter…
David Pogue: Olympus's Snazzy m:robe no iPod Competitor
D avid Pogue takes the new Olympus m:robe digital device to task in this weeks Circuits section of The New York Times. On the surface, the m:robe 500i seems like a formidable iPod competitor. Sleek design, large color touch-screen, 20GB capacity, and a built-in digital camera. Olympus believes the device is so hot the company…
Mossberg: Why PC Users May Not Want to Switch
W alter Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal, who has consistently praised Appleis products and frequently recommends to readers that they at least consider a Mac, outlines the reasons a Windows user would not want to switch to the Mac in his latest column. Cost and compatibility are Mossbergis most significant warnings. Accordingly, Mossberg suggests…
TMO Reports - Gates Doubts iPod a Microsoft Employee Favorite; "iPod's a Great Success"
Microsoft Corp. founder and chairman Bill Gates said Wednesday he doubted claims that 80% of his employees are iPod owners. Acknowledging the iPod has been a “great success,” he said consumers want more choice than what Apple can offer and Microsoft will gain market share in digital media devices in 2005. In an interview with…
