Notes From Today's Showtime Event

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

As we begin to soak in today's announcements, a few tidbits of note:

- In reference to 'iTV', Steve only said that "802.11" would be used for wireless communication. Currently, Apple employs 802.11g "Airport Extreme" in its products, but the lack of specificity may hint at an adoption of the upcoming 802.11n standard.

- Many users have noted the iTunes 7 standalone installer includes a greyed-out custom option for "iTunes Phone Driver". It is not clear whether this driver is for the rumored iPhone or for already iTunes compatible phones from Motorola.

- To the delight of many existing 5G owners, iPod Software 1.2 (included with iTunes 7) will provide capability to playback the increased resolution of new iTunes TV Shows, Music Videos, and Movies. The technical specifications of the 5G had originally stated the maximum resolution for h264 playback as 320x240 px.

- iTunes 7 will confirm if you wish to re-download content, and has a backup utility for backing up your library. Also introduced is a feature called "skip count" which tells you how often you have skipped a song.

Digg This (http://www.digg.com/apple/Notes_From_Showtime_Apple_To_Employ_802_11n_in_iTV_Other_Notes)

[balamw]

- iTunes 7 will confirm if you wish to re-download content
What does that mean. :confused:

Can I redownload any TV Shows in 640x480 (crosses fingers) :p

B

[chuckles:)]

my 5g wont let me play zuma.

any help here?

[longofest]

What does that mean. :confused:

Can I redownload any TV Shows in 640x480 (crosses fingers) :p

B

No... as in if you are re-buying it

[lwood]

Glad I saw the software updates, ordered a 30G black refurb, but it's a 5G, so, I can get the higher res videos and play games. that works for me. Couldnt beat it for $199 + tax.

[jrath1]

Do any of these new ipods have a firewire connection??

If not..that's some BS

[longofest]

my 5g wont let me play zuma.

any help here?

Try updating to iPod software 1.2. If you continue having problems, go to this forum (http://forums.macrumors.com/forumdisplay.php?f=75).

[Lertie32]

Whoohoo! One of the first replies!

I'm watching the webcast now... already updated iTunes and looks very coool so far!

And... OMG... Steve's wearing a black dress shirt instead of a turtleneck!
:eek:

Anybody know if the new iPod search features are going to work for existing iPods? So far I can't find it on my 60G that I just also updated...

[iGary]

Holding myself back form a shuffle for running, but I will definitely be buying a set top box when they come out. They must have been delaye din getting those together, or they wouldn't have given a sneak peak.

Not like they could really release movies without any hope to the consumer of playing them on a TV.

[scottlinux]

Gapless playback on my 60GB 5G now works. Thank you apple. Finally.

[pilzbury]

Anyone have pic's or know where to look for pics of this 'iTV'? or did they not show it? I am really interested in this.

[longofest]

Do any of these new ipods have a firewire connection??

If not..that's some BS

iPods haven't had Firewire since 4G

[treblah]

Do any of these new ipods have a firewire connection??

If not..that's some BS

The 'old' 5G iPods didn't have Firewire.

EDIT: <maxwell smart>Missed it by that much.</maxwell smart>

[longofest]

Anyone have pic's or know where to look for pics of this 'iTV'? or did they not show it? I am really interested in this.

See the Keynote stream, or you can see the updated part of our story on it... http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2006/09/20060912161621.shtml

[bcallen]

So... Does this mean my G5 iPod will have increased resolution? And also, when I updated my iTunes and plugged in my iPod it said it was already up-to-date. Hummm... any one have a suggestion?

[mrwilly123]

The greyed out Phone driver option under "customize" has been there in every recent version of the iTunes installer.

[zach]

Gapless playback on my 60GB 5G now works. Thank you apple. Finally.

i haven't tried this yet, but if it's true, i'm basically the happiest person ever.

[syklee26]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.

[simX]

- iTunes 7 will confirm if you wish to re-download content, and has a backup utility for backing up your library. Also introduced is a feature called "skip count" which tells you how often you have skipped a song.


This is not new to iTunes 7. This has been in iTunes since practically version 4. Where did you get the idea that this was a new feature?

BTW, the iPod software update 1.2 for video iPods does not appear to give the new Advanced Search function to older 5G iPods.

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.

It's not really that much of a bummer. The max discount you ever got was $30 (I think, not sure if you got more for a $399 model), but with the new models, Apple discounted the highest iPods by $50 instead. So if you buy at full price, you're still paying less than you would have with the educational discount previously.

I don't think the shuffles ever had special educational pricing, and I'm not sure the nanos ever did either.

[suneohair]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.

It is fair to point out that they did drop the price on the big ipods and increased storage on the nanos. Pretty good deal.

[darwen]

Whoohoo! One of the first replies!

I'm watching the webcast now... already updated iTunes and looks very coool so far!

And... OMG... Steve's wearing a black dress shirt instead of a turtleneck!
:eek:

Anybody know if the new iPod search features are going to work for existing iPods? So far I can't find it on my 60G that I just also updated...

Has anyone else had problems playing back the video? It keeps cutting out audio on me!

[68164]

In the file menu, I now have an option (greyed out) for Transfer purchases from iPod...not sure what that means given you can't currently buy stuff direct from your iPod...and pretty sure it wasn't there in Itunes 6...sounds intriguing though!

Also - there a custom option for encoding rates from CD that takes you up to 320 kbps for AAC - can't remember that either in the previous version...

[darwen]

I don't think the shuffles ever had special educational pricing, and I'm not sure the nanos ever did either.

I think they all had discounts. I know for a fact the nano's did. Not much but they did have a discount.

[MacWarriorX]

Anyone else notice that iTunes now has an option to burn CD-TEXT?

It's called "Include CD Text" and is in the burning preferences.

[runninmac]

my 5g wont let me play zuma.

any help here?

Try Authorizing your library. It fixed my problem.

[kureno]

Impressed by iTV and want to buy one. Now all I need is a way to record TV programs on my Apple hard drive.

[Trekkie]

Did anyone else buy a new song? It seemed to me that when I picked up the new Bare Naked Ladies album it downloaded a lot faster and multiple songs at a time now.

[Willis]

Anyone else noticed that the iTunes Mini store has departed us in this version?

Or am I missing it somewhere?

EDIT: Nope.... found it. I noticed the EQ went walk abouts too. Found it under the same menu

[Chef Medeski]

i haven't tried this yet, but if it's true, i'm basically the happiest person ever.
nice erase those gaps

but i'm sure apple is only being nice cause they want our money

But you know the more you try to erase it.... the more

the more... the more you can.


Love that album. And it just looks so great when scrolling through.... too bad its almost dead last.

[Chef Medeski]

In the file menu, I now have an option (greyed out) for Transfer purchases from iPod...not sure what that means given you can't currently buy stuff direct from your iPod...and pretty sure it wasn't there in Itunes 6...sounds intriguing though!

Also - there a custom option for encoding rates from CD that takes you up to 320 kbps for AAC - can't remember that either in the previous version...
Once you Authorize your iTunes, log in to iTunes Music Store, you can upload music from your iPod onto that computer or any computer signed into that account. Nifty, no? It could be done for years with 3rd party, but this is slicker.....:cool:

just like apple... slick version of a software ... 3 yrs later

[law guy]

The big news today as far as I can tell is that Steve went with a collared shirt instead of a mock neck; continues to shun belts.

I can't get excited about iPods. A 12" screened device that can play movies, CDs, DVDs, and run office software - yes, an ultraportable laptop would be useful.

[rockthecasbah]

Is there going to be another iPod updater that will incorporate the features like the searching and fast scrolling letter label thing onto current 5G iPods? I hope so, that searching has been a feature calling from me for ages...:)

[TiMacLover]

The iTunes Phone Driver is for current Motorola phones not for the iPhone, you can read about it in the software update when it's installed, it was in the Software Updates as of a week ago.

[twoodcc]

Is there going to be another iPod updater that will incorporate the features like the searching and fast scrolling letter label thing onto current 5G iPods? I hope so, that searching has been a feature calling from me for ages...:)

i hope so also

[gorkonapple]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.


That sucks. On the otherhand, when Apple sends my Walmart the new batch I can plop one in layway.

[jettredmont]

Did anyone else buy a new song? It seemed to me that when I picked up the new Bare Naked Ladies album it downloaded a lot faster and multiple songs at a time now.

Yes! There is now a downloads manager. When you were downloading, a link appeared in the left bar labeled "Downloads" or something like that. I clicked on it, and there were several downloads happening at once in there, not one at a time as previously.

The one negative effect: you don't necessarily get Track 1 first, then 2, etc, as you would before. So, on a slow connection, you can't just wait for the first song to download then start playing to listen to the whole album ...

Off-topic: did you notice they messed up the Are Me track numbers? Just "15" and "16" on the second disk (the bonus tracks) listed "of 27" instead of 14 (like the rest of the songs) or 16 (the actual number of tracks on the "disk").

[jettredmont]

In the file menu, I now have an option (greyed out) for Transfer purchases from iPod...not sure what that means given you can't currently buy stuff direct from your iPod...and pretty sure it wasn't there in Itunes 6...sounds intriguing though!

Also - there a custom option for encoding rates from CD that takes you up to 320 kbps for AAC - can't remember that either in the previous version...

This transfers music that you purchase on one computer to another computer. In order for it to work, you must have an iPod which has sync'd with a computer with bought songs, and attach it to a second computer which is authorized to play those songs.

My question is this: the keynote treated this like a true 'sync', but it sure doesn't look that way. Does it do more than a 1-way copy? And, does it only (as the menu item suggests) work on iTMS purchased tracks, not ripped CDs?

This feature really sounded nice to me, letting me get rid of the nice but sometime buggy Senuti. But, maybe not.

[lwood]

Did anyone else buy a new song? It seemed to me that when I picked up the new Bare Naked Ladies album it downloaded a lot faster and multiple songs at a time now.

I'd imagine they added some major infrastructure to support the movie downloads, so, I'm betting the downloads overall will be a LOT faster with their upgrades.

[bommai]

i haven't tried this yet, but if it's true, i'm basically the happiest person ever.

I just confirmed with my Beethoven Symphony 5 3rd to 4th movement gapless playback works. I had already ripped my CD as Apple lossless. I did not have to rerip it. The first time iTunes ran, it analyzed my music for gapless playback. Great!!

[Chef Medeski]

I'd imagine they added some major infrastructure to support the movie downloads, so, I'm betting the downloads overall will be a LOT faster with their upgrades.
Yeah, plus 4x the resolution on all videos.

They probably installed those new Intel Xservers.... I heard they are 16x as fast...:D

[rickvanr]

Holding myself back form a shuffle for running

Likewise, that shuffle is seriously slick, and the price is right. Built in clip, bye bye iPod shuffle sport case.

[NYmacAttack]

That sucks. On the otherhand, when Apple sends my Walmart the new batch I can plop one in layway.

The discount barely covered the cost of tax when buying directly from apple.

[chuckles:)]

for some reason i still cant watch the keynote!

when i try to open it it says that it is unavailible due to high demand.

and the new itunes seemes buggy, i've had it crash 5 times (yes, on a mac.)

[berkleeboy210]

We will see something similar to what happened last Fall? - Apple holding an event in september, then a couple weeks later another invite goes out saying "One More Thing..." like last year. and that event will be mid october or something?

Or are we done for the year?

[zach]

nice erase those gaps

but i'm sure apple is only being nice cause they want our money

But you know the more you try to erase it.... the more

the more... the more you can.


Love that album. And it just looks so great when scrolling through.... too bad its almost dead last.

Hehehe, took me a second to figure out what you were talking about :)

but yeah, that's a friggin' awesome album.

[chuckles:)]

oh ya, could someone explain what they mean by "gapless playback"?

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Did anyone else buy a new song? It seemed to me that when I picked up the new Bare Naked Ladies album it downloaded a lot faster and multiple songs at a time now.Yes, I got myself 2 new songs just after upgrading iTunes (getting the total up to 10 :p), but I thought the download was very slow... I presumed this was because of high load after the announcement/upgrade...

...but they did seem to download simultaneously... :cool:

[Hattig]

oh ya, could someone explain what they mean by "gapless playback"?
When you have songs that merge into each other, e.g., a live CD, or lots of dancey CDs or classical CDs, when playing the songs there is no gap between tracks.

This wasn't as simple a solution as you might think, because the encoding of the music (AAC or MP3) encodes into blocks of data of a certain size, so if your song finishes half way through a block, the rest would be empty. I imagine that the reason iTunes has to go through all of the songs to deal with gapless playback is so that it can find the actual end of the song so it can start the next song seamlessly behind it.

[yg17]

Yeah, Steve did only say 802.11 which strikes me as odd, but why would they use n in the set top box, when all of the current Macs have g? I don't see Apple telling everyone who just bought a new Mac "too bad"

Unless recent Macs have 802.11n which just needs a firmware update to unlock it.

[law guy]

oh ya, could someone explain what they mean by "gapless playback"?

On CDs (or any other physical recording) sometimes artists have one song run right into another - you know it's changed because you're familiar with it or you happen to look up at the CD track counter and see it go from 3 to 4 but the music hasn't stopped. Digital tracks had a bad side effect of putting a break between tracks. Gapless apparently knows when the original recording intended no gap and then replicates that on the iPod / iTunes replay. This breakthrough also available on cassette tape. :rolleyes:

[odp101]

I think I'm missing something re: getting the new iPod software for my 5G iPod. I installed iTunes, and it tells me that mine is up to date with version 1.1.2. Is there a separate download that I'm missing?

[berkleeboy210]

I think I'm missing something re: getting the new iPod software for my 5G iPod. I installed iTunes, and it tells me that mine is up to date with version 1.1.2. Is there a separate download that I'm missing?

I had to hit the restore button, then it finally showed that there was the 1.2 update. all is well for me now, search functions, games, and downloading a movie now to test.

- the games look incredible, mini-golf is really addicting!

[Squire]

We will see something similar to what happened last Fall? - Apple holding an event in september, then a couple weeks later another invite goes out saying "One More Thing..." like last year. and that event will be mid october or something?

Or are we done for the year?

I sure hope they hold another event. This one (well, the announcements-- I haven't watched the keynote yet) was kind of disappointing. I like the new version of iTunes, which is free, so that's good. The rest of the iPod announcements don't really interest me that much. I have a 40 gig iPod and no access to iTunes TV shows or movies.

Now this iTV thing sounds interesting but I'm not going to get too excited over a product prototype.

Call me crazy, but I would like Apple Computer, Inc. to release a new computer line.

-Squire

[berkleeboy210]

I sure hope they hold another event. This one (well, the announcements-- I haven't watched the keynote yet) was kind of disappointing. I like the new version of iTunes, which is free, so that's good. The rest of the iPod announcements don't really interest me that much. I have a 40 gig iPod and no access to iTunes TV shows or movies.

Now this iTV thing sounds interesting but I'm not going to get too excited over a product prototype.

Call me crazy, but I would like Apple Computer, Inc. to release a new computer line.

-Squire

I agree with you on them releasing a new computer line. I would like to see some tablets or ultraportables released in the near future, i mean every1 else has them out in one form or another, why not apple?

[pmoeser]

apple.com.au still doesn't have iTunes 7 on their website:(
still can't buy tv shows:mad:
No mention of movie purchases in our store:confused:
Just another poor cousin release by the looks of it.
We're glad that you guys can have more fun than us.
You could use the cheering up what with george dubbya and all
Greetings from Australia

[nutman]

did anyone find it strange that steve wasnt wearing his mockturtleneck?

[lredlefsen]

This is a great start, Apple!

What would be really cool is if the iTV could do iChat video chats, so I can sit on my couch while I'm chatting with family far away.

Also, I tend to rent movies, not to buy them. What about a rental option?

Finally, what about my existing (tiny) DVD collection -- mostly my kid's movies? I realize you can't give people a way to slurp in DVDs they rent from NetFlix -- maybe a DVD drive on iTV?

[lredlefsen]

Anyone else catch Steve's closing comment "See you again real soon"? Maybe he means MWSF, or maybe... ;)

[simX]

I had to hit the restore button, then it finally showed that there was the 1.2 update. all is well for me now, search functions, games, and downloading a movie now to test.

- the games look incredible, mini-golf is really addicting!

I can find everything except the advanced search function. Can you find that on your old 5G iPod? I can't for the life of me.

(Otherwise, I see all the functions -- games work, the quick scrolling where the big letter is displayed works, haven't tried gapless playback though but I'm assuming that works.)

[Sean7512]

I absolutely loved all of today's announcements! iTV sounds AWESOME I personally think.

Some people are complaining that the videos aren't high enough in resolution, but it will take off as is. Think about this for a second. The quality of music in the iTunes store is not near CD, and the movies are "near DVD"....the public didn't mind on songs, and I HIGHLY doubt that joe shmoe down the street will care about his movies. For all he is concerned, he would think it looks as good as DVD...The average user WILL NOT notice that what, 80 pixel loss on the width. I commend Apple, and am awaiting to see exactly what the potential of iTV really is!

As a note: iTunes 7 downloads movies SLOOOOOOOOW, maybe because Apple servers are overloaded, i don't know? All I know is for National Treasure a 1.5GB file, should take 33 minutes and 33 seconds on a 6 megabit connection that we have here. (Obviously, actual speeds are not close to 6, but 2-3 is def. sustainable) Even at 2 megabits, it should take 100 minutes, which is not bad at all. BUT, It has been downloading since 6pm and it is now 11:26pm with an estimated 35 minutes left!!! :mad: Either Comcast is ripping us off or Apple's servers are maxed out (which I suspect, because my internet is running pretty quick)

EDIT:
Hmmm....maybe I have my number wrong. According to iTunes, it is downloading at 565kb/s How many kb is in one gb? The one site I looked at says 1,000,000kb = 1gb. And 1 megabit = 125kb....are those numbers right or was the site wrong?

[berkleeboy210]

I can find everything except the advanced search function. Can you find that on your old 5G iPod? I can't for the life of me.

(Otherwise, I see all the functions -- games work, the quick scrolling where the big letter is displayed works, haven't tried gapless playback though but I'm assuming that works.)

I can't find the advanced search functions either. just tried toging into settings and nothing was there.

if anyone can give us some info on this, it would be great.

almost done downloading a movie, will report quality on original 5G once it's transferred.

[xnu]

I guess we finally found out what asteroid was. Looks solid to me.

I may be the only one but i kinda like the fact that they updated the 5g iPod, it lessens the upgrade envy. Not that I am not going to buy the 6g the minute it comes out, but it gives a little sanity to march forward in technology and really is a great software upgrade for existing owner's, everything i could have hoped for.

[cromestant]

Actually I think that all intel macbooks ( including pro) 's airport card is 802.11g and draft N... the problem is that they cant advertise it, because n is still in draft status at IEEE... so you can't really say hey this is an N... because N doesn't really exist as a satandard ( making a standard is a lenghty process takes about 5 to 6 years for the whole process...) if anyone has a draft n wifi router, please try and check the conection speed on you mactel macbook.. would be good to know if this is just a rumor, or if its really a fact.. i know i read it before buying my blackbook.. but alas.. i dont have a n draft router...

Now movie store... still not reallyinterested until prices for internet access at those speeds drop here in venezuela... for a 1mb conection we still have to pay about 40 $ , if you are lucky to get the provider that gives this for that price, if you are not ( which is my case) then you have to spend about 180$...

so, its really exiting to see movies and itv.. but need better conection and a good tv..

now the shuffle is really great looking although i was disapointed, i wanted to see a6g ipod.. touchscreen, bluetooth, makes coffe in the morning etc..

but well will wait till december, if no 6gipod is out, then i might get me a shuffle...
also.. ILOVE WHITE IPODS>>>.. WHY THE HECK DID THEY TAKE THE WHITE NANO OFF THE LINE..... DAMN...


well trying to watch keynote right now... just read it in live text feed as it happened here on macrumors ( who btw made a big mistake with the newipod sizes... they said 60gb for 249$ and 80 gb for 350.. when we all know that its 30 and 80.. just look at the big presentation behind jobs.)

[Kingsly]

Must... purchase... iTV... whwhhhhwhhh....


I feel like a kid in a candy store. :)

[RichP]

I have to say, the best thing to come out of today is iTunes. It seems to have some real, quality new features. We have gapless (finally) we have better album art management, better ipod management, better downloads.

Im impressed, and by apple not really updating the ipod today, it didnt cost me anything!

[cgmpowers]

Wonder if he rushed the iTV announcement because the iPod 5G still has a small screen...no full screen with virtual wheel as the so-called rumors kept hinting at for months..

Christopher

p.s. iTunes 7 rocks!!

[mixgrafix]

That is the real question.

[RichP]

I just updated my 5G ipod:

-Brightness control now available (great for the car at night, ipod is almost blinding)
-Gapless
-Sound Check? (I dont remember seeing that on the ipod, was it there before?)

[balamw]

-Sound Check? (I dont remember seeing that on the ipod, was it there before?)
Yup. That was there...

B

[EssentialParado]

My question is this: the keynote treated this like a true 'sync', but it sure doesn't look that way. Does it do more than a 1-way copy? And, does it only (as the menu item suggests) work on iTMS purchased tracks, not ripped CDs?
Steve specifically said on the keynote that it was iTunes purchased tracks only. I don't know if it works 2-way with iTunes tracks, though.

Anyone else notice that iTunes now has an option to burn CD-TEXT?

It's called "Include CD Text" and is in the burning preferences.
I noticed that. Only for 10.4, though.

Yeah, Steve did only say 802.11 which strikes me as odd, but why would they use n in the set top box, when all of the current Macs have g? I don't see Apple telling everyone who just bought a new Mac "too bad"

Unless recent Macs have 802.11n which just needs a firmware update to unlock it.
All the 802.11 wireless standards are backwards compatible. So even if it was 802.11n, the airport and airport extreme cards would still work with it.

And finally, Macrumors are dumb if they are still seriously hanging onto this idea of an Apple phone. THERE WILL BE NO APPLE PRODUCED PHONE.
That feature is specifically pointed as for, "iTunes phones."

[Krickett]

Anyone notice that Volume Logic does not work in iTunes 7 or is that just me?

[balamw]

Steve specifically said on the keynote that it was iTunes purchased tracks only. I don't know if it works 2-way with iTunes tracks, though.

Confirmed here: http://www.apple.com/itunes/sync/transfer.html only purchased tracks.

B

[nomad01]

Apologies if this has already been answered as I've ot had chance to trawl the forums yet but is the new battery life a result of new software or hardware?

Are us current 5g owners going to see an improvement with the new software?

[ibook30]

apple.com.au still doesn't have iTunes 7 on their website:(
still can't buy tv shows:mad:
No mention of movie purchases in our store:confused:
Just another poor cousin release by the looks of it.
We're glad that you guys can have more fun than us.
You could use the cheering up what with george dubbya and all
Greetings from Australia

Thanks - it's too true. With our current W misery it's nice to have movies and TV to numb the pain.

I "authorized" my library to this machine and was reminded I have authorized "3 out of 5" - wasn't it previously 7 machines that could be "authorized"? maybe my imagination.

I really like iTunes7 - flipping through all my (new) CD art is a nice way to pick an album to listen to.

[Eduardo1971]

Did anyone else buy a new song? It seemed to me that when I picked up the new Bare Naked Ladies album it downloaded a lot faster and multiple songs at a time now.

Yeah, I downloaded a Murder City Devils song and I too, noticed that it downloaded the song rapidly (I accidently bought the song twice...don't know how:mad: ).

I also noticed song previews run much faster then before.

[Eduardo1971]

Anyone notice that Volume Logic does not work in iTunes 7 or is that just me?

Well, I do know the Volume Logic is **still** in Beta testing for Intel Macs. I wasn't aware that VL for the PowerPC chips. was encountering playback problems.

[Xeem]

Can I redownload any TV Shows in 640x480 (crosses fingers) :p

B

That's what I've been hoping for ever since I downloaded the first TV shows on iTunes. 320x240 was not exactly fullscreen goodness even at 1024x768.

[corywoolf]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.
Well I get an employee discount, so I can easily get the 80 GB for $299. But yeah, that is lame.

[Krickett]

Well, I do know the Volume Logic is **still** in Beta testing for Intel Macs. I wasn't aware that VL for the PowerPC chips. was encountering playback problems.

Only in iTunes 7 it seems there is a problem. Hopefully the problem will be fixed, i miss my VL already.

[randyharris]

If you're interested, I blogged my thoughts and opinions on Apple's pace of innovation with the iPod and computer lines.

It's the top article posted today, and here's a permalink: http://tinyurl.com/e86kn

Randy at http://www.MacSeven.com

[Evangelion]

To the delight of many existing 5G owners, iPod Software 1.2 (included with iTunes 7) will provide capability to playback the increased resolution of new iTunes TV Shows, Music Videos, and Movies. The technical specifications of the 5G had originally stated the maximum resolution for h264 playback as 320x240 px.

How does that work? The movies have 640x480 resolution while the iPod has 320x240 screen. iPod specs-page specificly mention that it can play back those movies. So how does it work?

[tolby]

That's what I've been hoping for ever since I downloaded the first TV shows on iTunes. 320x240 was not exactly fullscreen goodness even at 1024x768.

It appears that you need to repurchase your pre iTunes 7.0 music videos if you want the improved quality. I experimented by repurchasing one of my pre iTunes 7.0 music videos. I now have two copies of the same music video. One at the old resolution; the other at the new resolution.

I believe this to be unsatisfactory. This is not a format change, but an incremental quality improvement. My computer is authorised, my account is valid, and my downloads legal.

Apple is getting two bites at the cherry!

[donlphi]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.

They did lower the prices overall, so I don't see a problem. You can get an 80GB iPod for less than I bought my 60 GB (with the discount). They probably also figured most people getting an iPOD (not necessarily doing the purchasing) are students, and they didn't like the hassle of doing the Student ID checks.

I would like to see a bigger education discount in the computer area. As a teacher, the price is still a little high. It would be nice to start the Macbooks at just under $1000 with a DVD burner with the 1.83 Ghz... or I should look into a career that makes buying Macbooks a BREEZE...

by the way... how many times is iTUNES 7 going to "determine Gapless Playback Information" I hope this isn't a daily process. It has already done it 3 times after connecting my iPOD.

[flinstone]

Itunes = UGLY and icon = UGLY

[cyberrob]

Why wanna wait for a 300$ iTV half a year when you can have a 24" iMac now?!?!?!?!? And I'm laughing: WIRELESS... but Ethernet Port etc. p.p.... very helpful! No thanks guys, I'm gonna buy the Cinema-iMac!!!

:cool:

[realtime]

The reason the Installer option for iTunes Phone Driver is greyed out is because it's already installed on your system!

/System/Library/Extensions/iTunesPhoneDriver.kext

:cool:

[yoak]

Why wanna wait for a 300$ iTV half a year when you can have a 24" iMac now?!?!?!?!? And I'm laughing: WIRELESS... but Ethernet Port etc. p.p.... very helpful! No thanks guys, I'm gonna buy the Cinema-iMac!!!

:cool:

I&#180;m guessing here, but the price maybe?;)

[Evangelion]

Why wanna wait for a 300$ iTV half a year when you can have a 24" iMac now?!?!?!?!? And I'm laughing: WIRELESS... but Ethernet Port etc. p.p.... very helpful! No thanks guys, I'm gonna buy the Cinema-iMac!!!

:cool:

News-flash: iMac is NOT a replacement or an alternative to the iTV. If you think that it is, you are just fooling yourself.

[ImNoSuperMan]

We will see something similar to what happened last Fall? - Apple holding an event in september, then a couple weeks later another invite goes out saying "One More Thing..." like last year. and that event will be mid october or something?

Or are we done for the year?

vPod. *fingers crossed*

[Stella]

OF course you do - need to repurchase. Do you really expect Apple to give away higher resolution content to those that already have the 320x versions?

If so, you need a reality check. Really.


It appears that you need to repurchase your pre iTunes 7.0 music videos if you want the improved quality. I experimented by repurchasing one of my pre iTunes 7.0 music videos. I now have two copies of the same music video. One at the old resolution; the other at the new resolution.

I believe this to be unsatisfactory. This is not a format change, but an incremental quality improvement. My computer is authorised, my account is valid, and my downloads legal.

Apple is getting two bites at the cherry!

[chatin]

The discussion of strategy will only have Apple's weaker competitors gunning to copy products.

Increasingly desperate Dell and Microsoft really have nothing to loose and everything to gain.

:cool:

[cyberrob]

News-flash: iMac is NOT a replacement or an alternative to the iTV. If you think that it is, you are just fooling yourself.

thanks for news :rolleyes:

i'm just fascinated by this fantastic all-in-one hdtv solution the 24" iMac offers... and i'm happy to save 300 bucks instead of having just another box getting dusty... :)

[Evangelion]

thanks for news :rolleyes:

Thanks for the sarcasm. If you agree with me, why did you push the iMac as a "solution"?

[mutantteenager]

In reference to 'iTV', Steve only said that "802.11" would be used for wireless communication. Currently, Apple employs 802.11g "Airport Extreme" in its products, but the lack of specificity may hint at an adoption of the upcoming 802.11n standard.

Am I the only one that thinks this is a lame looking sandwich box? Also, I have my stuff on my Mac in another room. That's switched on, whilst I sitting in the living room watching my stuff on a TV, isn't that a bit pointless? Why not make it hard drive compatible or even put the content on the box?

More money than sense, and not much sense at that. Big screen TV's are a rip off, and the so-called 'sexy iTV' is quite the opposite.

[Squire]

Big screen TV's are a rip off...

Ummm...entertain me. Why do you think they're a rip off? (Keep in mind that "big" is a relative term. What do you consider a "big screen" TV? Thirty-two inches and up?)

-Squire

[a456]

Why wanna wait for a 300$ iTV half a year when you can have a 24" iMac now?!?!?!?!? And I'm laughing: WIRELESS... but Ethernet Port etc. p.p.... very helpful! No thanks guys, I'm gonna buy the Cinema-iMac!!!

:cool:

The iTV will be a tenth of the price of an iMac 24" (in the UK at least), so if you've already got a Mac that you're happy with why throw out the baby with the bathwater. Besides the iMac is an expensive TV if it is going to sit in your living room. :cool:

[jamieg]

Am I the only one that thinks this is a lame looking sandwich box? Also, I have my stuff on my Mac in another room. That's switched on, whilst I sitting in the living room watching my stuff on a TV, isn't that a bit pointless? Why not make it hard drive compatible or even put the content on the box?

More money than sense, and not much sense at that. Big screen TV's are a rip off, and the so-called 'sexy iTV' is quite the opposite.


Why don't they just put a HDMI socket on a Mac Mini? This would let you use Front Row on your flat screen TV, this gives you the option of DVD's, USB TV cards (and video recording), etc.......You can already access media on other comps via front row!


iTV only seems to be a Airport Express with a video output!

[a456]

They did lower the prices overall, so I don't see a problem. You can get an 80GB iPod for less than I bought my 60 GB (with the discount). They probably also figured most people getting an iPOD (not necessarily doing the purchasing) are students, and they didn't like the hassle of doing the Student ID checks.

I would like to see a bigger education discount in the computer area. As a teacher, the price is still a little high. It would be nice to start the Macbooks at just under $1000 with a DVD burner with the 1.83 Ghz... or I should look into a career that makes buying Macbooks a BREEZE...

by the way... how many times is iTUNES 7 going to "determine Gapless Playback Information" I hope this isn't a daily process. It has already done it 3 times after connecting my iPOD.

They are still doing the Back to School Promo on iPods, maybe when they finish this they will go back to dual pricing.

[dalvin200]

If you've see the keynote stream, then you'll of come across the part where Steve asked some of his employees (marketing, engineer etc..) to stand up and receive a round of applause.

I thought this was quite a nice gesture and it's the first time I have seen this from them.

Good things!! :claps:

[Squire]

If you've see the keynote stream, then you'll of come across the part where Steve asked some of his employees (marketing, engineer etc..) to stand up and receive a round of applause.

I thought this was quite a nice gesture and it's the first time I have seen this from them.

Good things!! :claps:

Yes, it is a nice gesture-- especially when you imagine how hard of a guy Jobs is to work with/for. But I've seen him ask the crowd to give a hand for the hardworking folks in the trenches of Cupertino on at least 2 other occasions.

-Squire

[Chupa Chupa]

Why don't they just put a HDMI socket on a Mac Mini? This would let you use Front Row on your flat screen TV, this gives you the option of DVD's, USB TV cards (and video recording), etc


1) The mini is 2x as expensive as iTV
2) The mini would cost even more with HDMI (at least right now)
3) A lot of consumers just want the simplicity of a set-top box.
4) Others don't want to waste the power of a full computer just as a media center.

[Evangelion]

If you've see the keynote stream, then you'll of come across the part where Steve asked some of his employees (marketing, engineer etc..) to stand up and receive a round of applause.

I thought this was quite a nice gesture and it's the first time I have seen this from them.

Good things!! :claps:

I think he does that in just about every keynote. Still a nice thing to do though :)

[iGary]

I think he does that in just about every keynote. Still a nice thing to do though :)

He drives them like slaves the rest of the time - he needs to me nice every once and a while. :D

[Willis]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.

I checked the UK Edu Store, and the 30Gb was the same price, however.... the 80GB was 1p more lol. Yeah, that makes sense!

[jamieg]

1) The mini is 2x as expensive as iTV
2) The mini would cost even more with HDMI (at least right now)
3) A lot of consumers just want the simplicity of a set-top box.
4) Others don't want to waste the power of a full computer just as a media center.


Yeah, but if Apple want to compete in the media center market, they will have to produce a small box that will do all....ie put HDMI in Mac Mini (iTV could be a cut down version of this??)

[tolby]

OF course you do - need to repurchase. Do you really expect Apple to give away higher resolution content to those that already have the 320x versions?

If so, you need a reality check. Really.

You have posed a question and not provided an answer, merely a remark questioning my understanding of reality.

I provided a response to a member's question - do you need to repurchase? The answer is, for me at least, yes. I suggested, perhaps too forcefully, that I did not appreciate this requirement.

This is a very 'real' issue. If broadband uptake and speeds continue to rise, and consumer acceptance of digital media increases, than higher quality content will be more readily demanded and easier to supply. However, if quality enhancements are too quick, and a consumer must repurchase his or her entire collection (or favourite parts of) too regularly than disatisfaction is felt. It is felt in the frustration of having to spend more time and money re-downloading something that a consumer perceives he or she already owns.

How can Apple avoid this. One is communication of value. The problem with this approach is that it is very subjective - a consumer could heavily discount the quality enhancement when compared to the additional time and money spent. In other words, a consumer values his or her time and money more than the quality. Another is discounting; that is, offering discounts to those customers who already own the pre iTunes 7.0 versions. This is still subjective, but offers a consumer something tangible (dollars saved).

[Trekkie]

Actually I think that all intel macbooks ( including pro) 's airport card is 802.11g and draft N... the problem is that they cant advertise it, because n is still in draft status at IEEE... so you can't really say hey this is an N... because N doesn't really exist as a satandard ( making a standard is a lenghty process takes about 5 to 6 years for the whole process...) if anyone has a draft n wifi router, please try and check the conection speed on you mactel macbook.. would be good to know if this is just a rumor, or if its really a fact.. i know i read it before buying my blackbook.. but alas.. i dont have a n draft router...


When the Airport Extreme came out it was before G was approved, they later flashed it up to the standard because it was close.

There are many Pre-N routers out there. All you have to say is 'Pre-N' and you're good to go.

[bARTs]

Yeah, but if Apple want to compete in the media center market, they will have to produce a small box that will do all....ie put HDMI in Mac Mini (iTV could be a cut down version of this??)

DVI and HDMI are almost the same thing (do a search on Google for "dvi hdmi").
Well, HDMI also carries the audio signal, but you can get a cheap cable or converter to hook up your Mac Mini to a HDMI TV and use another cable for audio.

[milo]

I don't think the shuffles ever had special educational pricing, and I'm not sure the nanos ever did either.

The nanos were all $20 off. I was expecting to get one for $179, looks like $199 now. I bet they bring it back at some point, but I probably won't wait that long.

Is there a software update for the 1G shuffle? I was hoping to see gapless playback and skip count/last skipped. Did I miss it, or did they just not update it? Backward sync doesn't seem to work on the shuffle either. I hope they don't drop support already, they haven't even shipped the 2G yet.

And anyone else not seeing their iPod's playlist in iTunes after the update? The unit still shows up in devices, but I can't actually see the list of what's on it.

Call me crazy, but I would like Apple Computer, Inc. to release a new computer line.

They just released two last week. But let me guess, they didn't release the one you wanted? MBP will get updated in the next week or so.

Can you burn movies to DVD? That is the real question.

And it's been answered a bunch of times. You can back up to DVD, but not burn a dvd that will play in a dvd player.

How does that work? The movies have 640x480 resolution while the iPod has 320x240 screen. iPod specs-page specificly mention that it can play back those movies. So how does it work?

It just displays at a lower resolution. Anyone know if you get 640 via the AV cable to TV?

Why wanna wait for a 300$ iTV half a year when you can have a 24" iMac now?!?!?!?!? And I'm laughing: WIRELESS... but Ethernet Port etc. p.p.... very helpful! No thanks guys, I'm gonna buy the Cinema-iMac!!!

Are you kidding? $1999 for a TV?? And what's so funny about wireless and ethernet? I don't get it.

Yeah, but if Apple want to compete in the media center market, they will have to produce a small box that will do all....ie put HDMI in Mac Mini (iTV could be a cut down version of this??)

The media center market is a dismal failure. And that's because a computer is too expensive for the living room. A few people will use things like minis, but it's impossible to make it cheap enough to be a mainstream solution.

[calculus]

And anyone else not seeing their iPod's playlist in iTunes after the update? The unit still shows up in devices, but I can't actually see the list of what's on it.



.
Same for me - the shuffle is there under devices but the list of tracks has gone.

[tny]

OF course you do - need to repurchase. Do you really expect Apple to give away higher resolution content to those that already have the 320x versions?

If so, you need a reality check. Really.

I rather expected to be able to upgrade to higher resolution for a low price (say $.50/per video).

[tiramisu]

oh boy, how 'bout that. sure it wasn't fit for this event.
let's do something for the pros ;-)
hopefully a very very silent update.... :cool:

[Stella]

I rather expected to be able to upgrade to higher resolution for a low price (say $.50/per video).

It is not Apple's decison. Do you think the content owner would allow this? I doubt it - they would want to charge again.

Anyway, think yourself lucky - the majority of the planet cannot get movies or series content from iTunes.

[pmckenzie]

Glad I saw the software updates, ordered a 30G black refurb, but it's a 5G, so, I can get the higher res videos and play games. that works for me. Couldnt beat it for $199 + tax.

I did the exact same thing! Its awesome!

[Chris L]

The 5G iPods still can't display any more than 320 x 240 pixels; the only way you'll be able to see the full 640 x 480 resolution is to output it to a TV or watch it on your computer.

I'm hoping that Apple will announce at MacWorld Expo that it's putting digital TV tuners in the 24" iMac. The tuners are cheap now and do NTSC, ATSC, and QAM (digital cable). Now that would be a good use for that big screen!

[Trekkie]

Anyway, think yourself lucky - the majority of the planet cannot get movies or series content from iTunes.

Find the local representative for the hollywood theaters in your country, write em a note and let them know how happy you are with that.

For that matter if you have local television, write them and let them know that you want their shows on iTunes as well.

Apple isn't the holdout here, it's the greed of the studios. They'll come around once they see how much disney starts making from all of us wanting to try one out.

Just think, if the number of people who buy music, 50% of them buy a movie to check it out only the spike in revenue for something or other. I mean $9.99 is no more than a CD you've been buying...

Personally I'm tempted to buy Toy Story 1&2 because my kid has destroyed two DVDs in the last three years. He loves the movie, and no matter how hard I try to hide the DVDs when they are not in use he'll find them and bring them too you to have you put them in. This alone appeals to me in that I could get all the Pixar favorites, play them to an iTV, and never have to worry about him damaging a semi fragile optical disk.

[baleensavage]

This is a very 'real' issue. If broadband uptake and speeds continue to rise, and consumer acceptance of digital media increases, than higher quality content will be more readily demanded and easier to supply. However, if quality enhancements are too quick, and a consumer must repurchase his or her entire collection (or favourite parts of) too regularly than disatisfaction is felt. It is felt in the frustration of having to spend more time and money re-downloading something that a consumer perceives he or she already owns.

I agree with this statement entirely. While I didn't really expect them to give us free upgrades, I wish they would. What's going to happen when in 6 months they start offering hi-def to go with the iTV? Do they really expect people to buy things three times? If they aren't going to at least offer a discount now, then why should I even buy from their store? Ultimately they never should have released stuff at that bad resolution in the first place. I guess it's just shame on those of us who bought stuff at the low resolution. I don't think it's asking too much for them to offer updates or discounts on already purchased content.

[mdntcallr]

am i the only one a little disappointed at the Apple announcements?

Here's why:
1- only 1 studio signed on for movies, they are purchases, not rentals also.
2- ipod changes are not dramatic, more like minor tweaks. Ipod nano even is using an older case design. video ipod is a serious letdown, looks like they can't get the 16:9 model working.
3- no ipod/smartphone/treo type device.

it is like apple knew they didnt have great announcements so they announced the Itv device.

Some positives though:
1- Updated Itunes 7 Looks alot nicer, runs better. Hell i even have the pics for all of my owned cd's i ripped now.
2- movies are starting, nice thing for apple. hope they get more studios under contract.
3- games on ipod. this seems nice, but these games are hardly killer app's. i imagine more games over time. like there will be movies

Apple, you really need to start

[longofest]

Yeah, Steve did only say 802.11 which strikes me as odd, but why would they use n in the set top box, when all of the current Macs have g? I don't see Apple telling everyone who just bought a new Mac "too bad"

Unless recent Macs have 802.11n which just needs a firmware update to unlock it.

The 802.11n spec is not finalized yet, so it is doubtfull that they would be able to just firmware update new macs to have the spec.

Either Apple has drastically enhanced/streamlined their streaming protocol, or they are going to have to use 802.11n to stream videos over a wireless network. MacWorld has reviewed the current FrontRow setup (using bonjour), and has said that you can't rely on a 802.11G stream for a long movie (you pretty much have to use a wired connection).

Note that all of the iTV's in yesterday's demo were hooked up with Ethernet.

am i the only one a little disappointed at the Apple announcements?

Here's why:
1- only 1 studio signed on for movies, they are purchases, not rentals also.
2- ipod changes are not dramatic, more like minor tweaks. Ipod nano even is using an older case design. video ipod is a serious letdown, looks like they can't get the 16:9 model working.
3- no ipod/smartphone/treo type device.

it is like apple knew they didnt have great announcements so they announced the Itv device.

Some positives though:
1- Updated Itunes 7 Looks alot nicer, runs better. Hell i even have the pics for all of my owned cd's i ripped now.
2- movies are starting, nice thing for apple. hope they get more studios under contract.
3- games on ipod. this seems nice, but these games are hardly killer app's. i imagine more games over time. like there will be movies

Apple, you really need to start

You may have had your expectations too high. Apple did exactly what rumors had predicted, and a little more (updated shuffle, and we weren't 100% on the iTV).

[Fabs85]

Hello All
I was just reading the main post on the homepage and I have realized the Phone Drivers have been found within the iTunes7 installation package. I have dived inside the packaged and I know something more about it, it says:

iTunes 4.9 or later features the ability to transfer music to mobile phones. This driver is required for iTunes to communicate with these supported mobile phones.

-----

I have found this explanation inside the package, if you are a bit curious you can try yourselves by doing:
right-click "iTunes7.mpkg" -> Show package Content;
Content -> Resources -> Right-Click "iTunesPhoneDriver.pkg" -> Show Package Content;
Contents -> Resources -> English.lproj -> SUDescription.html

-----

Just posted this so people won't get excited just by thinking that this will be an extra feature for new Apple Mobile Phone(s) - but who knows :p

Thanks for reading

[Frobozz]

"- Many users have noted the iTunes 7 standalone installer includes a greyed-out custom option for "iTunes Phone Driver". It is not clear whether this driver is for the rumored iPhone or for already iTunes compatible phones from Motorola."

No, actually I there's no confusion here. There's been an iTunes Phone Driver in the iPod updaters ever since the Motorola iTunes phone was introduced. Since iTunes now handles iPod updates, this is perfectly logical and a non-news item.

[baleensavage]

You may have had your expectations too high. Apple did exactly what rumors had predicted, and a little more (updated shuffle, and we weren't 100% on the iTV).
I for one am not upset that they only have Disney on board. I would rather them do that then cave in to the movie execs on DRM. Have you seen Amazon's DRM restrictions? They're even worse than Fairplay. I also think their prices go higher. I would rather iTunes start small and prove to be successful then it would be the movie companies who cave in not Apple.

[tny]

It is not Apple's decison. Do you think the content owner would allow this? I doubt it - they would want to charge again.

Anyway, think yourself lucky - the majority of the planet cannot get movies or series content from iTunes.


I'm not so sure about that . . . after all, Apple has replaced all the old 320x240 content with 640x480 content, right? And there's nothing stopping you from having two copies of any given video file, only a mechanism to prevent you from using those files on more than a limited number of devices. There would have to be explicit language saying that Apple couldn't sell an upgrade to a higher resolution, or at least language saying Apple couldn't allow free/discounted downloads of a work that the downloader had previously purchased.

[Frobozz]

am i the only one a little disappointed at the Apple announcements?

Here's why:
1- only 1 studio signed on for movies, they are purchases, not rentals also.


This is to be expected. Once these take off like wildfire, other studios will fall in line when the realize how much money they're losing. There is precedent for this with Apple's music purchases, so it make sense.

2- ipod changes are not dramatic, more like minor tweaks. Ipod nano even is using an older case design. video ipod is a serious letdown, looks like they can't get the 16:9 model working.

I disagree here. While I think the iPod Nano design is less sexy than before, it's also 1000% less scratchable. While it doesn't bother me much, my black Nano looks more beat up than either of my mini's.

As for the "true video iPod"-- this is Apple waiting to strike until the iron is hot. You can't release all your hot stuff in one go. They have to let it trickle out to maintain momentum. iTV was a good pre-release product and the regular iPods added searching and games that are a VERY NICE new feature.

3- no ipod/smartphone/treo type device.

... nor did anyone think one of these was coming. Maybe an iPhone, but that is clearly not coming until 2007 the last I heard. A lot of people wanted to believe it might come out earlier, but that was just unrealistic.

it is like apple knew they didnt have great announcements so they announced the Itv device.

Well, that is an interesting take on it. You might have something there. However, this was an important thing to pre-announce given the movie announcement. Apple needs people who are purchasing movies to know they can play them on a TV in an easy way. This is buyer's security. They know if they start buying them now they will be able to play them on something other than their iPod or Mac. It also was foreshadowing concerning Apple's HD solutions. Right now you can buy movies and shows in ED (enhanced definition / DVD), whereas previously you could only buy in SD (standard defintion / NTSC.)

To support their movie download and playback strategy, Apple without saying it outright, admitted to having an HD solution which will work with upcoming movie downloads at native HD resolutions, using 802.11n for wireless streaming.

[slate1]

Gapless playback on my 60GB 5G now works. Thank you apple. Finally.

... unfortunately Apple decided to not afford us lowly Nano owners the same courtesy :mad:

I certainly hope they decide to do the right thing and issue a firmware update that will allow gapless playback on the Nano – what a shame…

[cadillaccactus]

no one seems to be pointing out that they got rid of educational pricing for iPods... that's a bummer.

i think what they have essentially done is give everyone the educational discount.

[mpw]

I can't believe it!

I've just read though 100+ post after finally watching the Stevenote and I can't believe only two other people have commented on Steve's shirt!! A buttoned shirt in place of the turtle-neck, why?

In related news why does anybody button a shirt all the way without a tie? (Why do we even have ties anyway??) and what posseses a man to wear jeans with no belt?? Women can get away without wearing a belt, just, but if jeans or trousers have belt loops forchristssake wear a ***king belt. Wrong, wrong, wrong!

[Lau]

In related news why does anybody button a shirt all the way without a tie?

This freaked me out also. It's an odd one.

[mpw]

This freaked me out also. It's an odd one.
He has to be hiding something, right? Shifty bastard!

[cadillaccactus]

The media center market is a dismal failure. And that's because a computer is too expensive for the living room. A few people will use things like minis, but it's impossible to make it cheap enough to be a mainstream solution.

This is true. People do not want to use their computer as a TV, it is impractical. but having access to your computer's media on your TV is a completely separate notion, and a good one at that.

i think theyve nailed this one.

[Lau]

He has to be hiding something, right? Shifty bastard!

Definitely!

I wondered if he's got a funny looking neck. Has anyone ever seen Steve Jobs' neck in the same room as him. Hmm? Have they? :p

[Chundles]

He has to be hiding something, right? Shifty bastard!

He got drunk one night and woke up with a huge tattoo of Steve Ballmer in the middle of his chest. That's why we'll never see him in an open-collared shirt.

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Man, and I always believed the turtle-necks were for covering up the Microsoft logo Bill Gates made him tattoo in the back of the neck in the early 80s... :p <-- Now, how is that for a rumour...? ;-)

[mpw]

He got drunk one night and woke up with a huge tattoo of Steve Ballmer in the middle of his chest. That's why we'll never see him in an open-collared shirt.
Reminds me of a dream I had a little while ago about getting really drunk and getting ****** tattood on my shoulder, that would've taken some explaining:o

*yeah like I'd post what it was : rolleyes :

[TrenchMouth]

i was all ready to plop some money down for a new 80gig iPod, even though I really dont need it. the big attraction for me was the battery life. however...

i upgraded the software in my current 30gig 5G and with the brightness controls turned down a bit, i noticed that movie playback lasts a good deal longer than it did, actually letting me watch a full 2.5 hour movie i encoded myself with a bit of life to burn at the end listening to music.

anyone else test the life of their 5G battery watching video with this new feature?

[bdj21ya]

So the article mentions backing up your Library as a new feature included in iTunes 7. I don't really see it anywhere, anyone know what they're talking about?

Obviously I could just copy the library and folder myself (since I keep the library consolidated), but it would be nice to know how to do this directly from iTunes.

[Frisco]

So the article mentions backing up your Library as a new feature included in iTunes 7. I don't really see it anywhere, anyone know what they're talking about?

Obviously I could just copy the library and folder myself (since I keep the library consolidated), but it would be nice to know how to do this directly from iTunes.

See this (http://www.tuaw.com/2006/09/12/how-to-back-up-your-music-using-itunes-7/)

[OldTimey]

Whosaid gapless
i like the record too

[bdj21ya]

See this (http://www.tuaw.com/2006/09/12/how-to-back-up-your-music-using-itunes-7/)

Thank you very much. I see they did everything they could to hide this feature from me, putting it in the file menu which should have been the first place I looked.

How embarrassing to begin posting on this forum with such a stupid question. Oh well. I hope your answer is helpful to others as well. Now, where is that spindle of DVD's...

[mutantteenager]

Ummm...entertain me. Why do you think they're a rip off? (Keep in mind that "big" is a relative term. What do you consider a "big screen" TV? Thirty-two inches and up?)

-Squire

Spending above &#163;1000 on a tv which might be 'HD ready', and then finding out that the large majority of stuff on tv looks crap on it, because the content isn't in HD, to my mind makes it a rip off. I'm not sure how entertaining that answer is. 36 inch and above on a tv is is what I call a big screen.

My 'normal' bog standard, run of the mill, crt (remember those) tv still makes tv look good, dvd's look better, and cost less than an arm or a leg on the black market organ exchange.

[MacsAttack]

1) The mini is 2x as expensive as iTV
2) The mini would cost even more with HDMI (at least right now)
3) A lot of consumers just want the simplicity of a set-top box.
4) Others don't want to waste the power of a full computer just as a media center.

You forgot...

5) Because iTV is targeted at iPod/iTunes users - the majority of which use Wintel systems to manage their media. Making this a "Mac only" product would cut off the bulk of Apple's target market. Many of these Windows users would not want to buy a second computer running an unfamiliar OS just to stream their movies and music.

[rcha101]

Is there going to be another iPod updater that will incorporate the features like the searching and fast scrolling letter label thing onto current 5G iPods? I hope so, that searching has been a feature calling from me for ages...:)

From my experience the "fast scrolling letter label thing" is in the 1.2 update but not the new search function.

[Evangelion]

Did anyone notice how much healthier SJ looked when compared to his WWCD-keynote?

[gorbster]

What song is playing in the background when the iPod games demo occurs during the event?

[Squire]

What song is playing in the background when the iPod games demo occurs during the event?

I don't know but, speaking of songs, did anyone else lose a bunch of album art in the upgrade to iTunes 7?

-Squire

[Frisco]

I don't know but, speaking of songs, did anyone else lose a bunch of album art in the upgrade to iTunes 7?

-Squire

I didn't lose any. You can force iTunes to get brand new album art for your entire collection. See this (http://theubergeeks.net/2006/09/13/new-album-art/)

[Squire]

I didn't lose any. You can force iTunes to get brand new album art for your entire collection. See this (http://theubergeeks.net/2006/09/13/new-album-art/)

Yes, I did know that (but thanks anyway). In fact, I believe it is this particular feature that led to the mysterious disappearance (I think, at least) of album art. From your link:

WARNING: This process will take iTunes quite a while to perform. So do not do it if you don’t have time to let it sit and do its thing. Also, do not do this if you have one-of-a-kind album art or you have scanned in album art, or even if you have albums in your collection from local bands that you’ve spent 8 weeks trying to find album art for them. They will not be found by iTunes’ “get album art” feature.

iTunes asked me if I wanted it to search for album art and I stupidly clicked 'yes' thinking it would get the ones I didn't have or fix some of the errors. Oh, well. Cool feature, nonetheless. Also, the "Cover Flow" feature, while cool as well, is quite taxing on my 1 Ghz G4. Something tells me it would be a little smoother on an 8-core Mac Pro. :D

-Squire

[gauchogolfer]

Just to let people know that the event in SF is getting some play in France as well. From Le Figaro, the daily images section is about Apple.

link (http://www.lefigaro.fr/images/20060913.WWW000000272_apple_collection_automne_hiver.html)

The last image is of various rumored iPhones...

Also, there was a pretty long article (http://www.lefigaro.fr/medias/20060913.FIG000000206_apres_la_musique_l_ipod_s_attaque_au_cinema.html), for those who care to read it in French.

[Macparatodos]

I just received this email from iTunes Store after I requested information how to upgrade.

Dear Alfredo,

Thank you for your interest in the new higher resolution 640 x 480 video format now offered on the iTunes Store.

I understand your concerns about your purchase of the videos a few months ago. I regret to inform you that I will be unable to give you a higher-resolution version of this video.

Please review the iTunes Store Terms of Sale, which state that all sales are final:

http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/legal/policies.html

Sincerely,

Timothy
iTunes Store Customer Support
http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/ww/

[Bobthemonkey]

at least they had the good grace to reply to you in what seems like a non-automated manner.

its more than some companies would do

[MarkCollette]

It appears that you need to repurchase your pre iTunes 7.0 music videos if you want the improved quality. I experimented by repurchasing one of my pre iTunes 7.0 music videos. I now have two copies of the same music video. One at the old resolution; the other at the new resolution.

I believe this to be unsatisfactory. This is not a format change, but an incremental quality improvement. My computer is authorised, my account is valid, and my downloads legal.

Apple is getting two bites at the cherry!


That's why I simply did not purchase any videos at the older, lower resolution.