iTunes 7.7.1 available now
Fans of having the latest, bugs-ironed-out* iterations of Apple-flavoured software on their Macs should fire up Software Update (Apple menu > Software Update) now to nab the latest version of iTunes.
Apple claims the update ”includes fixes to improve stability and performance.” What’s not to like?
*no guarantee offered that all bugs have been ironed out
MobileMe: 2 (ish) weeks later
Amid the furore of iPhone 3G release news and comment cluttering these hallowed pages of late, I’ve shamefully neglected Apple’s other major re-imagining project that happened at the same time: the transition from .mac to MobileMe. For the uninitiated, .mac was a suite of web tools including email, calendar and online storage space. MobileMe is pretty much a suite of web tools including email, calendar and online storage space, but with some funky new functionality including, in theory at least, seamless and live syncing of your data across pretty much any device you care to name (as long as it’s an iPhone or iPod touch, in the case of mobile devices).
Such has been the rockiness of the road to MobileMe launching, Apple has now started a near-daily blog to keep users updated as to the status of various services.
I signed up for a 60-day trial just after the iPhone launched, and actually must say I’ve been blissfully spared the many teething problems others have reported. The web apps (accessed by visiting www.me.com) all work smoothly and cleanly, and data syncing, after a frustrating wiping of certain numbers on my iPhone which might be my fault anyway, is pretty much as advertised. Because I don’t use Mail as my primary email client nor iCal for my calendars (tethered to Exchange at work, hence the weird setup as discussed below), I haven’t suffered too much from the 15-minute delay when data is changed on the computer and has to sync back up to the ‘cloud’.
I should say I haven’t quite ‘taken the plunge’ fully and moved my life over to MobileMe. I’ve kept my Gmail account and have everything forwarded from there to my ‘@me.com’ address (somehow I don’t want all my email tied up in a subscription-based email system) where I check it on the phone, web or through Mail on those occasions I do fire it up.
I’m also using some horrendous voodoo-like setup to keep my Exchange calendar (pulled down through Entourage) synced up with iCal which then syncs with the cloud and therefore my iPhone and web apps - far from ideal and ripe for data mixup somewhere along the line, but so far so good and once set up, not really a huge problem as I’m rarely away from Entourage for more than a couple of days to sync it all up.
Because Exchange is (regrettably) my primary server environment, I probably would have overlooked MobileMe altogether were it not for the fact that my iPhone just won’t talk to our Exchange server for love nor money (I’ve tried both, it’s quite unresponsive).
Will I keep on the subscription? Still undecided to be honest. Whilst the suite of apps is pretty impressive, very simple to use and generally responsive, I’m still not sold on what it really offers me over and above simple syncing between my computer and iPhone. The feature I’d most like to use - scheduled back-ups of certain data to the iDisk online storage to keep my ailing hard drive from maxing out all the time - is disabled in the trial version, but currently I’m thinking I could spend the amount of the subscription on a basic hard drive and fire up Time Machine. I’m going to wait it out in the trial though, and see how I feel at the end of it…
What are your experiences with MobileMe? Avoiding it like the plague, or think it’s the best thing since sliced processor cores? Fire off in the comments.
iPhone 3G round-up 2: Stephen Fry’s first impressions; new ads
More round-up action on the iPhone 3G (as if you haven’t had enough!).
Dork Talk: Stephen Fry on the iPhone 3G
Most Apple fans probably don’t need reminding of the great Stephen Fry’s appreciation for all things Designed by Apple in California (second only to the great Douglas Adams), so I’ll let you read for yourself his admirably objective (well, mostly) take on the new iPhone 3G that’s apparently out now. Read it here.
New ads in the wild
If you simply can’t wait until you’ve seen the latest Apple ads, why not head straight over to Apple’s site for the latest iPhone 3G advertising gubbins. There’s the hallway ad plus one new one, in the vain of the previous iPhone ads (and mercifully free from Messrs. Mitchell & Webb) - and for a taste of what else may be coming have a look at the US site for even more iPhone 3G adness. You lucky things, you.
New iPhone rumour round-up: new OS, Orange to offer iPhone in autumn?
Apologies for slackness of posting - hey, it’s sunny for once! At least with Wordpress on my iPhone I might actually have a hope of updating on the road.
Anyhow, whilst I promised myself I wouldn’t make this site add to the myriad rumour-peddling hype machine already out there on the web, a couple of tube-alighting stories caught my attention that deserve highlighting.
New iPhone OS ‘2.1′ seeded to select developers
It seems that Apple may have been taking heed from some of the more vocal critics of the iPhone’s ever-dwindling list of absent features, for this week a new build of the iPhone’s OS was seeded to select developers. Headline additions include some extra bits of wizardry required to make turn-by-turn GPS navigation a reality (it knows which way you’re pointing it!!!) and other bits of wizardry to allow third-party apps some limited CPU time in the background to make ‘push’ notifications a possibility. Nothing is expected to make its way to your consumer iPhone before September, but in the meantime keep an eye out for a more incremental ‘2.0.1′ build that has been spotted visiting some major Apple sites, likely to level out some bugs in the 2.0 release.
Orange to join O2 in offering iPhone in the UK?
This rumour (for it is very much that at this stage) spread around the web like the proverbial wildfire, although there seems precious little factual info to back it up at this stage. Nevertheless, it’s not hard to imagine Apple being less than impressed by O2’s handling of the recent iPhone 3G launch, and considering breaking cover to work with other carriers in the UK. Certainly this would help attain that mass-market penetration they’re obviously going for with the new handset. Ambitious rumours put the ETA as soon as the autumn, so again keep em peeled (or just keep checking TWA, of course). The only bit I don’t get is the criticism of O2’s rates - surely they’re pretty darned hot and, as we’ve already seen, among the best in the world for all-you-can-eat data plans. Some people are never satisfied…
Get your Sky on with iTunes
Apple continue to bolster the ‘TV Programmes’ section of the iTunes Store (already featuring content from major broadcasters BBC, ITV and Channel 4) with the announcement of new content from Sky and 20th Century Fox. Quoth the Apple website:
The smash-hit TV shows 24, Bones and My Name is Earl are now available for purchase and download from the iTunes store, along with more great family entertainment from Sky and 20th Century Fox. “Fox TV shows have been incredibly popular on the iTunes Store in the US”, said Jaime McCabe, Executive Vice President. “We’re excited today to bring these hit shows to fans in the UK via iTunes and look forward to adding more great programming soon”. Customers can purchase Seasons 1 and 6 of 24, Seasons 1 through 3 of Bones, and Seasons 1 through 3 of My Name is Earl for £1.89 an episode.
Go forth and consume! (iTunes link)
Another UK Apple Store on the way: Liverpool opens this weekend
Are you based in Liverpool and itching to get your mitts on some of that Apple retail goodness enjoyed by so many other cities in the UK? Jealous of the recent announcement of Leicester’s first retail store? Don’t worry! Be happy. For Apple will, this very weekend, make all your shopping-in-an-Apple-store-related dreams come true.
If you’re heading over for the launch (complete with much balloons and goody-bag-related joy, no doubt) why not drop us a line with some pics or something.
Apple store coming to Leicester Highcross Centre
Leicester-based fans of all things Apple retail rejoice: a brand shiny new Apple store is coming your way as part of the redevelopment of the Highcross/Shires shopping centre on the High Street. September 4th is the date to pencil into your, um, iPhones/iPods/Macs/MobileMe calendars/old-fashioned diaries.
Having lived in Leicester for a number of years for uni, this has of course come about five years too late for me. Hope you enjoy it, you lucky folk you.
Hunter Davies tries out a MacBook
Bit of fun for Saturday morning. Head on over to The Guardian’s often-excellent ‘dork talk’ column, currently guest-written by various tech (and non-tech) luminaries whilst Stephen Fry gets back in action following some nasty injury or other, for a great piece by Hunter Davies on giving up his Amstrad PCW9512 (I had one of those!!!!) for an Apple MacBook laptop.
As a Mac user who came from PCs I think it’s really easy to get complacent and assume Mac OS X is the near-pinnacle of UI design. As Hunter points out in his piece, what could be easier than a button labelled ‘exit’ on the keyboard to get out of a program, or another button to ‘print’ just like that? My favourite bit is the idea of calling up your daughter to ask her to Google something for you - awesome.
iTunes festival highlights on ITV
Missed out on bagging some free tickets to the rather excellent iTunes Festival 08, featuring performances from no less than N*E*R*D, Paul Weller, Hadouken!, The Feeling, Roots Manuva, Elliot Minor, Black Kids, The Ting Tings, Lightspeed Champion, Death Cab For Cutie and a bunch more? Fret not! For not only can you download exclusive EPs from many of the performances direct from the iTunes Store, but you can also catch up with highlights from the festival at ITV.com or on the regular old television, if you’re reading this today.
Tune in to ITV1 at 11:40pm for the latest highlights, hosted by music presenter types Peaches Geldof and Dave Berry, or if you’re more inclined to consume your media on the interweb, by following this very link (programmes available for a limited time only).
The videos are time-limited, and ITV.com’s performance with Macs has been the subject of some debate, but with some judicious settings-manipulation you should be well on your way to corporate festival nirvana in no time.
Paying the (UK) price for iPhone 3g (good) and iTunes (bad)
In the week where Mac News Network’s investigations back up an earlier speculative post right here on The Wee Apple that, amongst carriers offering unlimited data plans at least, the UK is one of the cheapest places in the world to own an iPhone 3G, a whole bunch of reports are picking up on Apple’s decision to reign us back in by backing out of an earlier plan to lower UK iTunes pricing to fall in line with pan-European price points.
Seems that, in the 6 months or so since Steve Jobs was leant on ever-so-slightly by the EU to announce parity of pricing across the European region, our old friend the exchange rate has bailed Apple out of a headache-inducing mass-price-point change by strengthening the euro to the point that a €0.99 download in Europe equates quite nicely to a £0.79 purchase here in the UK.
So, no cheaper downloads for now - it’s also not clear at present whether a world in which the euro continues to gain ground on the humble pound would lead to an increase in prices for UK customers, although one could easily read the EU ruling in that way.