News from Apple today: New MacBooks, Snow Leopard and NEW IPHONE 3GS
News is starting to trickle out of Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference in San Francisco. I'll post highlights here.
In case you're wondering, I'm following updates at http://www.macrumorslive.com/ and listening to audio at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/wwdc-live. (And Gizmodo is live-blogging with photos)
Live video from an attendee:
1st update: a new 15-inch MacBook pro. Apple says customers are really digging the new unibody design that they recently debuted. And it's got some impressive specifications, including a powerful battery. Shipping today. Updates also with 13inch to 17inch MacBook Pros. starting price: $1199.
2nd update: The MacBook Air (that super-thin computer) getting a boost in processing speed. Apple sez it's got the "greenest" (environ-friendly) laptops in the world.
Update 3: Starting to hear about Apple's new Snow Leopard operating system, which is an upgrade from last year's Leopard release (drat! I just bought Leopard 2 months ago.) Apparently, Snow Leopard will save you 6GB of disk space after upgrading from Leopard (thanks Apple for not being such a disk space hog!)
Update 4: Upgrades to Safari (Safari 4 available today) and Quicktime.
Update 5: Apple's now supporting in full, Microsoft Exchange. You are now free to move your contacts between your work and personal computers.
Update 6: Dude, this roaring crowd needs to chill. I can't hear jack on the audio!!
Update 7: "Let's talk about the iPhone"!! Something's is coming?!
Update 8:: Sold more than 1 billion apps through the App Store (Aside: yeah, but how many of those apps were deleted by people who were bored by the stupid free stuff in the App Store??) I delete at least a third of the free apps I download cuz they're stinky and one-dimensional.
Update 9: Showing a snoozer video about the importance of technology and what developers can do if they develop on the iPhone platform. Snoooooore. This feels very Microsofty. (hehe ... that's a joke)
Update 10: Talking about the iPhone OS 3.0.... first new feature: cut/copy/paste, which should've been added, like, 18 iPhones ago. Duh.
Update 11: Able to rent and purchase movies right from your phone" (Thanks for helping me spend more money, kind sirs. Plus audiobooks. And supporting iTunesU, too.) Oh, and let's not forget important editions to parental controls.
Update 12: Tethering! Be still my heart. Sharing your iPhone's Internet connection with your laptop. Works for both Macs and PCs. Wired and wirelessly over Bluetooth (magic!) Requires carrier support. Laughter among the crowd. Guess we'll be paying even more for that flexibility.
Update 13: Crazy multilanguage support for the iPhone.
Update 14: Some pretty cool new security features for the iPhone. FindmyiPhone service debuts, for MobileMe customers. Can send lost/stolen phone remote web command, to protect your private content. If you find it again, you plug it back into iTunes and everything is restored. (Aside: Maybe MobileMe will finally be worth the price now?)
Update 15: Coming to a new iPhone operating system near you: in-app purchase. (Aside: So my apps now will try to upsell me? Will they become extremely annoying?) Plus: support for peer-to-peer connectivity. Great for gamers. Your iPhone will "find" other iPhones in your immediate area and you can play games with others.
Update 16: This could be big: Apple opening up hardware accessory for developers to build applications that "talk" to the accessory. So you can extend the iPhone interface to other hardware, citing medical device use as an example.
Update 17: allowing turn-by-turn GPS navigation in mapping software. (Aside: Watch out, Garmin, Tom-Tom.)
Update 18: Enabling PUSH notification. So your apps will notify you whenever they're updated.
Update 19: Apple showing off medical applications and functionality in medical/hospital settings. (Here's my question: Apple is doing this push in the medical field, but they're essentially a consumer product company? How well will their products hold up and do they open themselves up to litigation in a highly litigious field?)
Update 20: Tom Tom (GPS maker?!) introducing an iPhone app?! Bizarro world! (Aside: But I didn't catch the price of that app. Did you?)
Update 21: Bathroom break. Talk and oooh and aaah amongst yourselves.
Update 22: A ZipCar application. Helps you find ZipCar locations.
Update 23: Say WHUH!?!? You can hit a button on your iPhone and your ZipCar will beep when you're looking for it? Did I hear that correctly? And it will unlock the car, too? (MIND = BLOWN)
Update 24: The new iPhone operating system 3.0 will be free for all iPhone customers. Worldwide available: June 17. (for iTouch: $9.95)
Update 25:Apple's Phil Schiller rehashing how great the iPhone 3G is for human civilization... but wait.... WAIT... the iPhone 3GS....entirely new version..most powerful fastest iPhone ever made!
Update 26: Faster iPhone running the new OS 3.0: apps, websites, email. Richer gaming experience. Brand new built-in camera. with auto-focus and "tap-to-focus."
Update 27: It captures video. iPhone just attracted many more new customers who really wanted that video experience, IMHO. And you can edit it? Well, that's cool. And you can share in an email. And if you're carrier supports it, u can send via MMS message. There's an API for developers, so consumers can expect...
This could be big: Voice-control of the iPhone. How? hold down home button: voice interface pops up. Easy to use. commands scroll by on the screen so you know what to say.
Update 28: It's a compass, too. (Aside: Why is this such a big deal? When do most people ever really use compasses anyway?)
Update 29: Better battery life. Thank goodness.
Update 30: From MacRumors.com: 11:59 am $199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB.
11:59 am Ships with iPhone OS 3.0 for $199.
Update 31: Current iPhone 3G for $99 for 8GB. A 50% price cut. Starting today.
Update 32: New iPhone 3GS available in week and a half. on June 19.
This is an archived version of the technology blog. For updated coverage, see the current baltTech location: baltimoresun.com/balttech
Comments
thank you for the updates. I work for Apple and we don't even know what's going on. You have allowed me to stay on top of it.
Posted by: anonymous | June 8, 2009 3:22 PM
Gus sounds easily impressed. Most of the features (tethering, turn by turn GPS, video) have been on other phones for over a year. The rest like security and language features are snoozers. Looks like they just wanted something to release to kill the Palm Pre buzz.
Posted by: Gary | June 8, 2009 3:23 PM
Compasses help you determine which way to turn if you are stood still. Great for people walking, or even in a car and want to work out which way to turn right at the beginning, or when lost. Otherwise you have to travel one way before it gets a signal. Hope that helps!
Posted by: Ahmed | June 8, 2009 3:34 PM
They really need to move away from AT&T and let other carriers sell them.
Personally I wouldn't pay the monthly fee since I don't use a cell phone that often.
Any info on possible itouch improvements, hardware wise? Later this summer?
I didn't pick up anything new on the iTouch hardware front! Too bad. -gs
Posted by: rich | June 8, 2009 3:38 PM
Gary,
Yes other phones had these features you mentioned before the iPhone, the fact of the matter is these are enhancements to a great selling device... It doesn't hurt to add them to a device as such, does it? The release doesn't seem to be just about the iPhone, there were info released about the OS and MacBooks, etc. I agree in the sense I wish there was more but realistically things have improved and the original announcement of the new software 3.0 was mentioned months ago. In the end I wasn't dying or upset or jealous of those that had tethering and turn by turn GPS. I won't be using the features on my iPhone when they come available, many may, I won't.
Gus- the updates aren't bad, added some things that Engadget didn't have.
Posted by: Matthew | June 8, 2009 4:12 PM
thanks for the updates. Agree with your comment about that compass "we all where waiting for" !
any mention on the design of the new Iphone?
Posted by: Vince | June 8, 2009 4:16 PM
Would have been nice if they'd added the option of entering text in a numerical keypad.
Posted by: George C. Simpson | June 8, 2009 4:24 PM
Would have been nice if they'd added the option of entering text in a numerical keypad.
Posted by: George | June 8, 2009 4:24 PM
Really wish they wouldn't have removed the 9600 GPU from the lowest priced 15 incher. Now I have to get my son the mid priced 15 in. (he's going to be using Final Cut pro studio in college this summer and fall). Ah well - nice educational discount on that unit.
Posted by: Rages | June 8, 2009 7:31 PM
The compass could be great for driving/walking to a location using google maps. They could orient the map according the data from the compass.
Posted by: Austin | June 8, 2009 11:15 PM
YES for Macs! I was a PC user all my life and finally got a Mac, it's very great to hear they are progressing so well!!
Posted by: 17 Inch Laptop Bags | June 8, 2009 11:23 PM
"Update 14: Some pretty cool new security features for the iPhone. FindmyiPhone service debuts, for MobileMe customers. Can send lost/stolen phone remote web command, to protect your private content. If you find it again, you plug it back into iTunes and everything is restored. (Aside: Maybe MobileMe will finally be worth the price now?)"
This has been available as a free app.
You can use GPS to find your iphone and keep the info for tracking it on your computer.
So what's the name of the app? -gs
Posted by: Sari Kadison-Shapiro | June 18, 2009 12:51 PM
Just purchased my first apple I MacBook, I noticed a bug issue with the flash player which downloads awfully slow! Anyone els experiencing this problem?
Posted by: e cig | July 7, 2010 12:45 AM
I love snow leopard! It had some kinks at first but its all gravy now.
Posted by: Mirrored Aviator Sunglasses | August 16, 2010 5:06 PM