Pssst: Looking forward to iLife? Head over to Amazon Germany and you’ll find a little pop-up telling you — helpfully — it will be available from 20 October 2010. Surprise? Probably not.
The interesting bit happens when you venture over to the US version and peep Amazon’s new lower price: $49.99:
Just last week we reported that BestBuy.com has iLife on backorder.
COMPUTERWORLD: As Apple prepares to announce its fourth financial quarter results later today investment houses are chattering on expectation of strong — perhaps estimate-beating — iPad sales, and we’re watching iPhone 4 sales with great interest. Did ‘antenna-gate’ damage iPhone 4 sales? I’m also anticipating confirmation of anecdotal reports of booming Mac sales.
As previously reported, Qantas Airways has been testing iPads as entertainment consoles on some flights since June — now the airline plans to deploy Apple’s tablets across its Jetstar flights.
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Apple is developing iAds for video, developing a new product that will deliver in-stream ads to videos shown on the iPhone, iPad and (presumably) the Apple TV.
These ads will appear both within apps, and on mobile websites. A report tells us Apple’s new ads network is expected to launch in the first half of next year, and it does seem to dovetail nicely with development of ways publishers of popular video on Apple’s networks could make some money for their work.
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We’re seeing another piece of documentation with a landscape dock connector, at least according to the latest patent filings, this time emerging from Europe.
These latest patents, submitted to the European Trademarks and Designs Registration Office, show another landscape 30 pin dock connecter, with both Jony Ive and Steve Jobs named on said patent. And of course there is that questionable hole at the top which could indicate a camera or just an ambient light detector that exists on the current design.
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COMPUTERWORLD: Apple’s design philosophy sets the standard for product design across all industries. The integrity of its approach emanates from company co-founder, Steve Jobs. That focus on the user experience is critical at every level of the company’s offering, and constitutes the Apple advantage in a sea of Android.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAllFWSl998&fs=1&hl=en_GB]
We know, we know, it’s Friday and other than huge excitement at what’s coming from Apple on October 20 (glimpse at new OS, iLife, iWork and new MacBook Air, we reckon), but where’s your Friday afternoon video fun?
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Autodesk today returned to the Mac with the release of industry-standard AutoCAD. There’s even a 30-day free trial of this most important of 3D CAD software for designers, and its return to the Mac really is a big deal — it has been absent from the platform for 18 years. That’s a generation of Architects that haven’t used the software.
One of the most widely used applications for professional design and engineering, the Mac version brings all AutoCADs features and functionality to Mac-using designers. For PC users, the Mac version works in a similar enough way to the PC that it is easy to move between platforms.
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Apple’s plans to offer the iPad for sale in Taiwan have hit a hurdle — the device doesn’t currently support the complex Chinese writing system used in the country.
Taiwanese government official, Chin-hsien Lo admits the problem exists, and the lack of language support means the iPad won’t go on sale until the device is capable of handling native Taiwanese text input.
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Virtual good sales are spiking within Apple’s iOS ecosystem, with revenues from such sales dwarfing ads revenue, reports analytics firm, Flurry.
The analytics company looked at revenues accrued by a sample group of social networking and social gaming apps to reach its conclusion.
The sample group offered a “combined reach of 2.2 million daily active users”, Flurry says. It found that in-app purchases were accounting for over 80 percent of their revenues.
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Apple’s iBookstore may need beefing-up if it is to fulfil its promise, or so it appears. A quick check of the available in-store titles reveals 60,000 books in there for sale — contrast this with the 700,000 books available via Amazon’s Kindle and its pretty clear there’s backstage conflicts between the two book stores.
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COMPUTERWORLD: Apple is now the biggest US PC maker if you read between the lines of the latest Gartner and IDC PC sales data. This is why Apple’s announcement of new Mac OS X features next week will also be the point when AAPL defines the future of computing.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAVQPa9L3jg&fs=1&hl=en_GB]
This morning we’re enjoying this video clip straight out of Hong Kong, where the Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway has launched its new app, inviting along a Chinese Fake Steve Jobs to introduce the new product.
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Apple CEO Steve Jobs intends giving each of the Chilean miners rescued from deep beneath the Earth an iPod, a French report claims.
Jobs joins a list of benefactors impressed at the stoicism and courage of the 33 miners who survived 68 days of being literally buried alive. Luiz Urzua, the miner’s leader, himself emerged from the mine last overnight. It is understood the team plan to jointly release a book. They hope not to have to mine again, or so previous reports have claimed.
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Foxconn has confirmed reports it has raised manufacturing costs for clients, but is denying claims competing manufacturers are using the move as an opportunity to poach clients from the giant firm.
A Foxconn spokesperson pointed out that “most clients have already agreed to the new quotes,” reports Digitimes. Some negotiations continue.
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COMPUTERWORLD: This morning’s anti-iPhone info-blip sees claims that the “iPhone 4 breaks 82 percent more than iPhone 3Gs”. Which sounds like quite a headline, except it isn’t strictly true. These claims are based on data from a firm called SquareTrade and is based on claimed analysis of 20,000 iPhone warranty customers. But this is a storm in a teacup.
It may be time to wave farewell to cheap Chinese consumer goods, people, as it looks like Foxconn intends raising contract manufacturing prices as it attempts to stop workers in those Chinese factories churning out cheap consumer goods for the rest of the world from, you know, killing themselves in protest at the poor wages and working conditions they’re enduring.
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Move over Limera1n, there’s a new iOS 4.1 Jailbreak tool in town, and this one’s greenpois0n — though at time of writing it seems a little uncertain if the tool is available or not.
Released for Windows and Linux systems following a short delay last night, the tool supports iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, the third and forth generation iPod touch, and the iPad. It doesn’t yet support the current Apple TV, and a Mac version is promised somewhere down the line.
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Apple’s some time ally, Intel’s Paul Otellini, has vowed to use “all of the assets” at his company’s disposal to seize back leadership in the tablet market.
In an interview, Otellini took a moment to praise Apple’s achievements with its iPad, before making his promise to seize back the category through a series of Intel processor-powered partner devices.
Apple has been summoned to answer questions in the Korean parliament late this month to explain the company’s repair and replacement policy for the iPhone.
Apple’s senior director for Apple’s iPhone service, Farrel Farhoudi, is scheduled to appear in the Korean parliament on October 21.
(We didn’t even know this was possible)
DEAL800.com offers the Screen Assembly Replacement Part for Apple iPad for $93.84 with free shipping. That’s $56 off and the lowest total price we could find. This part replaces a damaged LCD screen on your Apple iPad or iPad 3G.
Note that replacing your Apple iPad screen assembly requires the right skills and tools, and will void your Apple warranty.
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The march to carrier agnosticism for the iPhone continues with Germany the new front, where T-Mobile has lost its iPhone monopoly, a tipster tells us.
Announcements are due from O2 and Vodafone that they plan to begin selling the iPhone in Germany perhaps as soon as the end of the month (October).
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COMPUTERWORLD: When it comes down to mind-share, Google’s own search data shows that Apple’s ‘iPhone’ has the mojo, driving more electronic data jumpiness than ‘Android’, ‘iPad’, ‘Microsoft’ or even ‘Apple’ itself, at least, according to Google Trends.
That’s as June quarter data confirms Apple’s iPhone sales fell slightly as it moved to the iPhone 4, and the company continues to translate this global focus into space in the enterprise. Meanwhile Microsoft has come along to spoil Android’s lunch…
Apple is the big winner at this year’s T3 Gadget Awrds in the UK, where the iPad has been given the coveted Gadget of the Year award.
The iPad also took the Innovation of the Year title, while iPhone grabbed the Commuter Gadget of the Year badge. More awards followed: Apple’s MacBook Pro secured the Computer of the Year and Apple itself won praise as Retailer of the Year.
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