Yes, Apple is now running the iPad Mini commercial they previewed at the launch event [video]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=vM9U70HgLsQ
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Poll: Is it socially acceptable to take photos/video with your iPad Mini?
With the release of Apple’s new iPad Mini, you now have a device that lives somewhere between an iPhone and a full-sized iPad. We know that while iPhone photo taking is fully acceptable, taking pictures in public with your iPad certainly is not (see middle image).
But the question, first posed on Reddit, is: with the high quality 5MP camera in the 7.9-inch display iPad Mini, is it socially acceptable to grab a snapshot with your Mini or should you keep the photos for the iPod touch and iPhone sized devices?
Oh, then there are these guys:
Gamer Bundle: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Civ V, four more, just $30
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Stack Social’s got a solid gamer bundle headed by two great Apps: Call of Duty 4, Modern Warfare and Civ V.
The 6 Mac Games Include:
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare ($40)
Featuring a tense storyline, filled with plot twists, the title thrusts players into battle like never before. With amazing special effects, including rim-lighting, depth of field, texture streaming and character self-shadowing, players are enlisted into one of the most photo-realistic shooter experiences imaginable.
Civilization V ($50)
Sid Meier’s Civilization V Mac reinvigorates the classic turn-based strategy genre with an astonishing new engine built from the ground-up. Players are introduced to an entirely new combat system, deeper diplomatic interactions and a cavalcade of expanded features that deliver a fully immersive experience providing hours of entertainment as players build and defend their empire on their quest to become the greatest ruler the world has ever known.
Company of Heroes: Complete ($30)
Company of Heroes redefines real time strategy gaming by bringing the sacrifice of heroic soldiers, war-ravaged environments, and dynamic battlefields to life. Beginning with the D-Day Invasion of Normandy, players lead squads of Allied soldiers into battle against the German war machine through some of the most pivotal battles of WWII.
Combat Mission: Battle for Normandy ($55)
Battle for Normandy faithfully recreates the experience of tactical land warfare in Western France during World War Two. This is quite possibly the most versatile, genuinely accurate and powerful battlefield simulation to date.
And Yet It Moves ($10)
And Yet It Moves is set in a unique world, made of ripped paper. Within the paper collage, you can jump, run and last but certainly not least: rotate the world. Learn how to apply the physical consequences of rotation to master the many tricky situations you may encounter.
LIMBO ($10)
Created entirely in black and white, LIMBO has often been spoken of in terms of gaming art. Hauntingly beautiful, yet also philosophically provocative. LIMBO features a gameplay mechanic that has come to be known as “Trial by Death” in which the player must die in-game in order to discover the solutions to the puzzles set before him. In the event of this, the player spawns at the last save point and must use what he has learned if he hopes to find his sister and get closure on the events set before him.
…game on!
Apple updates Executive Profile page: Forstall and Browett gone, Williams not yet COO
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After today’s news, Apple’s Executive Profile page is a little thinner.
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The yacht that Steve Jobs built with French designer Philippe Starck revealed [Gallery]
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Dutch website OneMoreThing grabbed some pictures of the unique vessel that Steve Jobs was designing at the time of his death with French designer Philippe Starck over a year ago. The project was started in 2009, and Jobs’ wife and three of his children attended today’s launch of “Venus”.
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The boat certainly has an interesting look/shape.
The control center of course has iMacs (are those the new ones?!)
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The people who worked on the vessel were given iPod shuffles as a gift from the Jobs family.
We received additional photos of the yacht and placed those and a video below:
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Apple Store goes down ahead of iPad mini launch. Poll: Which iPad mini are you getting?
The Apple Store went down at midnight EST, and the floodgates should open up at around 3 a.m. EST (thanks, Apple!).
Which iPad mini will you pick up?
iMessage is down again
[tweet https://twitter.com/AlexWagaman/status/261579566227812352]
Many readers are reporting being unable to use iMessage again. These outages seem to happen every week or so and each time it last a few hours.
[tweet https://twitter.com/vancejason/status/261569689229090816]
Update: Some folks have reported it is back up:
[tweet https://twitter.com/asmith_23/status/261584327995973632]
Toys Deal alert: Add 128GB of speedy Kingston SDCard to your Mac or camera for $70 AR, free shipping
From 9to5Toys.com:
Today only, Tiger Direct has the Kingston 128GB Class 10 SDXC Secure Digital Extended-Capacity Card, model no. SDX10V/128GB for $84.99 with a $15 mail in rebate which brings it to $69.99 with free shipping. At $0.55/GB, that’s the best deal we’ve seen for any 128GB Class 10 SDHC card (even without the rebate).
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Apple debuts ‘Colors’ 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro ad: ‘For the pro in all of us’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfiJOP2uGk4&feature=player_embedded
It debuted on ABC’s Modern Family and other shows this evening. (Thanks tipsters!)
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AAPL stock cliff dives on iPad mini price announcement
Should have listened to Mark. Apple CEO Tim Cook also revealed 16 million iPads for the quarter—which is lower than analysts thought.
Good time to buy, folks.
Apple readies California Theatre for special event
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Techie-Buzz grabbed some shots of the California Theater where Apple is holding its new iPads/Macs event tomorrow. The venue looks a lot bigger on the inside (below).
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Best Buy has $50 iTunes Gift cards for $40, today only
From 9to5Toys.com
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As one of its daily deals, Best Buy offers the $50 Apple iTunes Gift Card for $40 with free shipping. The card contains an iTunes Store code redeemable for music, movies, TV shows, games, iOS/Mac apps, and more.
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Apple sends out recall notice to iMac owners with 1TB Seagate hard drives
If you have the below setup, it might be time to get your recall on:
From: Apple <News@InsideApple.Apple.com>Subject: Important information about your iMac.Date: October 19, 2012 7:08:13 PM EDT
Dear iMac owner,Apple has determined that certain 1TB Seagate hard drives used in 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMac systems may fail. These systems were sold between October 2009 and July 2011.
Our records show that you have an iMac with an affected 1TB Seagate hard drive. Apple will replace your hard drive with a new one, free of charge, under the iMac 1TB Seagate Hard Drive Replacement Program.
Please choose one of the following options to get a replacement hard drive.
Apple recommends replacing your affected hard drive as soon as possible. Before you go in for service, please back up your data. Learn more about backup options.Additional Information
You will need to have the original Mac OS installation discs that were shipped with your iMac in order to reinstall your operating system, other applications, and any backed up data after your hard drive is replaced.
This worldwide Apple program does not extend the standard warranty coverage of the iMac.
Apple will replace affected 1TB Seagate hard drives, free of charge, for three years from your iMac’s original date of purchase or until April 12, 2013, whichever provides longer coverage for you. Apple will continue to evaluate service data and provide extensions to this program as needed.
We apologize for any inconvenience.
Sincerely,
Apple Inc.
More 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro pictures surface: 2 Thunderbolt ports, HDMI, 2560×1600 resolution
15″ Retina MacBook Pro above, 13″ Retina MacBook Pro below (note no speaker and port/keyboard alignment):
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Another visit to WeiPhone.com forum thread [Google translation] (via MacRumors) from last week yields some additional new pictures of the upcoming 13-inch MacBook Pro. You can see different placement of the side jacks as they relate to the keyboard and lack of speaker.
There’s nothing unexpected but it does seem to confirm a few things:
- 2 Thunderbolt ports like 15-inch Retina and unlike 13-inch Pros
- The Windows screens seem to confirm the 2560×1600 pixel display
- HDMI port like Retina 15, unlike Pro 13.
We expect to see the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro at the October 23rd event with a base price in the $1599-1699 area. More pictures below:
Estimated prices on 13-inch Retina MacBook Pros: Starts around U$1,699
Alongside the new mini/iPads, Mac Minis, and iMacs, Apple will reveal a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display on Oct. 23. We have now received pricing information on the base model and the “best” model. We believe the entry model 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro will cost roughly $1,699 at launch, based on wholesale prices we received, while the higher spec model will cost $200 to $300 more.
The base model Retina MacBook Pro retails for $2,199 in the United States, so the 13-inch varieties would create a more inexpensive option for those who also prefer a smaller device. We expect these to be available shortly after launch, but we can probably expect some supply constraints as we saw with the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro. We also expect initial supply constraints on some of the new iMacs.
It sounds like the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro will have a 2,560-by-1,600-pixel display (the same as a 30-inch Cinema Display), with the effective area being the same as the 1,280-by-800 screens as the current MacBook Pros when used in pixel-doubled Retina mode. We do not yet have other specs on the Retina Pro configuration, but we will update as that information comes in.
Samsung/Google’s new ARM-powered Chromebook looks like a MacBook Air, costs just $249
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The price is right, and the processor is an interesting choice (ARM), but unfortunately, the look is unmistakably Apple.
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Get same speedy SSDs that Apple uses in MacBooks for over half off today -128GB: $70, 256GB: $155
From 9to5Toys.com:
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The very same Samsung 830 SSDs that Apple uses in its new MacBook Pro/Airs, the Samsung 830s, are on sale today only at Amazon. At $69.99 for 128GB and $154.99 for 256GB with free shipping, these are the lowest prices we’ve seen for these SSDs which feature read speeds of up to 520MB/s and write speeds of up to 400MB/s.
Update: The deal is over but hit up their big SSD sale
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Starbucks UK and Canadian apps gets Passbook support
Time to get your Passbook on if you are a Starbucks customer in the U.K. or Canada—just a few weeks after the U.S. release.
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Microsoft’s entertaining Surface Stomp commercial still doesn’t show how it works [Video]
Great commercial—except they did not really show how or if it even works. It reminds me more of an iPod shuffle commercial than a hybrid tablet/laptop introduction.
Japanese Softbank taking 70 percent stake of US carrier Sprint for $20B
As rumored last week, Japanese Softbank has taken a controlling 70 percent stake in Sprint according to CNBC:
Softbank and Sprint have reached a deal under which Softbank will pay $20 billion for a 70 percent stake in the wireless telecom operator, according to people close to the situation.
Softbank will buy $8 billion worth of shares directly from Sprint and tender for another $12 billion worth of the shares from existing holders.
(Update: Confirmed by Sprint)
The deal will allow Sprint to purchase the half of Clearwire that it does not already own, according to the report. Softbank expects to take use of its expertise in LTE networks to bolster Sprints position in the market.
AT&T is now the sole remaining U.S. carrier not under foreign control. Verizon Wireless is a joint venture with Vodafone, while T-Mobile is obviously German.
Sprint and Softbank both carry Apple’s iPhone. Softbank was the original Japanese carrier while Sprint was the third U.S. carrier to adopt the iconic phone.
The deal is expected to close in roughly six months.
Hilarious SNL skit stages iPhone-covering journalists against Chinese factory workers [video]
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A shaky YouTube video is below for those who NBC is boxing out. Thanks, Eric!
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Apple iPods start appearing at US retailers, Touches in short supply
(Click to enlarge)
Apple is now supplying iPod touches to retailers including Amazon which now has some supply of the iPod touch. Strangely, Amazon only lists the yellow 64GB as ready immediately, while the 32GB yellow and pinks will ship in “2-4 weeks”.
Apple is being a little less stingy with its supply of Shuffles and Nanos as Amazon lists the whole line as available.
Best Buy is a hit-and-miss: it has most Shuffles and Nanos, but it is still missing black and white iPod touches.
Target is also a hit-and-miss with many only available in-store. B&H has some stock, but it will not see much until November. Walmart still says ‘coming soon‘.
Another vehicular smash-and-grab robbery hits Kansas Apple Store
A Leawood, Kan., Apple Store was the victim of another smash-and-grab robbery this week. Suspects backed a stolen green Dodge Intrepid into the store as a battering ram and were able to make off on foot with some merchandise before police arrived. Every device that thieves made off with is a GPS-positioning device, as the report mentioned, so it should not be hard for Apple to track them.
This marks the second time this particular Kansas Apple Store has been hit with a vehicle smash-and-grab. In 2010, the same method was used to grab merchandise. Apple set up a security fence in the Kansas store (as it has in most stores) that is the same security used at overseas U.S. embassies, according to a former Apple employee. Unfortunately, they do not seem to stop vehicles at high speeds.
Last month, a Temecula, Calif., Apple Store was smashed with a BMW SUV (video here).
Perhaps Apple should get the word out to prospective thieves (commercial?) that all of its products are traceable and therefore worthless on the black market.
Two more videos of the incident below:
Former GE CEO Jack Welch uses an iPad to conduct business
Here is an interesting ‘footnote’ to this story on former GE CEO Jack Welch leaving Fortune Magazine, quitting over his harsh anti-Obama jobs Tweet coverage:
Apparently, the 20-year CEO and Chairman of GE conducts business on his iPad. So, there’s another notch in the “iPad is only for consumption” coffin.
