Apple

Apple gives iMac chips a boost

Following rumors last week that Apple would soon be releasing a new iMac, the Mac maker on Monday started selling an updated version of the computer, featuring a faster processor and an option for a souped-up graphics chip.

The lowest-end new iMac, which retails for $1,199, features a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Penryn processor with up to 6MB of cache memory and a 1,066MHz front-side bus. Most models offer 2GB of memory.

These features are similar to those found in the February MacBook and MacBook Pro updates.

"With the latest Intel processors, a faster new … Read more

Rumor: Apple to add tactile feedback to iPhone

An anonymous Apple employee says company executives are in talks with Immersion to license its haptic technology for use in the iPhone, according to a report at Palluxo.com.

Haptic technology gives people sensory feedback--in the form of a vibration or pressure--when they use a touchscreen. Essentially, it makes touching a key on a touchscreen more akin to pressing a real button. Right now, the iPhone interface does not have that kind of interactivity, which can make using the touchscreen more challenging because there is no sensory indication that a key has been touched and the phone has registered it. … Read more

New iPhone back in black?

Apple might have decided to make a few cosmetic changes to the next-generation iPhone.

As Lawrence Peter might say, it's deja vu all over again as we await the arrival of the 3G iPhone. Engadget has the latest, claiming they've been in touch with a tester who says Apple plans to ditch the aluminum exterior in favor of a "glossy black" plastic-like material and, more significantly, add a GPS chip.

I'm not sure what to make of the decision to drop the metal look until I can see the actual product, mock-up images notwithstanding. But … Read more

The six secrets to mobile computing success

There are six things that developers need to keep in mind when developing for mobile computers, six things that don't necessarily come into play when thinking about PCs.

That's how Ben Bederson and John SanGiovanni, co-founders of Zumobi, described their philosophies of mobile computing: immediacy, adaptability, one-handed use, visual elegance, put the user in control, and thinking differently. The two engineers hosted a session during the waning days of the Web 2.0 Expo for Web developers interested in making products for smartphones, mobile Internet devices, or whatever convention we settle on to describe the next generation of … Read more

Apple Store greatness

Recently, I've noticed two interesting changes at my local Apple Store, both evidence of Apple's mastery of retail.

A few months ago, they remodeled to get rid of the large screen and seating area they used for in-store workshops. I liked the few classes I happened in upon during the weekend, but most of them were sparsely attended, and the workshops I really wanted to take--like Garage Band--were during normal work hours. In place of the demo area, they more than doubled the size of the Genius Bar, Apple's in-store customer support desk. The end-result: a mass … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 711: Cat co-host

Brian Cooley fills in for Molly and Jason (tall order). We also meet his kitten Moneypenny, unfortunately she doesn't say much. Even when we talked about kitten CAPTCHA. Oh well.

--Tom Listen now: Download today's podcast

Episode 711

Version 1.0 of Yahoo’s new platform due later this year http://www.news.com/8301-13953_3-9928557-80.html?tag=nefd.top

3G iPhone due on June 9, analysts say http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20080424/tc_pcworld/145082;_ylt=AiWJ7KalUxL4TjEG6rMYj3AjtBAF

DOD may push back on Apple’s P.A. Semi bid http://eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207401605… Read more

Price cut moves U.K. iPhones

Price apparently was an object for U.K. iPhone shoppers.

The decision by U.K. carrier O2 to cut the price of the 8GB iPhone prompted shoppers to exhaust stocks of that model at O2's Web site and at Carphone Warehouse, an authorized iPhone reseller. Pocket-Lint confirmed with Carphone Warehouse that the 8GB models are kaput, and O2 told the site that while online stocks of the 8GB model are gone, retail stocks are dwindling fast.

It was only a week ago that O2 cut the price of the 8GB model from 269 British pounds ($533) to 169 British … Read more

Apple's peculiar purchase-- the six Ps of PA Semi

Earlier this week, Apple bought a Silicon Valley chip-design firm named PA Semi for a reported price of $278 million.

Apple will get four things for sure:

People-- PA Semi has a medium-size team that knows how to work together and produce chips. Processes-- PA Semi has design tools and procedures that can be used to design new chips. Patents-- PA Semi did some unique innovative design work for its chips, and there must be some interesting patents on this work. A product-- the PWRficient 1682M, which has found a few design wins in military electronics and other … Read more

3G BlackBerry delayed until August?

Updated 4/25, see explanation at bottom.

A technical glitch in an upcoming BlackBerry release will prevent an iPhone-Blackberry showdown in June, according to Fortune. AT&T will delay the launch of the BlackBerry 8900 from June to August after concerns about call quality, the magazine reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources. The 8900 will be Research in Motion's first 3G BlackBerry for AT&T, and it had been expected to make its debut right around the same time as Apple is expected to launch a 3G version of the iPhone. UPDATED 6:10pm PT - The device … Read more