Apple introduces iLife '06: Universal Binary, iWeb added to suite

Amid deafening applause at his keynote this morning, Steve Jobs took the wraps off iLife '06 -- the first Intel-native iteration of Apple's popular digital media creation and sharing suite.

In addition to upgrading all of the current suite applications with new features that integrate them more tightly with .Mac, Apple has added a sixth application -- iWeb -- which allows users to create fairly complex Web pages in short order.

All of the new iLife applications were demonstrated on an Intel-based iMac Core Duo during Steve Jobs' keynote address this morning.

iPhoto 6 offers:

• Improved performance
• Support for up to 250,000 photos
• Photocasting: a new way to share photos directly from within iPhoto via .Mac to friends and family. (Pictures automatically update when the owner adds, edits or deletes a photo within the published album)
• Ability to edit and compare mode without menus or windows
• Ability to compare up to eight photos simultaneously and
• Newly designed book, calendar and greeting card templates

iMovie HD 6 offers:

• Apple-designed motion themes
• New real-time Core Video effects
• Audio enhancement tools and sound effects
• The ability to open multiple projects at once

• 10 new Apple-designed menu themes in both widescreen (16:9) and standard (4:3) formats
• Ability to burn using compatible third-party DVD burners.
• Magic iDVD: quick creation of a DVD with themes and media

GarageBand 3 offers:

• solution for creating professional quality Podcasts.
• Ability to interview one or more guests simultaneously in iChat AV and recording directly into GarageBand 3.

iWeb is a new application that makes it easy (as verified by Steve's on-stage demo) to create websites with photos, blogs and Podcasts and publish them on .Mac.

iLife '06 is shipping today at a price point of $79 (US). For more information, see Apple's iLife page.

Problems with any of the new applications? Drop us a line at late-breakers@macfixit.com.

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