We're letting the Apple fans know that the company has released updates for its Aperture and GarageBand applications. The updates will cover mostly stability and compatibility issues that were found in each application's previous build. Details are in the full article.

  

The Apple Summer Mac product conference is already rolling hot with Steve Jobs manning the show. As expected, his keynote address is filled with surprising unveiling of new Apple projects and the "everybody saw this coming" types. Tab this one under the second category - as predicted and whispered around various boards the past few weeks, Apple is giving us brand new iMacs.

Sporting a retroish look, the sleek new iMacs are made of aluminum and glass. It comes in 20- and 24-inched versions, each equipped with the usual but impressive specs such as up to  2.4GHz Core 2 Extreme processor, up to 4GB of memory, ATI Radeon HD graphics card, up to 1TB of hard drive storage. 802.11n and Bluetooth 2.0 built-in. There's also the usual compliment of ports like USB 2.0, Firewire 400/800, a slot loading SuperDrive, iSight camera etc.

What's also worth noting is that the oft-rumored new keyboard for the iMacs turns out to be true, with Steve Jobs himself confirming it. Boasting of large spacing and flat keys, Apple seems to be aiming to give the iMac users the laptop feel while typing. iMac purists seem to be a bit skeptic with the move, but let's all wait and see what happens. The 20-inch iMac goes for US$ 1,199 each (add three hundred bucks more for a processor and graphics enhancements), while the 24-inch monster demands US$ 1,799 per unit.

As most Apple fans know, the Apple WWDC is going pretty strong. A lot of people have their own thoughts about the iPhone and Mac OS X Leopard, but no amount of speculating beat first hand information.

Mac Rumors was lucky enough to get some details from those who attended the WWDC and were able to get some details about the Leopard. In addition, they also gave some of their impressions on the product which were quite insightful. Consistently, the people who saw it have been raving about the new mail system that Apple implemented.

Another thing that was pointed out by one of the attendees is the fact that Spotlight has been tweaked so that it has become "much more responsive." Another thing that was pointed out was that "Safari seems faster and now has that styled text editor as in Firefox." For those who are worried about the requirements of the said OS, don't fret, the readme on the copies handed out clarified everything (it's no Vista in terms of memory requirements).

System Requirements:

• an Intel processor or a PowerPC G4 or G5 processor
• a DVD drive
• built-in FireWire
• at least 256 MB of RAM for a Power-PC based Mac and 512 MB for an Intel-based Mac (additional RAM is recommended for development purposes)
• a built-in display or a display connected to an Apple-supplied video card supported by your computer
• at least 6 GB of disk space available, or 8 GB if you install the developer tools

That said, it looks like the Mac OS X Leopard is primed and ready to hit the ground running. Hopefully it will be everything and more Mac users wish it to be. Keep checking back here for more updates on the WWDC and the products featured there.

In the spirit of bringing you more Apple TV-related modifications, we're now gonna show you how to run the full Mac OS X on the Apple TV. semthex from Hackint0sh.org hacked out a replacement to the Mac OS X kernel, side-stepping over certain hardware restrictions that previously made running the Mac OS X on an Apple TV improbable.

Here are the steps to install the full Mac OS X on the Apple TV. Install at your own risk.

1) Remove the drive from the Apple TV
2) Back up your drive! Make an image of it (see the harddrive upgrade tutorial for this)
3) Connect the drive to a regular Mac (use a Firewire or USB drive dock)
4) Install OS X (Intel version) to the drive (we suggest a slim install - no printer drivers etc.)
5) Boot from this drive, and set it up as you would like it. Make sure you do updates so it is at least 10.4.8.
6) Reboot to your normal OS X install.
7) Remove mach_kernel from root of the drive containg the ATV install.
8) Replace it with the customised mach_kernel that youÂ?ll find on Hackint0sh.org.
9) Replace /System/Libary/Coreservices/boot.efiwith the same file from your backup of the Apple TV OS drive (OSBoot partition).
10) Run bless:

bless --folder=/Volumes/OSBoot/System/Library/CoreServices --file=/Volumes/OSBoot/System/Library/CoreServices/boot.efi --setBoot

11) Delete all the Nvidia kexts (all beginning with NVD, there should be 5) from the target drive (in /System/Library/Extensions).
12) Transfer the drive back to the Apple TV
13) Turn the Apple TV on and cross your fingers...

And you should boot up into Mac OS X. The Apple TV running Mac OS X can use the mouse and the keyboard normally. Use either Front Row or Back Row to watch content.

For a more detailed how-to, check the installation video by clicking on the full article link below.

Shedding some light into this mysterious device Apple's been cooking up in the Mac kitchen is AppleRecon. Now they've been seriously investigating into the rumors surrounding a 12-inch Macintosh puppy that is so elusive, that it even has lots of names: MacBook Pro 12", MacBook Mini, or MacBook Duo. Whatever you can call it, however, it's been getting some renewed hype and a whole lot of claimed features. It's sure to hold Duos now, since Apple's move to the Intel side.

But AppleRecon screened the truths from the rumors, and came up with the specifications that surround the little monster.

• CPU: 2 GHz Core 2 Duo (AppleRecon doesn't think it can go any higher than 2.5 GHz)
• RAM: 1 GB standard, 3 GB fully stocked
• Storage: (confirmed Flash-assisted storage with an unreleased Intel chipset - 256 to 512 MB) 80 GB standard, 200 GB tops
• Video: ATI Radeon X1900 with 256 MB memory (we're really doubtful something this small could hold an X1900)
  
• Battery Life: 6 hours, lithium polymer technology style (we'd give it a 4-hour estimate)
  
• Optical Drive: slot-loading SuperDrive, dual layer
• GPS: Not confirmed, though AppleRecon hopes this will come with one
• Weight: Around 3.5 pounds, battery and optical drive attached
• Miscellaneous: iSight, Bluetooth, 802.11b/g/n, Firewire 400/800, USB2.0, 10/100/1000 Ethernet, audio in/out, mini-DVI, (confirmed LED backlight display, 12-inch screen, 1280x800)...like the Mac Book extras
• Price: US$1799 for standard specifications
  
• Release date: Probably June 2007

This list could use a little more tweaking. Compared to the "MacBook Thin" specs we heard of last time, who knows what the "confirmed" specs are and what will eventually roll out (if at all). All we can really do now is wait and speculate some more...

You gotta love rumors confirmed. Mac OS Rumors started combing the grapevine and all their sources clean of whatever juice they could squeeze out, until they were able to confirm that the "MacBook Thin" (a) exists, and (b) has specs that (c) would probably make the "Thin" "the fastest, most feature-rich ultraportable laptop on the market". Probably because it's a Pro in a smaller package.

Here are the specs that Mac OS Rumors were, so far, able to confirm from American and Southeast Asian sources. Start drooling.

• "Macbook Thin" -- spec-wise, primarily a variant of the Pro family but will probably be branded as separate from the standard *or* Pro MacBook families. Shipping name is unconfirmed.
• 12-inch widescreen display, 1280x800 resolution.
• 2.16 or 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• 1GB of DDR2-667 memory standard. Max. capacity 3GB.
• Standard "Pro" ports: USB2, Firewire 400 & 800, Gigabit Ethernet, Digital/Analog Audio minijack I/O ports.
• ExpressCard expansion slot (believed to be /34 type)
• Similar storage to "Pro": 2.5in SATA HDDs at 120GB & up, 'Combo' or 'Super' optical drive.
• ATi Radeon Mobility X1600 or nVIDIA GeForce GO 7600 graphics systems with 256MB of VRAM.
• Mini-DVI display connector with full second display capabilities
• Of course, Built-in iSight, stereo microphone, Airport Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR.
• Battery life is expected to be "best in class" at about 6.5 hours real-world, some reports have suggested up to 8 hours is possible.

Final speculation has the "Thin", or whatever they're going to call it, shipping within ten weeks, announced in six. What keeps this speculation iffy is the fact that the upcoming MacWorld Expo is so packed with other high-profile items - such as iTV and the iPhone - that were the "Thin" announced there, it could easily get lost in the shuffle. Not that it won't be noticed by a lot of people who'd love to get a MacBook in smaller dimensions.

Awww... ain't this adorable - and relatively cheap. Rather than blow his budget on an iPod dock, Senator Penguin out at instructibles.com decided to build one of his own, out of LEGO bricks. The dock holds and locks the iPod USB or Firewire cable in place for the iPod to, er, sit on. He calls it the iPod Throne. We call it cute (all pictures from instructibles.com).

 

The only materials you'll need are LEGO blocks. Lots and lots of assorted LEGO bricks. And since they're LEGO bricks, the secret is that you don't even need the exact pieces Sen. Penguin used in his iPod Throne! You just need to get to the Throne's basic configuration - especially that cable locking mechanism - with what LEGO you have on hand (of course, if you find out to your horror that you don't have enough bricks, you may have to pay a little visit to your friendly neighborhood toy store. Or sneak into LEGOLand for spare bricks. Good luck with that).

Sen. Penguin hasn't tried the dock out on anything other than a 4G 20GB color iPod - but another secret to LEGO is that anything you make can be remade and customized as you see fit. Worst-case, he says, is that the front lip that keeps the iPod from slipping off and the Throne's backrest may have to be adjusted for iPods of different configurations.

Griffin Technology Inc., announced this Wednesday that they have begun shipping their 5.1 Surround Sound solution for Mac, the FireWave. Griffin Technology is known as one of the leading creators of accessories and peripherals for Mac, PC, iPod, and gaming and here they prove once again why.

Through FireWave, Griffin's Surround Sound solution for Mac, users are now able to upgrade their sound system via the FireWire ports. FireWave gets its power through the FireWire connection so there's no need for cables, batteries, or whatnot, to make it work.

FireWave is also small and portable enough for use with laptops, making it easy to incorporate into any computer setup. It also has an extra FireWire port so that it doesn't hog your FireWire port, letting you connect with other FireWire devices.

FireWave lets you enjoy DVDs in 5.1 surround, use Dolby Prol Logic II to listen from any audio source, whether from iTunes, QuickTime, or streaming audio. Another cool thing is that FireWave supports multi-channel playback from cross-platform OpenAL games (gasp!) like World of Warcraft and Unreal Tournament, definitely a gaming must-have.

Technical Specs:

• complies with IEEE1394 specification
• sample Rates supported: 32, 44.1, 48 and 96kHz playback in MBLA mode (non-Dolby) 32,44.1, and 48kHz in Dolby Pro Logic II o 48kHz
• encoded Digital in Dolby Digital Outputs: 6-Channel, 24-bit Frequency Response
• powered by the Oxford Semiconductor FW970 Pricing & Availability Griffin FireWave

FireWave is now available at your nearest Mac or FireWire accessories retail stores, and sells for $99.99. Not bad, eh?

Japanese company Logitec (different from Logitech) will release its LBD-A2FU2/WM - the first Blu-ray disc burner for Apple computers - this month. The 2x BD drive can write to the 25GB BD-R, the 50GB BD-RE, DVD-RAM, DVD±R/RW, dual-layer DVD±R and CD-R/RW discs. It also comes with Roxio's Mac OS X application Toast 7 Titanium. The Blu-ray drive connects to both USB 2.0 and Firewire and will retail for $1,148. Apple People elsewhere will have to wait as no shipping date outside Japan has been announced.

We've not heard much about Apple's high-profile legal effort to unmask whoever leaked details of Apple's yet-to-be released music accessory - a FireWire audio interface for GarageBand, codenamed "Asteroid". Well, we'll probably hear the last of it as Apple acknowledged in a court filing that the company will not take its fight to the California Supreme Court.

Back in May, Apple's attempt to subpoena records and emails from Jason O'Grady creator of PowerPage.org, and Kasper Jade, publisher and editor-in-chief of AppleInsider, had been rejected by the state appeals court on grounds that web reports are also protected by the California journalist shield law. The case drew national attention as it was one of the first to "set the rules of how the rights of uncredentialed online journalists should be balanced against the rights of trade secret holders".

Apple's decision not to appeal would serve as a legal precedent that would encourage journalist and leakers in the future. Kurt Opsahl, an attorney defending the Web publishers, said that the "issue is likely to come up in other jurisdictions."

Apple could very well be thinking of a more aggressive internal investigation about the issue. Court documents have shown that 29 employees who had access to the confidential document have already been investigated.