iMac keyboard leak?

Engadget have been sent some photos of what could very well be the keyboard from the soon-to-be-released new iMac. The gallery shows exactly how thin it is (just over 10mm) but also shows that there's no Apple key, so don't be surprised if it turns out to be a fake. Well that and the fact that the photos had once been through Photoshop - it's in the exif data, y'know?

Why are you still using those iPod earphones?

I've often moaned about the quality of the iPod earphones (they leak sound like a sieve and are too tinny), but now you can buy an excellent pair of Sennheiser CX300 from Amazon for only £17.99 (down from £40). If you enjoy the added danger of a potential mugging, they also come in white. My mate Steve bought some of these when he got his iPod and after giving them ago, I realised that my Sony MDR-EX51LPs seemed muddy and over bassy. They sounded just as good as Neill's £70 pair of Shures. I bought my cheap Sennheisers from www.7dayshop.co.uk where they're the same price but, unlike Amazon, also available in black and silver. I can't understand why so many iPod users happily walk around listening through their white apple earphones. If you still do, you really need to hear the difference a decent pair can do. Do it, do it!

iTunes screensaver disappoints

Download the iTunes Festival screensaver...
if you like flat photos and logos floating around your screen.
Jonny Ive and his team definitely had nothing to do with the design of this.

AppleInsider have posted some nice big photos of the new Bluetooth headset (I say headset, it's more of an earpiece). Even though it looks like it uses the same crappy speaker as the iPod headphones, it's a thing of beauty. It recharges either through a port on the iPhone's USB cable or, if you like to be stylish and organised, on it's own port on the iPhone dock. Lovely.

New iMac on 7th August?
That's what AppleInsider's sources reckon. They need to get it out before the new Mac OS Leopard or else they'll miss the 'back to school' crowd. Also, because it will be out ahead of Leopard, it'll, more than likely have iLife '06 too. Putting dates into Application names is always a bad idea.(The image above is an artist's impression. The alu' iMac will look a hundred times better, of course).

A back to school Promo?!
Bloody teases!

US Apple Store is closed for updating. Could this mean the new iMac is out today?
We'll know after lunchtime.

I've Flickr'd the photos I took when I replace a failed hard drive in my wife's PowerBook G4. Interesting if you like looking at computer guts or if you'd like to see the state my old 'Book is in since I handed it over to 'er indoors.

If you use an Intel Mac then you need to pay attention. Apple have released the Firmware Restore CD 1.3. You'll need to download this in case your Mac fails or is interrupted during a Software Update. Otherwise you'll need to take it a Genius Bar or Apple Service Provider. Just download the .dmg file and use Disk Utility to burn it onto a CD. Then keep in somewhere safe. If you don't, you'll be sorry.

Apparantly, some Mac users have lost connectivity with their Airport since updating to OS 10.4.10. A work-around is to disable your security setting. But as this could open your Mac up to all sorts of nasties you'll have to wait until Apple bring out 10.4.11.
On the other hand, if you much rather open up Terminal and start fiddling with the system, you can do what the http://taisteal.atomiclemur.com/2007/06/how-tiger-10410-killed-my-wireless-and-how-i-fixed-it/. This sort of tomfoolery comes with a certain ammount of risk, so don't blame me if it messes things up (or the Atomic Lemur).

Quicktime 7.2 update lets non-pro users view in full screen. It also includes updates to the H.264 codec and numerous bug fixes.

iTunes has also been updated to v7.3.1. This is contains bug fixes for problems when connecting to the iTunes library. Is it just me or is everyone's iTunes running at a snail's pace?

The New iMac is to sport a slimmer keyboard. Not unlike those found on the MacBook.
AppleInsider have revealed that "An overhaul to Apple Inc.'s popular line of iMac computers, now due in a matter of weeks, will see the company's latest industrial design efforts extend beyond the systems themselves.
"
The new all-in-one signature desktops, expected to be available only in 20- and 24-inch configurations, have been described as both slimmer and sleeker than the 17-, 20- and 24-inch models they will replace.

The streamlining, however, won't stop with the iMac enclosure. Each new model will come dressed to impress, bundling a snazzy new Apple keyboard of similarly slender proportions, people familiar with the project say."

Analyst bets on iPhone Nano.
Has he been reading my predictions? I predicted they would when the iPhone was launched. Anyway I'm little old MacBore and he's Kebin Chang from JP Morgan.
Based on a patent filed by Apple, he expects Apple to launch a phone in the 2007 fourth quarter, which may be an iPod Nano phone. Chang said the patent filing has figures demonstrating how to dial a phone number with a scroll wheel. "Putting all the information together, we believe there's a strong sign that Apple will come out with a second phone that will replace iPod Nano," Chang wrote in a client note. "IPod Nano will be converted into a phone because it's probably the only way for Apple to launch a lower end phone without severely cannibalizing iPod Nano."

The New MacBook Pro is to be the slimmest and smallest ever. Other trusted insider info from MacScoop have hinted that new line-up will include a 12 inch display. "Compared to the original 12 inch PowerBook, which is Apple's smallest notebook released so far, the new notebook is said to be half as thick, or something between 0.6 and 0.7 inch (15 to 18 millimetres). It will also be, by far, the lightest computer Apple ever released, or less than 3 pounds (<1.36Kg)".

O2 beats Vodafone for the iPhone contract.
They were first to sell the first iTunes phone (The Motorola ROKR) and it looks like they've done it again. I'm glad because they're a bit cooler than Vodafone, who are going through a rocky patch, and of course, I'm with them. So if all goes to plan, a 3G iPhone will be released in the UK by Christmas, therefore by the time my contract runs out in April '08, they won't be so expensive; I should be able to upgrade to an iPhone for a few bob!

Who's that man at the front?
Yes I know this is a British Mac blog, and all this iPhone frenzy won't be happening here until the Autumn, but there's bugger all else happening in the Mac world. The other Steve made an appearance on iPhone day at Santa Clara's Apple Store. He could have waited until Saturday for his free iPhone from Jobs but he couldn't wait.
See the rest of the photos on AppleInsider.

Here's a funny animation starring Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and (my first ever computer) a Commodore 64.

Wired perform the first iPhone autopsy.
They gouged and bent it until it opened, then they pulled out it's guts - all in the name of geekness. Once they put it back they realised that there was a hairline fracture in the screen, but it still worked. Apple have made it very difficult to open. You can't even change the battery - if it wears out you need to send it back to Apple for a replacement! But you had to do this with the iPod a while back. I'm sure they'll be some 3rd-party replacement batteries available soon. Another annoying thing is that the headphone jack is one of those tiny ones so you'll need an ugly adaptor if you want to use a good pair of headphones.