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Apple Forges Onward With Mac OS X 10.7

J.R. Bookwalter — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:00:56 -0600

Proving yet again that there’s no rest for the (not really) wicked, reports have surfaced today with evidence that Apple is already hard at work on the next version of Mac OS X, not even three months after the successful launch of 10.6 Snow Leopard.

Presumably to bear the Mac OS X 10.7 moniker, the new information was found amongst a database of changes to the open source “launchd” framework, which is in charge of processes running on the system as well as booting Mac OS X. This particular entry contains an error message with the text string “11A47” as a reference to the OS X build number being used.

Comparing this text string to previous ones shows that 11A47 is likely an entirely new OS X rather than a simple “point” update. As MacRumors points out, Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6 was termed Build 10A432, while the subsequent 10.6.1 update was Build 10B504 and the 10.6.2 update released last week was Build 10C540. For comparison, Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard had a build number of 9A571.

Given Apple’s historical build number schemes, 11A47 would refer to an early version of Mac OS X 10.7, which they have probably been tinkering away on for at least a month or two (if not longer). Speculation is already running rampant that the next version of Mac OS X will bring on the new features, especially in light of Snow Leopard 10.6 being primarily a tune-up for the future.

Of course, when we’ll see such a 10.7 announcement (let alone release) is anyone’s guess… let the games begin!

Alleged iPhone 4G Parts Appear in China

Liam Widman — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:04:28 -0600

China Ontrade says that this is the iPhone 4G Midboard. Not all that interesting in itself, but the last time they said they had parts for a new iPhone (3GS), the iPhone 3GS appeared a month later with those exact parts. This means that China Ontrade might be telling the truth about this new midboard for the iPhone 4G.

In May of 2009, China Ontrade said "This is great honor for China Ontrade (HK) chinaontrade.com to be the 1st started to supply iPhone 3gen 2009 parts directly from factory." This was treated as a rumor and nothing more. But then in June, the iPhone 3GS came out and China Ontrade's parts were confirmed to be in the iPhone. Somehow, the China wholesale comapny got the parts one month before the product hit street level.

Now China Ontrade claims they have real pieces for the upcoming iPhone 4G, which in theory, is supposed to be released next summer, as all the iPhones have before it, but this leak is against Apple's production style. Apple, like many other companies, produce everything right before they need it. This is because they don't want to have millions of parts lying around, only to discover they need to change something, and have to start over.

Some speculate that the iPhone 4G launch could be moved up to compete with Google Android 2.0, even though Apple COO Tim Cook said that Google phones, "are still just trying to catch up with the first iPhone two years ago." Not to mention that the iPhone 3GS only came out 5 months ago.

Of course, we can't ASSUME that any of this means anything about the iPhone 4GS release. The only thing we know is that China Ontrade has a history of being right about their claims, so it would make sense to assume this is an actual iPhone 4G part. But when placed against Apple's release date history and style of manufacturing, it may all be a publicity stunt.

What do you think? Are these parts the real deal?

Podcast #113: Apple's Holiday Proclamation and Another Round of Tablet News

Mac|Life Staff — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:01:16 -0500

Phil Schiller told Gizmodo that there wouldn't be anymore Apple products released this year. That wasn't good enough for Apple, they called and clarified, "The holiday lineup is set." Uh okay.

Another set of Apple tablet news items appear. Now it's the Slate according to the executive editor of the New York Times, Bill Keller.

We also announce the latest DonorsChoose prize pack for the week. This week we're getting you ready for traveling while you help the kids.

Got a question, but you're afraid to leave a voice message because of Witness Relocation Dept. rules? Drop us a question via Twitter twitter.com/maclife.

This week's Battlestar Applactica picks:

OneArm Battle - $1.99

Simplenote - $1.99

Don't forget, the Mac|Life staff would love to hear your thoughts, comments and ideas for the new podcast. Just leave a message on the Mac|Live question/comment line: (877) 404-1337, extension 622. Please limit the length of your messages to 1 minute max. We'll review these calls each week and feature our favorites, along with responses, on that week's podcast.

To subscribe to the Mac|Live podcast series through an RSS feed, click here; if you want to subscribe through the iTunes Store, click here.

Mac Tablet Rumors: More Puzzle Pieces

J Keirn-Swanson — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:57:41 -0500

The latest two snippets could be filed under not actually related or speculative wishful thinking. The first takes harping obsessively over the tiniest of new hardware and hyping it into something it may or may not be. Images turning up on Engadget purport to be the SIM card tray for the iPhone 4 and the mythical tablet. The new trays feature thicker edges, a metal frame, and a few adjustments made to the size of the extraction hole.

It's nothing spectacular in and of itself, though as remarked by article author Thomas Ricker, the SIM tray's hardier nature could point toward a larger device. Then again, as also noted, the tray could also be used almost anywhere else.

But nothing gets a crowd worked up better than a member of the media elite letting slip with a tidbit, someone supposed to be in the know on such things, the kind of person who meets privately with Steve Jobs at Davos. Tablet rumor element number two comes in to play here in a speech given by the executive editor of the New York Times, Bill Keller.

Bill Keller speaks to the digital group at The New York Times from Nieman Journalism Lab on Vimeo.

Ostensibly at private "all-hands" address about the digital future of the Times delivered on October 16th, Keller dropped this knowing quote:

"[W]e need to figure out the right journalistic product to deliver to mobile platforms and devices. I'm hoping we can get the newsroom more actively involved in the challenge of delivering our best journalism in the form of Times Reader, iPhone apps, WAP, or the impending Apple slate, or whatever comes after that."

The crowd didn't burst into furious whispers, but the Internet did when the video was published on Vimeo. Was Keller talking about something he knew about first hand? After all, reports had surfaced months ago that Apple and the Times had been in talks about delivering the news org's content on a "new device." And Steve Jobs had called the New York Times the best newspaper in existence.

Or was it, as some cynics suggested, that Keller was just aping conventional wisdom and taking it for granted a tablet was in the works because of the media echo chamber? Watch the above video at around the 8:15 mark and judge for yourself. We think Keller sounds fairly blase about the matter, which could be taken as evidence in either direction.

And, as we find ourselves thinking after yet another news story about the tablet, only time will tell.

MacBook Pros to Receive New Processors in the Coming Weeks?

Andrew Villa — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:46:50 -0500

According to an Applesana message board poster, there is a report that the newest build of OS X 10.6.2 10C531 contains references to new MacBook Pros. The current version of MacBook Pros are at 5_5, the screen shot shows MacBook Pros 6_1 and 6_2.

Could a new MacBook Pro be coming with the introduction of the 10.6.2 update?

There is also speculation that Apple Store Geniuses are being trained on the new Quad-Core processors, which could be in MacBook Pros. Delivery could be timed with the new intel Core i5 and i7 iMacs in November.

Video: Rumors!!! Show -- Internet Rumors Slap Fight 10/20/09

Roberto Baldwin — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 00:37:37 -0500

The Rumors!!! Show is our showcase of what's going on in the world of Apple rumors. We share this week's rumors with you and wonder aloud what they mean to us.

Refreshes to iMac, Mac mini, and MacBook Imminent?

Cory Bohon — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:27:14 -0500

An online ad that appeared this weekend suggests that Apple could be on the verge of updating the iMac, Mac mini, and MacBook lines for the fall. The textual ads were featured on Google.nl searches for "MacBook," "iMac," and "Mac mini." AppleInsider translated the search ads as follows:

MacBook: Thinner, lighter and faster! Free delivery. Order today.
iMac: Ultra Thin 20 & 24 inch models. From only €1099. Apple Store
Mac mini: Faster and more affordable than ever. From only €499. Order immediately.

MacRumors adds that the current price for the Mac mini is €599 (~$877.68), which could signify a decrease in price of about €100 (~$146.52) for the beloved little Mac. We can only hope that these rumors turn out to be true, after all, we've been writing about them for months now.

Apple To Release a Touch Screen Remote for Apple TV?

Cory Bohon — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 21:03:19 -0500

A new rumor speculates that Apple could be hard at work creating a touch screen remote for the Apple TV. We're calling fake, but many multi-touch hopefuls are wishing for it to become a reality. The Boy Genius Report breaks the news with a picture of the speculative remote control device that supposedly only works with the Apple TV.

BGR notes that this rumor is from the same person who accurately predicted that Apple would be releasing a new version of iTunes that allowed for home screen organization. The tipster told BGR that the remote launch would possibly coincide with a revamped Apple TV launch.

Of course, this remote could definitely cause more of a gripe than the $19 plastic Apple remote that is being sold today.