World of Apple

Apple’s new iPod Shuffle music player

Amongst other news, Apple today updated their popular iPod Shuffle music player.

The new iPod Shuffle (above), is available in one universal size (1 Gigabyte) and can hold up to 240 songs. Its enclosure is made entirely of aluminium, and battery life remains at approx. 12 hours.

The iPod Shuffle retails at $79/£55 and includes a new-style iPod Shuffle USB dock.

On a side-note, Apple have reportedly sold 10 Million iPod Shuffles since their release in January 2005.

Apple today quietly updated the default processor speeds on new Intel Mac minis, at no extra cost. Of note the Mac mini did not receive an upgrade to the Core 2 processors but continues to use Yonah chips.

The base model now features a 1.66Ghz Intel Core Duo processor (formerly a 1.5Ghz Core Solo) and retains its £399/$599 pricetag.

The higher specification model has had its 1.66Ghz Core Duo processor upgraded to 1.83Ghz and also retains its pricing at £529/$799.

World of Apple previously reported on speculation that Mac minis could be receiving an update soon.

[Update] With the addition of today’s Mac mini update Apple has added a 160GB hard drive upgrade as a Build-to-Order option, although the upgrade pushes back deliveries by 1-2 weeks.

Apple today slashed the price of all its Apple Cinema Displays across all of its Stores.

Apple Cinema Displays US Store

Apple Cinema Displays UK Store

Apple also knocked the price of an individual Airport Extreme card down from $79 to $49.

“Xserve has always been the perfect server for Mac workgroups and now it will run over five times faster for the same breakthrough price,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “With new Intel processors, a redesigned hardware architecture, and an unlimited Tiger Server client access license, no one can offer better price performance and manageability in a 1U server.”

All new Xserve

Configurable with two Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors running either 2.0, 2.66 or 3.0 GHz, the new Xserve supports up to 32GB of 667 MHz DDR2 ECC FB-DIMM memory with twice the capacity and three times the bandwidth of the Xserve G5. Two eight-lane PCI Express expansion slots provide up to 2GB/s of throughput each to support the next generation of fibre channel, networking and graphics cards. Apple delivers industry-leading storage flexibility with support for up to three 3Gb/s SATA or SAS drives that can achieve an unrivaled 2.25TB of hot-plug storage in a 1U server while advanced thermal management capabilities take advantage of the low power of the Intel processors, running as low as 65W.

Apple has made the system even easier to manage with quick deployment rails for rack mounting, a new lights out management system that lets administrators control the hardware from a remote location and by including Apple’s Server Monitor software and Remote Desktop agent.

The new Xserve ships with internal graphics that can drive up to a 23 inch Cinema Display as well as industry standard VGA devices and offers an ATI Radeon X1300 256MB PCI Express graphics card for professional graphics and video applications as a build to order option.

The Intel-based Xserve will be the first system to ship with a preinstalled unlimited client edition of Tiger Server software that is optimized to run on Intel-based systems. Tiger Server integrates over 100 leading open source projects and standards-based software applications with easy-to-use management tools that make it easy to deploy for Mac®, Windows and Linux clients.

Apple offers a choice of world-class services and support programs for Xserve including AppleCare Premium Service that offers four-hour on-site response and 24×7 technical support. For self servicing customers, Apple offers complete Service Parts Kits to address the majority of potential field problems.

Mac Pro, inside

“Apple has successfully completed the transition to using Intel processors in just seven months—210 days to be exact,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “And what better product to complete it with than the new Mac Pro, the workstation Mac users have been dreaming about.”

The new Mac Pro features the new Dual-Core Intel Xeon 5100 series processor based on the revolutionary Intel Core microarchitecture, delivering breakthrough performance and power efficiency. The new Mac Pro is up to twice as fast as the Power Mac G5 Quad running industry standard benchmarks and features two Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors running up to 3.0 GHz, each with 4MB of shared L2 cache and independent 1.33 GHz front-side buses. With 667 MHz DDR2 fully-buffered memory, the Mac Pro also boasts a 256-bit wide memory architecture for amazing bandwidth.

With more than 4.9 million possible configurations, the Mac Pro delivers unprecedented customization to meet even the most demanding performance, expansion and storage needs. The newly redesigned Mac Pro features an all new, direct attach storage solution for cable free, snap in installation of up to four 500GB Serial ATA hard drives for a total of 2TB of internal storage—the most ever on a Mac—and support for two optical drives to simultaneously read and/or write to CDs and DVDs. Every Mac Pro includes three full-length PCI Express expansion slots and one double-wide PCI Express graphics slot to support high-powered, double-wide graphics cards without sacrificing multiple slots. Providing quick and convenient access to connect the most popular external devices, the front panel of the Mac Pro includes a FireWire® 800 port, a FireWire 400 port and two USB 2.0 ports with additional FireWire 800, FireWire 400 and three USB 2.0 ports on the back panel. Mac Pro also includes dual Gigabit Ethernet ports, optical digital input and output, analog audio input and output, and optional built-in support for AirPort® Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR.

Every Mac Pro comes standard with the NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT with 256MB of video memory, providing built-in support for dual-displays and Apple’s 30-inch Cinema HD Display. The ATI Radeon X1900 XT and the NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500, both with 512MB of video memory, are available as build to order options and provide built-in support for up to two 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Displays. The Quadro FX 4500 also includes a stereo 3D port to connect goggles for stereo-in-a-window applications and is ideal for the most demanding animation, special effects and scientific visualization applications. The Mac Pro supports up to four PCI Express graphics cards to drive up to eight displays at once for advanced visualization and large display walls.

The Mac Pro, with a suggested retail price of $2,499 (US), includes:

• two 2.66 GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors;
• 1GB of 667 MHz DDR2 fully-buffered ECC memory expandable up to 16GB;
• NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT with 256MB of GDDR2 SDRAM;
• 250GB Serial ATA (3Gb/s) hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
• 16x SuperDrive™ with double-layer support
• (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
  four PCI Express slots: one double-wide graphics slot and three full-length expansion slots; and
  ships with Mighty Mouse and Apple Keyboard.

Apple today released an iMac priced for education, at $899 the 17-inch iMac features a 1.83GHz Core Duo, as well as 512MB of memory, Combo and 80GB hard drive. The iMac has no been stripped of its iSight and ship with Airport as standard.

The education iMac replaced the eMac and is available immediately.

[Update] The new education iMac has been added to the UK education store for £639.

Apple today quietly released a Firmware Update for the 17-inch MacBook Pro.

This SMC Firmware Update adjusts fan behavior in the MacBook Pro 17-inch.

Apple today quietly bumped the processor speed of its MacBook Pro line with the price points remaining unchanged.

The MacBook Pro line-up consists of the following:
15.4″ 2.0Ghz Core Duo, $1,999 (£1,399)
15.4″ 2.16Ghz Core Duo, $2,499 (£1,699)
17″ 2.16Ghz Core Duo, $2,799 (£1,899)

IN addition to the speed bump the MacBook Pro has an extra Built-to-Order option allowing the addition of a glossy screen.

[Update] – The UK prices have been lowered on the MacBook Pro, the prices quoted above are the new adjusted prices.

Apple today released the long anticipated MacBook computer, the successor to the iBook.

The new Black MacBook

As expected the MacBook comes with a 13-inch widescreen display and is available in Black and White.

1.83GHz White MacBook $1,099 (£749):

• 13.3-inch glossy widescreen 1280 x 800 display with 250 cd/m2 brightness;
• 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo processor;
• 667 MHz front-side bus;
• 512MB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, expandable to 2GB;
• 60GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm, with Sudden Motion Sensor;
• a slot-load Combo (DVD-ROM/CD-RW) optical drive;
• Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950;
• Mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately);
• built-in iSight video camera;
• Gigabit Ethernet port;
• built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
• two USB 2.0 ports and one FireWire® 400 port;
• one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
• Scrolling TrackPad;
• the infrared Apple Remote; and
• 60 Watt MagSafe Power Adapter.

2.0 GHz, White MacBook, $1,299 (£899):

• 13.3-inch glossy widescreen 1280 x 800 display with 250 cd/m2 brightness;
• 2.0 GHz Intel Core Duo processor;
• 667 MHz front-side bus;
• 512MB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, expandable to 2GB;
• 60GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm, with Sudden Motion Sensor;
• a slot-load SuperDrive™ (DVD±RW/CD-RW) optical drive;
• Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950;
• Mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately);
• built-in iSight video camera;
• Gigabit Ethernet port;
• built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
• two USB 2.0 ports and one FireWire 400 port;
• one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
• Scrolling TrackPad;
• the infrared Apple Remote; and
• 60 Watt MagSafe Power Adapter.

2.0 GHz, Black MacBook, $1,499 (£1,028.99):

• 13.3-inch glossy widescreen 1280 x 800 display with 250 cd/m2 brightness;
• 2.0GHz Intel Core Duo processor;
• 667 MHz front-side bus;
• 512MB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, expandable to 2GB;
• 80GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm, with Sudden Motion Sensor;
• a slot-load SuperDrive (DVD±RW/CD-RW) optical drive;
• Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950;
• Mini-DVI out (adapters for DVI, VGA and Composite/S-Video sold separately);
• built-in iSight video camera;
• Gigabit Ethernet port;
• built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR;
• two USB 2.0 ports and one FireWire 400 port;
• one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog;
• Scrolling TrackPad;
• the infrared Apple Remote; and
• 60 Watt MagSafe Power Adapter.

As rumoured Apple today released the 17-inch MacBook Pro at NAB 2006.

“The 17-inch MacBook Pro delivers the speed and screen area of a professional desktop system in the world’s best notebook design,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “With Intel’s state of the art dual-core processor, the new 17-inch MacBook Pro delivers unrivaled performance in an innovative, sleek, one-inch thin design.”

The Specs for the 17″ MacBook Pro are:

The 2.16 GHz, 17-inch MacBook Pro, for a suggested retail price of $2,799 (£1,999), includes: