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Create An iTunes Account Without A Credit Card [Video How-To]

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Don’t trust your kids with open access to your credit card? I can’t blame you. In order to let your kids have an iTunes account though, you need to enter your credit card information, giving them free reign over your purchases, right? Wrong. While it may appear this way, there is a way to set up an iTunes account that involves absolutely no credit cards at all. This video will show you what to do.

New iMac In The House: Review Coming Tomorrow

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Look what just arrived at CultofMac towers here in San Francisco. Yes, it’s one of Apple’s awesome new Core i5 iMacs.

It’s a $1,999 27-inch i5 model (It’s stock — no build-to-order options. Couldn’t wait a month).

As you can see, it can handily power another 27-inch iMac as an external monitor. (It’s hooked to a 2010 iMac, reviewed here last year). This is going to replace an aging Mac Pro I use for work. It just radiates awesomeness.

I’ll get started on the review as soon as  deal with a major plumbing emergency here at home.

Steve Jobs Spotted at Apple, Too Busy For Autographs

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A pair of Italian Apple fans visiting The Mothership had the good luck to spot Steve Jobs as he arrived for work recently.

They were snapping pictures out front of Apple’s Cupertino HQ when a big black luxury car pulled up. Out steps Dear Leader himself. The gobsmacked Italians asked for autographs and a commemorative picture, but Jobs shooed them away saying he was late to a meeting. He strode right by them into the building. This was a week ago: April 25th.

Good to see the miserable bastard is still hard at work.

Esclusiva iPhoneItalia: Steve Jobs fotografato al campus di Cupertino!

Via iClarified.

 

Renew Your Old iPod Nano With Some Software Mods [How-To]

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The main menu of Rockbox.
The main menu of Rockbox.

Have an old iPod Nano? Want to spruce up its interface and software a bit? You’re in luck! This post is going to tell you how to really Pimp Your Pod! It’s rather straightfoward, and shouldn’t take more than 10-15 minutes to complete from start to finish. Please be aware that the iPodWizard portion is using software that’s Windows only, so you should get that virtual machine or Boot Camp install cookin’ for a little while. Read the rest of the post for more information.

Daily Deals: New iMacs, Refurbed iMac i3, Clock Radio for iPhone

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We convene this session of Daily Deals on the heels of Apple announcing refreshed iMacs. To keep readers up-to-date, we have a deal on the new units, including a Core i5 Quad 2.5GHz machine with 22-inch screen for $1,199. If yesterday’s iMacs are fine, there is a deal on a Core i3 desktop running at 3.06GHz for $929. Finally, to ensure you don’t sleep through Apple’s next hardware reboot, we have an FM alarm clock radio for your iPod or iPhone.

Along the way, we also check out a battery charger for your iPhone or iPod, a case for your iPhone 4 and software for your Mac to keep the clones at bay. As always, details on these and many other items can be found at CoM’s “Daily Deals” page right after the jump.

Why You Should Get an SSD With Your New iMac & Why You Should Get it from Apple

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Apple’s new family of iMacs launched today, featuring Intel’s latest Core i5 and i7 processors, 4GB of RAM, and 3x faster graphics; all the ingredients needed to bake a super speedy all-in-one. However, there’s one thing missing from Apple’s lineup of four ‘ready-made’ iMacs, and that’s a solid-state drive. Without one your shiny new iMac might not be as fast as you expected it to be.

Scalpers Control Up To 95% Of China’s White iPhone 4 Supply

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When the iPad 2 debuted back in March, half of all the people waiting in line outside of the 5th Avenue Store were Asian scalpers looking to ship the iPad 2 overseas to China and Hong Kong.

Hysterically, the same thing is happening again now that the white iPhone 4is here… but it’s happening in China, where as many as 95% of all people camped outside of the Beijing Apple Store are scalpers.. And they are brazenly reselling the white iPhone 4 to real prospective buyers right outside of the store… at a 200-500 yuan (or between $33 and $77) markup per device.

The end result is that scalpers are controlling almost 100% of the white iPhone 4 supply in China, and selling them for a profit accordingly. Not all the profit is generated merely by reselling the iPhone either: another way money is made is by opening up the iPhone 4, replacing the battery with an inferior one, and then selling the real iPhone battery to knock-off manufacturers. Tricky!

New 27-inch iMacs Can Drive Two External Displays Simultaneously

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The new iMacs are here, and they are fantastic, but one thing that’s worth making a note of is that the new 27-inch iMacs have dual Thunderbolt ports… which means that you can now attach two external displays to your top-end desktop.

Buy a pair of Apple’s official 27-inch LED Cinematic Displays and you’ve got 81 inches of desktop to play with. That’s a huge perk, given that the previous solution to driving multiple displays on your Mac either resulted in lag (though wireless solutions) or didn’t support 3D (through USB adapters).

The iMac line just got a heck of a lot more appealing not just to video professionals, but to gamers. And here I am rocking a 27-inch iMac with only one Mini DisplayPort like some sort of sucker.

Microsoft to Invest in RIM – Is QNX on the Way Out?

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Two aging tech powerhouses came together Tuesday in Orlando, Fla. Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer, speaking at Research in Motion’s BlackBerry World conference, announced his company will “invest uniquely” in RIM. In addition, Microsoft announced its Bing search engine and mapping will be integrated into BlackBerry phones at the OS level.

“Bing on BlackBerry tastes more like Windows Phone 7 than BlackBerry” tweeted NPD analyst Ross Rubin. The announcement comes just days after analysts blasted RIM for retreating on its quarterly financial forecast

Apps Can No Longer Be Reviewed If Downloaded With Promotional Codes

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App Store ratings are a valuable commodity, with each additional star worth a substantial amount in sales. No surprise, then, that less scrupulous developers like to try to game the system, but because of the way Apple links reviews to individual iTunes accounts, there’s not a lot of ways to really cheat the system easily… especially if the app is a paid app.

One way app devs can sometimes game the system, though, is by distributing promo codes, allowing their employees to download the app and rate it. No longer though: Apple has just eliminate the ability for anyone to review an app if they downloaded it through a promotional code.

It’s actually a bit ironic. Ostensibly, promotional codes are to encourage jokers like me to review apps. I can understand Apple’s reasoning here, but it does seem a bit rich that app reviewers issued promotional codes can review an app on their own websites, but not on iTunes.

Browser-Based Lima to Compete with Cydia for Jailbroken Apps & Tweaks

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For a while Cydia has been the one and only source for jailbroken applications and tweaks, and it hasn’t really had a lot of competition. That’s about to change, as a new web-based installer called Lima is on its way to give Cydia something of a challenge.

Developed by the Infini Dev Team, Lima runs in the Safari browser and doesn’t require any additional applications – you just navigate to its webpage to access all of its packages. Downloading and installing packages is just as simple as it currently is with Cydia.

Judging from the video at the top, Lima looks like a nice, snappy way of accessing jailbroken apps and tweaks, without the downsides of the often slow Cydia. However, I’m not sure whether you’ll we’ll still be able to add our own repositories like we can with Cydia, or whether we’re stuck with whatever Lima has to offer.

As much as I love Cydia, sometimes its slow reload times and all too frequent errors prove to be a huge frustration, and I’m looking forward to giving Lima a try. What do you think; will Lima give Cydia a run for its money, or is it facing an uphill battle? Let us know in the comments!

[via iPhone Download Blog]

Apple Launches New iMac Lineup with Quad-Core Processors, Thunderbolt, FaceTime HD Camera

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Apple’s online store is back up following some downtime this morning and just as we all expected, it now features a nice new family of iMacs.

These new all-in-ones boast Intel’s next-generation quad-core i5 and i7 processors, the company’s high-speed Thunderbolt technology, 3x faster graphics, and a FaceTime HD camera.

There are four new iMacs to choose from starting at $1,199 – two 21.5-inch models and two 27-inch models – all four come with 4GB of RAM and a FaceTime HD camera capable of shooting video in 720p.

Here are your options:

Apple’s Handset Profit Advantage Makes Up for Less Market Share

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Apple has settled claims with state regulators who allege the company mishandled electronic waste.
Apple has settled claims with state regulators who allege the company mishandled electronic waste.
Photo: Thomas Dohmke

With less than 5 percent of the overall handset market share, Apple has managed to claim 50 percent of the industry profit, one analyst writes Tuesday. Additionally, the Cupertino, Calif. company did it with a handset less than five years old, stealing market share from two cell phone veterans – Nokia and RIM.

“We anticipate Apple will continue to gain share from Nokia and RIM during their smartphone transitions,” Canaccord Genuity analyst T. Michael Walkley told investors. He believes RIM will lose market share for the “next several years”, while Nokia likely will shed handset share “over the next several quarters.”

Report: Amazon to Build Android Tablet to Take on Apple’s iPad 2 and the Nook

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Photo by Brian_Brooks - http://flic.kr/p/84xH6E
Photo by Brian_Brooks - http://flic.kr/p/84xH6E

For some time, Apple’s iPad has been the foil of the Amazon Kindle e-reader. First, the pokes at reading in bright sunlight, then the geeks versus average person ad. Most recently, however, the Seattle-based online retailer has created an App Store – but for Android. All that was missing was an actual tablet. Now it appears the two companies will compete head-to-head amid a report Amazon is building a tablet PC.

Amazon has placed orders with Taiwan-based notebook manufacturer Quanta Computer, which now makes tablets for RIM and Sony, to supply around 700,000 to 800,000 tablets per month as soon as the second half of this year, according to a Tuesday report. Taking a page from Apple, Amazon also plans to buy a touch screen manufacturer’s full capacity.

Geek Trend: Dancing at the Apple Store

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This is one trend you will either love or hate. It seems that dancing at the Apple Store (and posting the performance to YouTube) continues to grow in popularity. Why let iPod-toting dancing silhouettes have all the fun when you can do it yourself at a mall near you? Especially when every MacBook has an iCam.

One frequent dancer many have seen is iJustine, who’s been dancing at Apple Store locations around the country for several years. Last week the mythical White iPhone 4 finally shipped, so Justine celebrated the occasion down in Orlando. And several shoppers joined in!

Safari Users Targeted By New ‘MACDefender’ Malware Software on Mac OS X

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A new malware threat called ‘MACDefender’ is targeting Mac OS X users browsing the web using Apple’s Safari browser. The software automatically downloads a file through JavaScript, but users must first agree to install the software, making the potential threat a low risk to careful users.

The malicious software was highlighted on Monday by Intego – the company behind the VirusBarrier X6 antivirus software for Mac – after Apple Support Community users started reporting the threat. Intego say the software prompts users to download a compressed ZIP archive after clicking on a dodgy link in their search engines. The file is then decompressed and begins installing MACDefender on the system.

Frenzy Turns Dropbox Into A Private Social Network

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Here’s the scenario: you’re a hip web geek working from your hip home, or from some hip coffee shop somewhere in the hip part of town, and you’re always, always sharing links with your colleagues.

Trouble is, you don’t want to share them on Faceter or Twitbook. They might be work-related. Top secret. Or just plain weird.

So you want to share them, and discuss them, privately. How can you do that? Perhaps Frenzy can help.

Apple Online Store Goes Down – New iMacs On The Way?

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Apple’s online store has just gone down, and according to recent speculation, when it comes back up it will feature a brand new lineup of iMacs, boasting Intel’s newest family of Sandy Bridge processors and the company’s Thunderbolt technology.

Sources familiar with Apple’s plans revealed to AppleInsider over the weekend that updated iMacs would launch today, May 3rd, just as stock of the current models has slowly diminished.

We’ll keep you updated and let you know when the store’s back up.

Mac OS X Lion to Introduce iOS-Like Application Removal

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The latest build of Mac OS X Lion introduces an iOS-like method of removing applications installed via the Mac App Store. Within the new Launchpad application, users can click and hold on an app’s icon to start the ‘jiggling’ – just like in iOS – and an ‘X’ button appears in the corner of each icon which users can click to uninstall applications.

Don’t worry about deleting applications accidentally, however; just like iOS, users will be greeted with a message that asks them whether they’re sure they wish to delete the application. Clicking delete will move the application, and any files associated with it, to the Trash.

This feature currently only works with applications purchased from the Mac App Store, but I’m hoping it works with any application installed on your Mac when Lion is finally released.

[via MacRumors]

Steve Jobs in Carbonite iPhone Case is Now a Collector’s Item

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Well that was quick: last week we posted about the Steve Jobs in Carbonite case for the iPhone, and quipped that Apple’s Cease & Desist letter was likely on its way. And in fact, indeed it was. Greg Koenig, the case designer, wrote on his Studio Burb page on April 27:

Well it was fun while it lasted. Yesterday, Society6 was issued a cease and desist from Apple’s lawyers. So I’m sorry to say that the cases and skins are no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience.

As would be expected, the case has already hit eBay. Originally $35, current auction prices are averaging about $50 with a couple hitting $150 already. That’s a decent chunk of change for a small piece of plastic, but looks like it’s now a genuine collector’s item. One with a clever photo skin.

How Your ISP’s Data Caps Will Kill The Cloud [Opinion]

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Credit: David Sedlmayer, used under a Creative Commons license.

Today is the day that will bring us one step closer to the death of the cloud. That crucial new part of the internet that is gaining popularity due to the likes of Hulu, Netflix, MobileMe, DropBox, Crashplan, etc. is about to get another blow — AT&T on Monday started restricting the amount of data its millions of broadband customers are able to use in a month. Data is now restricted to as little as 150GB a month.

That isn’t good news — users should an uproar over the whole thing. It means that a large number of people using broadband in the U.S. will be severely limited in what they can do online. They might risk extra charges or even total loss of their broadband access. This comes as Apple is rumored to be on the verge of introducing a more Cloud-based model of computing for millions of customers.

Proporta Aluminum Lined Leather iPad 2 Case [Review]

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With the iPad 2 being released for over a month and a half, the number of main-stream cases are increasing day-by-day. Proporta (based in the UK) has a few of their own. Available for a whopping $79.95, this aluminum lined leather folio case adds some great protection to your new iPad 2, as well as adding some extra functionality. Is it worth it? Continue reading to find out!