Interested in trying out a cool media center for use with your Apple TV? Cult of Mac readers are invited to receive expedited applications for testing the alpha release of Boxee, a music, video and picture management solution to let your Apple TV play practically any DRM-free multimedia file. Follow this link to receive your alpha testing invitation.

Boxee for (Intel based) Mac works on OS X 10.4 (Tiger) and 10.5 (Leopard). Boxee for Linux is supported on Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon) or 8.04 (Hardy Heron) x86 (not x86_64) operating systems. The Boxee patch works with the 2.2 update to Apple TV, but remember to install the update before you install the Boxee patch.

Detailed instructions for installing the Boxee patch after the jump.

Bathtub III from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

There is no end to the creative wonders made possible with Apple gear, it seems. Combining a variety of techniques including tilt-shift and time-lapse photography, Sydney-based photographer Keith Loutit uses his iMac to produce short films like those presented here, which turn ordinary places into scenes worth a second look.

Loutit also employs Apple software in his workflow, using Automator for file management and preparation; QuickTime pro for assembling stills onto video format; Aperture for archiving of frames as higher quality stills; and Final Cut Studio – mostly final cut pro, for color, compressor and motion for editing, toning and export.

Beached from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

Asked how he gets the stunning effects, Loutit is unwilling to give away the store, but allows that “I use two lenses, one Medium format, both converted to tilt further than most manufacturer lenses will tilt on a 35mm body.”

Nearly a third of iPhone users switched carriers in order to buy the Apple touch-screen phone, researchers said Monday. The news comes as the iPhone leads smartphone sales between July and August.

Some thirty percent of U.S. smartphone buyers switched carriers to AT&T in order to purchase an iPhone in that period, market research firm NPD Group announced.

That compares to the 24 percent industry average for smartphone buyers.

When Apple CEO Steve Jobs announces fiscal fourth quarter iPhone sales later this month, a few industry analysts could be red-faced. An effort by iPhone owners points to Apple selling more than the 5 million a consensus of experts had predicted for the three-month period that ended Sept. 30.

In addition, the data could lend support to Jobs’ claim 10 million iPhones would be sold in 2008.

Former Think Secret blogger Nick Ciarelli is writing about Apple once more, this time at Tina Brown’s new tabloidy Huffington Post clone, The Daily Beast.

In Not So Secret Apple, Ciarelli argues that Apple’s famously fierce legal attack dogs have calmed down somewhat since the day, a few years ago now, when his constant flow of Apple product leaks and scoops at Think Secret brought them crashing down on him, and his web site to a grinding halt.

Ciarelli interviews editors of several Mac and gadget sites and their opinion is unanimous: Apple realized that the lawsuits and cease-and-desist demands were generating nothing but bad karma, and only confirming that the clamped-on stories were true. So a new policy has been initiated, more leaks are emerging and in higher-profile media, and everything’s a little more relaxed in the legal department than it used to be.

He writes: “But maybe Apple has also realized that when it threatens, subpoenas, and sues web sites run by some of its biggest fans, its actions create a torrent of negative PR that ultimately tarnishes Apple’s brand.”

If that’s the case, I wonder if Ciarelli is tempted to return to Mac rumor-chasing? He was very good at it, after all.

(While you’re looking around The Daily Beast, be sure to read the hilarious and very open Q&A with Tina Brown, in which she explains what it’s all about, and says she’s not jealous of Arianna Huffington at all.)

This is the actual Mac plus that Scotty tried talking to in Star Trek IV, spotted and photographed by Marcin Wichary at the Star Trek: The Experience exhibition shortly before it closed last month.

Note how shiny and clean this particular Plus is. Bet it boots up shiny and clean, too. And if it has problems, it can run a Level One Diagnostic.

Now that the Experience has left the Las Vegas Hilton, it has no home of its own. Where is this Mac now? Probably packed away in a container somewhere. Possibly wrapped up in Spock’s Vulcan gown that it was once displayed alongside.

Annnyway: Borg teddy bears.

Photo used under Creative Commons license. Thanks to Marcin Wichary.

The iPhone 3g arrived in Russian stores Friday. They cost a pretty ruble — 23,000 and 27,000 or about $900 and $1,000 for the eight and 16 gigabyte versions — causing some early adopters to spend as much as they make in a month on the gotta-have-it handset.

Retailers weren’t expecting long lines, though. Apple resellers are using a don’t call us, we’ll call you approach, asking potential buyers to leave contact details.

“We already have more than fifty people on our list, so it is better to leave your number and we will call you when your phone is ready for pick up,” he said. Most dealers, such as Evroset and Svyaznoy are also accepting advance orders.

This is a good thing, since temperatures in Russia are already brisk and wet.

Videos show a few very subdued customers waiting in bank-like settings for their new phones.

Although the arrival of the 3G version was sufficiently hyped (as per the “iSoon” billboard above) retailers don’t expect a stampede because uber-early adopters have already bought them on the gray market…

Sales expectations for the former U.S.S.R. are 3.5 million handsets by the end of 2009.

Via Moscow News

Image by lodev via Flickr

Maybe it’s a perk of being consistently named among the most influential people of one’s era.

Perhaps it’s bravado borne of having put a ding in the universe.

Whatever it is, Steve Jobs seems to think nothing of driving a car without license plates and parking in handicapped parking spaces, as the picture above, captured on September 30th by Flickr user lodev shows.

The pic is but the latest in an ongoing parade of evidence Jobs is prone to park wherever he pleases.

It almost begs us to start a Spot-Jobs-in-the Blue-Zone contest, doesn’t it?

A citizen journalist posting to CNN’s iReport website early today had Steve Jobs being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance after suffering a heart attack.

Katie Cotton, Apple’s Vice President of Worldwide Communications quickly shot the rumor down as false, though not before Twitter exploded with tweets on the story and Apple’s stock tanked, before bouncing back.

In early morning trading in New York, AAPL opened strong, up $6 from Thursday’s close at $100. In no time, however, when the rumor hit the wires, the stock was trading at $98. The stock quickly recovered, bouncing back to hit $106 again in early afternoon trading, before sliding back into the close near $97.

Undoubtedly, recent analyst revisions to the broader economic outlook as well as to Apple’s particular prospects, more than concerns about Job’s health, would seem to account for the recent poor performance of the company’s shares. Apple, Inc. stock has dropped from $180 to $97 in just six weeks.

Apple published the 2.2 update for Apple TV users last night and the biggest news may be that users will now be able to turn the device off from within the control panel.

A major complaint about Apple TV has been that the thing runs extremely hot, in addition to the fact that even when not in use, it sits there burning kilowatts of energy, very much at odds with the company’s aspirations to environmental friendliness.

Now, finally, users may put the device into “Standby” mode by pressing the “Play/Pause” button for about 3 seconds from the Main menu. There is also a “Standby” option accessible from an interior menu that I can’t mention here because WordPress doesn’t like the word. But it rhymes with vettings.

As expected, US Apple TV users can now buy HD TV shows directly from iTunes. The latest update also lets users make music video playlists from their favorite songs and Genius can be used with Apple TV, as long as users activate Genius in iTunes and sync with their device.

See all the update features here.

Barclays Capital Friday cut its target price for Apple shares, citing the “obvious economic weakness.”

“We believe it is prudent to cut our estimates given checks indicate a more pronounced slowdown within the PC supply chain and increased pressure on consumer spending,” wrote analyst Ben Reitzes.

The analyst firm cut Apple’s stock price to $135 from $180 but retained an “Overweight” rating for the Cupertino, Calif. company.

Designers have tried before to integrate tech with clothing, mostly resulting in stuff you should buy, stick in a box and sell 20 years from now rather than wear today.

Exception made for Julieta Gayoso’s Indarra line, which includes this Touch Pad Jacket with wireless controls for your iPod that allow wearers to pump up the volume, turn it down or skip tracks while on the move. (The controls even look like Apple icons, so people won’t think you’re randomly poking yourself).

The design’s simple and practical enough to actually wear, with a waterproof finish, zip-out 3M lining and plenty of pockets. The limited-edition numbered topper, which also comes in also comes in “iron moss” and black, retails for about $275. Argentine Gayoso, who started designing tech-friendly clothes in 2006, also offers a line of basics for women.

Smart clothes that actually look smart. Now there’s an idea.

Via Reuters

This is more like it. Visual IT has done a deal with the Geographers A-Z Map Company to produce a licensed copy of the Mini London A-Z for iPhone.

Yes, iPhones come with the Google Maps app, but this is a very different thing, for two reasons.

Everybody say: “Ohhhhh.”

It’s tiny. It runs Leopard 10.5.2. 80GB. 1GB. 1.6GHz Atom. Niiiiice.

This little MacBook Mini is just what many, many people have been hoping for (myself included).

Shame it’s not real.

I’ve never got on very well with the Dock, the app launcher Apple puts at the bottom of the screen. It does very little that I find useful, and many things that simply bug me. Thank goodness for the Command+Option+D shortcut that hides it out of the way. That’s where my Dock spends most of its life out of my sight.

That said, there are still some aspects of daily computing life that need to be kept close to hand. Things that I want access to, at a moment’s notice, no matter what app I’m using. And things I want to use, briefly, without leaving that app.

And that’s why I spend a lot of time investigating and trying out various Menu Bar widgets and applications. The Menu Bar is the mini dock at the top right of the screen where the system clock lives, plus other customizable widgets called Menu Bar apps.

My goal has always been to get the greatest utility from the smallest number of Menu Bar apps – because of course, Menu Bar space is limited.

Consequently I’m very, very fussy about what apps get to stay there.

The current line-up looks like this, from left to right:

XMenu, ByteController, I Love Stars, Anxiety, Jumpcut, Time Machine, iChat, MenuMeters, Airport, Volume, Battery, Bluetooth, clock, Fast User Switching, and Spotlight.

Read on for a guided tour of some of the third party extras in that list.

A baby bottle with Apple logo for all those budding macists…
Perhaps they should’ve gone with something more like iNourish?
Also easy to see how “suck different” is open to a host of interpretations. Cute idea, though.

Via Kockicica

Thanks to an iPhone app called Stereoscope, iPhone users will be able watch a giant interactive art show played across the façade of Toronto’s City Hall buildings this week.

A free download, Stereoscope is an amazingly fluid 3D rendering of the Toronto City Hall’s two curved, opposing façades. With your fingers, you can zoom in and out and move around the giant buildings, Matrix-style, on your iPhone’s screen.

And starting October 4th, the Stereoscope app will replay a live light show playing across the surfaces of each building, generated using lights in the buildins’ 960 windows. The Stereoscope app will stream the light show live, replaying it on the rendering of the buildings.

“Reaction to the iPhone application has been overwhelmingly good as many people were surprised what 3D on the iPhone could be like,” said project director Tim Pritlove.

The light show is part of an all-night art event called Nuit Blanche that will turn the landmark buildings into a giant computer screen.

Created by Project Blinkenlights, the unique art show will feature animations and interactive games.

The full story after the jump.

The Android-based G1 handset now shares with the iPhone the status of a goal-setter for mobile phones, researcher Gartner said Thursday.

“You won’t beat Apple in the short term, but being worse than both Apple and Android is likely to end in disaster,” Gartner analysts Roberta Cozza and Carolina Milanesi write.

The two said the Android-based G1 will probably ship between 600,000 to 700,000 devices this year and comprise 10 percent of smartphone sales by 2011.

If you’re the logo type, Louis Vuitton has launched a new iPod Widescreen case.
It’ll set you back $290, but hey it’s got “Armagnac leather lining.” And a belt loop.

The iPhone’s entrance onto the handset scene was a “big favor” to the handset industry, pushing companies to change in the face of Cupertino, Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said Thursday.

The comments came as the handset giant launches its 5800 XpressMusic, a touch-screen handset with the Comes With Music service. Like the iPhone, the 5800 offers a 3G network interface, GPS and Wi-Fi.

Nokia’s comments appear to reflect the view of others. “I don’t think a handset maker out there doesn’t believe that,” Kevin Burden, ABI Research’s director of mobile devices, told Cult of Mac.

The next time you’re stuck in traffic, start stumping for Obama.
That’s the idea behind the Obama for America iPhone app, free for download on iTunes.
It organizes your contacts “by key battleground states” and keeps an anonymous record of your virtual campaign trail. And if you haven’t got a move on yet, it’ll tell you where the nearest Democratic headquarters are and keep you updated on local events.

While it seems a little full-on for the armchair activist, kudos to iPhone dev’er Raven Zachary for the idea.

Via Cnet

Apple’s share of the operating system market hit 8.2 percent in September, research firm Net Applications announced Wednesday. The numbers mark the first time the Apple OS has risen above 8 percent.

The new numbers reflect a 0.45-point advance from August’s 7.86 percent market share. In June, OS X approached the 8-percent mark, reaching 7.94 percent.

Mac OS X broke the 7 percent barrier in December 2007, moving to 7.31 percent from 6.8 percent a month earlier.

September’s increase is credited to the surge in Apple sales during the back-to-school period. In September 2007, the Mac OS X market share jumped 0.45 points, mirroring the same growth in September 2008.

Although Microsoft Windows remains above 90 percent of operating systems, that dominant lead slipped slightly in September, falling 0.4 points to 90.3 percent.

Here’s one for the ZOMG THERE MUST BE NO CABLES VISIBLE types among you. Yes, you know who you are.

This is the iDesk. Of course, you knew it would be called that.

This guy was photographed by Flickr user Rodrigo Galindez in a Berlin coffee shop.

On close inspection, it looks like he’s glued some kind of laminate on to the lid of his MacBook Pro, and made a good job of neatening the edges and the corners. He gets extra points for marrying the wood effect with the sleek metal of the computer and the horizontal stripes of the classic Apple logo, and with a purple jacket. Fantastic.

Mysterious Berlin Mac user: who are you? Do you have any other decorated computers?

(Photo used under Creative Commons license. Thanks to Rodrigo.)

Is this the new MacBook Pro?

The picture above claims to be a camera phone pic snapped by an Apple employee on the design team.

If the picture is real, it means the new MacBook Pros, expected to be unveiled October 14, have a few design changes:

1. It has a unique two-tone case. A first for Apple. The lid looks like it’s made of glossy black plastic, with an aluminum bottom.

2. The lid dispenses with hook clasps in favor of a magnetic latch mechanism, like current MacBooks.

3. There’s no multitouch sensitive “glass touchpad,” as rumored.

The Apple source also sent an ad featuring the MacBook Pro that is destined for Apple’s website.

The MacBook Pro ad after the jump.