Steve Jobs has made a hobby out of letting the world know that people aren’t interested in renting their music. We hear you loud and clear, Steve. One thing Steve has never claimed, however, is that people don’t like renting movies, as Netflix and Blockbuster will attest.
On the eve of his WWDC keynote, the Financial Times claims that Steve is about to put Apple at the forefront of the digital movie rental business:

A film would cost $2.99 for a 30-day rental. Its digital rights-management software would allow films to be moved from a computer to at least one other device such as the video iPod or iPhone. The software would prevent movies being copied.

Interesting notion. After all, Apple has gone through hell trying to sign up movie studios to sell their films through iTunes. A lot more companies than Disney and Paramount will leap in if this is legit.
Via MacRumors.

Technorati Tags: itunes, movies, rentals

I predict Steve Jobs will introduce a multitouch mousepad at WWDC tomorrow morning — and that finger input will be one of the “top secret” features of Leopard.

The multitouch pad will look like a standard mousepad, but it’ll be finger sensitive, like the touchpads on most notebooks. But instead of one finger, it’ll be sensitive to multi-finger gestures and commands, like the iPhone.

The pad will completely replace the mouse, allowing users to control the Mac with their fingers — moving the cursor, selecting files and double clicking with a quick double tap of the index finger.

The pad will also respond to a whole new vocabulary of gestures, like Mouse Gestures in Firefox, which execute common commands (backwards, forwards, reload) with a sweep of the mouse. Using your fingers, you’ll open files by twisting to the left, as though turning an imaginary dial. Twist your fingers to the right to close the file.

The pad will be USB powered, and will have “soft buttons” for common commands like cut and paste, and delete.

Jobs will unveil multitouch at WWDC to give Mac programmers time to incorporate gesture commands into their software before Leopard’s release in October.

Of course, this is pure speculation. I’ve no evidence whatsoever this is going to happen. I’ve no idea if it’s even realistic. Can developers incorporate an entirely new UI into their software in a few months? Will people even want it? Don’t forget, the QWERTY keyboard is still around. People don’t like whacky new interfaces.

Still, Jobs made a big deal of the multitouch finger interface of the iPhone, proclaiming it the third great “revolutionary” interface after the mouse and the scroll wheel. It seems natural we should be using our fingers to interact with computers.

Others are doing it. Microsoft has it’s Surface table, and I saw a new HP TouchSmart PC at the weekend, which is controlled by a large touch screen. A woman was playing Solitaire on the screen with her fingers, and it worked really well. I was quite impressed.

Apple is already making moves towards gesture interfaces. The touchpads on MacBooks support two finger scrolling. And there’s the iPhone.

Part of the iPhone’s multitouch interface is based on the work of two University of Delaware professors, John Elias and Wayne Westerman. Elias and Westerman owned a company called FingerWorks that sold a multitouch Touchstream keyboard and an iGesture Numeric Keypad, which worked like the multitouch mousepad described above.

Apple bought FingerWorks in early 2005, along with the professors’ patents, which look like an entire platform for finger-based interfaces.
For one thing, using your finger seems to help with RSI, according to FingerWorks’ testimonials:

“I’ve been a LP user for about 8 months. It’s been the best thing that’s ever happened to me in the world of computers. I’m a mechanical engineer and I use it for 2D and 3D CAD drafting, as well as ‘normal’ office type use. Also, I’m a Linux and Windows user, and I love how it works easily in both environments.

I have RSI in both my left and right forearms and wrists. Since using the Touchstream, I’ve reduced pain considerably, and I am able to do work with much less pain.”

Analyst Gene Munster (not to be confused with Herman) today predicted that Apple will roll out new MacBook Pros and iMacs at the Worldwide Developer Conference in June. That’s not the world’s edgiest guess, given that it’s been almost nine months since either product line was updated. What is rather shocking is Munster’s baffling logic for the update:

Munster added that he “expects” new MacBook Pros (1, 2) to make a
showing at the developer conference and that it’s “also possible” that
Apple will introduce a redesigned iMac. He notes that on average, the
Cupertino-based company has updated its professional notebooks every
182 days, with the most recent generation having launched 209 days ago
(data presumably gathered via help from the MacRumors buyer’s guide).
Similarly, he said, iMacs have traditionally seen updates every 168
days but the current generation is now a whopping 257 days old.

Wow, and I thought it was just that Intel had new processors on the market and Apple’s just about last to roll out hardware sporting the chips. I am mildly interested in the rumor that the iMac would actually be redesigned and not just refreshed. Looking back at it, the timing might be right. The iMac G4 was on the market for about 30 months, and we’re now at 33 months for the iMac G5 enclosure. I think Apple is more than due for a real new design statement on its computers, so this will be one to watch.

Image via Wikipedia
Via Engadget

2025 was a big year for Apple. In this end-of-year roundup, we gathered up the most consequential news, groundbreaking rumors and biggest surprises of the last 12 months. 

There were plenty of leaks — in fact, the entire iPhone 17 lineup was exhaustively shown off in the months leading up to September. We also knew most of the other product releases, from the MacBook Air and iPad Air to MacBook Pro and Vision Pro, would consist of simple spec bumps.

But there were tons of curveballs, too. Tariffs rattled Apple’s international supply chain. The Blood Oxygen app for Apple Watch made a sudden return. And no one was expecting a UI redesign quite like Liquid Glass. 

Here’s our look back at 2025.

Your AirPods Pro 3 aren’t just another pair of wireless earbuds — they’re your gateway to more productive workdays, more immersive entertainment experiences and even refined fitness tracking without Apple Watch.

Whether you’re crushing deadlines from your home office, unwinding with your favorite playlist, or going for a run, you can maximize AirPods Pro 3 through features that transform how you interact with audio throughout your day.

December 14, 2017: The much-anticipated iMac Pro finally reaches customers many months after Apple’s announced the product. With a built-in 27-inch, 5K display and an Intel Xeon processor, the high-end desktop combines the features of an iMac and a Mac Pro.

It is beautiful and far more powerful than earlier iMacs, but is destined to stay in Apple’s product lineup only a relatively short time.

In addition to hundreds of bug fixes, iOS 26.2 brings much-needed refinement to the iPhone’s operating system — along with more than 20 new features.

iOS 26.2, which Apple released Friday, lets you turn your reminders into alarms, so they’re impossible to ignore. Apple Podcasts gains automatic chapters and links. And the controversial Liquid Glass user interface continues to be refined and tweaked.

There are subtle improvements everywhere. Here’s the complete list of exciting changes in iOS 26.2. Keep reading or watch our video.

Apple’s next budget iPad refresh could introduce a big performance boost. It will reportedly use the A19 chip, the same SoC that’s found inside the iPhone 17.

Additionally, the tablet will switch to Apple’s in-house N1 chip to handle Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity.

In 2025 an unprecedented talent exodus decimated Apple’s leadership ranks, with Meta Platforms emerging as the primary beneficiary of the iPhone maker’s retention struggles. The social media giant has successfully lured away four high-profile executives from Apple’s artificial intelligence and design divisions, raising serious questions about the Cupertino company’s competitive position in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. Find out more about the top executives left Apple for Meta below.

iPhone has the Files app. Windows has File Explorer. macOS has … Finder? The Mac’s file manager got that odd name decades ago, and it made sense back then. Today, it’s an anachronism. It’s time to rename the macOS Finder to something less silly.

I’m not suggesting Apple remove the Mac’s file manager. There is a far better name for it, though.