While we’re still clicking that ‘Check for Update’ button in iTunes in anticipation of iOS 5, the Apple’s iCloud website has already lost its ‘beta’ tag and been given a new login page design.
Hollywood Wants To Bring Movies To The iCloud
Movie studios, faced with dwindling DVD sales as consumers turn to streaming, want to create their own cloud-based storage option to compete with Apple. Aptly named UltraViolet, the service apparently hinges on invisible interest by audiences that have abandoned physical sales.
Here’s What Apple Retail Employees Will Tell You About iOS 5 & iCloud
Want to know what Apple retail employees can tell you about iOS 5 and iCloud? These images are of leaked internal Apple documents which are provided to retail store employees to help them sell iOS 5 and iCloud.
Apple Releases iWork Beta 4 with Added iCloud Integration
Apple has seeded iWork beta 4 to developers with added support for iCloud services in iOS 5. Developers can test the iCloud “Documents and Data” service to sync content wirelessly between iWork apps.
iOS 5 and iCloud should be unveiled to the public this Tuesday alongside the next iPhone. When iWork is officially updated with iCloud support, users will be able to create a document on one device and have it synced wirelessly across other devices and iCloud.com.
iBooks has also received a minor update to version 1.3.1 in the App Store. The update includes “important stability and performance improvements” that are most likely related to iOS 5.
Apple Working on International iCloud Music Rights for Tuesday Event [Report]
Apple is working to secure iCloud music rights for international customers, according to CNET. The iTunes legal team is trying to get international cloud-music rights for October 4th’s iPhone event, due to the fact that Apple is expected to launch iCloud to the public at that time.
Procuring these rights would assumedly give international iCloud customers the ability to re-download music and stream tracks through iTunes Match.
Apple Puts More Finishing Touches on Lion 10.7.2 with New Beta
Apple has seeded OS X Lion 10.7.2 Build 11C71 to developers. The update addresses no major issues and instead focuses on some finishing touches for what will most likely be the public launch of OS X 10.7.2 next week.
This beta build of OS X makes a few slight improvements to the Lion Recovery tool and fixes a firmware password issue with Find My Mac. Earlier today, Apple also released iTunes beta 9 for developers currently testing iTunes Match.
The previous beta build of Lion addressed several issues with iCloud, and Apple will push out an official Lion update to customers with iCloud integration when the service is made available to the public after Apple’s next media event.
Apple Caught Accidentally Sending “Welcome to iCloud” Email
Oops. It appears that Apple may have let the cat out the bag a little early with an accidental email saying “Welcome to iCloud.” As reported by AppleInsider, Apple has allegedly sent out at least one public invite to iCloud prematurely.
iCloud and iOS 5 will be officially announced to the public this Tuesday, although both products have been in beta since Apple’s WWDC conference this past Summer. These email invites will assumedly be sent out in bulk to Apple customers when iCloud launches.
MobileMe Outage Affects 75% of Users Who Cannot Access Mail, Me.com Web Apps, or Find My iPhone
Apple’s MobileMe service is currently experiencing issues that have resulted in an outage lasting several hours for 75% of subscribers. The issues mean those affected are unable to access Mail, Me.com web apps, or Find My iPhone.
Apple Takes Over iCloudiPhone.com Domain Name, But Does It Really Mean Anything?
Following recent speculation that has suggested Apple may release a “budget” iPhone at its October 4 event, that will have minimal storage and will rely on streaming content from the cloud, the Cupertino company has gone ahead and taken over the iCloudiPhone.com domain name. But does it really mean anything?
Apple Continues to Push Towards iCloud Public Launch with Latest OS X Beta
Apple has seeded OS X 10.7.2 Build 11C62 to developers with areas of focused testing for iCloud. As we near Apple’s next media event, developers are putting the finishing touches on iCloud integration.
Apple has promised that iCloud will go live alongside iOS 5 to the public sometime “this Fall,” with the event estimated to take place on October 4th.
Does Facebook Have an iTunes Killer Up Its Sleeve? Of Course Not
Facebook’s f8 conference got under way today, and speculation has begun that suggests the social networking behemoth is going to announce its very own music service, which Jonny Evans at Computerworld believes “may give iTunes hegemony its biggest shake yet.” But I’m inclined to disagree.
Apple Will Delete Your iCloud Backups on Sept 22 in Preparation for Launch
Apple’s preparations for the launch of iCloud and iOS 5 this Fall will see the Cupertino company reset iCloud backup data on Thursday, September 22 — which will mean any backups made before this date will no longer be accessible.
Vote Now to Save Your Favorite MobileMe Feature With the iCloud Petition
If you’re unhappy that Apple is quashing your favorite MobileMe feature in the move over to iCloud, now is the time to do something about it. The Cupertino company has already stated that it will consider bringing features back to iCloud if enough people ask for them, and to help things along, Command Guru has started an iCloud Petition that allows you to vote to save your favorite MobileMe feature.
Apple to Introduce Account Merging for Multiple Apple IDs
Many of you will have a number of Apple IDs, especially if you’re a MobileMe subscriber. So when you login to iCloud, or Game Center, or the iTunes Store, or FaceTime, or iMessage… how do you know which one to use? Well, thankfully, Apple is working on Apple ID account merging that will turn all of your 30 Apple IDs into just one.
Get Ready to Download iOS Beta 8 This Friday, Gold Master on Sept 23 [Rumor]
If you’ve been hanging around in Apple’s developer center since iTunes 5 beta 8 dropped last week, impatiently awaiting the release of iOS 5 beta 8, you might want to give yourself a break. According to a “trusted source,” the eighth beta of Apple’s next major iOS firmware will not drop until this Friday, with the Gold Master release scheduled for September 23.
Apple: Did We Drop Your Favorite MobileMe Feature From iCloud? Just Ask For It Back
Are you still annoyed that your favorite MobileMe feature won’t be transferring over to iCloud? What will you do with all those files you have stored on your iDisk? How will you sync System Preferences between your Macs? Well, if you ask Apple nicely (and you get all your friends and family to ask, too), you might just get those features back.
Did Dropbox Say No to An $800 Million Apple Takeover?
Imagine iCloud’s ‘Documents in the Cloud’ feature fuzed with Dropbox. Or MobileMe’s iDisk only a million times faster and more reliable. That could have been one of the features launching alongside iOS 5 this fall, with reports Apple made an $800 million bid for Dropbox.
Apple Releases Integrated iCloud Beta to Developers in New OS X 10.7.2 Build
Apple has issued a new OS X beta to developers with full iCloud integration. OS X 10.7.2 Build 11C55 is available to developers right now, and iCloud seems to be fully baked into the release for the first time.
Previously, iCloud betas had been available as separate downloads to be used in conjunction with beta OS X Lion developer builds.
Apple Releases iTunes 10.5 Beta 8 and iWork Beta 3 for iOS
Happy Friday, developers! Apple has seeded iTunes 10.5 beta 8 and iWork beta 3 for iOS in the Developer Center.
The update fixes several performance bugs and adds updates to iTunes Match.
Still Waiting for Speech-to-Text in iOS 5? Your Carrier Already Has It
A number of major carriers all over the globe have begun receiving a near-final build of Apple’s upcoming iOS 5 software for testing, according to one report. The software is said to be a newer than the beta recently seeded to developers, and includes a number of features that we’re still yet to see in previous betas, including that much-rumored speech-to-text technology.
T-Mobile Begins Taking iPhone 5 Reservations in Germany
Despite no sign of an announcement from Apple for several weeks, T-Mobile has already begun accepting iPhone 5 reservations in Germany, according to a report from the German newspaper Focus. The carrier has been providing customers with ‘tickets’ that will allow them to redeem the device as soon as it’s available on a first-come-first-served basis.
Apple Begins Training Retail Staff for iOS 5 & iCloud — Could Release Be Imminent?
In typical Apple fashion, the company is keeping the release date for iOS 5 and the accompanying iCloud service a big secret, but the launch of these products could be right around the corner. According to screenshots taken from its internal RetailMe application, Apple has now begun training retail store staff for the upcoming release of its new services.
iTunes Match Allows You to Stream Your Entire Music Library [Video]
When Apple announced iTunes Match at WWDC back in June, it was a little unclear whether the service would allow you to stream your music library to your iOS devices as opposed to storing it locally — allowing you to access your tracks without actually taking up any of your precious storage space.
Following the launch of the iTunes Match developer beta yesterday, it has been confirmed that streaming is possible with Apple’s upcoming $25/year service.
Watch Out! Email Phishing Tricks You With iCloud Appeal [Scams]
A particularly nasty phishing scam is making the rounds, according to MacRumors. Why is it so nasty, you ask? Because the email is designed to trick you into upgrading your existing MobileMe account to iCloud.
Apple Wants To Kill Off Printer Drivers Once And For All [Report]
There will soon be a day when a driver is not required for printing. Wireless printing has become more of a household standard as new printers roll out with cloud technology, and Apple is looking to make the printing experience as painless and seamless as possible.
Two interesting patents applications were recently filed by Apple that detail printing protocols and APIs that don’t require drivers, with more of a focus also being placed on printing from the cloud.