Apple

Before the colour iPods, the more expensive iPods used to ship with a wired remote controller. For some reason Apple phased this out when the colour 4G ipods started to ship, but now iPod remotes are back, as the iPod Radio Remote.

They're better than before though - the old style remotes were basically six buttons - the new style has only five; but is shaped like the ipod wheel. (Pretty! see left) Of course, the big thing about it is that it will enable radio. This is a boon for those who want an iPod, and also a radio (obivously). I've never quite understood why this would be, but I suppose there's no accounting for tastes... The remote also requires a software update to work - this might mean that the radio "program" is in the update, and so perhaps a hack to enable radio without the remote is possible.

Ooh - iPod with Radio! (Now all we need is recording...)

Radio Data System (RDS) is supported, but there is no screen. It's also unclear if radio "stations" can be saved... Pity it's only in white - were I to buy an iPod now the black (nano) would be a serious contender. If you're a fan of iPod headphones, it also comes with a pair of those. It's not clear if the remote will work with older ipods - it connects via the dock connector, so it is a possibility...

[Apple Product Page]

[via Ubergizmo]

Not too long after Singnet (a Singaporean ISP) decided that giving away an ibook for a two year subscription was a good idea; they've jumped on the Apple bandwagon once again, and are now giving away free iPod Nano 4GB's. It seems that you can pick either colour (you get a redemption voucher), and while in dollar terms it is not as attractive as the iBook 12", this is likely to appeal to a much wider audience.

We think that the most appropriate thing for a broadband ISP to give away is the Nokia 770. Pity it's not even shipping yet.

(The link to the promotion is going to expire, eventually, so here's a photograph for posterity.)

Update: Guess what. It has just been announced that Wanadoo (ISP in Spain) will bundle ADSL broadband service with Nokia’s first pocket size computer, the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. [via Portable Gadgets.]

Not entirely unexpectedly, there have been a multitude of online (and offline) reviews of Apple's new entry into the flash mp3 player market, including one by PC Magazine, one by TUAW, and one by Walter Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal.

They're all very positive.

My favourite review, however, is the one by Jacqui and Clint on Arstechnica. It goes into a little detail about new "applications" built into the iPod, including a stopwatch, world clocks, and a screen lock. Unfortunately, it doesn't tell us about sound quality, but they do try their darndest to destroy the ipod.

They actually drove over it. (It's called "stress testing!")

What.. fun.

Update: Video stream here

Harry Potter iPod with crest engraved on back and entire Hary Potter audiobook set for $548. Picture: Apple's website.

iTunes 5 with new user interface. "Super shuffle" mode, songs can be made to repeat only after all songs have been played at least once. Download now.

Motorola ROKR phone with 100 song capacity; See Cingular store link and Apple. Very underwhelming, the Nokia N91 is still preferable for these reasons.

iPod nano replaces iPod mini. See official website here.

Compared to the iPod mini, the iPod nano is half the thickness and 62 percent smaller by volume. Dimensions: 3.5" x 1.6" x 0.27" and 42 grams. 1.5" colour display. Uses dock connector. USB 2.0 only, no firewire. 14-hour battery. Ships today in 2GB and 4GB configurations for US$199 and $249 respectively.
Accessories: $39 lanyard with built-in headphones, color-coordinated armbands for $29 each, and "nanotubes" -- green, purple, blue and pink slipcases, sold in boxes of five, for $29 each. These slipcases mean that third party clear case vendors are out of luck. Comes in signature iPod white, and also in black. The black one looks amazing.

(all prices USD - pssst. Creative, you're screwed.)

iPod your Car: A host of top automakers offer elegant solutions for both new cars and prior-year models. Or choose iPod integration options from leading car stereo accessory manufacturers and outfit any car to play well with iPod. - Very sweet.

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Read more at Engadget and Macworld.

Pictures from the annoucement are available, from loungin on flickr.

I quote:

This is the most simple guide to installing Mac OS x86, it looks longer because its very simple if you can browse the internet and check e-mail you can do this! I made this guide so that more people are able to do this without asking 100 questions during the process by following other guides. This will work on ANY x86 cpu with SSE2 or SSE3 and heres a Screenshot and a Video for some motivation :p

Enjoy. [yes, yes, I know Dell doesn't build Athlon64-powered PC's]

This final Apple piece is rather specific. Basically, Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) broke compatibility with a number of routers. Once you install Tiger into a Mac, and plug that Mac into a router, no computer accessing the internet using that router will be able to access the internet. Disconnecting the Mac and resetting the router solves the problem.

There is a solution. (which might not be of universal application) Basically, you want to define your DNS servers. This is true whether you're using wireless, or an ethernet cable. If you're using a BT Voyager 2100, this fix should work, even though the BT site states that only Mac OS X 10.2 and below are supported.

You define your DNS servers in System Preferences | Network | *** | TCP/IP, where *** is your connection; you may need to reset the router afterwards.

The DNS servers for BT ADSL service are 194.72.9.34 and 62.6.40.178. If those servers do not work for you, you must look in your router's control panel to find out the correct DNS server addresses. For the BT Voyager 2100, look under Advanced | Status | Overview. You will need to know your router's access code; the default username and password for the BT Voyager 2100 are "admin" and "admin", respectively.

(NB: BT = British Telecoms. This advice was written for the UK.)

Apple has released it's first multibutton mouse - and finally you can buy a mouse which is coloured white, with a clear overcoat of plastic, has more than one button, and an Apple logo. The Mighty Mouse (amazon link here).

Hooray. *waves a little flag*

Many reviews have been written; but the best is by far is the arstechnica review. It has nice pictures (*cough russ cough 6680 for review pictures not good cough*), and includes several illuminating observations which seem to constitute vital pre-purchase knowledge.

1. "I could not use the squeezy buttons or the scroll ball button without installing the drivers from the CD on the Mac and Apple has not released drivers for Windows at all."

2. "squeezy side buttons are positioned too high up on the mouse for me to use with ease"

3. "the top part of the shell is touch sensitive to a point... you can't be touching it "too much" on the left side before the right click gives up and you're now left clicking.

Point 1 means that this is not ideal for a windows machine, because all you get is a pretty white two button mouse. (which costs ~USD 50) Caveat - maybe it does actually work on windows without drivers, I haven't found a reviewer who uses a windows XP box; If those buttons work, it would be rather... ironic.
Point 2 means you have to try out the mouse physically before buying it, so you know if you can access the buttons.
Point 3 means you have to try out the mouse physically with a working computer before buying it; personally, I know that I definitely leave my left finger on my mouse while right clicking - but perhaps that depends upon the shape of the mouse. (I'm using an MX 1000).

Click here to read the entire review.