Mac

Is it time for Apple's Mighty Mouse to get a tune-up?

That's the question many people on the Internet are asking as MacBlogz has published images of what it expects Apple to do with the multibutton mouse. Extrapolating from Apple's patents on multitouch, MacBlogz's prototype features a sleek profile and aluminum body.

The report notes that a 2007 patent application calls for an "arbitrary shaped grippable member" that would utilize positioning and multitouch detection to interpret a user's movement. Basically, it appears that the button would be replaced by a multitouch trackpad. "… Read more

A Mac fan with way too much time on his hands may have discovered evidence of new iMacs and Mac Minis coming soon.

A forum poster on InsanelyMac.com found code strings inside the version of Mac OS X running on the new MacBooks that point to a new version of the iMac and Mac Mini. MacRumors.com verified that the identifying marks uncovered by the poster (iMac9,1 and Macmini3,1) would indeed represent a new version beyond the marks used by the current iMac and MacMini (iMac8,1 and Macmini2,1).

The new systems appear to use the … Read more

In some great news from Mac Mojo, the Office for Mac team blog, it looks like Windows Live Messenger for Mac will receive a major update sometime early next year. The biggest new feature update will be AV support for the personal client, which means users will be able to participate in cross-platform audio and video chat using the personal version of Microsoft Messenger for Mac. They are also working on additional features for the personal Windows Live Messenger client and are on track to preview some of the new implementations at Macworld in January at the MacBU booth. The … Read more

Without Steve Jobs attending next month's Macworld keynote, it's safe to say Apple won't be making a huge splash in January.

Before Tuesday's announcement that Jobs would skip the annual Macworld keynote, the usual rumor mill was in full swing, with speculation about Apple Netbooks, iPhone Nanos, and the like. The news that Phil Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, will be giving the keynote (the Philnote?) brought all that speculation to a halt.

Apple made it pretty clear yesterday that it is not expecting this Macworld to pack a punch. "It doesn't … Read more

Editor's note: This is part of a series of stories about the recession's effect on the tech industry.

MODESTO, Calif.--As a driver for United Parcel Service and an Apple fan, Jeff Maciel is in an interesting position to observe how Central California's San Joaquin Valley is coping with a deepening recession just as Apple moves into the neighborhood.

As he beat a path to the crowded parking lot outside the new Apple retail store at the Vintage Faire Mall in Modesto, Maciel grudgingly admitted that he and his family are spending less this holiday season as … Read more

Apple's decision to make January's Macworld its last offers fodder for endless speculation. But another big question is how this will go down with the Mac faithful who have flocked to this annual event through good times and bad.

To be sure, there will be official Apple events in the future, like the Worldwide Developers Conference. But most fans--the civilians--likely won't be able to gain access to such events, which are usually reserved for press, analysts, VIPs, and developers.

So, as one colleague of mine put it, Macworld has long been the public carnival for Mac fans, … Read more

Macworld Rumor Week is now in full swing.

Ezra Gottheil of Technology Business Research anted up Tuesday with a research note predicting, but not reporting, that Apple will announce a low-cost "Netbook" style Mac in January at Macworld. He told Computerworld, "I don't have any inside information" but nonetheless believes that Apple will release a small low-cost laptop to get in on the Netbook craze and satisfy those calling for a cheaper Mac.

The Apple-doing-a-Netbook rumor has been around for several months, despite Apple's attempts to push it back down. As recently as October, … Read more

Apple has been something of a golden child among makers of computers and consumer electronics. But now it, too, is showing at least a hint that the good times can't last forever.

In November, says market researcher NPD Group, sales of the company's Mac products slipped 1 percent from the same month a year ago, even as industrywide PC sales were up 2 percent, according to a report in the online edition of The Wall Street Journal.

Apple has been the pacesetter amid overall PC sales for some time. And it does continue to hold those honors, at … Read more

Apple will announce a long-overdue upgrade to its Mac Mini during the Macworld Expo next month, according to a Wired.com report.

The report was attributed to an alleged corporate employee at Apple who wished to remain anonymous--"to keep his job," Wired noted. While he was apparently comfortable disclosing that a new desktop would be announced in January, he balked at disclosing any other details.

Rumors have been circulating for more than a year that Apple was getting ready to kill the little cube, and Gizmodo speculated that the end was near when it reported in October … Read more