liveblog Archives

Tuesday, January 15, 2008 -- 11:13 a.m. -- on my couch

**UPDATE3: Almost ready, it seems ... in all my years of seeing these things, I can't remember one this late. Here's hoping it's worth it.**

**UPDATE2: Appears as though people are still sitting down from what I'm gathering ... hopefully not too much longer.**

**UPDATE**The buzz is that the event may kick off a little late ... When I did my last search that's the information I got. Sometimes that happens at the keynote, but usually it's not much more than a few minutes. Steve's a pretty punctual guy.**

It's almost time.

The rumor mill is strangely quiet this morning. Many times right before a keynote some actual detail is leaked that turns out to be a blockbuster. Nothing so far.

Should be an interesting event.

Get your page refresh buttons ready.

Thanks for calling.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 1:30 p.m. -- my couch

And that's it.

My jaw is still on the floor, so while I'm trying to pick it up, I'll recap what we've learned.

iPhone
-- Price goes from $599 to $399. No more 4Gb model. Just 8GB. (I'd expect a 16GB sometime soon, since there's a 16GB iPod Touch available).

--iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store introduced and will be available with a software update later this month. You'll be able to download any song wherever there's Wi-Fi and then sync it back to your Mac or PC. (Of course, you can still do it the old-fashioned way from computer to phone, but why would you want to?!?)

iPods
-- Everything is new. New models, new versions, new prices, new colors, new functionality, new battery life. (In a word, new).
--iPod touch is the closest thing you can get to an iPhone without buying an iPhone. It's just a little thinner and doesn't seem to have the silver metal around the edges. My guess is the silver is part of the iPhone because of the GSM radio, but I don't know that for sure. Either way, it's the sexiest iPod to date and with a $299 starting point, it's hard not to justify buying one. If you're an iPhone owner, you don't need one, but maybe you don't want the AT&T contract. And maybe you enjoy carrying two devices. (Blackberry owners take note: This is the perfect reason to get off the crackberry and onto the iPhone).

iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store
-- As mentioned in the iPhone section, it's massive. Verizon is going to counteract in about 10 minutes with ... you don't need to be in a Wi-Fi area to download our music. Right. But Verizon's got bigger fish to fry in terms of customer service and handset offerings.
-- Downloading from the world's largest online music store almost anywhere is going to mean amazing things for Apple.

Starbucks
-- I sure didn't see this partnership coming. That's a big deal. Starbucks is going to revamp it's wireless network. In return, iPhones and iPod Touch models will automatically display a Starbucks icon that lets you download the music playing at that location (side note: The genre of that music is generally called Coffeehouse. It's a mix of rock and folk. I don't particularly care for it. But that's just me. Maybe the offerings will improve to please everyone's palette).

Ringtones in iTunes
--Everyone pretty much knew it was coming. The New York Post was first to report it. The pricing, in my mind, is steep. You pay 99 cents for the song and then another 99 cents for the chance to make it a ringtone. So, you need to buy it twice. Once for the song and once for the ringtone. I'm sure that's the way the record companies insisted it be in order for this to happen. But the unknown for me, as of right now, is whether or not I can buy a ringtone without the song and just pay 99 cents for it. That's a good question that I hope to get cleared up soon. And, if I already own the song, can I add the ringtone for 99 cents or do I need to purchase the whole thing again? That would be most unfair and annoying.

The Beatles
-- Obviously, Apple's use of The Beat Goes On was a clear attempt to get people to think the Beatles were coming to iTunes. I was shocked it didn't happen. However, I'm convinced it will. But based on what we saw today, who the heck needs the Beatles?

Conclusion
-- Good, good day. Cheaper iPhones, much better and cooler iPods, ringtones, the power of Wi-Fi -- all wrapped up into about 80 minutes. I hope you found this live blog most useful. Check back on the earlier entries ... I'll update photos as they become available and update any important information as well.

And in the meantime, check everything out at apple.com.

Thanks for calling.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 1:19 p.m. -- on my couch

From the I'm a little steamed but happy for you department: iPhone no longer comes in a 4GB model. Just 8GB and the price is cut $200 to $399 (was $599) starting right now. Steve said he wanted to make the iPhone more affordable to everyone.

WOW.

Thanks for calling.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 12:38 p.m. -- on my couch

OK. Wi-Fi Music Store. Will iTunes be available right on the iPhone? Unknown. Apparently on the iPod and since the phone and the iPod are so similar inside, it stands to reason.

On the iPod Touch, the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store lets you preview a song and then tap a buy it now button to purchase it. The song downloads and the syncs back to iTunes when you dock the iPod to your computer.

(Scott says to himself, loudly ... PLEASE LET THIS WORK ON THE iPHONE!)
**UPDATE** - WORKS SAME ON iPHONE -- WOO-HOO. I mean, woo-hoo.
Coming later this month. Whenever. We'll take it!

Access to the full Music library! No word on video yet. Looks like just music for now.

Pink icon. Songs go to a playlist called Download. That's what syncs back to your Mac or PC.

**UPDATE** From the this is a little bit freaky department: A quote from Steve Jobs: "In the new iTunes Wi-Fi Store, when you get near a participating Starbucks, automatically a fifth button is going to pop up in the store with a Starbucks button." Apparently, it will tell you the last 10 songs played at Starbucks and you can download it. Currently, Starbucks and it's Hear Music channel on XM Satellite radio is featured in the iTunes Store. There's no XM-Apple link, but the songs that Starbucks plays on that channel are available through iTunes.
Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz said that the technology will be available on your Mac and PC in Starbucks stores, so you don't have to have an iPod Touch or iPhone to take advantage.

He says everyone will get free access to the store via Starbucks Wi-Fi, which is currently in 5,800 stores and counting. Whether or not you can do anything else for free with Starbucks Wi-Fi other than shop for music is unknown. Currently, using the service requires a paid membership with T-Mobile's Hot Spot service.

More from Schultz:

-- It will take time to implement this. Seattle and New York go live Oct. 2.

-- San Francisco to follow in November.

-- L.A. in February

-- Chicago in March.

-- All major metros online in 2008

-- Everywhere 2009.

Thanks for calling ... Please continue to hold.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 12:38 p.m. -- on my couch

iPod Touch is here. 8 mm thin. That's thinner than the iPhone.

Built-in WiFi, 3.5 inch screen (same as iPhone)

Looks just like an iPhone.

Many news sites report it has calculatior, contacts, etc. No word on Safari. My guess is no, but I'll keep you posted.

UPDATE -- IT HAS SAFARI. (huge because it's basically a phoneless iPhone).

It has YouTube, but obviously it only works via Wi-Fi, whereas the iPhone can use EDGE. However, if you've ever watched a YouTube video over EDGE, you know that's no fun at all.

You can pinch, double tap and do all the things you can do on the phone. From everything I'm gathering, it would be hard to tell an iPod touch and an iPhone apart on first glance.

But, because it's not an iPhone, it ships worldwide. Obviously, the iPhone will come to other countries, but it will take time. Now everyone gets a taste of what we've been enjoying so far.

Flash based. 8GB and 16GB. AND GET THIS -- $299 for the 8GB and $399 for the 16GB. So $300 less than the top of the line phone, but of course minus the phone. $300 for a phone seems like a lot when you look at it that way. And if 16GB is available in the Touch, a 16GB iPhone can't be far off.

Thanks for calling ... Please continue to hold.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 12:05 p.m. -- on my couch

Steve Jobs is on stage, black shirt and all. First up, iTunes. 600,000 users, 3 billion songs downloaded ...

iPhone users, rejoice ... ringtones from Apple -- no hacking! Custom ringtone builder with 500,000 songs to choose from. Cost is 99 cents extra. I'm sure folks will be unhappy with that, unless he announces it's free if you already have the song, but I'm doubting that.

Early reports indicate it will be available in a new version of iTunes sometime tonight, and that he's comparing it to other carriers that charge as much as $2.49. He's touting 99 cents and you make it yourself. No word yet on how you make it ... my guess is that it's a Garageband like interface that's fun and intuitive. We'll see soon.

**UPDATES**

-- It's 99 cents additional. Total with song is $1.98. iTunes shows bell icon to indicate you can make a ringtone from it. Supports fading in and out, like a ringtone should be.

-- Steve does a sample ringtone with "Give peace a chance" and then, playing on the recent fight, says that's for when NBC calls. Funny.

Thanks for calling ... Please continue to hold.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 11:58 a.m. -- my couch

Anyone who follows Apple knows the significance of the yellow post-it.

For those of you who don't, when the sign goes up, something new is about to premiere. That or there's maintenance on the Web site, but it's safe to rule that out today.

The beat goes on in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1.

Thanks for calling

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 11:41 a.m. -- on my couch

You might remember in a recent post that I surmised Paul McCartney would be a big part of Apple's announcement today ... finally confirming that iTunes has scored the Beatles catalog in digital format.

Now I see this on Sirius Satellite Radio's Web site:

Sir Paul McCartney
Today 1:00 pm ET
Sir Paul McCartney joins BBC Radio 1’s Edith Bowman to make a very special announcement. What is it? You’re going to have to listen to find out!

I don't have Sirius, but we'll know soon enough what Sir Paul has to say.

Thanks for calling.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 11:39 a.m. -- my couch

And green. Go!

I'm here to liveblog the big Apple event. While I'm not in San Francisco proper, I have an arsenal of resources at my disposal that will keep you up to date on everything that's announced.

Sit back, get your reload buttons ready and thanks for calling.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007 -- 5:19 a.m. (don't ask) -- doing my laundry

The Beat Goes On in less than 7 hours -- noon Central Time, 1 p.m. Eastern, 11 a.m. Mountain and 10 p.m. Pacific.

Oh, Steve Jobs ... what digital joy will you bestow upon your faithful?

new iPods with touchscreens?

Ringtone store for iPhone?

iPhone games?

iPods with HD radio?

Mobile iTunes store?

The Beatles (and a performance from Paul McCartney?)

Live performance from Madonna?

Ultra-thin MacBook with flash memory?

Who knows? We can speculate all day. Time will tell and your trustworthy iPhone blogger extraordinaire will be here to keep you updated pretty much live, so come here at noon and keep refreshing your browsers. I'll let you know what's new and what it means.

Thanks for calling.

This is a huge announcement, iPhone fans. And comes as quite the surprise.

I'm currently liveblogging the big Apple press conference in California from the comfort of my relatively comfortable couch.

For those of you with .mac accounts, there's a new feature coming called "send to web gallery" which, and I'll get more specifics soon, will let you take a picture on your phone and upload it to the .mac servers to share with anyone in the world. And by share, print, view, etc. All tied together with Apple's iLife 08, which was just announced.

Price remains at $79 -- but included if you buy a new Mac -- and includes brand new versions -- and in some cases programs designed from the ground up -- of iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD, Garageband and the .Mac Web gallery.

Price for .mac is $99 a year. I've had it for 4 years and I couldn't live without it. I use it that much, and now with what it does for the iPhone, I would recommend you sign up if you are a Mac user. Starting today, your personal Web space goes from 1GB to 10GB. Not the best in the industry, but certainly a welcome improvement.

Seems as though the new iLife '08 is required for most of this, but that's still uncertain. Working on figuring that out.

Steve Jobs is calling it the marriage of iPhoto and .Mac with a mobile twist.

He says it's just like iPhoto for your iPhone, but anyone can contribute to your iPhone iPhoto gallery based on your instructions. So, if you have a friend in Paris and you are on your iPhone in Chicago, that person can upload shots of the Eiffel Tower to your iPhone live and instantly.

Still more ... brand new iMovie not only works with all the camcorders that up until now were incompatible with Macs, you can upload anything to iTunes and download it to your iPhone. Movies. Photos. And possibly more. Still not done with the announcement.

So far, from a computer and iPhone perspective, simply amazing announcements.

The big question I will need to get answered is how much of this is available right now on your iphone -- with a software update of course -- and how much of it is absolutely dependent on iLife 08? Right now, it appears that you definitely need a .mac account to take advantage, but you may not actually need the desktop software to use it in some form on the iPhone. Again, not sure.

Still going through the notes, so more once I get it. The presentation is over, so once I get to the office and go through my notes and figure out what is what, I'll post a wrap-up that highlights the most important stuff. And you can go through this post to relive the excitement :-D

Thanks for calling.