Virtualization competitors Parallels and VMWare were taking opposite sides of the South Hall at Macworld to show off Mac OS X Server running in a virtualized environment on Apple hardware (made possible by changes to Mac OS 10.5's EULA for Leopard Server).
For its part, Parallels showed off a new product, currently in beta, called Parallels Server (previously announced). Parallels is targeting Parallels Server for users of server hardware, as the software contains hooks that allow more in-depth monitoring of the hardware that the desktop edition does not allow. In beta, the software currently supports up to 2-way SMP for virtual machines, although they state that the shipping version will support 4-way SMP. This SMP support will eventually find its way into their Desktop product. Parallels received a Best of Show award for Parallels Server from Macworld.
Parallels Server Display, running on a previous generation Xserve
VMWare has also been busy working to support Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard Server in a virtualized environment. At Macworld, they demoed a technology preview which showed VMWare running multiple server operating systems with the usual hardware support. Sound and accelerated video were not working, however, and VMWare could not commit whether such support would be included in the final shipping version. As a technology preview, no product was announced and no ship date yet available.
VMWare booth
VMWare also pointed out that VMWare Importer Beta 2 was released late last week which includes support for VirtualPC virtual machines and improves support for importing Parallels virtual machines.
Both companies offer free trial versions of their standard virtualization software which allows Intel Mac owners to run Windows or Linux: Parallels Desktop 3.0 and VMWare Fusion 1.1
Tuesday January 13, 2026 6:11 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today introduced a new Apple Creator Studio bundle that offers access to six creative apps, as well as exclusive AI features and content, as part of a single subscription. In the U.S., pricing is set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year.
Here are the six apps included with an Apple Creator Studio subscription:Final Cut Pro on the Mac and iPad
Logic Pro on the Mac and iPad
Pixelmator...
Friday January 9, 2026 8:17 am PST by Tim Hardwick
2026 could be a bumper year for Apple's Mac lineup, with the company expected to announce as many as four separate MacBook launches. Rumors suggest Apple will court both ends of the consumer spectrum, with more affordable options for students and feature-rich premium lines for users that seek the highest specifications from a laptop.
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...
Monday January 12, 2026 1:15 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today seeded the second beta of iOS 26.3, nearly a month after the first beta. So far, the update includes a couple of new features for iPhones.
iOS 15.3 through iOS 18.3 were all released in late January over the years, so it is thereby likely that iOS 26.3 will be released towards the end of this month as well. The update is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer.
Below,...
Monday January 12, 2026 7:38 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In a statement shared with CNBC today, Apple confirmed that Google Gemini will power the next-generation version of Siri that is slated to launch later this year.
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"After careful evaluation, we determined that Google's technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and we're excited about the innovative...
Thursday January 8, 2026 2:56 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
Tuesday January 13, 2026 10:50 am PST by Joe Rossignol
If you are not interested in subscribing to the new Apple Creator Studio bundle introduced today, you will officially start to miss out on some new features.
Apple said some "exciting new intelligent features and premium content" in Pixelmator Pro, Keynote, Numbers, Pages, and Freeform will only be accessible with a Creator Studio subscription. In the U.S., a subscription costs $12.99 per...
Tuesday January 13, 2026 11:29 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today released a firmware update for the AirPods Pro 3. The latest firmware has a version number of 8B34, up from the previous version 8B30.
Apple has a support document for AirPods firmware updates, and it indicates that the 8B34 update contains unspecified "bug fixes and other improvements."
No other AirPods models received firmware updates today.
How to install AirPods Pro...
Tuesday January 13, 2026 7:52 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple and Google this week announced that Gemini will help power a more personalized Siri, and The Information has provided more details.
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As soon as this spring, the report said the revamped version of Siri will be able to…
Answer more factual/world knowledge questions in a conversational manner
Tell more stories
Provide...
Monday January 12, 2026 11:38 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Elon Musk today expressed concern about Apple and Google partnering on a more personalized version of Siri powered by Google's generative AI platform Gemini.
"This seems like an unreasonable concentration of power for Google, given that [they] also have Android and Chrome," wrote Musk, in a post on X.
Musk serves as CEO of xAI, the company behind Gemini competitor Grok.
It is unlikely...
