MacRumors

Mashable reports on a discovery that the latest update to the iPhone application from popular business establishment review site Yelp [App Store, Free] contains an augmented reality easter egg called "Monocle" that allows users to view business ratings overlayed on a video stream from their iPhone's camera. The feature is only compatible with the iPhone 3GS, which contains the necessary digital compass for properly assessing the device's orientation.

Download the new Yelp app (came out yesterday). So you shake your iPhone 3 times. That activates a feature called Monocle. A message should come up if you activated it. A blue box will come up saying "the Monocle has been activated." It will create a button in the top right corner. Now you should be able to look at the bars, restaurants, etc. Only works on iPhone 3GS.

Augmented reality applications have been under development for some time, but Apple is waiting for the release of iPhone OS 3.1 to officially enable the feature, which explains why the augmented reality feature in the Yelp application was included as a hidden easter egg to avoid detection by Apple's reviewers.

Mashable has also provided screenshots and put together a brief video demonstration of how the feature works.

Mobile advertising firm AdMob has released its July 2009 Mobile Metrics report along with a supplemental presentation in which the company reveals the results of a survey of over 1,100 iPhone, iPod touch, and Android users to obtain data on application usage. The study reveals that iPhone users download approximately 10 applications per month on average with 25% of those being paid applications. iPod touch users download over 18 applications per month on average, with only two of those being paid applications.

The study also found that approximately 50% of iPhone users download at least one paid application per month, while only 40% of iPod touch users do likewise. Users who do download paid applications average approximately five paid downloads per month and spend an average of $9.49 (iPhone) or $9.79 (iPod touch) per month for an average application price of just under $2.00.

Extrapolating the survey data to the estimated user bases of 26.4 million iPhone users and 18.6 million iPod touch users, AdMob suggests that the total App Store market size may be nearly $200 million per month, or approaching $2.5 billion per year. In contrast, the Android market is estimated at approximately $60 million per year.

AdMob's survey method of soliciting respondents via ads within its own network, which serves 7,000 mobile web sites and 3,000 applications, may skew the survey results somewhat by attracting users more likely to be engaged in mobile applications, but the results do still provide an idea of the substantial market for App Store developers and Apple itself.

DigiTimes reports that Apple has contracted with OmniVision for 3.2-megapixel camera sensors that will be deployed in revised models of the iPod touch, iPod nano, and iPod classic next month, presumably at Apple's rumored September 9th media event.

OmniVision has secured CMOS image sensor (CIS) orders for upcoming Apple iPods, according to market sources.

OmniVision will be the sole supplier of 3.2-megapixel CIS products for new iPod nano, iPod classic and iPod Touch models which will be launched in September, the sources indicated.

A number of indications that the iPod touch and iPod nano will receive cameras in the next design refresh have surfaced over the past few months, but today's report appears to be the first to claim that the iPod classic will also see the inclusion of a camera.

With Friday's launch of Mac OS X Snow Leopard right around the corner, official reviews of Apple's latest operating system began rolling out last night.

One of the most interesting tidbits comes from Walt Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal, who reports that the $29 Snow Leopard upgrade advertised by Apple as being only for current Leopard users will in fact install on systems currently running Tiger. Apple's official policy is that Tiger users are required to purchase the Mac Box Set, which includes iLife '09 and iWork '09 in addition to Snow Leopard, for $169.

And, for owners of Intel-based Macs who are still using the older Tiger version of the Mac OS, Apple is officially making Snow Leopard available only in a "boxed set" that includes other software and costs $169. The reasoning is that these folks never paid the $129 back in 2007 to upgrade to Leopard. But here's a tip: Apple concedes that the $29 Snow Leopard upgrade will work properly on these Tiger-equipped Macs, so you can save the extra $140.

Overall, Mossberg found some nice new features in Snow Leopard, including Apple's new auto-correct for text, location-based automatic time zone updating, and "video screenshots" for recording on-screen actions. He also found, however, a number of bugs and glitches. Primarily related to third-party software and drivers, those bugs resulted in some frustration, leading Mossberg to provide Snow Leopard with only a lukewarm endorsement.

Apple already had the best computer operating system in Leopard, and Snow Leopard makes it a little better. But it isn't a big breakthrough for average users, and, even at $29, it isn't a typical Apple lust-provoking product.

Other reviews from around the Internet include:

David Pogue, The New York Times:

Let's hope that Apple hurries up with its inevitable 10.6.0.1 update, too, to address the occasional Safari crash and cosmetic glitch I experienced, too.

Otherwise, if you're already running Leopard, paying the $30 for Snow Leopard is a no-brainer. You'll feel the leap forward in speed polish, and you'll keep experiencing those "oh, that's nice" moments for weeks to come.

Andy Ihnatko, Chicago Sun-Times:

Impressive and important, it's an update that will revitalize your existing Mac even though you'll be stumped for a quick five-minute demo that convinces the people around you that much of anything has changed at all.

Jason Snell, Macworld:

Granted, it's a collection of feature tweaks and upgrades, as well as under-the-hood modifications that might not pay off for users immediately. But the price of upgrading is so low that I've really got to recommend it for all but the most casual, low-impact Mac users.

Jason Parker, CNET:

Overall, we think that Snow Leopard did almost everything Apple says it set out to do: it refined and enhanced Leopard to make it easier to use. Though the system performs well in everyday use, many of our tests indicate it is slightly slower than the older version of Leopard in more intensive application processes. Still, we highly recommend upgrading for all the new features and Microsoft Exchange support.

Earlier today, we reported on comments from Adobe Principal Product Manager for Photoshop John Nack pointing to a new FAQ document noting that only Creative Suite 4 will be officially supported on Apple's forthcoming Snow Leopard operating system, with Creative Suite 3 and earlier versions reportedly not having been tested on Snow Leopard.

Nack has now posted an update after investigating the CS3 situation in which he reveals that Adobe and Apple actually did do extensive testing of at least Photoshop CS3 on Snow Leopard and found that it is in fact compatible with the new operating system.

It turns out that the Photoshop team has tested Photoshop CS3 on Snow Leopard, and to the best of our knowledge, PS CS3 works fine on Snow Leopard.

Nack notes that only two minor issues remain that his Photoshop team is aware of: window highlight rings in Expos and text field nudging in Japanese versions of Snow Leopard. But while Photoshop CS3 otherwise appears to be perfectly compatible with Snow Leopard, Adobe has chosen to not categorize it as officially supported due to the level of testing it feels would be required in order to be entirely confident in that statement.

When we say that we officially support a specific OS, you can trust that we've done very extensive testing on that platform. If we haven't done that level of testing, then we simply won't say that we support it. That's why the FAQ reads as it does.

That said, none of us like to inconvenience customers, so the reality is that we *do* actually perform some amount of testing on older product if we believe that there are a significant number of customers using it. So does Apple.

As I say, we have reason to expect that all meaningful issues of running Photoshop CS3 under Snow Leopard have been resolved. However, because we have not done the level of testing that true certification demands, we need to stand by our statement that we don't officially support CS3 on Snow Leopard.

In the interest of time, Nack was able to report only on the Photoshop situation under his direct purview and was unable to investigate the status of other components of Creative Suite 3 with respect to OS X Snow Leopard.

Digital Daily reports that Sirius XM announced at a media event today the launch of XM SkyDock, an accessory that will allow iPhone and iPod touch users to receive live XM and "The Best of Sirius" satellite radio in their vehicles. Scheduled to launch in the fall at suggested price of $119.99, the XM SkyDock utilizes a vehicle's cigarette lighter power port to mount and power the device and iPhone or iPod touch.

Dubbed SkyDock, the $119.99 peripheral uses iPhone OS 3's support for third-party hardware to transform Apple (AAPL) handsets into full-fledged satellite radios. Designed to run off a car's cigarette power adapter, the SkyDock charges your iPhone while you listen to it and supports the ability to tag songs for download from iTunes. Better yet, it gives users access to all XM and "The Best of SIRIUS" channels, even those the company infamously excludes from its online feed, like Howard Stern, MLB Play-by-Play and NFL Play-by-Play.

Sirius XM's press release also notes several other features, including iTunes tagging of songs, sports and stock tickers, as well as various alerts for sports and music news.

Listeners can also tag songs they hear on XM's music channels for later purchase from the iTunes Store - including songs on XM's 24/7 artist branded commercial-free channels such as Jimmy Buffett's Radio Margaritaville, Elvis Radio, Eminem's Shade 45, The Grateful Dead Channel, B.B. King's Bluesville, Willie Nelson's Willie's Place, Siriusly Sinatra and Bruce Springsteen's E Street Radio. Other features include game alerts and sports ticker, artist and song alerts as well as a stock ticker.

The XM SkyDock is compatible with all iPhone and iPod touch models and requires iPhone OS 3.0.

Rumors of the new accessory surfaced last week, although the reports had suggested a slightly lower price point of under $100.

As we briefly mentioned yesterday, antivirus vendor Intego notes that it has received multiple tips that Apple's forthcoming Snow Leopard operating system appears to contain at least some rudimentary antimalware capabilities. According to screenshots of warning dialog boxes submitted by Snow Leopard users, the operating system is able to warn users that a downloaded file contains malware, specifically the OSX.RSPlug.A Trojan Horse first discovered in October 2007.

We're not sure yet exactly how this works, but the above screen shot shows this feature working with a download made via Safari, detecting a version of the RSPlug Trojan horse in a downloaded disk image.

MacRumors received the first report of this Snow Leopard feature in February 2009, soon after the release of developer build 10A261. But while the feature appears to have been present in Snow Leopard builds since that time, little is known about the functionality and from where Snow Leopard is drawing its information for identifying malware.

Intego's posting regarding the feature implies that Apple is not licensing the information from that company, while ZDNet has confirmed that Apple is not using the open-source ClamAV engine. It is possible that Apple is licensing the functionality in part from another commercial antivirus company or developing its own system, but Apple has not revealed any details about the feature on its extensive security page for OS X Snow Leopard, referring only to the existing standard scan of downloaded files to determine if an application is included in a given package.

Update: The Register notes that Apple has simply included information on two Trojan Horses, OSX.RSPlug.A and OSX.Iservice, in one of Snow Leopard's system files, identified to MacRumors as the following:

/System/Library/CoreServices/CoreTypes.bundle/Contents/Resources/XProtect.plist

While Apple could certainly update this file with identifying information for new threats that arise in the future, there does not appear to be a full-fledged antivirus package with regularly-updated virus definitions deployed in Snow Leopard.

Adobe Principal Product Manager for Photoshop John Nack reports that the company has put together a Snow Leopard FAQ (PDF) notifying customers that while its Creative Suite 4 package is compatible with Apple's forthcoming Mac OS X Snow Leopard, Creative Suite 3 and other earlier versions have not been tested for compatibility and will not be updated if found to be incompatible.

Apple and Adobe have worked closely together (as always with new OS releases) to test compatibility. As for CS4, everything is good with the exception of auto-updates to Flash panels (which I guarantee you're not using*) and Adobe Drive/Version Cue (which doesn't work at the moment on 10.6). CS3 & earlier haven't been tested.

In response to a reader's comment expressing surprise that Creative Suite 3 had not even been tested, Nack responds that while CS3 almost certainly was tested by Adobe, the company has likely taken a conservative route in its guidance in case users do experience issues with CS3 under Snow Leopard.

I found that really surprising, too, and I'll try to get more info. I'd frankly be shocked if people at Adobe & Apple really hadn't tested CS3 on 10.6. I *think* it's just some corporate conservatism at work here, and Adobe doesn't want to over-promise anything. As I say, though, I'll try to find out more.

Upon further questioning of Adobe's lack of support for Creative Suite 3 on Snow Leopard, Nack points out that limited resources dictate that the company focus on current and future priorities, including customer support and feature development, rather than spending time assessing and modifying software released nearly two and a half years ago to ensure continued compatibility.

Spanish site Applesfera reports [Google translation] that a Tumblr/Twitter user by the name of pedro10 has received a retail copy of Mac OS X Snow Leopard in advance of Friday's official launch.

After installing Snow Leopard, pedro10 reports that the retail disc does in fact contain Build 10A432, which had been rumored to be the "Golden Master" version sent to manufacturing for retail distribution. Some unconfirmed reports in recent days had suggested that a different build might have been the shipping version of Snow Leopard, but this appears to not be the case.

As proof, pedro10 posted the above photographs of the Snow Leopard retail packaging.

As Friday's public launch of Mac OS X Snow Leopard approaches, many users are considering whether to upgrade and wondering what new features they can expect in Apple's updated operating system. While many consider Snow Leopard to be focused on "under the hood" changes to improve and streamline performance, Apple's Enhancements and Refinements page also covers a wide variety of visual and functional changes, many of which had previously been reported by Apple or sources using developer builds of Snow Leopard, but we highlight here a few of those of interest.

- "Put Back" and Stacks Navigation: Apple has added the ability for users to quickly restore items from the Trash folder to their original locations and now allows users to easily navigate within stacks by adding a scrolling feature in grid view and adding an arrow icon to allow users to navigate the folder hierarchy. The folder hierarchy icon began as a "thumbnailed" picture of the parent folder, but was replaced with the simpler arrow icon in later developer builds.

- GPU-Accelerated Video Playback: QuickTime X, included as part of Snow Leopard, utilizes video-decoding capabilities built into the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics processor found in many Macs, reducing load on the system's CPU and freeing it up for other tasks.

- Text Editing Features and Integration: New features include automatic correction for common spelling errors and expanded data detectors to automatically find information such as dates and addresses and provide smart options for such tasks as creating iCal or Address Book entries or mapping locations.

- Full Multi-Touch Gesture Support for Compatible Models: All of Apple's notebooks introduced since 2008, beginning with the original MacBook Air, have included Multi-Touch trackpad capabilities, but many of the early models have been unable to take advantage of newer four-finger gestures, a limitation that will be removed in OS X Snow Leopard.

- iChat Enhancements: Snow Leopard brings 640 x 480 video chats to iChat Theater, four times the resolution of those in Leopard, as well as reduced upload bandwidth requirements for video chats.

- Security: Apple has devoted an entire page of its Snow Leopard site to highlighting security features of Mac OS X, from "sandboxing" programs to limit the damage malicious software can cause and anti-phishing features in Safari to password strength assessment and parental controls. A report today is also pointing to an apparent antivirus feature built into Snow Leopard, and while MacRumors first received reports of this feature after developer build 10A261 was released in February, no further details of the feature have been unearthed.

An extensive list of many other Snow Leopard features are detailed at Apple's site.

AppleInsider reports that Apple is currently overhauling the design of the MacBook, looking to bring a fresh exterior look to the aging entry-level notebook while also rebuilding the computer's interior architecture.

People familiar with Cupertino-based company's plans say the 13-inch portables are presently undergoing an industrial design overhaul that will see them reemerge in the coming months with a slimmer, lighter enclosure and restructured internal architecture to boot.

The report points to the likelihood of multiple models beginning at price points below the current $999 entry-level price, utilizing low-end components to allow Apple to better compete against budget PC notebooks.

Though details are few and far between, Apple is expected to achieve these markdowns through largely existing tactics, such as using lower-end components and previous-generation Core 2 Duo chips and architectures from Intel Corp. Battery life should receive a boost from cutting-edge technology that recently found its way into the company's other notebook offerings, while high-end legacy features like FireWire connectivity are likely to be sacrificed in the tradeoff.

Sources also claim that Apple had briefly considered using Intel's Atom processor in the MacBook as a way to quickly drop notebook prices, but decided against the move as the much-rumored tablet project came closer to fruition and allowed Apple to redevelop its ideas of the company's product mix for the future.

Apple's white polycarbonate MacBook has been viewed by many as sorely in need of a refresh, having been carried along as a single low-end model when the aluminum unibody MacBooks were introduced in October 2008 and left to carry the "MacBook" banner on its own when the aluminum models were rebranded as MacBook Pros in June 2009.