MacRumors

Popular European music streaming service Spotify today announced a major new initiative to take on Apple's iTunes, launching a new download service and software support for syncing music to non-iOS iPods.

You've been telling us how much you love discovering, sharing and talking about music in Spotify - and you've created well over 200 million playlists to prove it. But you've also said you're listening to a huge amount of music on your iPods, and that getting your Spotify playlists onto them as MP3s has been a serious hassle, forcing you to juggle multiple music players. That's until now...

As of today, Spotify is making it possible for everyone to take their playlists with them in one lean, green music machine.

The new download service allows users to purchase entire playlists with a single click, bundling tracks to lower costs to as little as 50p per song. The Spotify software also now directly syncs with all iPod classic, iPod nano, and iPod shuffle models, with the device simply showing up in the Spotify sidebar when connected via USB.

Finally, Spotify has opened up its iPhone and Android apps to all Spotify users, expanding on the original Premium access to offer to all users support for wireless syncing of playlists.

Spotify has missed a number goal dates for launching its service in the United States as it has struggled to reach agreements with major music labels. The company has, however, finally struck deals with EMI and Sony, moving it closer to securing the consent of the four major labels essentially required to debut in the U.S. Universal and Warner Music represent the two major labels not yet on board with Spotify's plans.

While Apple's new iMac models released yesterday appear nearly identical to their predecessors at first glance, the company has of course made a number of changes to beef up performance of its flagship desktop line.

The folks over at iFixit quickly got their hands on one of the new 21.5-inch models and subjected it to one of their thorough teardown routines. Among the interesting findings:

- The AMD graphics chip is located on a separate board from the main logic board, allowing for replacement of the GPU without the need for an entirely new logic board. Apple of course doesn't make the GPU board particularly easy to access, as it is not considered a user-replaceable part, but it can be done.

With a bit of magic, the GPU heat sink detaches from the logic board, exposing the AMD GPU board. You heard that right, folks - you don't have to replace the entire logic board if your GPU explodes from too much l33t gaming. You can just swap out the GPU board for another one.

-The new iMac features the same LG display found in the previous generation.

-The optional secondary solid state drive appears to reside directly underneath the optical drive.

The optional SSD appears to reside beneath the optical drive - that's the only space we could find where something was clearly missing. There's three mounting points under the optical drive that have nothing attached to them in our machine, since this option is only available on 2.7 GHz 21.5" iMacs.

The previous-generation iMacs only supported secondary SSD drives on 27-inch models, with the bay positioned next to the optical drive. The bay may still be in that location on the new 27-inch models, but Apple clearly had to find a different layout for the internal components in the smaller body of the 21.5-inch model in order to fit the drive in.

Separate from iFixit's teardown, reviewers have also begun benchmarking the new iMac models with Macworld having already put the new 3.1 GHz 27-inch model through its Speedmark 6.5 testing suite. Unsurprisingly, the machine was found to be significantly faster than the previous generation.

Our overall system performance test suite, Speedmark 6.5, shows the new system to be 16 percent faster than the previous high-end standard configuration iMac, a 27-inch 2.8GHz Core i5 quad-core model with a 1TB 7,200-rpm hard drive, and ATI Radeon HD 5750 graphics with 1GB of dedicated RAM.

Comparing to other machines, the new iMac clocked at about 10% faster than the standard high-end 15-inch MacBook Pro and about 15% slower than a build-to-order six-core Mac Pro.

Macworld will be subjecting the other three standard-configuration iMac models to the same battery of tests to provide comparison data.

While increasing numbers of reports are pointing to a later-than-usual introduction for the fifth-generation iPhone, potentially with an unveiling at Apple's traditional September iPod-focused event, some observers have still been holding out hope that Apple will launch the new device at its Worldwide Developers Conference in early June as it has done on a regular basis in recent years.

One MacRumors reader has, however, received word from an AT&T customer care representative that Apple has officially informed the carrier that there will be no new iPhone released in the usual June-July timeframe.

The disclosure came after the reader noticed that his eligibility date for a subsidized upgrade had been pushed back by over five months and contacted AT&T to inquire about the reason for the change. As part of a response outlining AT&T's criteria for determining upgrade eligibility dates, the agent reportedly offered the following statement as fact:

Apple has informed us that they do not plan to release the iPhone in the June to July timeframe, though there will be a newer version in the future. Unfortunately, we have not been given a release time for the new phone. We will release this information on our website when it is available to us.

We are always skeptical about such information shared by customer-facing representatives of Apple or associated companies, as those employees are essentially never provided with that level of information ahead of any official announcement. We feel, however, that due to the specific nature of the claim and its presentation in a matter-of-fact manner expressly citing Apple as the source of the information, the tidbit is worth sharing.

Apple released a new iPad 2 television commercial which carries the same tone as the We Believe commercial released in early April.

If you ask a parent, they might call it intuitive. If you ask a musician, they might call it inspiring. To a doctor, it's groundbreaking. To a CEO, it's powerful. To a teacher, it's the future. If you ask a child, she might call it magic. And if you asked us, we'd say it's just getting started."

The new ad is on Apple's iPad page and YouTube channel.

Research firm IHS iSuppli today released its projections for the performance of mobile application marketplaces in 2011, predicting that overall revenues will rise nearly 78% this year to $3.9 billion. Of that figure, Apple's App Store is expected to snag 76% or $2.91 billion on 63.4% growth over 2010.

To no one's surprise, the Apple App Store continues to head off all competition. Projected figures for the Apple App Store this year call for revenue of $2.91 billion, up 63.4 percent from $1.78 billion in 2010. Given that Apple devices such as the iPhone, iPod and iPad are the market leaders in their field, the company's App Store is expected to take in 76 percent of revenue this year and retain 60 percent market share by 2014, despite efforts by the other stores to match Apples ability to monetize its users, IHS believes.

Apple also will lead the way with revenue gained from in-app purchases - or additional purchases made within a paid application, such as bonus game levels - which will serve as a key growth driver for revenue up to 2014.

Android is expected to continue its surge this year with nearly 300% growth to become the second-largest app marketplace after the App Store, but Android's projected revenue of $425 million will still fall far short of Apple's nearly $3 billion figure. Research in Motion's BlackBerry App World and Nokia's Ovi Store fill out the top four with expected revenues in the $200-300 million range.

Looking further ahead, IHS iSuppli sees the app download market reaching $8.3 billion in 2014, more than doubling the projected 2011 performance. Apple is still projected to maintain a majority share of the market, albeit at a slightly lower 60% share. Still, that performance would put Apple's App Store revenue at $5 billion in 2014.

Droid Life reports (via Engadget) that U.S. carriers have recently stepped up their efforts to crack down on Android apps that permit users to create Wi-Fi mobile hotspots by tethering to their mobile phone and using the device's data connection.

After receiving a tip that Verizon may be blocking Wireless Tether from the market, I decided to do a little digging on the variety of devices I own. Sure enough, from all of my phones, including the Nexus S I have running on AT&T, I was unable to find Wireless Tether in the market. So to see what was really going on, I jumped into the browser-based Android Market to see if I could find the app and definitely did. But what you are seeing, is my list of devices, all of which cannot accept this app.

One of the main promotional points of Android as its popularity has soared has been the unregulated nature of the app marketplaces for the platform. As opposed to Apple's belief that customers are better served by a marketplace in which Apple serves as the gatekeeper to ensure that apps meet certain standards, Android has been much more of a free-for-all with developers free to release nearly any type of application for use on compatible devices.

As Android has gained in popularity, however, things have begun to tighten up, with Google recently exerting control in an attempt to reduce fragmentation in what has long been billed as an open system available for tweaking and customization by any and all who wish to deploy hardware utilizing the platform.

But it certainly appears that even carriers are now getting into the act, seeking to cut off at the source consumer access to apps that can violate the carriers' terms and conditions rather than dealing with customers directly. Users can of course work around carrier restrictions with methods known as "sideloading" that allow users to install apps through unapproved sources, but most casual users are undoubtedly sticking to mainstream, authorized marketplaces such as the Android Market for their needs.

The iPhone has supported tethering via USB and Bluetooth directly via the operating system for some time now, and has recently added Wi-Fi hotspot functionality. These features do, however, require support from individual carriers, many of whom charge extra for the privilege of using them. Some users have worked around those restrictions by jailbreaking their devices and installing apps such as MyWi, although carriers such as AT&T have recently increased their efforts to identify those users and move them to more expensive data plans officially supporting the hotspot functionality.

In the wake of today's release of new iMacs, a number of tidbits about the new models have been surfacing.

- Magic Trackpad: While Apple previously allowed customers to add a Magic Trackpad to their iMac orders for an additional charge of $69, the company now offers customers the option of swapping out the included Magic Mouse for a Magic Trackpad at no additional charge.

iMac comes with a wireless keyboard and either a Magic Mouse or a Magic Trackpad - your choice. With Magic Mouse, you get a mouse unlike any other. Its smooth, seamless design lets you control everything with simple gestures. But if you're all gestures all the time, then opt for Magic Trackpad. Its touch-friendly all-glass surface gives you plenty of room to scroll, swipe, pinch, and rotate to your fingers' content. When you purchase your new iMac from the Apple Online Store, you have the option to replace the included Magic Mouse with the Magic Trackpad at no extra cost.

Customers can of course still add the Magic Trackpad for $69 if they wish to have both input devices.

- 27-Inch Model as External Display: Since 2009, the 27-inch iMac has supported use of the machine as a secondary display via the Mini DisplayPort connector. Called "Target Display Mode", the feature allows users significant flexibility in using the machine either on its own or to provide extra screen real estate for other machines when needed.

While we were unable to find explicit mention of support for Target Display Mode on the new iMac product pages, an Apple sales representative has confirmed to us that the new 27-inch models do continue to support the feature through the new Thunderbolt ports.

- Dual External Display Support: Beyond continued support for display input, GigaOM reports that the presence of two Thunderbolt ports on the new 27-inch iMac will allow the machine to drive two external displays for a total of three screens.

One of the most exciting things about today's new iMacs (and the thing that will probably result in me buying one) are the dual Thunderbolt ports on the 27-inch iMac. They're great in that they provide a lot of potential I/O transfer power, but more importantly because it allows the new iMac to output to two external monitors simultaneously, Apple confirmed to me this morning.

- Boot Camp Update: Apple has already pushed out a Boot Camp 3.2 software update for the new iMac, addressing issues with Japanese and Korean keyboards. A similar update was released for Apple's new MacBook Pros early last month.

Boot Camp is Apple's utility for allowing users to natively run versions of Microsoft Windows on their Macs.

Update: Engadget has a hands-on review of the new 27-inch model and has tested hooking it up to two 30-inch Dell displays.

Update 2: Macworld clarifies that the Target Display Mode available on the new 27-inch iMac also requires that the source computer be Thunderbolt-equipped. Only the current MacBook Pro and of course other new iMacs currently meet this description, with other machines offering only Mini DisplayPort and not Thunderbolt unable to send video to the new iMac.

As noted in the forums at our sister site Touch Arcade, Apple has apparently made a change to its App Store app review policies, no longer permitting users who have obtained applications via promo code to leave reviews for them.

According to Apple representatives, the change has been made in order to help prevent developers from gaming the ratings and reviews system by using an entire batch of promo codes to boost their profile.

I worked with Apple to resolve this issue and they have responded that "it is no longer possible to rate or review an app if it was downloaded using a developer's promotional code to prevent comprimising [sic] of the rating system".

Another developer who had been running a Promo Dispenser service for connecting developers offering promo codes with users willing to provide reviews in exchange for them reports that users are receiving a standard response from Apple about the change when inquiring about difficulties leaving reviews.

Anand here again from iTunes Store Customer Support. Thanks for writing back and letting me know your concern. I understand that you are still not able to write a review. I know how disappointing it can be when things don't work out the way they should. I am sorry to inform that it is no longer possible to rate or review an app if it was downloaded using a developer's promotional code.

However, I took the liberty of submitting your feedback to Apple on your behalf. Please know that Apple takes the feedback from our customers very seriously. This is the reason for our feedback page - to create a forum where our users can vent, praise or share whatever feelings they have to allow us to meet your needs, and grow as a company. I suggest that you use the link in order to share your feedback with us. I would also encourage you to share this link with all of your friends and family who wish to submit the feedback, and have them all submit the same request.

Details on just what promo codes are affected by the change are currently unclear, as posters in the forum thread indicate a variety of experiences when trying to review apps for which they received promo codes, with some reviews being permitted while others are being denied. One theory suggests that the difference may be linked to when the promo code was issued, with only newly-issued codes being subject to the policy.

Following on last month's announcement, Adobe today officially released Creative Suite 5.5, bringing a number of enhancements to the company's flagship multimedia applications.

Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 delivers important advances in HTML5 and Flash authoring, enabling designers and developers to create compelling content and applications. Creative Suite 5.5 products also feature significant innovation in the areas of video production and editing. Finally, Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 delivers exciting new capabilities in the exploding area of digital publishing. With Creative Suite 5.5 content authors worldwide can deliver high-impact work to multiple platforms, operating systems, Web browsers, smartphones and tablets - including Android, BlackBerry Tablet OS, and Apple iOS devices.

Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 is available in a variety of versions packaging various component applications together to meet users' needs, and upgrades from earlier version of Creative Suite (including CS5) are available at discounted prices.

As noted by Adobe's John Nack, Adobe has also pushed out a free Photoshop 12.0.4 update for existing Creative Suite 5 users, bringing support for Adobe's new iPad apps designed to extend the functionality of Photoshop.

The 12.0.4 update enables specially designed apps on tablets, smartphones, and PCs to communicate with and control interaction with Photoshop CS5 (Located in the File menu: Remote Connections). Now you can be creative on other devices and instantly incorporate what you create into Photoshop. You must install the 12.0.4 update to activate a remote connection between Photoshop CS5 and any apps that Adobe or third-party developers create to interact with Photoshop. For example, Photoshop CS5 must be updated to 12.0.4 to interact with three new iPad apps that Adobe has designed to work with it - Adobe Nav, Adobe Color Lava, and Adobe Eazel. Available on the App Store.

Those three apps, Eazel, Nav, and Color Lava, are not yet available in the App Store, but should presumably appear relatively soon.

Apple released the much anticipated iMac updates today, upgrading the processors to Quad-Core CPUs across the entire range and including Thunderbolt.

Apple today updated its signature all-in-one iMac with next generation quad-core processors, powerful new graphics, groundbreaking high-speed Thunderbolt I/O technology and a new FaceTime HD camera. Starting at $1,199, the new iMac is up to 70 percent faster and new graphics deliver up to three times the performance of the previous generation.

The new iMacs feature quad-core Intel Core i5 processors with an option for customers to choose Core i7 processors up to 3.4GHz.

The 21.5-inch iMac has a single Thunderbolt port while the 27" features two Thunderbolt ports.

21.5" 2.5GHz Quad Core i5, AMD 6750M, 500GB, $1199
21.5" 2.7GHz Quad Core i5, AMD 6770M, 1TB, $1499
27" 2.7GHz Quad Core i5, AMD 6770M, 1TB, $1699
27" 3.1GHz Quad Core i5, AMD 6970M, 1TB, $1999

Core i7 Processors are available as configure-to-order options.

Apple's online stores went down early this morning ahead of rumors that the iMac will be refreshed with Thunderbolt and Sandy Bridge processors. New products are typically launched around 8:30am Eastern / 5:30am Pacific.

Claimed specs from Mr. X:

IMAC 21.5"/2.7QC/2X2GB/1TB/6770M
IMAC 27"/2.7QC/2X2GB/1TB/6770M
IMAC 27"/3.1QC/2X2GB/1TB/6970M
IMAC 27"/3.4QC/2X2GB/1TB/6970M

As noted by Apple iGuide (via TUAW), the latest developer build of Mac OS X Lion seeded last Friday brings a new iOS-like mechanism for deleting applications installed via the Mac App Store.

Invoking the new iOS-like "Launchpad" in Mac OS X Lion for managing applications allows users to click and hold on an icon to bring up the "jiggling" icon mode familiar to iOS users as the mechanism for organizing and deleting applications. Mac OS X Lion now allows users to delete Mac App Store application in the same way as in iOS, by clicking on an "X" button at the top left of the application's icon.

In Lion a user simply needs to invoke the Launchpad, click and hold on the icon of the application they wish to delete, and when the icons begin to wiggle a cross appears on icons of apps installed via the Mac App Store. Clicking this cross brings up the message "Are you sure you want to delete the application...?", and clicking 'Delete' confirms and removes the app.

This only works with applications installed from the Mac App Store, but will be a welcome addition to many, and makes removing applications easier for users familiar with iOS devices.

Those familiar with the Lion developer builds note that it is clear than the feature was coming in earlier releases, but is finally functional in the latest build.

Apple has of course stressed the "Back to the Mac" nature of Mac OS X Lion, bringing a number of the user interface aspects of iOS to the Mac OS X platform, offering a more consistent experience with the goal of making it easier for users to move between platforms and making Mac OS X more intuitive.

MacRumors is pleased to announce the second annual MacRumors Blood Drive, for the month of May 2011. We encourage our forum members and site visitors to donate blood or platelets at any collection center. Our goal is to increase the number of donations by those in our online community. We also ask donors to post in our Blood Drive thread. Saving a life is its own reward but accepting recognition as a donor helps spread the message to others. Please donate, then let us know.

Most blood drives are specific to a physical organization at a particular location. Ours is online and worldwide. Please help people in need of life-saving blood and platelets in your own communities. If you are eligible to donate blood you can go to any blood collection center near you (hospital, community center, Red Cross, or independent donation center). If you are not eligible to donate see our announcement for other ways to support the drive.

Our effort is not related to a particular event. Donated blood and platelets are needed every few seconds, all year, not just when calamities occur. They save the lives of people recovering from accidents, undergoing surgery, or struck by illness. Specific eligibility requirements vary by country. For links and general information see Blood and Platelet Donation in our Mac Guides section.

Please join us in showing the spirit of our community. Details are in the MacRumors 2011 Blood Drive thread.

Apple's health and relief efforts over the years have included donations for 9/11 workers in 2001, the Songs for Sudan effort in 2004, (PRODUCT) RED participation since 2006, help for Haitian earthquake victims in 2010, and help for victims of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami this March.

While much of the attention regarding the long-delayed launch of the white iPhone 4 has died down, a few tidbits of interest continue to trickle out.

Late last week, Japanese blog Mac Otakara pointed to a pair of tweets from @kazunie highlighting some of the differences between the black and white models of the iPhone 4.

In particular, Apple seems to have modified the camera sensor in the white version, opting for a slightly different module that likely carries almost identical specs to the one used in the black version. It is unclear, however, whether the change was made specifically to deal with issues related to light leakage reportedly affecting camera performance, one of the more popular targets of rumors regarding the device's delayed launch.

The report also notes that the proximity sensor has been modified in the white models, although no details on the changes are included. The proximity sensor has been one of the chief areas of focus on the device, given Apple's obvious redesign of the iPhone's front plate in the area of the sensor, shifting from a grille of tiny holes in early renderings and samples of the white models to a single black window in the shipping versions.

Reports of the white iPhone 4 being slightly thicker than the black version are also coming under fire, with Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller reportedly sending a response to a customer via Twitter direct message disputing the claims.

It is not thicker, don't believe all the junk that you read

Consumer Reports has also disputed the findings with their own caliper measurements showing identical thicknesses for the black and white models.

The thickness difference was of course confirmed in an extensive series of caliper measurements taken by TiPb last week and by numerous other users examining their own devices and attempting to fit them into cases. Consequently, the difference may be an issue of quality control with some phones exhibiting the difference while others do not, rather than an intentional design change to specify the thicker profile.