MacRumors

Microsoft has begun a new ad campaign focused on pricing differences between Macs and PCs. The most prominent piece of the campaign deployed so far has been a TV commercial in which "Lauren" is given a $1000 budget with which to find a 17" notebook computer. After a brief stop at a "Mac Store" where she comes away empty-handed noting that the only computer available for under $1000 has a 13" screen and saying "I'm just not cool enough to be a Mac person," she settles on a $699 HP notebook from Best Buy.

Another aspect of Microsoft's new campaign is web banner ads that have begun appearing today on a number of sites, including The New York Times. The ads feature two "slot machines", each showing either a Mac or a PC and two other items meant to illustrate how much extra spending money a PC purchaser would have left over to spend on other items when compared to a Mac purchaser. The ads are interactive, allowing users to click to "spin again" and see different combinations of items.

AppleInsider is reporting that Apple retail stores are now offering the iPhone 3G with no contract commitment required. The 8 GB model is priced at $599 and the 16 GB model is priced at $699. The move comes just as AT&T deploys a similar offer, which was leaked last week and quickly confirmed by AT&T.

Apple's offer comes with fewer restrictions than AT&T's, as Apple retail stores are apparently not limiting sales to one per customer and are not requiring that purchasers be current AT&T customers.

While the phones are still technically locked to AT&T service, it is possible (but not supported) to unlock the phones for use with other mobile service providers. In the US, that is largely limited to T-Moble and Metro PCS, although both GSM providers do not support the 3G network the iPhone 3G needs to connect at faster than EDGE speeds.

Apple announced today that this year's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will take place from June 8th through 12th in the Moscone West convention center in San Francisco. Basic promotional information on what attendees can expect is provided on Apple's site, but the full schedule of events is yet to be published.

The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is the premier technical event for developers and IT professionals innovating with Apple platforms. Over 1,000 Apple engineers will be at Moscone West to present the latest Apple technologies and provide you with code-level guidance. Youll learn how to harness the power of iPhone OS, Mac OS X Snow Leopard, and Mac OS X Server Snow Leopard in the most efficient and sophisticated way possible saving you time and accelerating your development. Bring your MacBook and your imagination, and prepare to make your ideas happen.

As it did last year, Apple is offering three tracks for attendees: iPhone, Mac, and IT. The conference will include technical sessions, hands-on labs, as well as other special events. Registration is $1295 before April 24th, after which the price will increase to $1595.

The Los Angeles Times reports that implementation of variable pricing in the iTunes Store will occur on April 7th.

The world's largest music store, Apple's iTunes, plans to boost the price of many hit singles and selected classic tracks to $1.29 on April 7, breaking the psychological barrier of 99 cents in what could be the first big test of how much consumers are willing to pay to download individual songs.

Although the date for higher prices has not been publicly announced, Apple has been notifying record labels it will go into effect on that date, industry executives said.

The LA Times also discusses how music labels will set pricing for individual songs, basing the decision primarily on artists' popularity.

True to supply-and-demand economics, the price of music downloads will be geared to the artist's popularity. Releases from new artists would receive the lower pricing, while tracks from popular acts would get slapped with the higher rate. Even classics, such as Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA," could retail for the higher price. Most of the 10 million songs in the iTunes catalog are expected to remain at 99 cents.

Apple announced at Macworld 2009 that the iTunes Store would shift to variable pricing in April with price points at $0.69, $0.99, and $1.29. Despite increased prices for certain individual tracks, Apple has claimed that most album prices will remain at $9.99.

Mobile reports that UK mobile provider Orange is in final negotiations to offer heavily subsidized MacBooks to customers signing up for two-year mobile broadband contracts.

A deal is understood to be close to completion, with the details being finalised ahead of availability of the MacBook on Orange.

The operator has tested the laptops with its mobile broadband dongles and is understood to have made a volume commitment with Apple.

The laptops will not be free, given their high cost, but will be heavily discounted for customers that commit to a two year mobile broadband contract.

Rumors of subsidized notebooks have been increasing lately, with an AT&T source recently hinting at the possibility of a $99 netbook launching this summer with the implication that it may be an Apple product.

AppleInsider claims that Apple will be revealing a major user interface overhaul in the next developer build of Snow Leopard.

All developer seeds to date have carried the same general user interface elements from the current version of Mac OS X Leopard. In January we reported that Apple was working on a unified user interface codenamed "Marble":

Based on our sources, however, Apple will apparently use Snow Leopard's release to tweak the overall user interface for Mac OS X and unify it across applications. Exact details of the theme changes have not been made public, as the current developer seeds for Snow Leopard still retain Apple's existing Aqua theme. The new theme will likely involve tweaks to the existing design and perhaps a "flattening" of Aqua in-line with Apple's iTunes and iPhoto interface elements.

According to sources "familiar with the matter", Apple could introduce these dramatic changes in the next version of Snow Leopard and have a final preview at WWDC 2009. Apple is then expected to release Snow Leopard to customers within two months of WWDC. The exact dates for WWDC, however, have not yet been publicly announced.

Apple today released MacBook Pro Graphics Firmware Update 1.0 for all users of the new unibody 17" MacBook Pro released in January.

This firmware update is recommended for all 17-inch MacBook Pro (Early 2009) users and addresses the appearance of vertical lines or distorted graphics on the notebook display.

Apple's support document provides instructions on how to install the update and determine whether it successfully installs. The download weighs in at 770 KB.

Numerous users have reported in Apple's discussion forums and elsewhere problems with lines and distortion on the new models, and this update appears to be intended to address these issues.

Reuters reports today on a deal between TiVo and Blockbuster that will allow TiVo subscribers to download to their set-top boxes films offered through Blockbuster's OnDemand service. Looking beyond the TiVo agreement, a senior executive at Blockbuster revealed the company's intentions to pursue bringing a similar service to Apple's products.

"You will see us in a large number of other devices going forward," said Kevin Lewis, senior vice president of digital entertainment at Blockbuster, who added that the company also plans to makes its system available to Apple Inc's products. "We need to be in the normal places that consumers want to watch movies," he said.

It is unclear whether Apple shares Blockbuster's interest in bringing this service to its customers, as Blockbuster's offerings would directly compete with Apple's own video content available through the iTunes Store and Apple TV. Apple recently made HD movie rentals and sales available through the iTunes Store, signaling their continued commitment to Apple-controlled distribution of digital content.

According to Reuters, Blockbuster expects to offer about 10,000 movies upon launch of the TiVo service later this year, roughly double the number currently offered through the iTunes Store.

About 10,000 movies will be available when the service launches in the latter half of this year. Most rental films on Blockbuster.com today cost about $2 to $4, while purchased movies start at less than $10.

Blockbuster claimed that its roster of movies on TiVo will outshine that of online choices available at Netflix and Amazon. Indeed, while Amazon and Netflix have more videos available in total, most are older titles, whereas Blockbuster.com offers many more recent hits.

After a brief delay, Apple has activated the "Genius" feature for movies and TV shows in iTunes 8.1. It is not entirely clear when Apple flicked the switch, but it appears that reports of the activation date back to late last week.

Similar to the existing feature for music launched in iTunes 8.0, a user can select a movie or TV episode from their library and activate the Genius feature, which then displays recommendations for iTunes Store purchases based on their selection.

The expansion of the feature to movies and TV shows was revealed on Apple's site prior to the release of iTunes 8.1 and was also mentioned in the included release notes for the download, but readers quickly noticed that the feature was nowhere to be found. Following the release of iTunes 8.1, Apple quickly removed mentions of the feature from its iTunes pages, and they have yet to restore them despite activation of the feature.

Macworld reports that a regional branch of China Unicom has posted information [Google translation] related to the iPhone on their web site.

The information, which listed smartphones supported by the 3G network China Unicom is building, appeared only on the Web site of the company's Shanghai branch and did not say whether the products would be offered in China.

The site's changes follow media reports that a China Unicom delegation visiting Apple last week made a breakthrough in talks over offering the iPhone 3G on its network.

Apple has been trying to bring the iPhone to China, the world's largest mobile phone market, but has struggled to come to agreements with the country's largest carriers. Talks with China Mobile, the country's largest provider, have broken down numerous times, although the company still claims to be in negotiations with Apple.

Apple's efforts with China Unicom, the world's third largest mobile provider with over 125 million GSM subscribers, have apparently proven more fruitful, with previous rumors pointing to a May launch of the iPhone on their network.

Update: TMCnews details a report from Xinhua News saying that China Unicom has confirmed a May 17th launch for the iPhone.

Boy Genius Report details a source "pretty high up in AT&T's food chain" who reportedly shared several tidbits of information about the next-generation iPhone. While short on details beyond the addition of an iPhone application to control AT&T's U-verse suite of Internet-based products and services and more hints that the iPhone may see increased Wi-Fi browsing speeds up to 7.2 Mbps, the source's comments provide additional perspective on what may lie ahead.

- New iPhone announcement around mid-June
- New iPhone will be faster and have a more seamless experience unmatched by any device
- U-Verse iPhone application; will allow control of your home DVR (play, pause, rewind, etc.)
- The annual iPhone launch is "becoming a tradition."
- Nothing official is being confirmed, but they said that people should prep for an exciting time this summer.
- AT&T is said to be working with Apple to create a unified product with an unparalleled experience across all their products and services.
- Apple's 3.0 software should tell us where the iPhone platform is going.
- They said customers shouldnt need to choose from AT&T's high-end devices because of features, they should choose based on preferences. The gap in capability should be filled with the new iPhone.
- Seems like the higher speed HSDPA (7.2Mbps) is being hinted at too which should confirm the earlier rumors of the new Infineon chipset.

The final comment from the source proves to be the most interesting and relates to the possibility of a $99 3G netbook arriving this summer, with the implication being that it may be an Apple product:

- The $99 3G netbook will start selling this summer, and the first one won't be a Windows OS.