MacRumors

Roughly Drafted provides a birds-eye view of the key technologies coming in Mac OS X Snow Leopard. While Apple's press release and later comments by Steve Jobs provide hints of what Grand Central and OpenCL are planning to accomplish, this article adds a few extra details.

According to the article, Apple's Grand Central is a new thread management architecture which simplifies the developer's task to support multi-threading:

Snow Leopards Grand Central Dispatch does the same thing [as modern networking] for processes, packetizing tasks into Blocks and routing them to available processing cores as efficiently as possible. It can also manage the big picture for the whole system, adjusting how it balances its tasks as the performance load increases. This would be close to impossible for Individual developers to do themselves.

With the recent trend towards multi-core CPUs, exploiting multi-threaded designs is required to take advantage of today's processors. As expected, OpenCL will allow developers to also pass off tasks to the computer's Graphics Processing Unit (GPU). However, it appears OpenCL code will be stored as bytecode to allow for just-in-time compilation (same as Core Image) allowing applications to be specifically optimized to the graphics hardware it is being run on. Similarly, Grand Central will oversee OpenCL tasks as well, to optimally route code to the best available processor.

Apple expects to ship the final version of Mac OS X Snow Leopard in "about a year".

One reader has found references to an unreleased High Definition USB iSight in Apple's QuickTime system files. The line is specifically labeled "Next Generation USB iSight" in QuickTime's localizable.strings and also carries a reference of 'iSight HD'. We're not sure how old this reference is, but a quick Google search shows no previous discussion of it. Still, it remains possible that this could be an old reference to a project that is no longer planned.

The iSight was an external Firewire webcam that Apple sold between 2003 and 2006. Apple stopped selling the stand-alone iSight in December of 2006. Apple has since integrated iSight cameras into their laptops and iMac, but their external displays remain camera-less.

The iPhone 3G will launch on July 11th, and we've consolidated a few tidbits about launch day. In the meanwhile, readers are organizing regional meetups for launch day.

- iPhone will launch in 20 countries on July 11th: Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and the US. (France and Belgium launches have been delayed)
- In the U.S., the iPhone 3G will be sold at Apple Retail or AT&T stores.
- iPhone 3G sales time is rumored to be 6PM on Friday, July 11th
- If all countries launch the new iPhone at the same local time (6pm), then New Zealand will be the first country where customers will have 3G iPhones in hand. This corresponds to 2am Eastern time on July 11th.
- Both Gizmodo and Engadget have posted FAQs which address the basic questions about the iPhone 3G.
- Reports of required in-store activation in the U.S. remain, but one unconfirmed tidbit we've heard is that customers with existing iPhones will be shunted to a separate line and will simply need provide the new IMEI number (printed on the outside of the box) from their iPhone 3G. Activation will reportedly then be completed at home after switching your sim card to the new phone and plugging into iTunes. If true, this would speed up sales for those upgrading their existing phones and also leave the iPhone 3G's packaging intact (to the relief of many).

We expect more confirmed details to emerge in the weeks leading up to the launch.

After each major event, MacRumors provides a wrapup of rumors to reveal the sources of the most accurate (or inaccurate) information.

iPhone 3G

As widely expected, Apple released the iPhone 3G at WWDC 2008 at $200 with 3G and GPS but no front-sided video camera. The specs for the iPhone had been well predicted, and, as we had warned, the evidence was weakest for the front-sided video camera.

From a spec perspective, both Engadget and Scott Mortiz of Fortune (and subsequently Cult of Mac/Kahney) accurately predicted a number of details about the new phone, including price point, flush headphone jack, case design and features. Their seemingly conflicting "thicker" vs. "thinner" case predictions could both be interpreted with some truth since the edges of the iPhone 3G are thinner but the center is negligably thicker.Fakes and Photos

iPhone case design leaks came frequently during this round of rumors, but it was the first iPhone case leak that turned out to be the most accurate. iPod Observer deserves credit for the first and most accurate case photo released.

Unfortunately, a large number of fake images were posted by a few over-eager blogs. With the increased attention surrounding Apple, sites have become quick to post even questionable photos, which comes at the cost of their future credibility.

Kevin Rose

Digg's Kevin Rose remains a wildcard with regard to Apple rumors. He was frequently the first to report on iPhone rumors during this round, and succesfully described the inclusion of GPS and a $200 price point for the new iPhone. However, he was also the first source for the video-conferencing rumor, which turned out to be inaccurate.

Import Records

One rumor that received a lot of attention came from ImportGenius, who claimed to have found international shipping notices documenting what was thought to be iPhone 3G shipments coming into the U.S. as early as March. As best we can tell, this intepretation was wrong. With a release date in July, it seems clear that the iPhone 3G ramp-up has only begun, as later reported by Barrons.

Snow Leopard

Both TUAW and Arstechnica provided accurate details about Mac OS X Snow Leopard, which was first announced at WWDC. Claims of a January 2009 release, however, were a bit ambitious.

Other Winners and Losers

XSKN, iDealChina: 3rd Party Cases - true
WeiPhone - More 3G iPhone Photos... Now in White - true
iPhoneClub.nl: More White 3G iPhone Photos - true
TUAW: .Mac Revamp - true
DaringFireball + MacRumors: Apple Buys Me.com - true

CNET: App Store to Launch at WWDC - false
MacScoop: No GPS in new iPhone - false
MacTalk.com.au: Australian Resellers Get Mysterious Boxes - hoax
Shaw Wu: Chance of Multi-touch Device at WWDC - false
Page 2: 3G iPhone Specs and Price - false
TUAW: Mac Fusion Developer Mac - false
CrunchGear: 3G iPhone with Video Chat - false

Looking Ahead

Some readers were disappointed by the focus on the iPhone during this year's WWDC, but few rumors had pinpointed any new Mac releases around this time. Intel is expected to launch the Montevina platform on July 14th, while the MacBook is expected to be revised in Q3 of this year (July-September). The fate of the Mac mini remains unknown, as it has not yet seen a revision, despite rumors of an impending update.

The most intriguing rumor remains the prediction that Apple will introduce a Mac tablet in the fall of this year.

The next major Apple event scheduled is Macworld San Francisco which takes place January 5th-9th, 2009. Apple, of course, may hold smaller media-only events in the interim.

Apple has seeded a second version of Mac OS X 10.5.4 to developers today. While the latest build (9e12) fixes a dozen more issues in Mac OS X Leopard, the biggest new feature to be supported will be Apple's recently announced MobileMe service. MobileMe is Apple's .Mac replacement service which will allow users to sync contacts, email, and calendar across various devices. It also provides advanced web applications to access your information anywhere with a web browser.

Apple has announced that MobileMe will be launched in early July. Apple's system requirements for MobileMe include Mac OS X 10.5.4 as well as iTunes 7.7, so we expect these two updates to also be released in early July.

Apple provides a Frequently Asked Questions document for existing .Mac customers who will be transitioning to MobileMe.

Update: The system requirements for MobileMe also list 10.4.11 as being compatible, but "some features require Mac OS X v10.5 and iLife 08."

Fortune reports on Apple and Intel's strengthening relationship over the past few years. Apple switched from PowerPC to the Intel processors three years ago in a somewhat surprise move. Since then, Apple has successfully transitioned to the use of Intel processors in their Macs.

Up until January, Apple had used off-the-shelf Intel parts generally available to other manufacturers. For the MacBook Air, however, Apple approached Intel in early 2007 asking for a small, thin chip for use in an extremely thin computer. Initially, Intel said they were unable to help, but then realized they had an old project that had not been well received by PC manufactuers:

Years earlier, researchers had dreamed up a similar chip in a tiny package, but the idea had been put on the back burner after PC makers gave it a ho-hum reception. The concept just had to be dusted off. We had that small chip package pretty much sitting on the shelf, Rattner recalls. Within a year, Intel had updated it to meet Apples needs and delivered it in volume.

Apple used the chip in the MacBook Air, which was introduced in January of this year. The most interesting comment, however, is that Intel's chief technology officer Justin Rattner says that Intel is working with Apple on more projects that are "equally aggressive".

AMD today announced the new ATI Radeon HD 3870 for Mac & PC Edition. AMD says the video card is "designed exclusively for Apple's Mac Pro systems" and includes two dual-link DVI ports, 512 MB of GDDR4 graphics memory, and 320 stream processors.

AMD is introducing the ATI Radeon HD 3870 Mac & PC Edition to enhance the Mac experience to maximum levels of 3D gaming and HD performance, said Matt Skynner, vice president of marketing, Graphics Products Group, AMD. Mac users demand the best when it comes to HD graphics performance, and the ATI Radeon 3870 Mac & PC Edition is designed to meet and exceed that need by delivering The Ultimate Visual Experience to our customers displays.

Delivers More Power for Professional Applications
Superior performance and visual quality make the ATI Radeon HD 3870 Mac & PC Edition ideal for creative and professional applications on Apple Mac Pro systems, including Aperture, Motion and Final Cut Studio. Users can take advantage of the latest graphics features and drive productivity at an extraordinary price.

The release has been anticipated and is expected to give unrivaled Core Image processing power for its price class, largely confirmed by an early review by Xlr8yourmac.com. Unlike the NVIDIA 8800 GT which had two separate models for older and newer Mac Pros, the Radeon HD 3870 Mac and PC Edition will work in any Mac Pro.

AMD says the card will be available in late June for a manufacturers suggested retail price (MSRP) of USD $219.

iLounge reveals that Apple has included a second proximity sensor to the iPhone 3G to provide more accurate face-detection. This brings the total number of sensors to three (two proximity sensors, one ambient light sensor).

Apple previously included one proximity sensor near the earpiece of the original iPhone to prevent accidental key presses when the phone was held against your face. By adding a second proximity sensor, Apple is said to have improved this face-detection functionality. As a result of this addition, case manufacturers have increased the size of the opening surrounding the earpiece of the iPhone.

Details of the 3rd sensor had sparked speculation that Apple could have included a front-facing camera to enable video conferencing. No front-faced camera design, however, was announced at WWDC.

In the months leading up to the iPhone 3G launch, there were a few early 3rd party case leaks that claimed to depict the upcoming iPhone 3G design. First reports of the case specs came from iLounge. They accurately described tapered edge designs, a glossy plastic back, with white and black colors. One aspect of the original story that we haven't been able to confirm is the reported addition of a 3rd sensor, which drove speculation about the possibility of video conferencing. No additional sensor has been described in the tech specs for the new iPhone. However, iPhone 3G case designs do appear to have adjusted with a larger openings at the earpiece.

This brings us back to two early reports of 3G iPhone case designs by XSKN and Griffin Technology. Both sets of images appear to have been accurate.

Images of XSKN's EXO Mask iPhone 3G were posted in May generating a lengthy debate. Their product remains available with the design consistent with the actual iPhone 3G release. In retrospect, Griffin's leaked case molds were also accurate with the final FlexGrip for iPhone 3G now announced.

Update In the end, it appears accessory manufacturers did get dimensions of the iPhone 3G prior to the official release. According to Jeremy Horwitz at iLounge, however, the specs did not come from Apple themselves and instead leaked from Apple's iPhone contractors.

AppleInsider publishes some information released to some developers this week about how they can submit their iPhone/iPod Touch applications to the iTunes App Store.

Applications are submitted via iTunes Connect and do have an absolute size limitation of 2GB. Apps can be limited to specific geographic regions, and information about iPod Touch compatibility and game content ratings can also be specified.

While Apple does give a wide range of pricing options, pricing is restricted to between $0.99 to $999.99 with increments ranging of $1 to $100 depending on relative price differences. Alternatively, applications can also be given away for free. Only a handful of developers have publicly announced specific prices for their iPhone applications, but it appears iPhone games are starting to settle around $9.99.

AppleInsider suggests the iTunes App store will launch on July 11th alongside the iPhone 3G. This date has also been reported by AppleGazette.

Apple announced the winners of their annual Apple Design Awards (ADA) tonight.

The Apple Design Awards, held at Moscone West during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference, recognize technical excellence, innovation, and outstanding achievement in software development. With new categories for iPhone development, this year's Apple Design Awards will be more exciting than ever.

The ADAs feature categories in both Mac and iPhone categories this year. TheiLife reported the winners from tonight's presentation ceremony. The winners include:

Best OS X Student Project
- Squirrel (finance management) by Axel Peju
Best OS X Graphics and Media Application
- ScreenFlow (Screencasting) by Vara Software Limited
Best OS X Application
- ScreenFlow (Screencasting) by Vara Software Limited
Best OS X User Experience
- Macnification (organize microscopic images) by Orbicule
Best OS X Game
- Guitar Hero III by Aspyr Media, Inc

Best iPhone Web App
- Remember the Milk (task management) by Remember the Milk
Best iPhone Game
- Enigmo by Pangea
Best iPhone Entertainment App
- AOL Radio by AOL LLC
Best iPhone Social Networking App
- Twitteriffic (twitter client) by The Icon Factory
Best iPhone Productivity App
- OmniFocus (task management) by The Omni Group
Best iPhone Healthcare & Fitness Application Winner
- MIM (medical imaging) by MIMVista, Corp.

The native iPhone winners, of course, are not yet available to the public. Runners up are also listed at TheiLife. The winners received two 15-inch MacBook Pro laptops, two 30-inch Apple Cinema Displays, one 16GB iPod touch, one 8GB iPhone, an ADC Premier Membership, reimbursement for one WWDC 2008 E-ticket including airfare and accommodations, and one 2009 ADC Macworld Expo Exclusive Marketing Package.