MacRumors

At present, the 4-finger gestures only allow you to switch applications (swipe left/right) or invoke Expos (swipe up/down). This preference pane would potentially allow you to instead assign these swipes to other functions, such as switching between Spaces, showing your Desktop, loading Dashboard and more.

The site speculates that this functionality may find its way into Snow Leopard though it has not yet been spotted in the developer builds. Meanwhile, owners of previous generation multi-touch MacBook Pros and MacBook Airs are hoping to get four-finger gestures enabled on their machines with a future software update.

We're pleased to announce that you can now use your MobileMe iDisk to share files with others simply and easily. Instead of attaching a large document to an email and hoping it's not too big to be received, you can place the file in your iDisk and use the new Share File command in the iDisk web app. It lets you send your friends, family, or colleagues a link they can click to download the file directly. You can password protect the link if you choose to and even set how long it will be available.

Apple has also provided a video tutorial demonstrating the process, which involves simply selecting a file, clicking a "Share File" button, and customizing options and the message to accompany the link to be sent to the recipient.

iDisk file sharing was targeted to be included in the July 2008 launch of MobileMe, but was removed at the last minute, although Apple's iDisk page continued to promise that the feature was in the works.

The MobileMe launch was marred by a series of problems, acknowledged by Steve Jobs and resulting in customers being offered several free extensions to their MobileMe subscriptions. In particular, Jobs expressed regret that Apple had attempted to launch MobileMe in a single, complicated transition rather than in stages.

Google's Mike Pinkerton just posted the first screenshots from the Mac build of Google's Chrome web browser.

This week, everything came together and we can now load web pages in the renderer processes and display them in tabs. Here's a screenshot of the very first time I ran Mac Chromium and loaded a webpage:

Google announced Chrome for Windows back in September and stated that they believe they "can add value for users and, at the same time, help drive innovation on the web."

One of the features described for the Windows version has been the isolation of processes within each tab. This means that a misbehaving website can only potentially crash the tab that its running and not the whole browser. Also offered is a screenshot for when this might happen on the Mac version of the browser:

Apple today released several security-related updates through Software Update and Apple's Support Downloads site.

Security Update 2009-001 addresses a number of vulnerabilities detailed in the update's support document, notably including the Safari RSS vulnerability disclosed in mid-January.

Multiple input validation issues exist in Safari's handling of feed: URLs. The issues allow execution of arbitrary JavaScript in the local security zone. This update addresses the issues through improved handling of embedded JavaScript within feed: URLs. Credit to Clint Ruoho of Laconic Security, Billy Rios of Microsoft, and Brian Mastenbrook for reporting these issues.

The update is available in a number of versions:

- Leopard Universal (43.4 MB)
- Leopard Server Universal (46.54 MB)
- Tiger Intel (164.23 MB)
- Tiger PPC (74 MB)
- Tiger Server Universal (213 MB)
- Tiger Server PPC (141.76 MB)

Apple also released Safari 3.2.2 for Windows to patch the RSS vulnerability for Windows users.

Finally, Apple released Java updates for both Leopard (3 MB) and Tiger (1.6 MB). According to the support documents (Leopard, Tiger), both updates address the same vulnerabilities in the Java plug-in and Java Web Start.

Images claiming to depict the back cover of an upcoming iPhone have started circulating on the internet. iPodObserver first posted a version of the above photo that allegedly depicts an unreleased 16GB iPhone with the model number A1303. This new iPhone case is said to "shed its glossy appearance for a matte black look" and also introduce a new case-back made of metal. The site seems confident in the photo and reminded readers that they were also responsible for publishing an early back-case photo of the iPhone 3G.

MacRumors has also received additional images (below) that appear to be from the same series. While we can't confirm their authenticity, we present them for discussion given iPodObserver's apparent belief in them. The images have reportedly come from China and are said to depict the back-casing of the next iPhone. The case is also said to be textured for better gripping.

The original iPhone came with aluminum back casing. This design eventually gave way to a smooth plastic curved back of the current iPhone 3G.

ifoAppleStore reports that Apple will soon be revamping their retail stores to focus on software and the user experience rather than hardware.

According to plans still being rolled out, hardware will become a secondary focus of the stores' marketing efforts, making way for a spotlight on applications and the digital features of Apple products.

According to ifoAppleStore, visitors to the redesigned stores will first encounter a "Why You'll Love a Mac" section focused on comparing Macs to PCs, an effort clearly targeted at potential switchers, who have consistently been making approximately 50% of Mac purchases in retail stores. Further back, the stores will feature two additional areas, one focused on iLife applications and the second dedicated to iWork.

The updated layout will continue a theme seen in recent changes to the iPhone and iPod touch display tables, which are now arranged to feature applications available for the mobile devices organized by category.

The redesigned store layout may debut as early as next week, although ifoAppleStore suggests that it may take several weeks for the transition to be completed due to staff retraining and deployment of updated signage and materials.

With the absence of major new user interface features in Snow Leopard, we're left discussing some rather minor (though frequently requested) tweaks found in the latest developer builds of Mac OS X 10.6.

Put Back - Under Mac OS 9, users had the option to restore any "Trash"ed files (before the Trash is emptied) back to their original locations with a simple "Put Away" command. For some reason, this capability was lost in the transition to Mac OS X. In the latest Snow Leopard builds, it's back (as "Put Back"). So any accidental disposals can now easily be restored with a simple click. Again, this only works for files that have been moved to the Trash but not yet "emptied" (deleted).

Stacks Folder Navigation - The introduction of the "Stacks" metaphor in Mac OS 10.5 was met with mixed reactions. One issue with Stacks has been the inability to "drill down" into additional folders. In Leopard, clicking on a folder in Stacks simply opened that folder in the Finder.

Photoshopped Mockup

Snow Leopard is Apple's next major revision to Mac OS X. It is officially due sometime in 2009 and is said to be focusing on stability and performance enhancements.

AppleInsider reports that Apple is developing an on-demand video service that would allow users to stream their purchased iTunes movies and TV shows from Apple's servers for playback on personal devices. The service, to be called "iTunes Replay", would eliminate the need for users to provide significant storage space for their libraries of purchased digital video.

In particular, devices with limited storage capacity, such as the iPhone/iPod touch and Apple TV, could benefit from this service, removing the need to sync with a host computer to load desired video files and circumventing storage capacity constraints of the portable devices.

The iTunes Replay service could also improve the experience of the company's Apple TV set top box, allowing users to stream purchased media directly from Apple's servers without ever syncing or copying files between Apple TV and a computer running iTunes, and without filling up the devices' limited hard drive space, which currently tops out at 160 GB.

The ability to stream purchased content directly would also benefit users of mobile devices such as the iPhone and iPod touch, which have an even greater limit on local storage capacity but already have the ability to stream QuickTime content directly over the air.

AppleInsider notes that while Amazon's Video on Demand and Netflix's Instant Watch services provide similar functionality, DRM requirements imposed by content owners have resulted in certain limitations on playback ability, generally requiring an Internet browser. Apple, however, has already integrated DRM tools into its devices, which would allow for a more flexible viewing experience for users.

Apple has been known to be exploring streaming iTunes media to the iPhone and iPod touch, with a recent patent application addressing the ability for users to stream their own at-home iTunes libraries to their mobile devices while on the go.

MSNBC put the spotlight on a new report by RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky, who believes that an entry-level $99 iPhone will arrive in June or July alongside an upgraded (higher screen resolution) iPhone 3G.

The report echos many similar analyst reports over the past year that have also pointed to the possibility of an entry-level $99 iPhone. The analyst even published this detailed chart about what he believes the breakdown might be (republished by AppleInsider):

The $99 entry-level iPhone looks remarkably like the original iPhone with an EDGE-only network connection but a discounted monthly plan. The upgraded iPhone 3G, however, seems to only add video, storage and a higher resolution screen to the mix. The report looks like a rehash of circulating rumors and speculation. And in the end, analyst reports as a whole have been a poor predictor of future Apple products, but we published this for interest's sake.

The possibility of a low-end $99 iPhone was brought into doubt by Apple's acting-CEO Tim Cook, who said that Apple was simply not interested in that market:

We're not going to play in the low-end voice phone business. That's not who we are, that's not why we're here. Goal is not to lead unit sales, but to build the world's best phone.

The next-generation iPhone, however, is certainly in the works as evidenced by model strings found in the latest iPhone firmware.

One interesting note is that the possibility of an increased resolution (720x480) iPhone might be less of a problem for app compatibility than rumored plans for a smaller Nano screen. While developers may still have to issue new versions of their apps, scaling to a higher resolution would presumably be easier than the other way around. Meanwhile, the 720x480 resolution has been said to be planned for Apple's long-rumored mini-tablet/PDA project.

Tom's Hardware reports on Intel's plans to offer their first Core i7 (Nehalem) mobile processors by the fourth quarter of 2009. These 32 nm Arrandale processors will be suitable for notebook designs, and Tom's Hardware speculates that we'll see these in Apple's notebooks:

It is highly probable that Apple will base new MacBook and MacBook Por units on 32nm Arrandale Core i7's. With 2 cores and able to process 4 threads, the new MacBook models will be able to save even more power, thanks to the smaller fabrication process as well as optimized processor features.

Apple's MacBooks and MacBook Pros, however, were last updated in October with the latest 45 nm Penryn processors. So the very next Apple notebook updates will likely come prior to the release of these processors.

The 32 nm process also represents a die-shrink over existing 45 nm-based Intel chips. The new 32 nm process is said to offer an estimated 22 percent performance boost according to Mark Bohr, an Intel senior fellow.

Intel is also expected to transition their desktop processors to the 32 nm design in the same timeframe, but Apple has yet to take advantage of Intel's "desktop"-class processors. Instead, Apple has used Intel's mobile (Mac Mini, MacBook, MacBook Pro, iMac) and server (Mac Pro, Xserve) processors exclusively.

The Register reports on comments from Intel executives about the upcoming "Nehalem" Xeon EP processors due at the end of this quarter. During a briefing with reporters, Intel's vice president and director of operations at Intel's digital enterprise Group said that the new Nehalem EP chips are "currently in production, and we expect to have a system introduction later this quarter. So it is imminent."

The Nehalem Xeon EP processors are widely expected to power the next generation Mac Pro that has not seen updates for over a year. The Xeon EP processors should offer substantial performance boosts over existing models despite comparable clock speeds.

Previous reports have pinpointed a date of March 29th as a possible ship date.

VentureBeat claims that Apple specifically asked Google not to use Multi-Touch in their Android platform and Google agreed. The report comes from an unidentified member of the Android team:

Apple, which of course makes the signature multi-touch mobile device, the iPhone, apparently asked Google not to implement it, and Google agreed, an Android team member tells us.

According to the report, Google wanted to avoid risking its relationship with Apple. The same source claims that Apple's relationships with Palm have significantly soured surrounding the recent public statements that Apple would aggressively protect the iPhone's intellectual property. Palm's new Pre Phone is the first mobile phone to offer multi-touch gestures similar to Apple's iPhone.

The new Kindle has made a number of steady improvements over the original design. Features include:

- Thinner. 0.36 inches thick.
- 3G wireless, no monthly fees
- Improved 16 grey-shade display
- 25% longer battery life. "read for days"
- Faster page turns
- More storage (Up to 1500 books)
- Instant dictionary lookup
- Text-to-Speech

The new Kindle will cost $359 and ship on February 24th with pre-orders starting now.

With the introduction of the original Kindle, some Apple customers have hoped that Apple might also enter the eBook market. Jobs dismissed that possibility in early 2008 when asked about the Kindle:

"It doesn't matter how good or bad the product is, the fact is that people dont read anymore," he said. "Forty percent of the people in the U.S. read one book or less last year. The whole conception is flawed at the top because people dont read anymore."

Meanwhile, the iPhone may have inadvertently become the largest eBook reader with the introduction of various eBook apps through the iTunes App Store.

The main issue with these free iPhone readers, however, has been the lack of premium content (new releases) that is found on the Kindle. In the future, there may be more synergy between the technolgies as Amazon also announced last week that they would be working to make Kindle books available "on a range of mobile phones", leading some to believe that the iPhone could someday gain access to Amazon's digital library.

Apple has begun surveying new Apple TV owners to get an idea for what customers usage habits are surrounding the digital media appliance. The email sent to some Apple TV owners reads:

Please take a few minutes to complete this survey to help us understand how you use your Apple TV. Your responses will remain completely confidential and results will be viewed only in aggregate. We value and appreciate your input.

The questions of the survey asked about what sources video content came from, what hardware equipment that the Apple TV was used with and what other equipment the users own. It also asks the open-ended question of "If you could change one thing about your Apple TV, what would that be?". AppleInsider speculates that this information will shape the future of the Apple TV.

It certainly will help Apple profile the individuals who are buying their product. The Apple TV has long been described by Apple management as a "hobby" product rather than a serious revenue stream as the iPod, Mac and iPhones are.

Apple's plans for the Apple TV have always been a bit of a mystery, and, as a result, we have not featured it on our Buyer's Guide. As it stands, the Apple TV acts as a set-top iPod and has enough horsepower to play all the content required from the iTunes store. As a result, no regular updates are required to fulfill this basic need. When and if Apple decides to transition the Apple TV into a separate product on its own, we may then see more regular updates with additional features to drive sales.

Speculation about future Apple TV updates include the usual laundry list of suspects: DVR, Blu-Ray, DVD, App Store support and more.