MacRumors

iLounge claims to have dimensions of the new iPod Nano and iPod Touch which are expected to be released at next week's September 9th media event.

The new iPod Nano resembles circulating rumors, though the front display does not appear to be as curved as previously depicted.

The new iPod Touch will be receiving a tapered design much like the new iPhone 3G. The new case appears to be slightly thicker than the existing iPod Touch and also reveals physical volume controls which are absent on the current iPod Touch.

Case manufacturer XSKN is already selling cases for the 4th Generation nano which match the design and does suggest a very rounded design.

Apple is expected to release these new iPods on September 9th, 2008.

With Apple's announcement that the company will be holding a special media event on September 9th, we're reminded that Kevin Rose was the first source of the September 9th date.

Rose originally reported that we would see new iPod nanos and small cosmetic changes to the iPod Touch in September, but also revealed that iTunes 8 would arrive as a "big update" with new features. Later when he revealed the September 9th date, he described a new music recommendation feature within iTunes 8, but gave few details. An anonymous tip has since suggested that this "genius playlist" feature would be able to generate a playlist based on the qualities of a selected song, giving a Pandora-like experience with your own music library. This, however, remains unconfirmed and is published for interest only.

Finally, Rose said yesterday that iTunes 8.0 have new "trippy" visualizations with one described as "planet like objects wrapping around each other with stars/light streams".

Apple's media event takes place at 10am Pacific time on September 9th, and according to Cult of Mac, Apple has uncharacteristically told at least one journalist that the event is "a big deal and [he] should try to be there".

Update: A new blog post claims this is "what's new" in iTunes 8:

iTunes 8 includes Genius, which makes playlists from songs in your library that go great together. Genius also includes Genius sidebar, which recommends music from the iTunes Store that you don't already have.

With iTunes 8, browse your artists and albums visually with the new Grid view; download your favorite TV shows in HD quality from the iTunes Store; sync your media with iPod nano (4th generation), iPod classic (2nd generation), and iPod touch (2nd generation); and enjoy a stunning new music visualizer.

Adobe is hosting a webcast to publicly unveil Creative Suite 4, their next-generation graphic design, video editing, and web development application package, on September 23rd. Advance registration is requested in order to obtain viewing instructions. No specific details on the content of the webcast have been announced, and the release date, package options, and pricing for Creative Suite 4 remain unknown.

Adobe announced public betas of Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and Soundbooth in May, and additional information on the Photoshop CS4 interface was revealed in June. Early reports of an October release for CS4 were contested by Adobe, although this may end up being fairly accurate, as most Creative Suite 3 bundle packages began shipping less than three weeks after its March 2007 unveiling.

Engadget confirms that there is an Apple media event for September 9th as rumored.

Apple is expected to release new iPod nanos and a new iPod Touch. While Macbook and MacBook Pro updates are also in the pipeline, we have heard suggestions that those will not see updates until at least October.

Google announced today that they would be releasing a new open source web browser called Google Chrome. The new browser will be available for download as a beta starting tomorrow.

Google states that the reason for a new web browser is that the company believes that it "can add value for users and, at the same time, help drive innovation on the web." The new browser is said to be "streamlined and simple" and "clean and fast". The underlying rendering engine is based on Webkit which is also used by Apple's Safari.

Other features were revealed in a comic book that detailed the new browser. Features include:

- New JavaScript engine called V8 for faster performance
- "Special tabs" above the window, not below the address bar (see image above)
- Address bar auto-completion
- Opera-like "Speed Dial" with thumbnails of your most visited 9 websites
- Privacy mode
- Web apps can be launched in their own window without addressbar/toolbar

The entire comic book is published at AllThingsD.com.

The browser will initially be offered for Windows only, but Mac and Linux versions are on the way. A screenshot shows the Windows version of the browser.

Update: Google's site http://www.google.com/chrome is now active and available for Windows.

Engadget Spanish has found an actual case for the unreleased 4th Generation iPod Nano at the IFA 2008 expo. The case resembles the circulating rumors of the taller/rounded iPod Nano that is expected for release in September.

The case is by Hama and is a Sport Case specifically labeled "for iPod nano 4G".

Word of a taller case were first reported by iLounge. Kevin Rose later added a more details including a mockup photo. Other 4G iPod Nano cases have been seen online but this is the first time it has been physically spotted in the wild.

Over at TouchArcade.com, we have posted an image of what appears to be a Belkin gaming controller accessory for the iPhone. The ad copy of the accompanying unconfirmed image claims that the new "JoyPod" will provide App Store support. If true, this means Apple will be incorporating official support for the accessory in the iPhone SDK. Other features listed include:

- 8 buttons total (6 on the front)
- Audio output
- Dock connector for power and syncing

iControlPad is another control pad accessory for the iPhone that has been under development, but without Apple's involvement, that controller may be limited to Jailbroken apps.

Update: Belkin denies that they are releasing this product.

Microsoft's Mac BU and FrontLine Systems have announced that Solver for Excel 2008 is now available for the Mac as a free download.

Frontline Systems developed the original Solver for Excel on both Macintosh and Windows. For many years, we've offered Solver upgrades for Windows users, that have gotten more and more powerful over time -- but we haven't been active on the Mac. We're now applying more development resources to the Macintosh, motivated by the Mac's resurgence in the market and the move to Intel processors. But the catalyst for this move has been Microsoft's Mac Excel team.

Solver is an Excel add-in that allows linear programming / analysis tool for Excel which was initially released for the Mac when Excel 2004 shipped but was dropped from Excel 2008 due to its dependency on Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) support.

Microsoft has previously announced that VBA support will be coming back to Mac Office in the next version.

RoughlyDrafted reports on details of the iPhone 2.0.2 firmware 3G connectivity improvements. According to a "source close to AT&T," the connectivity issues have been caused by iPhones demanding that cell towers devote more power than necessary to their connections. When a "critical mass" of iPhones, all demanding excessive amounts of power, are connected to a cell tower, the transmitter runs out of power and begins dropping calls and degrading data delivery. The 2.0.2 firmware update is said to address this issue via modifications to the power control algorithm.

The source also clarifies that iPhones running 2.0 and 2.0.1 firmware are continuing to cause problems for all users, which explains why many users have reported that connection issues persisted after they updated their iPhones. This also explains the advertising push for the 2.0.2 update seen with Apple adding a banner ad to the iPhone App Store and AT&T sending text messages to users encouraging them to update their iPhones.

This is one of the reasons why AT&T has been sending text messages to users to persuade them to upgrade to the 2.0.2 software. In a mixed environment where users are running 2.0, 2.0.1, and 2.0.2, the power control problems of 2.0 and 2.0.1 will affect the 2.0.2 users.

It is not the network that is fault but the interaction of the bad power control algorithm in 2.0 and 2.0.1 software and the network that is at fault. The sooner everybody is running 2.0.2 software the better things will be. Having seen the graphs the 2.0.2 software has already started to make difference.

Apple is due to release a software update for the iPhone in September, but it is not known whether it will include changes to further address the connectivity issues.

Gizmodo reports on an alleged email Steve Jobs sent to one of their readers. The email was in response to a complaint that AT&T is not offering a tethering option for the iPhone, even though it is offered on other smartphones as a $30/month add-on. The response acknowledged Apple and AT&T were discussing the option:

We agree, and are discussing it with ATT.

Steve

'Tethering' allows users to connect their laptops to the internet by using their mobile phone as the internet connection. The lack of a tethering option for the iPhone was highlighted recently due to the enormous interest in Nullriver's Netshare application which was temporarily available through the App Store.

As mentioned above, AT&T does offer an official tethering option for many of its smartphones as an additional $30/month charge.

Apple today released ProRes QuickTime Decoder 1.0, which allows Mac and PC users to view Apple ProRes files through QuickTime. ProRes, released as part of Final Cut Pro 6 in April 2007, is a post-production format targeted at video editors and offering uncompressed high-definition quality at standard-definition file sizes.

The Apple ProRes QuickTime Decoder software allows both Mac and Windows users to play Apple ProRes files through QuickTime. Apple ProRes is a visually lossless format that provides uncompressed HD quality at SD data rates.

It is an excellent choice for mastering and can easily be transcoded to distribution formats like H.264. With new support for playback on both Mac and Windows computers, Apple ProRes can also be used for review and approval of Final Cut Studio sequences.

Apple previously published a white paper (PDF) detailing the features and benefits of the format.

The update is available in a Mac version weighing in at 369 KB and requiring OS X 10.4 or 10.5 and a Windows version weighing in at 273 KB and requiring Windows XP (SP2) or later. Both versions also require QuickTime 7.5 or later.

According to Macworld, Apple has confirmed the security flaw that was publicized yesterday that could allow unauthorized individuals to circumvent the passcode locking system on the iPhone.

The minor iPhone security issue which surfaced this week is fixed in a software update which will be released in September, Apple representative, Jennifer Bowcock, said in an email to Macworld.

A fix is promised for September to address the security issue. In the meanwhile, users are being told to set their double-tap preferences to direct to the home screen rather than favorites. This will prevent the flaw from being exploitable.

The promised September iPhone update will have to live up to high expectations. The list of issues to be addressed or new features to be released is ever increasing. The list now includes this security fix, fix for iPhone app crashing, 3G connectivity improvements (partially addressed by 2.0.2), and "push" background services for applications.