MacRumors

A newly published patent application (filed March 13, 2007) reveals that Apple has been researching a dynamically changing keyboard using OLED (organic light emitting diodes) on each key face. This is similar to the widely-publicized (but not yet shipping) Optimus keyboard:

By modifying the key faces, keys could reflect the current functionality, rather than relying on memorizing shortcuts. When introducing the iPhone, Apple boasted that the lack of physical keys meant that the user interface was entirely flexible. OLED-lit keys would provide similar flexibility.

A patent application submitted in 2006 and published for the first time today has revealed that Apple is working on a docking station for portable computers, the exterior of which closely resembles Apple's iMac line of desktop computers.

A docking station is disclosed. The docking station includes a display and a housing configured to hold the display in a manner that exposes a viewing surface of the display to view. The housing defines a docking area configured to receive a portable computer; The docking area is at least partly obscured by the display when viewed from the viewing surface side of the display at an angle substantially orthogonal to the viewing surface.

Apple argues that its docking station concept is superior in that it requires less desk space due to its vertical orientation. It is also simpler, as the display is integrated and wireless network technologies will be employed for communication between the dock and the portable.

There has been some speculation around the internet that the patent could be tied to the rumored Apple ultra-portable. While the timing of the publication is interesting, the application itself remains generic in nature, and appears to be applicable to any notebook computer.

Raw Data: Patent Application #20080002350

American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu cites sources who say that Apple will start shipping some of their computers with Blu-ray support as early as Macworld.

Appleinsider also corroborates the report with their own sources, expecting an overhaul to the Mac Pro in the 1st quarter of 2008 with Blu-ray support.

Mac Pro updates have been long overdue with the last major update almost 17 months ago. While some rumors have pegged the Mac Pro update at Macworld, there has been only minimal buzz about it in the final weeks before the expo.

According to MacScoop, the recent iPhone 1.1.3 firmware leak is an incomplete and unpolished version of the upcoming iPhone update which may still contain a few surprises when it is finally released.

According to the rumor site, Apple intends to include copy/paste functionality into the final version of the 1.1.3 update. No details on how copy/paste would be implemented, or even when the 1.1.3 update is expected. MacScoop has provided small rumor tidbits over the years, and was one of the first sites to predict the coming of the new ultra-portable Apple laptop.

Copy and Paste has been a much requested feature that is absent in the current version of the iPhone. The desire has even prompted a mockup video demonstrating how Apple might incorporate multi-touch Copy/Paste functionality into the iPhone.

As further evidence to the authenticity of GearLive's leaked iPhone 1.1.3 firmware photos and videos that were leaked over the weekend, Hrmph.com dug up a patent application that was published in August of last year that clearly shows Apple describing how one might allow rearrangement of icons on a mobile device, and specifically describes varying the positions (wobbling) of the icons to indicate that the icons may be moved by the user.

Hrmpf compiled an animated gif demonstrating this wobbling effect, which looks identical to the 1.1.3 demo video. While it's certainly possible the images/video could simply be based on this patent application, it was not widely publicized at the time, and the description of wobbling icons is only obvious in retrospect.

One interesting description of the original patent application is that Apple suggested that icon movement could be elastic, allowing users to "throw" icons into the indended location.

Upon breaking contact with the touch-sensitive display, the respective icon may resume varying its position. In some embodiments, the respective icon can be thrown, so that the final position of the respective icon is different from the point at which the icon is released. In this embodiment, the final position can depend on a variety of factors, such as the speed of the throw, the parameters used in a simulated equation of motion for the throw (e.g., coefficient of friction), and/or the presence of a lay out grid with simulated attractive forces.

The leaked version of the firmware does not have this capability according to GearLive. The iPhone is currently at firmware version 1.1.2, and there's been no indication when 1.1.3 might be released.

Microsoft has given some websites the opportunity to test drive the upcoming Mac Office 2008 suite ahead of its official launch at Macworld Expo. Aside from Intel compatibility, Office 2008 also tries to reorganize the Office experience:

One of the goals for this release was to allow people to rediscover the power of Office, said Microsofts Han-Yi Shaw, lead program manager for Word, Compatibility, and User Experience. Sometimes we get requests from power users for features we already have.

APCMag explores some of the new features in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Entourage.

- Word offers more desktop-publishing features, allowing easy document formatting
- Excel adds a new formula builder, increases max sizes of spreadsheets, but drops macro and Visual Basic support
- Powerpoint can create diagrams easily, Send to iPhoto which can be viewed on your iPod
- Entourage with improved Exchange connectivity, but still no encrypted MAPI mode

Macworld also has brief looks at Word 2008 and Excel 2008 with similar notes. Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac will officially launch during Macworld Expo which starts on January 14th, 2008.

Apple continues to make market share gains according to online trend research firm Net Applications.

Last month, Net Applications reported that Apple's share was up to 6.8% with corresponding declining Windows market share. Today, Net Applications reports that the Mac has crested the 7% barrier and is at 7.31% for December 2007. Meanwhile, Microsoft's Windows OS continues to decline in market share, with a still dominant 91.79% in December having eroded from 92.42% in November. Apple (and to a lesser extent, Linux) have been steadily taking market share from Microsoft for the past 6 months.

In contrast to market share numbers by firms like Gartner which combine quarterly results from the industry to give market share of sales, Net Applications market share numbers attempt to represent installed base of internet users. More on how Net Applications gets its numbers...

MacRumors has heard reliable confirmation about some features in upcoming Apple notebook due at Macworld San Francisco 2008.

A Mac sub-notebook is indeed expected to be coming at the Macworld and, as rumored, will not come with an internal optical drive. This omission is presumably due to Apple's ongoing efforts to reduce the size of their laptops. Instead, Apple is said to be offering an external optical drive with the sub-notebook. This detachable external drive would allow customers to read/write from CDs or DVDs as usual, but would allow users to leave this extra bulk at home when on the road.

Apple is also said to be introducing more than one notebook revision at Macworld. What combination of Sub-Notebook, MacBook or MacBook Pro remains unknown, but we've heard that at least one of these new notebooks will incorporate a multi-touch trackpad. The possibility of a multi-touch trackpad has been suggested by both rumors and published patent applications but has not previously been explicitly confirmed.

Macworld Expo kicks off on January 15th, 2008 with Steve Jobs' keynote address.

To round-out the 2007 year of rumoring, here is a wrap up of some of the biggest leaks from 2007.

iPod "Fat" Nano Images

9to5Mac first posted a mockup of the shorter/wider iPod nano on July 17th which was met with skepticism:

There's not even a tiny chance that Apple would release something that daft. - emotion

Later, 9to5mac released actual "spy photos" (mirror) of the new iPods in a number of different colors. Apple responded with Cease and Desist letters and the images were pulled from various websites.

This "fat" 3rd Generation iPod Nano was indeed released on September 5th, 2007 at Apple's 'Beat Goes On' media event.

The Nano seemed squat in the photos I had seen, In person it was much more attractive and pretty cool. Apple will sell a boat load of these this holiday season! - Sandfleaz

6th Generation iPod Interface Video

Videos of the 6th Generation iPod Classic and 3rd Generation iPod Nano videos were briefly posted on MacRumors.com on July 21st, well before they were finally released on September 5th. Within 5 hours of their posting, Apple Legal requested that the videos were removed. A mirror remains available on YouTube. Many also believed that these interface videos were Fake.

Slim iMac Keyboard Images

The iMac slim keyboard images that were leaked on July 27th were notable for a number of reasons. The original leak came from a mac.hk forum thread in which the seller was trying to sell the unreleased Apple keyboard. Full resolution images were also posted to the seller's Flickr account but subsequently removed. The images were reposted by Engadget.

Unlike practically every other legitimate Apple leak, Apple Legal did not try to have these images removed, causing many to doubt their authenticity. The images were accurate, however, and Steve Jobs even acknowledged the leak when the keyboard was introduced.

iPhone Waiter and Sightings

In June, a reader submitted information about hands-on use with the then-unreleased iPhone. The submitter was a Wine Director at a prominent restaurant, and was able to use the iPhone of (presumably) an Apple employee. The description revealed a few unknown features of the iPhone at the time which were later confirmed to be true.

A few other iPhone sightings that were widely reported: Airport and Train, were also later confirmed to be real by MacRumors.com.

iPod Touch, Steve Jobs Email

In October, MacRumors Forum user, DavidJearly emailed Steve Jobs about various issues, including iPod game incompatibilities and why the iPod Touch didn't include Calendar add/edit functionality. Jobs responded:

David,

Nothing can be done about the games. The new iPod touch is a completely different animal inside than the old iPods and the games just don't translate. The inability to edit and add calendar events is a bug that will be fixed in a future software update.

Best,
Steve

A subsequent iPod Touch update confirmed the authenticity of David's email from Jobs.

Note: the iPhone 1.1.3 video/images might have made the list, but has not yet been officially confirmed.

After the initial publishing of pre-release screenshots of the iPhone 1.1.3 firmware, there have been a couple of videos and details posted -- adding to the credibility of the original claims.

Gizmodo provided a short video demonstrating the movable Home screen icons as well as some notes from Natetrue, an iPhone hacker. Additional notes:

- the firmware installs with a private key that only Apple has at this time
- the update breaks AnySim unlocks
- the update breaks jailbreaking (installing 3rd party applications)
- features listed are reportedly correct

GearLive also followed up with a video walkthrough (mirror) of the iPhone 1.1.3 firmware. GearLive's Andru Edwards specifically addresses accusations that the photos are fake and attempts to prove the authenticity with this video.

Features demoed:

- Drag home screen icons around, into and out of the dock, and onto other pages
- the Firmware crashes once during the demo
- SMS to multiple people
- Google maps Drop Pin, Locate Me (pseudo GPS), Hybrid Map
- Safari Add Bookmark to Homescreen.

Note: several users have noted the "Nate" carrier name on the top-left of the demoed iPhone. This reportedly is a simple network-name custom hack that was preserved after the 1.1.3 update.

Variety cites studio sources and confirms previous reports that Apple will be announcing iTunes movie rentals at Macworld San Francisco 2008.

They also report that both Fox and Disney have signed on to provide movies for the new iTunes movie rental service. Variety, however, expects rental costs between $2 to $5 for only a 24 hour period. This is a significantly shorter window than earlier rumors which reported 30-day rentals. Variety does not cite specific sources for its pricing information, so could represent speculation.

Apple will be kicking off Macworld San Francisco with a keynote address on Tuesday, January 15th, 2008.

GearLive claims to have played with the upcoming iPhone 1.1.3 firmware update and reveals a number of new features to be included to the latest version of the iPhone's software.

The new features are shown in a screenshot gallery. Amongst the new features depicted:

- Edit Home Screen - Rearrange icons on your home screen
- Drag icons around with your finger
- Locate Me integration (pseudo-GPS) with Google Maps
- Another screenshot of Locate Me
- Send SMS to multiple people
- Add Safari Bookmarks to your Home Screen (example)
- Mirror of some images provided in comments thread.

The features shown do not correlate with some earlier rumors of the upcoming 1.1.3 firmware. GearLive has not previously been a known source rumors or images of upcoming Apple products. These new screenshots, however, appear convincing on casual inspection.

Update: Gizmodo posts a video of the 1.1.3 firmware with further claims that it is legitimate:

Nate says that "it installs on the phone no-questions-asked and for that you need to have Apple's private key, which i can confirm that the iphone hacker community does not haveas much as we would love to have it." Indeed, Apple's private encrypted key, used to authenticate all accesses to the iPhone most-private guts, hasn't been uncovered yet by anyone in the world.

The New York Times confirms earlier rumors that Apple will be launching an iTunes Movie rental store at Macworld San Francisco. And according to their sources, more than one studio will be signed to the service at launch:

Apple has been trying to interest a number of Hollywood studios in an iTunes rental service, and several people familiar with the negotiations said that more than one studio would appear onstage at the companys MacWorld exhibition here beginning Jan. 14 to endorse a new Apple movie rental service.

The Financial Times first broke the news that Apple would be launching an iTunes movie rental store. Pricing and terms of the rentals remain unknown.

After launching their movie download service in February, Wal-Mart has quietly shut down the service after HP decided to discontinue the download service that powered it:

HP spokesman Hector Marinez said the company decided to discontinue its video download-only merchant store services because the market for paid video downloads did not perform "as expected." He noted that the Internet video business remains uncertain and is changing rapidly.

Wal-Mart's entry into the movie and TV download business was described as a "game changer" due to partnerships with all the major Hollywood movie studios. Wal-Mart's movies, however, were only offered in Windows Media format, which is not compatible with Apple's iPods.

This news comes amidst rumors that Apple was planning on expanding its online movie offerings to include rentals.

Forbes summarizes a recent patent application that has been published which reveals that Apple has been researching integrating future devices with the ability to place on-the-go orders at local stores.

In an application with the U.S. Patent Office filed on Dec. 20, the Cupertino, Calif.-based computer and gadget company described a wireless system that would allow customers to place an order at a store using a wireless device such as a media player, a wireless personal digital assistant or a cellphone.

The system would, for example, allow customers to order a drink with the press of a button on their iPhone which would then notify them when their order was ready. The Forbes article suggests that this may put Apple's partnership with Starbucks in a new light.

Apple has already integrated iTunes song purchasing closely with Starbucks. iTunes and iPhone users can already purchase playing music at Starbucks with the tap of a button:

Say youre in line at Starbucks. You hear this amazing song wafting from the speakers. You gotta have it. Now. Tap the iTunes button on your iPhone or iPod touch, tap the Starbucks button, and voil: You see the current song, the last 10 songs played, and featured Starbucks Collections. Preview, buy, and download whatever you like, right then and there. Or, if youre sipping away with your laptop, buy whats playing -- exclusively on iTunes.