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Epic Games Brings Unreal Engine 3 To The Mac

Epic Games yesterday announced that the Unreal Engine 3 can now run on Macs with the arrival of the free Unreal Development Kit to OS X. Joystiq does note, however, that it arrives four years after Epic announced Gears of War and Unreal Tournament for OS X, but failed to deliver.

Every UDK game’s potential user base has increased dramatically yet again.

Unreal Engine 3 now supporting Macs comes after Epic introduced the Unreal Development Kit for iOS last year. Since then a number of iOS games build on the UDK have been released, including Epic Citadel (the beautiful tech demo of the UDK), Infinity Blade and Rage HD. LucasArts and Gameloft have also signed multi-year deals with Epic to produce games using the UDK.

[Epic Games via Joystiq]

Apple Releases Thunderbolt Display Firmware Update

Apple’s Thunderbolt Display started arriving to customers last week, and earlier today Apple changed the display’s shipping times to 3-5 days, signaling a clear change in retail and online availability. Apple has now released a firmware update for the Thunderbolt Display. The update requires OS X  10.6.8, or “10.7.1 or later”.

This update improves the stability of the Apple Thunderbolt Display.

The updater application will be installed in the Utilities folder inside the Application folder and will be launched automatically when you close this installer. Please follow the instructions in the updater application to complete the update process.

The Thunderbolt Display Firmware Update is available from Apple’s Downloads website now.

- Thunderbolt Display Firmware Update (923 KB)

Leaked Photos Show “iPhone 4S” Device with A5 Chip, iPhone 4 Design

A photo discovered earlier today by PhoneArena on Chinese microblogging service Weibo seemed to “confirm” that the next-generation iPhone would indeed run a modified version of the A5 CPU first introduced by Apple in the iPad 2 last March. As usual with photo leaks, the image was blurry and the A5 logo on the integrated chip in the mainboard could have been easily faked with Photoshop. Several outlets, however, suggested that the photo could be real, albeit belonging to the rumored “iPhone 4S” device in the works, rather than the real, “all-new” next-generation iPhone 5. Comparisons of this morning’s photo with previously posted iPhone 4S/5 parts seemed to confirm the theory that the newly captured part was legit.

There’s been much controversy and speculation in recent months as to whether Apple will introduce a single iPhone 4-like update in the next weeks, a major redesign called “iPhone 5”, or both. Most recent rumors are claiming Apple will release two new iPhone models this Fall to target different market segments – namely, there’s a great opportunity for Apple in China and other pre-paid markets, where a cheaper, off-contract “iPhone 4S” could possibly sell very well and still appeal to consumers as a premium device. Apple executives have hinted at the pre-paid market before.

A new photo which seems to corroborate this morning’s alleged leaked has been published by MacPost, which claims it depicts the new “iPhone 4S” with an A5 chip and slightly updated battery. As many noted this morning, the battery unit in the allegedly leaked photos reports “1430 mAh”, instead of the iPhone 4’s 1420 mAh. MacPost’s follow-up picture shows a partially-assembled device displaying iTunes’ activation screen, as well as an iPhone 4-like white front panel. According to the website, this should confirm the “4S” nature of the device (that is, the “minor” upgrade – identified by many as N94 – and not the “real” iPhone 5), also because of the several components that are shown in the photo, and “leaked” on the Internet over the past months. Those components they mention were deemed as “iPhone 5 parts” at the time. Furthermore, the front panel’s speaker grille is heavily resembling of white iPhone 4 prototypes prior to the white iPhone 4’s public debut.

There’s still much confusion floating around Apple’s plans for the next iPhone(s), and it is worth noting the same A5-enabled, white, iPhone 4-like device was spotted back in April running on T-Mobile network. 9to5mac shares my personal theory in that if these photos are legit, they’re most likely to portray an early iPhone 4-like prototype for a next-generation iPhone, rather than a recent “final design” unit.

According to an article from The New York Times published last week, a “fairly different” iPhone 5 with better specs (A5 CPU, 8 MP camera) is just “weeks away”.

Fusion and Carbon Productivity Bundle: 10 Lovely Apps for $29.99

‘Tis the season for Mac app bundles. Some are good, others are great and few are good enough to “fall in love with.” Fusion and Carbon have put together a productivity bundle appropriately described as “10 Reasons to Fall in Love and Get Things Done.” The bundle includes some of MacStories’ favorite Mac apps including Evernote & Sparrow Mail. If you tried purchasing the included apps individually you’d be paying nearly $360, so if you’re looking to add to your collection of Mac apps this is a terrific deal at just $29.99. The deal is only good for 6 more days, so share the love!

The Productivity Bundle includes:

  • Evernote Pro - Capture anything from pictures, notes, audio; access it anywhere you have access to a computer or mobile device; find everything fast with advanced tagging. The bundle deal includes 3 months of their Pro subscription (standard subscription is free). (our review)
  • Strongspace - A great backup solution to the cloud. Your precious data is always backed up, turn it on and you’re done. It even lets you share your files or a folder with one click. Like Time Machine, it also captures full snapshots of your data and if you need something you deleted, simply roll back.
  • Sparrow Mail - A minimal and fantastic alternative to Apple’s Mail.app. Sparrow has multiple account support and a unified inbox plus full IMAP support, notifications and more. (our review)
  • Carousel - Okay, maybe not every app in this bundle is for being productive but one needs a break, right? Browse your Instagram Feed, Popular and Profile photos with a choice of great app themes. Follow and explore users, like, comment, moderate comments, and more. Keyboard shortcuts to quickly traverse your feed, like, comment, and more. Drag & drop to save full-size photos to your Mac, or iPhoto. (our review)
  • Alarms - A super minimal alarm app that’s simple to use and fun. It notifies you of birthdays, sync tasks with iCal, supports Growl and has customizable keyboard shortcuts. (our review)
  • Flow - A web-based task management app that works in your browser, iPhone or email. There’s no syncing required and you can collaborate with anyone such as family, friends, and coworkers, all in one place. The bundle gives a 1 year subscription to new Flow users.
  • Koku - Easily manage all your personal finances by keeping track using the Direct Connect to safely download your transactions as they occur. You can also have your purchases tagged automatically.
  • Grasshopper - A virtual phone system designed for entrepreneurs that includes a toll free and local number with unlimited extensions. Call forwarding and voicemail is also included. Manage your account online or by phone with no hardware to purchase. The bundle gives your $100 credit towards their $9.95 and higher monthly plans.
  • Nottingham - Need an elegant notepad for your Mac? This app is designed to be lightweight and easy to use and it keeps all your data safe by syncing to your iPhone and the web via Simplenote.
  • Inbox Assistant - Extract meetings, tasks and other important events out of your emails while it automatically adds them to your calendar. Use Natural Language Processing for entry as well.

 

Apple Introduces Their Online Store For Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and UAE

Apple customers in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and the United Arab Emirates can today finally purchase Apple products and accessories directly from the online Apple store. The introduction of the online stores in these respective countries is the first avenue in which Apple can directly sell products to consumers located in those countries. Apple has no physical Apple retail stores in these countries and did not previously operate an online store. Consequently, until today the only way to purchase an Apple product from within these countries has been from authorised Apple resellers or importing.

The introduction of the new Apple Stores is displayed prominently on the front of the respective Apple websites in the four countries. The United Arab Emirates banner is shown above, it features a welcome slogan and confetti streaming down in the nations colours. You can see the Poland, Czech Republic and Hungary versions below the break.

[Via MacRumors]

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Keep it Memorable, Stupid!

Image credit: Done by Emily Carlin on Flickr

KIMS, unlike KISS (Keep it simple, Stupid!), is removing the notion that we have to toss out our complicated, but memorable systems in favor of simple workflows. I think throwing away what works is the wrong way to go about changing your workflow or lifestyle for the better.

In looking for a simpler way to do something you’ll be presented with tools, pitched ideas, and told that your quality of life will be better if you take this system you have now and simplify it. I think the big problem is that people tend to confuse the words simple and minimalism. To say I should simplify my workflow is to say I should throw out my system because it’s inefficient. That might be true if I was to compare how productive I am to how productive you are. However, our jobs are likely different and even if they were the same, it’s like comparing how well I run to a guy who’s been running in marathons for the last twenty years. You can only accurately measure and reference yourself!

Where I make my case is that you shouldn’t toss a memorable system for the sake of minimalism. Text files for example are extremely minimal, but not many people want to go commando and start setting up areas of focus in Dropbox, when tags and journals in Evernote are much easier to manage for lots of people. You’re told you should do this thing because you’ll ultimately be more productive or you’ll remove a point of stress and clutter in your life, but I have a feeling that the transition and “attempt” (because you’ll never really stick with this minimal system) is going to be a point of stress itself.

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DaisyDisk Gets Lion Update with Full-Screen, FileVault 2 Support

DaisyDisk is a beautiful Mac app to monitor available space on your computer’s internal and external drives, allowing you to see what’s eating up your drive’s GBs (or TBs) and easily remove it. I’ve taken a look at how DaisyDisk fits in my backup workflow before, as well as the new features and design changes introduced in version 2.0, a major update released earlier this year.

With version 2.1 released today, DaisyDisk gets more Lion-friendly with support for full-screen mode, and FileVault 2. For those unaware of Apple’s new whole-disk encryption system for OS X Lion, you can read more in my review of the 13-inch MacBook Air, where I also ran some tests to compare a FileVault-less OS X installation versus one with encryption enabled. With FileVault 2 support, DaisyDisk is now capable of scanning and deleting files off encrypted drives, such as the one on my personal iMac. As you can see in the screenshots, my Mac HD shows up as “encrypted startup disk” in the main list of available drives, yet scanning it doesn’t reveal any difference from external, non-encrypted drives as far as the user experience goes. I was able to navigate between folders and drives, delete files, and rescan as administrator, although I haven’t been able to verify the “basic support for Resume” mentioned in this update’s changelog. The release notes also indicates a few bugs have been fixed, and graphical elements tweaked to make navigation more intuitive.

DaisyDisk 2.1 is available on the developers’ website both as $19.95 purchase and free trial. The DaisyDisk team, however, is running a limited-time 50% off promotion on the Mac App Store, where you can get the app at $9.99. Read more

Apple Tweaks Italy Prices As VAT Rises to 21%

Apple’s online store with updated prices

Apple today took down its online store in Italy, raising prices for several products in order to account for Italy’s increase of value-added tax (VAT,  known as IVA – “imposta sul valore aggiunto” – in Italy) from 20% to 21% as part of the recently approved austerity bill.

iOS devices have seen a small bump in prices with the 1% VAT increase. The 16 GB iPad 2, for instance, rises from € 479 to € 483; the 32 GB and 64 GB models have changed to € 583,83 and € 684,65, respectively. The entry-level iPhone 4 rises from € 539 to 543,50; the iPod touch goes from € 239 to € 241. The iPod line sees another minor bump with the iPod nano (€ 169 to € 170,40), iPod shuffle (€ 55 to € 55,45) and iPod classic (€ 247 to € 249,05). The Apple TV goes from € 119 to € 120.

As for the Mac, the biggest change can be seen in the standard configuration of the Mac Pro, updated from € 2399 to € 2419. Apple’s online store just came back online, and its VAT (IVA) footnote still reports 20%. Changes, however, can be compared in the screenshots above and below.

When the UK’s VAT rate changed from 17.5% to 20% earlier this year, Apple took down its online store to modify the prices accordingly, without absorbing the tax increase by reducing their prices.

Apple’s online store before the VAT increase

[image via setteB.IT]