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MacBook Pro Spec Sheet Leaks, Light Peak To Be Called Thunderbolt

Well this morning we’ve seen a multitude of leaks regarding Apple’s implementation of Light Peak and some specs of the upcoming MacBook Pro refresh. Thunderbolt will be the name Apple uses for Light Peak and it seems to take the form of the Mini DisplayPort, in fact it also replaces the Mini DisplayPort on the MacBook Pro as can be seen after the break.

The spec sheet for the updated MacBook Pro 13” has also been leaked in both German and English so it seems to be virtually confirmed that the 13” MacBook Pro will have a; 2.3Ghz Dual Core i5 processor, 4GB RAM, integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics unit.

Some interesting additional specs are that it will include an SDXC card reader which has the ability to read a card of 2TB and a reference to a webcam that is described as a “built-in FaceTime-HD camera” which begs the question, why is ‘HD’ appended to that? It could be as innocent as a higher definition webcam than is used in the iPhone for FaceTime or perhaps the suggestion that FaceTime calls could become higher quality. Jump the break for the spec page.

[Via Engadget, Mac4Ever, MacRumors]

UPDATE 4: With all the updates so far on these leaks, I have cleaned up the post, check the break for all the photos.

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Gameloft’s VP Talks Premium Games, Maturing iOS Gaming Market And EA’s Sale Tactics

Last week over at Mobile World Congress Gameloft’s vice president Gonzague de Vallois spoke to PocketGamer and had some interesting remarks regarding iOS gaming. One of the things he spoke about was iOS gamers gaining an increasingly high expectation for games on the platform, particularly in regards to graphics and utilizing the full potential of the device.

He says that taste’s of iOS gamers are maturing and are moving on from supporting the small developers who make small, casual games to the games that are more fully featured and more fully use the potential of the device. To me at least, this seems like a bit of an odd comment given the continuing success of games such as Angry Birds and the caliber of indie games that are continuing to come to the App Store such as Rockin’ Rockets.

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New “Drastic And Ambitious” Final Cut Pro Launching In Spring?

There is some speculation that the next release of Final Cut Pro which is part of the Final Cut Studio suite of video editing applications, will be coming sometime this spring according to sources that spoke to TechCrunch. Some people had been speculating that Apple may stop working on the far more professional-orientated Final Cut Pro and focus on the consumer iMovie program but Steve Jobs sent some of his trademark short and vague emails last year saying to “Stay tuned and buckle up” and also “Next release will be awesome.”

Supposedly Apple recently held a preview of the next version of Final Cut Pro on its Cupertino campus in which a small group of video editors were invited for feedback. This forthcoming version of Final Cut Pro, the eighth, is said to be “the biggest overhaul to Final Cut Pro since the original version was created over 10 years ago.”

A source told TechCrunch that the release would have a multitude of extensive changes from low-level architectural changes to a complete user interface redesign. 64-bit support is also expected to be on the list of improvements, something that its users have been quite vocal about. Those that have seen a demo of the product have said that the changes can be classified as “drastic and ambitious”.

[Via TechCrunch]

Apple Cuts The Minimum iAd Buy In Half

Now that the first run of iAd campaigns has concluded, AllThingsD is reporting that Apple has decided to cut the minimum required spending in half from a steep $1 million to $500,000. The change has presumably been made because whilst it has been reasonably successful, the number of ads being presented and filling ad spots actually decreased this year. As a result Apple may be wanting to attract some smaller scale advertisers which couldn’t afford to enter the platform previously and fill those ad spots.

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NPD: US Mac Sales Up 20%, Apple Set To Sell 3.6 Million Macs This Quarter

New US sales data from the NPD Group show that Apple’s Mac sales have increased 20 percent year over year, which is inline with what is required to meet analyst expectations of 3.6 million Mac sales in the March quarter.

The growth is slightly below the 22 percent growth that was predicted but analyst Gene Munster did note that Apple had seen increased international growth of the Mac platform. Furthermore the now near inevitable launch of updated MacBook’s this week will likely give the Mac sales a boost for the final month in the March quarter.

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Seas0nPass Untethered Jailbreak for Apple TV 4.1.1 Released

A few minutes ago the FireCore team announced the availability of a new version of Seas0nPass for Mac that brings untethered jailbreak for the Apple TV 4.1.1 – also known as iOS 4.2.1 for all other devices.

All credit for the untethered jailbreak process goes to the Chronic Dev Team. Seas0nPass for Windows is also being finalized with the untether and will be available soon.

The latest Beta3 version of aTV Flash (black) is compatible with Seas0nPass, GreenPois0n and Pwnage Tool jailbreaks.

A previous version of the app with tethered boot option was released in January. There aren’t many tweaks and apps available for the Apple TV yet, so feel free to try this if you’re really willing to experiment with the little black box.

Will Apple Finally Drop The White MacBook? 16GB SSDs In MacBook Pros?

I’ve hedged bets with Federico that Apple would drop the white MacBook this time around, and I might be up $100 in the betting pool thanks to MacGeneration, who speculates Apple will replace the plastic model with the 13” MacBook Air. It only makes sense - I can’t help think of a more sensible pricing tier from little MacBook to big MacBook.

MacGeneration via AppleInsider reports that the 13” MacBook would see an upgrade to Intel’s core i3 processor, as well seeing a display bump to a new 1440x900 pixel resolution and the addition of a third USB port.

The fifteen inch MacBook Pro would see the option to replace superdrive replaced for an SSD, and the 17” model may come standard with 8 GB of RAM.

Each of the MacBooks are expected to debut Intel’s new LightPeak technology, and are also reported to be introducing a new formfactor that should result in lighter, more powerful models with Intel’s Sandy Bridge inside. A 16 GB SSD could supplement a hard disk drive for faster booting and system performance.

[MacGeneration via AppleInsider]

iPod Nano Software Update Lets You Control Music with Sleep Button

Earlier today Apple issued a software update for the iPod Nano 6th generation, which brings a useful feature to the device: you can now control music and radio playback using the Sleep / Wake button without looking at the screen.

With iPod software update version 1.1 for iPod nano (6th generation), you will be able to:

Completely turn off the iPod, rather than just put the device to sleep.

Control music or radio playback using the Sleep/Wake button without having to look at the device.

Another notes provided by Apple on the iPod Nano 1.1 update:

  • When the iPod nano is off, you will not hear or be alerted to any alarm or reminder set on the iPod. When you turn iPod nano back on, alarms or reminders that haven’t yet expired will occur as scheduled.
  • If you turn iPod nano back on within five minutes of when it was turned off, it will remember your music playlist and what was playing. However, if you turn iPod nano back on more than five minutes after it was turned off, the device will not remember what you were doing on the device or which application was active.

More information about the update available here.

Intel Launching Light Peak on Thursday, MacBook Pros Launch Not A Coincidence?

CNET reports Intel will hold a press event on Thursday to officially “roll out” (presumably to manufacturers) its Light Peak technology:

Intel on Thursday plans to roll out Light Peak, a high-speed connection technology that Apple is also likely to adopt, according to an industry source familiar with the details of the event.

Intel released a statement to the media today saying that on Thursday in San Francisco it will “host a…press briefing to discuss a new technology that is about to appear on the market.”

There will also be a media event held the same day at the Intel campus in Santa Clara, Calif., where the chipmaker will conduct technology and product demonstrations.

The rumored February 24th release date for the new MacBook Pros doesn’t sound like a simple coincidence at this point. Several bloggers noted that it’d be unusual for Apple to introduce new hardware on a Thursday, but the Intel media event backs up previous rumors that the new MBP line will feature the fast Light Peak technology. We’ll see.