Apple releases fixes for Bluetooth and MacBook Pro hard drives

Apple has just released two firmware updates, one fixing issues with Bluetooth and the the other fixing the MacBook Pro hard drive noise issue.

The first, Bluetooth Firmware Update 2.0.1, fixes bugs and improves compatibility with the Apple Wireless Mighty Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard. It’s available for all Macs with Broadcom Bluetooth chipsets, which include all unibody MacBooks and MacBook Pros, MacBook Airs, and all other Macs introduced in 2009.

The other one, Hard Drive Firmware Update 2.0, which has been promised by Apple for some time now, fixes the widely reported issue with hard drive noise. This issue only affects MacBook Pros with 7200 RPM hard drives introduced in June 2009 or later, so this update is only available for those Macs.

Both of these updates are available through Software Update, or they can also be downloaded on Apple’s support downloads page.

via TUAW

Spring-clean your Mac

If you are a Mac user then you will notice how little you have to spring clean your Mac. Apart from the daily dusting or finger print screen cleaning, mac Paw has released CleanMyMac. I have tried it out and works really good. Here’s what they say.

CleanMyMac represents sophisticated all-in-one-suite utility that helps keep your Mac clean and healthy. With just two simple clicks you can delete useless files that basically pile up and waste your valuable disk space. CleanMyMac allows enjoying smooth system performance combining such vital features as Slim Universal Binaries, Clean Unneeded Languages, Logs Rotation, Clean Caches, Quick and Secure Erase, Application Uninstallation, and Killing Trash Left From Buried Applications. CleanMyMac can save gigabytes of disk space and enhance your computer speed. Go ahead and give it a shot! Your Mac will definitely be grateful!

Any application running on your Mac leaves numerous support files, which won’t just get to Trash once you remove the app. CleanMyMac will locate and erase all “leftovers” from your system files to enable you to easily install and uninstall new programs whenever you need.

The more junk files are stored on your Mac the slower it will work. Processes of saving and storing unnecessary files take your priceless time. Using CleanMyMac will professionally help your Mac reduce the amount of operations required for your online and offline activities.

Grab your copy now.

MacBook hidden feature

A french guy has apparently found a hidden feature in his MacBook. He has however not revealed this feature and says that he has been “sworn to secrecy.” Is this some sort of technology for the future or a conspiracy to take over the world. Some say that Apple may be working with Extra Terrestrials. Well whatever it is, I just hope that my MacBook Pro can do the same. Only thing is that I want to be able to control the spaceship. Is all this true —- of course it is, wink wink. Checkout the video.

Im betting its done with Final Cut and 3D Studio MAX. What do you think?

Snow Leopard wallpaper available

I’ve always loved the Apple wallpapers that came with every release of the OS. This year we all await the new 64bit Snow Leopard due to be released in September. Apple has previewed Snow Leopard at the WWDC earlier this year but for now all we can get out of it is the new default wallpaper. I have managed to get hold of the wallpaper and decided to share it with you if you are like me, will have it displayed for all to see.

Tell us what you think of the new wallpaper.

MobileMe gets a slightly new look

If you are like me and use MobileMe, you would have noticed that the has been a slight UI update. Well for starters the first thing I noticed was the iDisk icon had been changed, Kinda looks like one of the apps that come from the iPhone. Other icons are Mail, Settings and Address Book. Other changes include :

The Help menu is now accessible from the toolbar.
Mail forwarding and replies now retain original formatting.
All messages on MobileMe can now be searched from the iPhone or iPod Touch.
Automatic album creation from the iPhone or iPod Touch with version 3.0 software.
iPhone 3GS users can publish video to MobileMe.
iPhone contacts maintain ringtone associations after syncing with MobileMe.
Option to merge contacts and calendars on first sync.
Turning off sync will enable users to still keep a copy of their data on their device rather than wiping it.

Do you use MobileMe as well?

Apple Releases iPhoto 8.0.4

Apple has released a new version of iPhoto to improve overall stability and make a few corrections.

This update addresses a rarely encountered issue involving photos imported into a previous version that could affect overall stability, and corrects references to a few points of interest and location names that were labelled incorrectly.

The update is recommended for all users of iPhoto ’09.

For detailed information on this update, please visit this web page: http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2797

You can install the update by selecting Software Update from the Apple menu at the top left of your desktop.

Steve Jobs back at work

As promised, Steve’s medical leave ended with the month of June. Last January, Apple announced that CEO Steve Jobs would take a leave of absense to deal with medical issues for approximately six months. Since then, we’ve learned that Steve had a liver transplant and today Apple confirmed his return.

“Steve Jobs is back to work. He is at Apple a few days a week and working from home the other days,” Apple spokesman Steve Dowling said. “We’re glad to have him back.”

That’s great news for the company and, more importantly, for Steve himself. There has been much noise about Steve during the past six months, including Apple’s future without him, who might take over and the company’s obligation to keep investors informed about the health of their CEO. Here’s hoping the din dies down and that Steve continues to enjoy a long and productive career at Apple.

Reasons Behind Apple’s Strategic Shift Into Chip Design

The Wall Street Journal explores the reasons why Apple has been moving towards designing their own chips rather than using off-the-shelf components. This strategic shift was first revealed when Apple acquired chip-designing company P.A. Semi last April. That news has since been followed by a number of new hires from AMD as well as online job postings looking for individuals to test “Apple developed silicon.”

According to individuals “familiar with the matter”, Apple’s current chip plans include lower power designs to prolong battery life in the iPhone and iPod Touch as well as improved graphics circuitry for better gaming and HD video playback. In additional to whatever competitive advantage Apple might get with their own custom designed chips, another benefit would be the ability to maintain more secrecy over their products.

People familiar with Apple’s thinking say executives have expressed concern that some information shared with outside vendors could find its way into chips sold to Apple competitors

Jobs reportedly told P.A. Semi engineers that he specifically wanted to develope chips within Apple to prevent knowledge of them leaking out. Apple, of course, is well known for their secrecy. This secrecy has been harder to maintain in recent years due to the number of partners Apple must work with in launching a product. With the iPhone, we’ve seen rumors coming from both component suppliers as well as mobile carriers who need to be briefed about upcoming releases. 

The Wall Street Journal points out, however, that this trend is contrary to most big electronic firms who have moved towards outsourcing components in an effort to reduce costs. Apple is not expected to launch products based on these internally designed chips until next year at the earliest.

Apple Seeds OS X 10.5.7 Build 9J56 to Developers

Apple has yet again seeded a new version of Mac OS X 10.5.7, this one termed Build 9J56, to developers for testing. World of Apple publishes the seed notes, which detail five changes since the previous buildissued last week.

Despite many expecting that the previous build of Mac OS X 10.5.7 would be the one to see a public release Apple today has released a new build labelled 9J56.

The latest build adds another five fixes to the huge list including issues with AFP volumes, Bluetooth stability and crash reporting and logging.

As in the previous six developer seeds, a lack of Safari 4 Beta compatibility is the only remaining issue documented by Apple.

AMD Graphics Executive Headed to Apple?

The Inquirer reports that Raja Koduri, currently Chief Technology Officer of the Graphics Product Group at AMD, will be joining Apple. The rumor comes on the heels of the discovery just two days ago that Bob Drebin, Koduri’s predecessor in the position at AMD, has already joined Apple.

Between PASemi, Bob Drebin and other things we can’t talk about yet, Apple is building up some serious hardware talent. All they need now is a good reliability person and a fire chief, and things will get really interesting on the hardware front in Cupertino.

Apple’s acquisition of P.A. Semi in April 2008 generated speculation that Apple is developing its own system-on-chip solutions for the iPhone and iPod touch. The subsequent recruitment of Mark Papermasterfrom IBM and now Drebin and Koduri from ATI/AMD demonstrate significant enhancement of its expertise in chip and system design.

With the iPhone/iPod touch being touted as a gaming platform and the upcoming deployment of OpenCL in OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard to harness the power of graphics processors for general-purpose computing, Apple’s interest in acquiring expertise in this area is unsurprising, although the extent of its recruitment of significant players in the industry suggests that Apple has made a significant commitment to expanding its efforts.

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