A Long Update

So, we’re extremely sorry that we couldn’t get all the updates done in time!

MacBooks

So let’s get back to the start of the MacBook Events, where 3 new products (MacBook Air revised) were released by Apple probably for the holiday season. The biggest change in the MacBooks was the use of the Aluminum Unibody, which essentially means that the casing is machined from one solid block of aluminum which fundamentally makes it stronger and more durable from everyday bumps. 

The laptops have become significantly lighter, and are also more appealing to the user in terms of an LED Backlit display, which provides the “instant-on” which a student or businessman would need in those sticky situations. 

iPhone Software + iTunes + Safari

The long awaited 2.2 has arrived! However, this update was merely a bug fix for most of us in other countries and the availability to see street views has also been added as a feature into Google Maps. A significant update was the downloadable podcasts on the fly feature, which we find excellent as we finally don’t have to rely on iTunes. Could a wireless syncing come in the future? We don’t know, what do you think?

iTunes has also been revised to 8.0.2, adding an update to iPod Nano. It has allowed the earphones with Mics to be used, and the turning off of cover flow while the Nano is rotated which I find a stupid function as you always have to rotate it back before it can be used. And Yes, Infinitech does own a Black 8GB Nano-Chromatic.

Safari has been pounded with security updates and stability updates to all users.

Mystery

What happened to the in-ear headphones Apple?

Tethering to come soon to iPhone

According to Gizmodo, it seems that AT&T has given the promise of GPRS Tethering to the iPhone “soon”. What would this mean for the once alive application NetShare? Would Apple perhaps include an option in settings. Could this be a feature reserved for the final build of 2.2? No one can really be sure with Apple. But if AT&T was the only thing stopping Apple from including tethering, well, it’s about time.

MacBook Air : What Happens Now?

by Ravenizer

 

Okay. So the new MacBooks are like two days away now. But what is really going to happen. Seriously, Apple will not release a new MacBook Air. Come on people. Start thinking realistic here. The MacBook Air was only released recently in Feburary. It’s not Apple convention to update a product line’s hardware in less than a year. Furthermore, it’ll make all those early adopters feel like morons. So what is going to be the fate of the MacBook Air. Let’s discuss this further.

In terms of hardware, I think Apple has struck a fine balance between performance and power consumption. Until either sees huge tecnical advances, the update seems like a distant dream. The new NVDIA chipset sounds promising, but they still take up too much power. And remember, Apple had Intel build a special Core 2 Duo for them. With such a close partnership, I do not see Apple rushing Intel into any more developmental impossibilities just yet. However, I do forsee an update of the line when we finally hit a release date with Montervina.

So owners of the MacBook Air, I see no worries for you guys in this Apple event. Hold on to see some spectacular improvements to the other machines in the line though. What do you think will be launched on the 14th? Leave us your comments.

If you guys wanna read the LiveBlog off Gizmodo, you would be pleased to know that the event happens at 10:00 AM PDT. Here is a list of time conversions to make things easier:

• New York , 1:00 PM (14 Oct)
• London , 6:00 PM (14 Oct)
• Toronto , 1:00 PM (14 Oct)

• Singapore , 1:00 AM (15 Oct)
• Shanghai , 1:00 AM (15 Oct)
• Hong Kong , 1:00 AM (15 Oct)
• Tokyo , 2:00 AM (15 Oct)

• Berlin , 7:00 PM (14 Oct)
• Kabul , 9:00 PM (14 Oct)
• New Delhi , 10:30 PM (14 Oct)

MacBook Chipset

by Graphickz

 

Hey all,

Just a short update on the MacBook that is going to be released on October 14th. The Macbook will now run on an NVIDIA chipset, based on the MCP 79 platform. Intel still supplies the main processor for the Macbook.

Kept uncharacteristically secret by NVIDIA for most of the year, the MCP79 platform is so far considered a substitute for Intel’s Centrino 2 “Montevina” platform, offering support for the same 1066MHz front side bus, optional DDR3 memory and PCI Express 2.0 interfaces.

By using an NVIDIA chipset, this means that there are now more advantages.

• Smaller physical size using one chip rather than two
• DriveCache, which uses Flash storage to speed up boot times
• Hybrid SLI which switches from discrete to integrated graphics when battery is low

So basically what this means is that the aluminum MacBook will be slimmer, start up time will be faster due to the DriveCache, and even more advanced power saving features over and above Mac OSX.

The Graphics card is also being changed from an integrated Intel unit, to an NVIDIA 9300 and 9400 series, which uses integrated graphic processing units or GPUs. That means, when Apple releases Snow Leopard, NVIDIA chipsets would be able to offload general processing onto the GPUs.

Let’s wait and see.

Spotlight Event

by Ravenizer

 

Hey guys.

The infinitech Team would like to apologize for not bring able to update the blog in the past fornight. All of our writers have been extremely busy with acedemic examinations. But all those aside, the Rumor Mill is back, spinning faster than ever. It’s MacBook Week over at Apple Campus and the invites have been sent out. No, we are not going but we’ll definitely have the juicy details.

The story so far is that the entire MacBook line is going Aluminum. Snazzy I must say. The biggest targets thus far are the Macbooks and the Pro. Talks are going on about a possible Apple TV update but I’m not too sure. The eventual speculations of a wireless USB hub is also interesting. That would certainly add funtionality to the MacBook Air. Although one thing that I would question would be its source of electricity. Guys and Gals out there hoping for a more functional and cheaper MacBook Air will probably have to wait it out. Having only been released for less than a year, this is as improbable as Bill Gates becoming CEO of Apple. However, due to the nature of the Notebook, I do not think that they would make any major changes to the air. It really perfect the way it is. It fulfills all my requirements as a high-school student. And because its OS X, the Operating System is nicely optimized for the less-than-average processor. In fact, you cannot feel much difference when on the Air or on the normal MacBooks. Thus, expect a possible Capacity and Processor update in next year’s MacWorld Expo. Until then, its definitely a no-go.

On a different note, the Infinitech Team would be headed down to the iPhone Tech Talk World Tour in Singapore. It’ll be held on the 4th of November at the Songspore Convention Centre. Graphickz, Spikey and I have already booked out slots and eagerly await our confirmation. So yeah, we’ll be back with more news soon. Hang in there folks! Infinitech Is back at Full Capacity.

One last thing. We are going to skip the iPhone Review firstly because, hey, we all know its the Jesus Phone. Secondly, the team has been really busy and we could not find the time to do it earlier. We believe we have passed the deadline. So yeah…. sorry about that guys.

Another Extension to MobileMe?

Hey all,

Apparently, today there has been another 60 days added to all MobileMe accounts, and this is Apple’s own form of apology. I quite like it. 

We have already made many improvements to MobileMe, but we still have many more to make. To recognize our users’ patience, we are giving every MobileMe subscriber as of today a free 60 day extension. This is in addition to the one month extension most subscribers have already received. We are working very hard to make MobileMe a great service we can all be proud of. We know that MobileMe’s launch has not been our finest hour, and we truly appreciate your patience as we turn this around. Read this article for more details.

The MobileMe Team

 

And that’s the email. Hopefully they get push mail up and running soon. 

 

iPhone 3G In Singapore Countdown – 2 More Days

Just so You Know…

Hey Guys,

Its Graphickz here. Another first on Infinitech. I have been coding and working on my application for the iPhone 3G, and a letter from Apple states that after the approval of my app, it should be out in the App Store. Expect excellent graphics, an accelerometer, 3 dimensional sound and much, much more. Another cool trick is that I have learnt about being polygon precise, and it is pretty difficult to do. Anyway, the app is called JungleMan, and is about well a JungleMan, swinging from tree to tree. It gets more complicated though, at higher levels, you have to collect the extra bonus items like coconuts, and battle it out with other creatures from the jungle. This app is totally free. Sorry I can’t release any pictures of the application, as I am bound by Apple, something like sworn to secrecy or something. I hope you guys will try out this app. We are also planning on InfiniApp, which will be a sister site to Infinitech targetted towards the users of the iPhone, iPhone 3G, or iPod Touch, which Apple is planning to discontinue. Ravenizer has had plans of framing his iPod touch…

MacBook Touch Rumors

Hey Everyone.

Its almost here. The first Mac, to beat the Mac. No, it doesn’t run on Windows. Nope, its not Linux. Its a Mac. 

The MacBook Touch is supposedly slated for release in October, and Infinitech is proud to bring you the first scoops on the Macbook Touch. Macbook Touch, is basically a Mac, that has a special Operating System, that recognizes touch, somewhat mimicking the iPhone’s software. So, we have the mock-ups and designs that are supposed to be for the Touch. 

Keyboard layout, side and back

So basically, the concept of this new device is a slate. That’s pretty much what it is. The device features an onscreen keyboard similar to the iPhone OS. It should also be similar in the way it appears only when needed. The sides of this new product seems to appear thinner Than the other MacBooks, although not as slim as the anorexic MacBook Air.

Apparently, there is a dock for this device to pair with an iMac. This could be useful for sharing of the Optical Drive, extra hard-disk space, charging and Wireless Connectivity.

MacBook Touch with iMac docking capabilities

Furthermore, this feature could expand the meaning of a desktop by the year 2010. Imagine a tablet device that sits snugly inside your iMac. It automatically syncs and makes changes to files stored within itself so that it mirrors the ones on the iMac. All these, in real time! 

Need to rush off to work? No worries. Eject the MacBook Touch, and you are all set to go! The files you were working on would all be updated and ready for your usage. No more external hard-disks. No more clumsy thumb-drives and wires. No more, DVD’s and whatnots. This could start a revolution in the future of personal computing! Heck, this form of syncing would be so useful, it could put Apple’s very own MobileMe out of business.

The realization of the limitless possibilities of such a product has hit many people in the Apple Fanboy Circle. We have seen so many mock-ups that it is possible that the final product could be just like what we are seeing right now. However, it is also possible that all of these speculations are wrong. Remember all those years of iPhone speculations? In the end, Apple pulled off something that we never imagined, but have all come to love (or hate). Speaking of mock-ups, here is one mock-up that has a lot of thought put into it. Heck, if this were to be the new MacBook Touch, I, Ravenizer, am willing to sell my MacBook Air for one of these babies.

 

MacBook Touch Mock-Up

Due to the size of this new device, it is only logical to assume that it will not be on par in terms of performance, to the other MacBooks currently under production from Apple. Even the MacBook Air. Thus, it can only be inferred that the new version of OS X, 10.6, is specially being built for this new device and the MacBook Air. The reduced size of the OS and the reduced system requirements, coupled with the dropping of PowerPC support, OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard would be the fastest operating system in the OS X family.

So, what do you think? Is Touch the future of Apple? Or would this be one Touch too many?

Jailbreak 2.0

by Ravenizer

 

Well… not exactly. But yes, the moment that everyone has been waiting for is now here. The iPhone Dev Team has done it yet again! Amazing people, those folks. They practically run a multi-national organization and yet, they all sync perfectly together to bring us more good stuff from the world of Jailbreaks and iPhone hacking.

Before you continue reading, you might want to get the file here. If not, read on and then get the file from the bottom of this article =)

So, what do I mean by “not exactly” ? 

To Jailbreak an iPhone (iPod Touch) is to modify, as well as tweak the Operating System (OS) and upgrading the abilities already present. This also allows the adding of new-found abilities into the device. That’s Jailbreak, in a 2 sentences. A jailbreak leaves the firmware as it is but just removes the restriction that Apple may have placed in it. However, this new method that the iPhone Dev Team has created is NOT Jail-breaking. Rather, it is something like re-writing  the OS from the ground up. Yep, that is what the Dev Team has done. This new method, know as PWNING, is what most people would be doing to free their iPhone 3G’s Operating Systems, from the grips of Apple (AAPL). The funny thing here is that this new method does NOT unlock the device. This means, you are still tied to the exclusive Service Provider (AT&T etc.) and will not be able to use the phone on any other networks (unless of course, sim-locking is illegal in your country). So I am not exactly sure what the Dev Team was thinking when they did this.

The good news however, is that this method works flawlessly on the new 2.0 software upgrade. Previous forms of Jailbreaks were not effective against this new software from Apple. So what the Dev Team did here was to take the basic structure of the new Firmware and tweak it to include Apps like Installer and Cydia Packager, to allow the usual installation of 3rd-party applications that Jail-breaking allowed. This means, the Dev Team is basically giving people the power to built their own custom firmwares.

What’s scary about this new method is the possibilities of iPhones being bricked. Yes, the pwning process by itself is safe, however, Apple has shown us that they have the ability to push things into the iPhones from their own servers such as badges and such for 3rd party apps. This means, they could very well push new updates into your device without your approval, as technically, they own the software and have a right to update it as they deem fit when ever they please. Thus, if the update manager detects a custom firmware it could easily ignite a chain reaction that would result in you having a very shiny Apple Inc. paper weight. 

So, what should you do? (Click here is you still want to go ahead and Pwnage your iPhones or iPods)

Wait. The answer is that simple.

I believe that Zibri, the maker of ZiPhone, will be able to produce a genuine Jailbreaking software soon. Allow me to quote Zibri as my conclusion. This was taken off his blog at Ziphone.org:

In the next days some people* will release
what they will call the ultimate unlocking tool*
for all iphones/ipods.

While that is a nice proof of concept and a very
good team work, I wish to tell you what’s
going to happen.

Since a real jailbreak is not (yet) possible,
they opted for a software upgrade, total
internat firmware modification and
custom firmware.

For me, a real hack works this way:
you upgrade to 2.0, run a program
and in 4-6 minutes the phone works.
That’s because 4 to 6 minutes are needed
to boot the phone a couple of times
and modify a few bytes here and there….

…..

….About the ‘soon to be released’ hacks*,
think about the playstation or online games;
you can crack them, but you won’t be able
to play online with legit buyers.

Now think: what is an offline iPhone?
A paperweight.
That’s what you’re gonna have
if (WHEN) apple decides to push a button.
And this time they will.

______________________________________________________

*Some notes on what Zibri said

• “Some people” refers to the iPhone Dev Team
• “ultimate unlocking tool” refers to the Pwnage Tool 2.0.1
• “soon to be released” is a direct pun at how long the Dev Team delayed the release for

Free MobileMe Alternative

dot-Mac (.Mac)

A Brief History

We all know about dot-Mac. I mean, yeah, its called MobileMe now, but hey, we would always come to remember it as .Mac, won’t we? The services provided in the .Mac package are just so comprehensive and convenient that it becomes almost impossible to live without. I know of some people who cannot imagine life without their .Mac accounts, let alone the iDisk space and the uber cool BackUp 3 services. So then, It comes down to the question of cost. Which person, in all of God’s green earth, would be that beef headed to keep on spending $99 every year, year after year, to keep their accounts going. Sure, if you were Bill Gates or somethings, you would have maybe 60 .Mac accounts. But this article here today is not for the Rich and Famous. This is for the die hard fans of .Mac who just want to stop putting holes in their wallets. This is for those of you, who need an alternative.

The Road to Saving Money

The secret to saving money on your .Mac account is to technically, find things that cost less, or for that matter, even free. Freebies are ALL OVER the net. All you have to do is look hard enough and you will find something you like. With the rise of Torrents and Applications like iSerial Reader, it is super easy to download a fully working application off the net. However, .Mac is a service, and it is built into the OS. As such, there is no simple way of just “hacking” it. Besides, it is a paid service. Do you think Apple is not going to notice a rogue .Mac account that is not billed to anyone? So yes, the road to Saving Money is not necessarily easy, but it isn’t impossible. Getting the exact same thing for free is definitely a no-no. You have got to accept that fact. If you can live with that fact, read on. If not, I suggest you give this article a miss a get back to the porn you were surfing a minute ago.

The Parts that Make .Mac

The components of .Mac is essentially what makes the service work. The smooth integration of the service into OS X, is also a remarkable feat pulled off by Apple, that I doubt will ever be present on Windows. The core components of .Mac are as follows:

• HomePage
• iDisk
• @mac.com
• Backup
• iCards

 

Extended services provided by .Mac include the following:

 

• Back to my Mac (dynamic DNS) remote desktop service
• iChat (SSL encryption possible)

 

While the extended services of .Mac can come in extremely useful, sadly, there are no substitutes for these services. This is because, the dynamic DNS protocols required for “Back To my Mac” to work properly are only available through .Mac and its servers. However, if you want to insist on using iChat, you may either do it via an AIM account, or, sign-up for a free trail of .Mac and retain you login information. The .Mac account can be used to login into your iChat account for life. (I think this applies to iTunes as well)

Now let me outline the extreme usefulness of all the things that make .Mac:

HomePage

Basically, it is a service that allows you to create your own homepage with personal webhosting features. The information that goes onto your site is placed within Apple’s own servers. They do not interfere with the space you have on iDisk. These pages can be made on ANY Operating Systems and any Web Browser.

iDisk & Backup

A WebDAV based server storage, this online storage solution can be actually mounted onto your Macintosh Machine as if it were a real physical drive.                                    

The brand new iDisk with the MobileMe logo

Furthermore, the space on your iDisk could easily be upgraded by applying for different .Mac packages to suit your needs. The simplicity of drag and drop is definitely a plus for online storage.

Another good thing about the iDisk is that it has the ability to easily and quickly backup your system to it. Built into the .Mac service is the Backup feature that allows you to do this. You can even restore a brand new computer from the data stored up in the cloud with .Mac.

The last and final bit to iDisk is iWeb. iWeb is an application that was developed for Apple’s suite of Softwares known as iLife. iWeb allows anyone at anytime to simply make a stunning website in seconds. The best part to this is that you get hosting straight onto your iDisk, and a rather smashing domain name is provided to you by Apple. These pages, unlike HomePage, cannot be edited by anything but Mac OS X using iWeb.

.Mac Mail (@mac.com)

With the integration of Mail into the .Mac service, an individual can simply check his @mac mail simply online through an AJAX system similar to hotmail. Having a @mac mail ID also meant that individuals could quickly check their mails via IMAP on their Macintosh Machines via the Mail.app Application.

iCards

This is a service of Apple’s to enable it’s subscribers to easily send e-cards. The only difference in this service is that these e-cards are sent directly from the @mac address and the cards are designed by professional designers at Apple.

All right then, that’s all the services covered. Now to the juicy details. We have to make ourselves an alternative. I am not going to beat around the bush anymore, so here. i’ll lay it up front straight to you.

The Alternatives to .Mac

I have spent quite a number of days pondering over each and everyone of these services that I am about to reveal. Therefore, I am confident enough to tell you that yes, I have found a free alternative to the famous .Mac. Let us start with iDisk and storage matters.

iDisk and Storage

The secret to iDisk’s drag and drop online storage is its use of the WebDAV system. The file format of this type of online drives allows them to be mounted on your systems. These drives can be mounted both on a Mac or a PC, but these things are done easier on a Mac.

Firstly, we need to get an online drive. Most people recommend Box.net. This company offers an online storage solution of 1GB that is free for life. However, I have recently discovered a free service that provides twice that storage!

+

MyDisk.se provides 2GB of free WebDAV based online Storage

Meet MyDisk.se. It is a service from Sweden that rocks my world right now. I mean yes, .Mac has ten times more storage but hey, with multiple emails, you can sign up for multiple accounts. The sign-up is quick and there is no verification process. Just provide them your email and create yourself an account. Until now, I have yet to receive any spam from a result of joining this. I am still keeping my eyes peeled for a better offer out there, so yeah, I will update this as I deem fit. So, how do you set up this WebDAV thing?

po

Well, this part is extremely easy on a Mac. First, hit ‘Apple+K’ on your desktop. Make sure the App you are running is Finder. Then, a screen similar to the one below will popup.

STEP ONE:

 

In the “Server Address” field, type out https://mydisk.se/Username. Note that the ‘Username’ here refers to the same one that you created when signing up at MyDisk.

Once done, hit Connect. You will see the following:

STEP TWO:

 

Establishing contact with the Server

 

Wait for the computer to establish contact. When it has pinged the server, the server will request authentication. You will then see the next window.

STEP THREE:

Type your username and password exactly as you did during sign-up

 

Be sure to tick the option to remember your password. It will save time the next time you connect. The computer will skip this logging-in process if you do so.

STEP FOUR:

 

New WebDAV icon

 Finally, we have this lovely icon mounted automatically onto the desktop* or your finder. You can now drag and drop files onto the server anytime you want. You can even make folders and organize your server neatly.

I would suggest making another account just for backups. I will elaborate more on MyDisk backups later in this post.

*Do note that to see the icon on your desktop, you must enable an option in Finder’s Preferences. Go to Finder’s prefs, go to the general Tab and select the checkbox that says, Show Connected Server

 

 

Backup

Ok. So you have got yourself a MyDisk.se account. How does one go about backing up? Simple. Get yourself another account. This would be a dedicated account that only serves for the purpose of backing up data. This will also emulate the backing service that we see on .Mac, or MobileMe as its currently known as. Backing is really easy. All you have to do is drag and drop. Its that simple. Need to chuck a copy of something important somewhere? Now, you have got an online server!

The procedure to set up the server on you Mac is exactly the same as setting up for use as iDisk.

iCards

The new Mail application on OS X 10.5 has a great new feature called stationery. When composing a mail, all one has to do is select a suitable stationery and design away! Sending the card is also easy for both the Sender and Recipient. Since its an email, it can be opened on a variety of devices, including iPhones, iPod Touch, and Blackberries & Other Mobile Phones that they call smart. Here’s how you do it.

 

STEP ONE:

Show Stationery

Firstly, launch Mail if you haven’t already. Then compose a new mail. When the new mail window pops up, instead of writing the email as you usually would, look for a little button on the top-right corner. The button is labeled “Show Stationery.”

This button will activate a slide out menu below the Address and Subject fields. When this happens, your new mail window should look some thing like the next step.

 

STEP TWO:

”]

Click on the image for a clearer look. You can see that there are a variety of events and stationery to choose from. Have your pick. Go wild!

 

 

The End

Thus, this concludes and wraps up the basics of free .Mac alternatives. However, I leave you with one last thought. if you can afford the membership fees, i would suggest that you get the real thing. MobileMe is designed for OS X, thus, it flow and syncs with it much more efficiently as compared to the methods that I have discussed in this article.