Apple announces ultrathin laptop, movie rentals
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CEO Steve Jobs uses his Macworld keynote speech to introduce an ultraportable notebook, a movie rental service, and a bevy of new features for its iPhone, iPod Touch, and Apple TV.
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Banners hanging at&#160;Macworld Expo&#160;on Monday read, &quot;2008: There&#39;s something in the air,&quot; suggesting wireless news to come in CEO Steve Jobs&#39; keynote Tuesday morning.Faster cellular service for the iPhone is already on its way later this year, AT&amp;T&#39;s top executive reportedly said in November, but Apple could go beyond that plan and extend high-speed wireless WAN (wide-area network) capability to its MacBook notebooks and even a rumored &quot;ultramobile&quot; computer.Many consumers have been clamoring for more speed on the iPhone since it was announced a year ago with support only for Wi-Fi and EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution), a version of GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) that generally runs below 200Mbps. U.S. iPhone carrier AT&amp;T Wireless and other operators around the world already have a set of faster systems called HSPA (High-Speed Packet Access) that can deliver more than 1Mbps.At the same time, wide-area wireless has been moving into PC notebooks and smaller PC-like devices. The big notebook vendors, including Dell, Lenovo, and Hewlett-Packard, have rolled out products with built-in 3G. And the Asustek Computer Eee PC and some other small UMPC (ultramobile PC) devices are slated to ship with WiMax.Apple hasn&#39;t made the leap. Mobile Mac owners can hook up to Wi-Fi hotspots but have to buy dongles or other add-on devices from third parties to get fast wireless elsewhere. Offering a built-in 3G card would give MacBook users access to broadband in far more locations.However, that leap would take Apple into a market that hasn&#39;t attracted a large percentage of notebook buyers, analysts said.At least in the U.S., 3G radios are associated with a particular carrier and usually sold along with two-year data contracts. Users keep notebooks longer than they do phones and don&#39;t want to lock them down to a particular carrier, said Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin. In addition, many notebooks are purchased by enterprise IT departments, which demand more flexibility, Golvin said. He doesn&#39;t expect to see another iPhone phenomenon.&quot;I don&#39;t think that laptop users would be as interested in aligning themselves formally with one particular carrier,&quot; Golvin said. One alternative would be to build in a chip that could handle more than one carrier and 3G technology, he added.Avi Greengart of Current Analysis believes Apple&#39;s proven ability to streamline could change the picture.&quot;They have not been in the forefront of 3G on notebooks. However, it wouldn&#39;t surprise me at all if they came out with a simplified offering that just made a lot of sense and became the catalyst, as the iPhone is,&quot; Greengart said. Apple simplified the iPhone experience for customers by sticking with one carrier and letting subscribers sign up with AT&amp;T through iTunes.Apple could also jump-start the market by offering an alternative to the expensive monthly service model that carriers typically use, said Gartner&#39;s Ken Dulaney. Most consumers don&#39;t travel frequently enough to justify spending US$30 or more per month for cellular service on their notebooks, but they might be willing to buy a system with built-in 3G and pay for service as they need it, he said. Verizon has a little-known offering like this, in which users can pay $15 for 24 hours of service, according to spokesman Jeffrey Nelson.Because of its greater mobility, a rumored Mac that&#39;s smaller than a notebook but bigger than the iPhone would be an ideal candidate for 3G. If the company unveils it on Tuesday, that product could lead Apple&#39;s new wireless charge.But that &quot;something in the air&quot; could be a number of other things, too, analysts said. Apple is expected to make its SDK (software development kit) for third-party applications on the iPhone available next month, Greengart said. And the iPhone could gain GPS (Global Positioning System) capability, or some iPods could get Wi-Fi, he said. As always, it&#39;s all speculation until Jobs speaks.&#160;
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Rumors are abound that Apple will release a movie rental service on iTunes.  And as Don Reisinger points out, the company should do it as soon as possible.
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Now that Apple has conquered the online music arena with iTunes and its iPod, is it ready to do the same for movies?
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Anyway, planning to cash in on all the wonderful PR generated by iPod, Apple says starting at $1,000, its iBook features built-in AirPort Extreme, 1.33 GHz PowerPC G4 processors and SuperDrive for burning DVDs, as well as iLife â04 suite &quot;for managing
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Apple Inc  will start  renting movies over the Internet, Chief Executive Steve Jobs  said on Tuesday, moving the iPhone and iPod maker into a very  competitive market.
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Apple Computer Inc. said  it will begin selling movie downloads from Walt Disney Co.'s film
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There&#39;s no doubt that Apple&#39;s latest notebook computer is a joy to look at. The enormous 17in widescreen means you can watch films on it at a size approaching that of a television, and the brushed aluminium finish is undeniably stylish.
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Apple Computer Inc. indicated that chief executive Steve Jobs will outline plans next week to sell full-length movies through its iTunes music and video store.
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A laptop that fits inside an envelope and online movie rentals are among announcements at MacWorld.
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Apple Computer Inc.&#039;s latest laptop looks sleek, runs fast and should give makers of Windows-based notebooks considerable cause for concern.
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California's Apple Computer Co. will unveil a product that streams video and music from a Macintosh computer or the Internet to a television.
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Madness over Macworld gathers momentum So, CES packs up for another year and everyone takes a break from the full-on, week-long frenzy. However, another big event is about to steal the spotlight as Apple is expected to announce an ultra-slim laptop at its annual show on Tuesday.â¦
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With iTunes movie rentals now available, Don Reisinger thinks Steve Jobs pulled a fast one on the online rental industry. Is he right?
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As the annual Consumer  Electronics Show in Las Vegas winds down to lackluster reviews,  Apple Inc  is expected to grab the spotlight with an  ultra-slim laptop computer and online movie rentals at its  biggest annual show next week.
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InfoWorld - Apple Computer will come out with product guns blazing at this week&#8217;s Macworld Conference &amp; Expo, armed with several business and consumer offerings aimed at both the server and storage markets.
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CHICAGO _ In a move widely viewed as inevitable, Steve Jobs said Tuesday that Apple Computer Inc. will sell movies from its online music store with prices starting at $9.99.