Bites from the Apple: Boxing Day Edition

A happy Boxing Day to all (or, if you're in South Africa, glad tidings on this Day of Goodwill) as you get acquainted with your new gadgets. If you've received new Apple gear--from iPhone and iPods to Apple TV and hard drives--check out the various So you just got a ... -- now what? posts over at The Unofficial Apple Weblog (aka, TUAW) for hints on how to get the fun started. And if you're looking for some cool new software to try out, the folks at MacHeist are doling out some free software as presents (including 1Password). Now, let's get to some more collected tidbits of Apple-y goodness from the festive week that was...

• The big surprise of the upcoming Macworld Expo may have been leaked this week, with renderings of silicone case molds for a more diminutive iPhone nano hitting the Web. Further amping up the speculation are photos captured by an AppleInsider reader who found knock-offs of the rumored phone already hitting the markets in Thailand (seen in the bottom row next to the RAZR in the photo below, via of TUAW).

  

• In other rumors, it's looking like we'll see upgraded iMacs at Macworld as well as a Mac mini, which elicited this very cool concept mock-up from Brazilian designer Victor Anselme (via Cult of Mac).

  

• If you're a new Mac owner this holiday season, and you're wondering whether to buy AppleCare's additional two years' coverage, both TUAW and I agree--it's worth the investment. I haven't had anything as serious as a logic board crap out on me, but I've had lots of little things crop up, and I've been quite happy with Apple's coverage and fast turnaround (of course, your mileage may vary, but that's been my experience).

• New iPhone owners might want to pick up the app version of David Pogue's iPhone: The Missing Manual to have all the tips and tricks right at hand. And if you're wondering what applications are essential, check out these lists from Gizmodo and Macworld. Gizmodo also adds its 10 essential games (to which I'd add Real Soccer 2009). By the by, the apps that get the most attention on my iPhone are NetNewsWire, Facebook, Black and White (an Othello-like game), Wikipanion, and OmniFocus.

• It's official: Walmart will be selling the iPhone starting on December 28 (via Ars Technica).

• Mac-using Blackberry owners of recent models (including the Storm, Flip, Bold, Pearl and Curve) can now test out a preview version of BlackBerry Media Sync, which synchronizes music from iTunes to your Blackberry--though you'll only have access to non-DRM'd song files (via Ars Technica).

• Mac Rumors discovered a new patent application from Apple called Swipe Gestures for Touch Screen Keyboards that would allow for simple finger gestures like swipes to the left or right to control basic functions of text editing.

• Boxee, the social media center, will be opening up its alpha software to the public on January 8 (up till now, you had to ask for an invitation). If you're considering Boxee as an addition to the Apple TV (I am, but I just haven't had time to do it), The Gadgeteer blog has a blow-by-blow account of the installation process done on Christmas day (now that's some hard-core geekdom).

• While it's rather stereotypical for artists to be Mac users, Cult of Mac notes that M.I.A. (aka, Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam), the British/Sri Lankan rapper who rode high on the charts with "Paper Planes" (featured in both the Pineapple Express trailer and in a scene from Slumdog Millionaire), roamed the globe collecting many of the samples found on her album Kala from recordings done using her MacBook Pro and Apple's Logic Studio software.

--Agen G.N. Schmitz

Comments

[nazli on December 27, 2008 at 04:54 AM]

thnks

[Bonzai on December 29, 2008 at 07:45 PM]

It's best deal of the year!

[McLee on January 02, 2009 at 06:49 AM]

I'm not one to buy service policies, but I am very happy I bought Apple Care for my four year old iMac. I am on my fourth logic board (one was DOA at the repair shop), and all were covered by Apple Care.