Late Wednesday, Apple released iTunes 8.1, the latest version of its multimedia/jukebox application for Mac OS X. The new version, a 63.4 megabyte download, offers the following fixes, changes and new features:
iTunes 8.1 is available for free, requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later to run and can be snagged using Mac OS X’s built-in Software Update feature.
If you’ve tried the new version and have any feedback, positive or negative, let us know over in the comments or forums.
Following up on last week’s story regarding several users citing the hinge defect in Apple’s first generation MacBook Air notebook, a number of users are reporting a hit-or-miss policy in terms of Apple covering fixes for the notebooks under its AppleCare program.
According to Macworld, users have reported that Apple is flat out denying fixes for MacBook Air notebooks with broken hinges, even if the notebooks are still under warranty.
Per the article, an Apple Store location cited that a user who brought their MacBook Air in could spend US$800 to have the problem resolved or spend US$1,799 for a brand new, second generation MacBook Air. In this case, Apple cited the case as “accidental” damage wherein the repair would not be covered under Apple’s warranty policy.
In another case, user Lisa Eckstein (who documented the damage on her Flickr page) reported that upon taking the notebook to a “smaller and less busy” Apple Store location, employees promptly took the notebook and fixed it.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available and if you’ve seen this occur on your end, please let us know in the comments or forums.
Wireless carrier China Unicom has reportedly sent top executives to meet with Apple in the United States next month as Apple may be bringing its iPhone handset to the Chinese market.
According to tech.sina.com.cn (the report is in Chinese) and Macworld UK, the movements of the China Unicom executives were cited by “knowledgeable sources.”
The article then goes on the state that China Unicom plans to launch WCDMA (Wideband Code Divison Multiple Access) 3G services in May.
In recent months, Apple has been rumored to be in negoatiations with China Mobile Communications, the country’s largest mobile operator, about selling the iPhone in China.
Throughout this process, rumors have circulated that Apple has also been in talks with China Unicom regarding sales of the iPhone in China.
The 3G iPhone supports WCDMA, which is widely used in Asia, North America and Europe. However, China Mobile was granted a license to offer 3G services using TD-SCDMA (Time Division Synchronous CDMA), a different 3G technology that was developed in China and is significantly less mature from a development standpoint.
Even before Chinese regulators made the news official last month, China Mobile was long been expected to receive a license for TD-SCDMA, not WCDMA. For China Mobile to offer the 3G iPhone, Apple would be required to redesign the handset using new components that would need to be sourced from different suppliers.
Such changes would appreciably increase Apple’s production cost and likely result in higher prices to the end user.
Another sticking point between Apple and China Mobile was the Apple Store, which the company uses to sell and distribute third-party applications, Sina reported. Previous reports have indicated that China Mobile has its own plans for an application store and did not want to yield to Apple’s control.
For this reason, a deal to bring the iPhone to China will likely involve significant concessions from China Unicom to meet Apple’s requirements, the report said.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available and let us know what you think in the comments or forums.