In our review we said:

… The user interface of Affinity Designer for Mac is everything you’d expect from a modern app. While there is instant familiarity with the workspace from Illustrator, the user interface is more beginner friendly and is very intuitive. The software takes a more visual and gesture based approach rather than features being hidden deep inside menus.

Apple has published their own review of the app on its Awards page and the company echoes our views:

… This is an excellent example of what a state-of-the-art Mac app should be …

Affinity Designer is optimized for Retina Display and OS X Yosemite, and has a flexible and intuitive user interface that’s highly contextual, offering you the tools you need when you need them … Affinity Designer is localized in German, Spanish, French, and English, and is a modern, well-designed, highly capable, and extremely responsive design tool that’s a perfect match for today’s latest generation Mac hardware.

The developers of the app, Serif (Europe) Ltd., are extremely elated with this recognition but they didn’t forget to thank their fans for its success.

This is the stuff of dreams, and we want to thank Apple and all our fans that have made this a reality for us.

Affinity Designer is making great progress with regular updates that improve existing functionality and offer new features. The latest update supports Force Touch trackpad on the MacBook and MacBook Pro. With the new technology users can use pressure sensitivity to paint on the canvas.

We are very happy for Affinity Designer and look forward to future updates and wish them great success.

Congratulations!

Affinity Designer for Mac is now available for a 20% discount to celebrate the award.

I bought the 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro with 512GB SSD, 2.5GHz i7 quad-core processor and 16GB RAM on August 15th, the day it was launched in India. This is my second Mac the first was a 27-inch mid 2010 iMac. I recently published the story behind me switching from an iMac to MacBook Pro, if you’re interested you can find it here.

It’s been almost 10 days since I’ve been using the new Retina MacBook Pro and this review will be focusing on real-world use, general observations and experiences. If you’re looking for a more technical review focusing on speed tests and tech specs, you may want to visit AnandTech for the most comprehensive hardware reviews.

Over the last 10 days my workflow has drastically changed. I was using a windows laptop before I purchased the iMac, and over the last 4 years working on a large 27-inch screen made me feel that going back to a laptop would be a challenge. However, I was prepared for the tradeoff between modern computing speed and screen space.

As I started working on the new Retina MacBook Pro I was pleasantly surprised with the fact that I was being more efficient in my workflow and obviously could get the work done much faster than ever before. Before I get into the details about how the MacBook Pro changed my workflow I should talk about how I work.

A typical day would see me browsing through hundreds of webpages, lots of email, working on Pages, creating presentations on Keynote,  producing wireframes for apps, web design etc. With the luxury of 27 inch screen I mostly had everything open on a single desktop area. This allowed me to always have a bird’s eye view of everything that was open and gave me a feeling of being in control over everything. I rarely ever used ‘Spaces’ (creating multiple desktop spaces in OS X) as I just liked everything at one space. Even though this allowed me to view more at once, it could easily be too distracting at times.

With the MacBook Pro going from 27-inch to 15.4 inch screen required me to adjust the way I worked. From having lots of windows open at once I instantly switched to a more organised workflow by creating multiple spaces. Also, using full screen apps now made more sense, having mail open full screen on a 27 inch screen is not the same as it being open full screen on 15.4 inch screen. Full screen apps such as Mail, Pages or Safari make more sense on laptop when compared to a desktop. So, even though now I would see less at once but this increased my focus on the task at hand. Over the last 10 days I’ve noticed that having less to view at once actually made more sense and one could be more productive this way. It’s worth mentioning that I do miss the large screen space when it comes to wire framing apps, websites or editing a movie, but retina display surely makes up for that.

The first thing I ever noticed about the new MacBook Pro was its flawless high-resolution screen. The text is crisp, photos look stunning and it’s a complete visual treat. It suddenly makes you wonder why on Earth would you ever work on anything that does not have a retina screen. So, it was love at first sight with the new screen.

Once you come to terms with how excellent the screen is you start noticing that everything is just swift. Thanks to the SSD launching applications, booting-up, waking from sleep, reading & writing data is very fast. I can’t stress enough on how ‘fast’ especially if you’re moving from HDD to SSD for the first time on a computing machine. I would never turn off the iMac as it would take about 3-4 minutes to boot-up and that often felt like a lot. Apple’s iOS devices ‘always on’ usage behaviour has certainly changed the way we expect the way modern computers should work. MacBook Pro takes only a few seconds (less than 15) to boot-up so turning it off when not using it can help you save some energy. Although, there are no major benefits of turning off your computer when not using it, however occasionally it will make it more responsive as it will clear the RAM being hogged by kernel tasks.

The next aspect about the Retina MacBook Pro that I want to highlight is 16GB RAM. For the last four years I had been working with 4GB RAM on my iMac. For the modern-day browsing and general computing activities 4GB just isn’t enough although it does depend on how you use your computer. Since, I love having 15-25 tabs open in Safari when I’m researching on some topic having access to lots of RAM is a huge advantage.

I’ve put the new MacBook Pro under extreme work load by having lots of safari tabs open, playing SimCity, working on a Pages document, importing photos to iPhoto and even working on Final Cut Pro and Aperture, but the MacBook Pro just keeps taking it all and doesn’t lag one bit. I would refer to myself as a “power” user, so working on a portable machine that can take all that load is extremely satisfying.

I was a bit concerned about the battery life of my new Retina MacBook Pro. I had considered holding off my purchase for another year in anticipation of Intel’s Broadwell chips that are expected to be much more power efficient. However, so far the battery life on the MacBook Pro has been very reasonable. Keeping the screen brightness low and keyboard backlight off while not activating the dedicated graphics chip the MacBook Pro has exceeded Apple’s battery guidelines. Switching from iMac to a MacBook Pro also gave me the freedom from being tied to my desk. This freedom to work from anywhere without sacrificing on power or battery is a huge benefit.

The last aspect I want to cover is the overall build quality. Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro is undoubtedly the best looking machine you can buy in the market. The unibody construction feels extremely solid and it doesn’t feel that heavy when compared with the older generation models.

When working for long durations the system does heat up and sometimes it can get a bit uncomfortable. The fans have rarely kicked in at full speed during normal use. In my daily use the fans kicked in at full speed only while playing SimCity as the game requires the use of dedicated graphics card.

The Retina MacBook Pro might be costly but it scores highly in all aspects you can think of. However, it may still not meet everyone’s requirement. If you’re into high-end gaming and love running games at highest graphics settings then this may not be for you. If you prefer having more than 1TB storage then you’d have to look elsewhere. Upgrading the machine after purchasing is not possible; 16GB RAM will always remain 16GB. The device has been rated low in repairability. If you want to play DVD’s you would need to buy a SuperDrive.

Other benefits of a MacBook Pro include iCloud, access to some of the best softwares from the Mac App Store, less susceptible to malware, extremely responsive multi-touch trackpad and the best customer support service.

Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro is the gold standard in laptops and OS X Yosemite will only put it further in the lead. If you’ve waited all this while to switch to the MacBook Pro lineup there was never a better time than today.

As I began using my first Mac with 27-inch large display and the fastest processors available at that time it was certainly an enjoyable experience. I could multitask and have TweetDeck open with almost 7 to 8 columns of different twitter feeds. So, more screen space allowed me to open more apps on the same desktop space. During the course of the last three years I increasingly felt tied to my workspace as working with a desktop obviously takes away the freedom of moving around.

When Apple announced the new iPad 2 in March 2011, it seemed to be the best option to bring balance to desktop computing by having a tablet to do other tasks while on the move. This combination of iMac and an iPad worked. I was able to check emails and respond while I was on the move, write reviews and more. As the App Store became populated with powerful apps like iWork, AppCooker, Omnigraffle I began doing advanced tasks like designing and wire framing apps and websites on the tablet. iPad became my first choice for tasks such as wire framing and designing as it felt extremely intuitive on a multi-touch screen.

All computing devices have a limited shelf life and as technology advances older products start slowing down. So, around mid 2013 the iMac and iPad 2 both started to age and not offer the same experience as before. Working from a stationary workspace also added more fatigue. This made me reflect back on that day when I had second thoughts about picking up a MacBook Pro instead of an iMac. Apple now had Retina displays in its MacBook Pro lineup and it felt like the perfect device for someone whose work involves a lot of writing and designing.

I waited for a while before making the switch to a Retina MacBook Pro as I wanted the processors to mature and offer stable experience to Retina display users.

When Apple announced OS X Yosemite during the WWDC, new features such as handoff wouldn’t work in my mid-2010 iMac. So, it was clear that iMac days were limited. On July 24 when public beta of OS X Yosemite was made available I installed in on my iMac and it worked fine for a few hours. The performance was laggy but that could be mainly due to the fact that it is a beta software and not final release. I rebooted the system a couple of times and it was the third reboot that killed my hard drive. The iMac was stuck on the boot screen and after a series of attempts to get the hard drive to work nothing worked. Eventually, I had to buy a new hard drive and then everything was fine. iMac being out of AppleCare warranty costs expensive repair. This particular model had a history of display and super drive being changed twice while under Apple Care.

After replacing the hard drive I decided to sell the iMac and buy a mid-2014 15.4-inch Retina MacBook Pro 512 GB SSD, 2.5GHz i7 Processor, 16GB RAM. It’s just been 2 days since I’ve started using the MacBook Pro and I haven’t missed having the iMac even one bit. Coming from HDD to SSD is like someone from the dialup connection days suddenly experiences the modern-day broadband. The absolutely stunning Retina display has an overwhelming “wow” factor. The text as I’m typing is set to very small font size but it’s so crisp and pleasing to the eye. Photos and videos look stunning with great colours.

I usually don’t quit apps as it used to take a little while to re-launch them but with the new Retina MacBook Pro tasks such as launching new apps, rebooting are so fast that you begin to appreciate the amount of power this machine has.

It’s only been two days, so there’s a lot for me to discover and it will be interesting to see how my impressions change after putting the device through daily usage. But, I can certainly say it’s been an extremely satisfying experience so far.

Do you have any first time Mac experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.

Apple’s WWDC 2013 keynote event will go live today at the Moscone West convention center in San Francisco. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, will kick off the event with a keynote presentation at 10 AM Pacific Time.

At this years Worldwide Developers Conference Apple will unveil iOS 7 and the next major release for OS X. A live video stream of the keynote event will be available at Apple’s website and requires Safari 4 or later on Mac OS X v10.6 or later; Safari on iOS 4.2 or later. The company has added a new section for streaming via Apple TV and requires second- or third-generation Apple TV with software 5.0.2 or later to stream the event.

iOS 7 will be the first release that has been developed under the leadership of Jony Ive, SVP of Industrial Design, as Apple fired Scott Forstall allegedly over Apple maps fiasco and an internal divide over the skeuomorphic design elements. In addition to a redesign iOS 7 is expected to open new API’s for developers giving more control over features and could also introduce AirDrop for iOS to make sharing between iOS devices easier.

No details have been available about what’s new in OS X. Apple usually previews new version of OS X earlier in the year however, it is believed that the company had to pull engineers from OS X team to work on iOS 7.

Banners for iOS 7 and OS X suggest a clean and flat design for the upcoming update. Apple is expected to release the software updates later this fall. Apple’s online store is down at the time of writing which suggests that the rumors about possible MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models could turn out to be true.

What are your expectations from this years keynote event? Let us know what you think in the comments section. To watch the live keynote event visit Apple’s website.

Apple’s WWDC 2013 keynote event will kick off on June 10 where the company is expected to preview OS X 10.9, iOS 7 and now according to a new report we may also see next gen MacBook Pro models. The company in the recent years has used WWDC as a platform to showcase the latest advancements in its software and has made efforts to schedule hardware announcement events separately.

KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in his report about Apple’s WWDC 2013 mentions that the company will introduce new models of MacBook Pro and MacBook Air that will be based on Intel’s latest Haswell processors. Kuo also believes that Apple will continue to offer non-Retina MacBook Pro models which is contrary to the claims made earlier.

Contrary to our previous projection, we now think Apple will continue to make the MacBook Pro alongside the MacBook Air and Retina MacBook Pro because the 13” MacBook Pro remains the most popular product in the MacBook line. Also, there is still demand in emerging markets, where Internet penetration isn’t advanced, for optical disk drives.

Kuo is his predictions for WWDC 2013 notes that updated non-Retina MacBook Pro models could ship “very soon” after WWDC but, the new Retina-MacBook Pro models may ship at a later date.

MacBook Air lineup is also expected to be refreshed however, the analyst believes that we may not see a Retina MacBook Air just yet and cites “cost, thickness and production concerns” as the top issues.

{via MacRumors}

Earlier this week, reports suggested that Apple updated Siri in iOS 6.1 to add movie ticket purchases. This would allow users to voice navigate movie theatres, times, prices and ultimately purchase the tickets. Now Apple is working backwards and connecting Siri to its already existing applications. Apple has released an update to the Apple Store app, adding support for Siri and the ability for users to email PassBook enabled gift cards through the app.

Although the two new features appear to be included in the Apple Store app, they have not yet been enabled yet. It is possible that Apple is waiting to include the features in iOS 6.1 alongside the movie ticket purchasing feature. With Siri integrated into the Apple Store app, users can now ask questions such as, “How much is the Macbook Pro?” and Siri will automatically route them to that specific section in the app and will pull up the product page for the Macbook Pro.

What’s New in Version 2.4

– Buy new gift cards and email them to friends and family right from the app. These gift cards are easily integrated with the new Passbook app (U.S. only, iOS 6 required).

– Ask Siri to help you find prices and shop for Apple products. (Siri-enabled device required.)”

The Apple Store app with the new update is now available on the App Store [Direct Link].

{Via MacRumors}

During Apple’s media event in San Jose this past Tuesday, the company announced a new 13 inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display. Alongside the arrival of the Retina Display, Apple has also eliminated the optical drive and slimmed down the device, also including flash storage instead of a traditional hard drive.

On Wednesday, Apple posted the first television ad for the device, called “Colors” on the company website as well as the company’s YouTube account. The ad was originally shown off during the Apple media event, and showed off some of the apps that can be run on the device, including Mail, Final Cut Pro, Aperture, and iTunes. The ad begins with a hand moving quickly through the apps, and working on different projects. The narrator then reads:

Introducing the new 13″ MacBook Pro.

With the stunning Retina display.

For the pro in all of us.

On Tuesday, alongside the announcement of the new iPad mini and the 4th generation iPad, Apple Inc. (AAPL) also went ahead to introduce a thinner, lighter 13 inch MacBook Pro with a Retina Display. The new MacBook Pro is only 0.75 inches and 3.57 pounds in weight, making nearly 20% thinner than its predecessor and about a pound lighter and also has a FaceTime HD camera, dual microphones, improved speakers, faster 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a MagSafe 2 charging port.

With the newest addition to the MacBook lineup, AAPL has made nearly all of its products into portable machines. The 13 inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display does not have an optical drive as with most of Apple’s Mac products, and instead sports a slimmer form factor with a Retina Display that has 227 pixels per inch and flash storage that is faster upon startup.

With the transition to flash storage, Apple can produce thinner and lighter machines that start up and run programs much faster than the last generation. The 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is now one of Apple’s base models, with a 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of memory and 128GB of flash storage starting at only US$1,699. Users then have the option to configure their machines with 256GB of flash storage coming in at US$1,999.

The 13 inch and 15 inch MacBook Pros with Retina Display are on sale in Apple Stores and online with free shipping.

Are you planning to buy the MacBook Pro with Retina Display? Do you think it is worth the upgrade?

With Apple Inc. (AAPL) “iPad Mini” media event scheduled for October 23rd, reports about pricing for the new device are beginning to appear online. Over the weekend, 9to5Mac reported that the iPad Mini would be priced at around $329 for an entry level WiFi only model. That is a $170 difference from the full sized WiFi only model. According to the report, there will also likely be two higher capacity models, which will be priced at $429 and $529 respectively.

As with the full sized iPad, a $130 premium will also be applied for Cellular models of the iPad Mini, boosting the prices to $459/$559/$659. Apple is widely expected to unveil the smaller 7.85 inch version of the iPad at the event, which is also expected to arrive with the new Lightning connector, alongside a tweaked full sized iPad, a 13 inch Retina MacBook Pro, and perhaps even updated models of the iMac and Mac Mini.

With the new iPad Mini set at a lower price, Apple will be able to compete with leading ebook readers such as the Kindle from Amazon. Apple already carries a wide variety of books and publishers through its iBooks service and pairing it with a smaller and slimmer iPad would be optimal for customers looking to read books on their iOS device.

{Via MacRumors}

Early last week, Apple Inc. (AAPL) shipment estimate for the Retina MacBook Pro improved to 1-2 weeks. On Thursday, the estimate continued to show improvement, moving up to less than a week, with AAPL’s online store estimating that the 2.3 Ghz and 2.6 Ghz configurations of Retina MacBook Pro will be shipping within 5-7 days.

As noted by AppleInsider, alongside the updated ship times, Apple has also gone ahead to allow users to configure the Retina MacBook Pro to add 512- or 768-gigabyte SSDs to the base model, 2.3 Ghz quad-core i7 Intel Processor. These latest shipping estimates are a result of Apple increasing manufacturing of the MacBook Pros and catching up with the initial demand for the product. During Apple’s Q3 earnings call, CEO Tim Cook estimated that Apple would catch up with the backlog of of demand in August, and has done exactly that.

Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro brings the company’s revolutionary Retina Display, introduced with the iPhone 4 to the MacBook line. Apple in the past has been successful in improving shipping time with many of its new launched products, including the iPhone 4S and the new iPad, which experienced extreme demand during the first weeks of release.

On Friday, AllThingsD reported on new statistics about the widespread use of Apple’s newest OS X update, Mountain Lion. The report mentioned that roughly 48 hours after the public release of OS X Mountain Lion, about 3% of total web traffic is coming from the latest Mac software.

Analytics firm Chitika conducted the research to come to this conclusion, estimating that Mountain Lion’s web traffic percentage increased from 0.25% before the public launch. This was likely the developer previews of Mountain Lion running prior to the release.

Moreover, based on Apple’s June 2012 announcement that there are currently 66 million Mac users in the wild, we can infer that 2.11 million Mac users downloaded OS X Mountain Lion in the past 48 hours,” Chitika said. “Using this figure, if we assume that 90 percent of these users paid to upgrade, OS X Mountain Lion generated $38 million in revenue for Apple in the past 48 hours.

It is unclear exactly how this compares to last years installation figures, which brought in one million downloads of OS X Lion on the first day of release.

With Retina Macbook Pro sales still increasing steadily and the company’s Up to Date program running, many users are either buying the MacBooks with Mountain Lion preinstalled or getting the update for free. OS X Mountain Lion brings key features to the desktop platform and blurs the lines between its mobile counterpart, iOS. Features such as Notes, Reminders, Notification Center, iCloud, and Dictation make OS X very similar to iOS.

{via MacRumors}

Earlier this month, Apple Inc. (AAPL) withdrew its products from being certified by the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT), which certifies over 95% of electronics in the U.S by a requirement by the government. AAPL’s 39 products under EPEAT’s were pulled without question, however, the company has now taken steps to address the media and the public on the parameters of its decision by issuing a letter.

In a letter from SVP of Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield, the company revealed that they are putting all eligible products back on EPEAT. Apple defended their decision to withdraw a few days ago, pointing out that withdrawing from EPEAT did not change the environmental credibility of their products. In a report from The Loop, Apple defended their decision and made their comments public.

Apple takes a comprehensive approach to measuring our environmental impact and all of our products meet the strictest energy efficiency standards backed by the US government, Energy Star 5.2. We also lead the industry by reporting each product’s greenhouse gas emissions on our website, and Apple products are superior in other important environmental areas not measured by EPEAT, such as removal of toxic materials.

In the letter, Mansfield addressed the company’s decision to withdraw from EPEAT certification and said that it “was a mistake” to do so. Mansfield also mentioned in the report that “all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT”.

We’ve recently heard from many loyal Apple customers who were disappointed to learn that we had removed our products from the EPEAT rating system. I recognize that this was a mistake. Starting today, all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT.

It’s important to know that our commitment to protecting the environment has never changed, and today it is as strong as ever. Apple makes the most environmentally responsible products in our industry. In fact, our engineering teams have worked incredibly hard over the years to make our products even more environmentally friendly, and much of our progress has come in areas not yet measured by EPEAT.

This means that products that meet a standard of disassembly can be certified by EPEAT, and as a result, Apple’s new Retina MacBook Pro might not qualify. It is interesting to note Apple’s approach in issuing a statement through Mansfield as opposed to one from CEO Tim Cook, likely to assure the public that the right steps were being taken to rectify the company’s products under EPEAT.

{via 9to5Mac}

Apple Inc. (AAPL) recently updated its ‘investor relations’ webpage to announce that the company will conduct a conference to discuss  Q3 FY12 Earnings on July 24. The live conference call will be held at 2 PM Pacific / 5 PM Eastern time. The call will later be available for streaming via QuickTime through Apple’s website.

AAPL has been reporting record quarters each year with sales of iPhone on the rise and outstanding sales figures of its tablet computer. During last quarter Apple Inc. reported revenue of $39.2 billion and quarterly net profit of $11.6 billion. The company sold 35.1 million iPhones, 11.8 million iPads, 4 million Macs, and 7.7 million iPods in the quarter representing 88% growth for iPhone sales and 151 percent increase for the iPad.

Apple’s CFO, Peter Oppenheimer, during the end of the conference call added,  “Looking ahead to the third fiscal quarter, we expect revenue of about $34 billion and diluted earnings per share of about $8.68.”

The third quarter revenue hasn’t seen introduction of any new hardware while on the other hand iPhone sales are expected to slow down as users anticipate the launch of next gen iPhone 5. However, the new iPad 3 has been added to a number of new countries and the Cupertino based company is expected to report impressive sales figures for its tablet computer.

Moving forward Apple is expected to see higher growth in its Mac hardware products as with the introduction of MacBook Pro with Retina Display the company has shown its commitment to remain aggressive in the notebook business. The availability of MacBook Pro with retina display on Apple’s online store moved up to 3-4 weeks shipping time shortly after its release suggesting fast adoption rate among users. Although, Apple hasn’t released any public sales figures for the next gen MacBook Pro.

Apple’s upcoming software releases for OS X and iOS are also worth mentioning as the OS of both the platforms continue to merge. Mountain Lion for OS X will be made available to users later this month exclusively from Mac App Store and iOS 6 is expected to be made available later this fall.

During Apple’s annual WWDC2012 conference, the company introduced the next generation of MacBook Pro. The new MacBook Pro features a retina display, the same type of screen currently found in the iPhone and the new iPad 3 as well as a new thinner design, faster processors and more hard drive space.

Apple recently released a television commercial called “Every Dimension” highlighting the design and screen of the Retina MacBook Pro. The ad shows a Retina MacBook Pro and fast forwards through a series of apps being used on the notebook. The ad then ends with a single line that reads:

The radical new MacBook Pro with Retina display. Innovation in every dimension.

Apple appears to have adopted a similar design for the commercial from the MacBook Air ad after its most recent redesign. The ad uses an all black background and centers the MacBook directly in the middle, and ends with a simple line that describes the product.

The ad aired on a number of channels in the United States, including the NBA Finals which is clearly Apple’s strategy for reaching a wide range of customers. The Retina MacBook Pro is currently available in the Apple Online Store and has a ship time of 3-4 weeks.

Apple’s annual WWDC keynote event will kick off today at 10:00AM as Tim Cook takes the stage to announce the company’s latest products and updates. During this years live keynote event Apple is widely expected to unveil iOS 6, new MacBook Pro models and provide an update on OS X Mountain Lion.

Touch Reviews will be bringing you the All-in-One live feed of the keynote so you can sit back and know what’s the latest without refreshing this page. iOS 6 is the sixth version of Apple’s mobile operating system and is expected to bring many new features and enhancements that could include, deep Facebook integration, updated Siri, iCloud feature update and much more.

While in 2011 Apple’s WWDC keynote event was all about software, this year the company is rumored to introduce new MacBook Pro models and for the first time bring ‘Retina Display’ to the MacBook product line. The new models have been speculated to have design similar to MacBook Air however, the next gen MacBook Pro models could see a significant price increase.

iOS devices contribute towards the largest chunk of Apple’s revenue share so it’s safe to assume that the focus of this years WWDC live keynote event will certainly be iOS 6. During All Things D’s D8 Conference Tim Cook gave subtle hints by saying “stay tuned” when he was questioned about Facebook integration and Siri. So, we can expect those two enhancements to certainly be a part of iOS 6.

You’ll be able to download and stream the keynote soon after the event. What are your expectations from this years event? Let us know in the comments section.

Check back soon for the live coverage.

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You don’t need to refresh this page! Live updates will appear below:

Apple has been rumored to release an updated line of MacBooks, most notably the new MacBook Pro, which is expected to take on the thin design of the MacBook Air. On Monday, Chinese forum Weiphone released an image of what appeared to be a specs sticker on the back of a 13.3 inch MacBook Pro box. The image revealed only minor additions to the MacBook Pro line, such as the new 2.5GHz Ivy Bridge processor as well as the new Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU. The specs also reveal that Apple is adding USB 3.0 for faster charging and data transfers as well as Bluetooth 4.0.

Although there were rumors that the MacBook Pro would be receiving the popular Retina Display, it appears that it will remain at the same 1280×800 resolution. Hard Drive and SuperDrive remain unchanged as well. It is likely that Apple is adding features very slowly so as not to cause any major changes to the operation of the battery in the Macbook. Adding a Retina Display could lower the battery life drastically, as would the addition of more RAM, and a faster HardDrive or SuperDrive.

The authenticity of the image remains unknown, although WWDC 2012 could bring hardware releases alongside a suite of software offerings, such as iOS 6 and perhaps another preview of OS X Mountain Lion. It is unclear if Apple will still be introducing a thinner 17 inch model, as the image only specifies the 13.3 inch model, but remains unknown until final announcement by Apple.

{via MacRumors}

Apple Inc. (AAPL) acquired rights to LiquidMetal Technologies to use in their products back in 2010, but did not utilize the company, except to make a small SIM removal tool for the iPhone 3G. A number of reports have people speculating that AAPL would be redesigning the next generation iPhone 5 with LiquidMetal technology.

However, in a report published by Business Insider, one of the inventors of LiquidMetal alloy, Atakan Peker revealed that Apple will not be using the futuristic metal for at least another two to four years. Peker also mentioned that Apple may use the metal in some smaller aspects of its products, as they did with the SIM removal tool.

Q: I’ve heard rumors that future MacBooks from Apple could use Liquidmetal casing, what would that be like? Is it likely to happen?

A: Given the size of MacBook and scale of Apple products, I think it’s unlikely that Liquidmetal casing will be used in MacBooks in the near term. It’s more likely in the form of small component such as a hinge or bracket. A MacBook casing, such as a unibody, will take two to four more years to implement.

If Apple is to utilize this new technology and decides to use it in one of their major products, they might first use it in smaller consumer products such as the iPod Shuffle, or perhaps the Nano, then move onto larger and more high demand products such as the iPhone and iPad. It’s important to note that Peker does not have actually have any solid references when suggesting this delay in LiquidMetal usage.

However, Peker does believe that Apple will revolutionize some of its products with the metal, utilizing its strength and durability to match the solid feel of some of its unibody products, such as the MacBook Pro.

{via MacRumors}

Apple has replaced the popular iMacs at the kids section of the Apple Store with iPads. First noticed by iMore, Apple appears to be taking a more compelling approach to drawing in kids and essentially starting them off with a product that a number of children are familiar with.

Apple Stores have been using iMacs in the kids section for quite some time now, loaded up the screens with kid friendly applications and games. Apple’s strategy behind replacing the iMacs is an excellent way for the company to appeal to a younger generation and build relationships with their future customers.

Apple has also replaced the display cards next to products with iPads, as well as the Macbook Pros at the Genius Bar previously, the kids section being the latest change. Apple may also look into replacing the Genius Bar registration computers with iPads.

The iPad is no doubt the future of Apple’s line-up and will be leading Apple into a whole new era of portable computing. The iPad is slowly becoming a bigger part of the daily operations of Apple’s retail stores.

A recent report from ElectricPig claimed that according to a Mac accessory manufacturer Apple Inc. (AAPL) could release a new 15 inch Macbook Air as early as this April.

And what is coming? If you take our source’s word for it, a 15-inch MacBook Air with ports on both sides, no optical drive and no ethernet cable.

While our source wasn’t certain that this would completely destroy the Pro (he also stated that Apple might hold on to the 17-inch model, which would make sense for the sizeable audience of professional editors out there), he was fairly sure that the shakeup will happen in April. To that end, our source’s company’s got its manufacturers on standby to be able to make and ship a new product lineup inside of 90 days.

The source has been rumored to be involved in MacBook Air docking solutions. Rumors about a new MacBook Air model have been around for quite some time. AAPL is also expected to update the processor inside the MacBook Air with the new Ivy Bridge processors. 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models are expected to shed some weight and thickness and feature the same thin-form factor of the MacBook Air.

Chip availability has been a reason for concern with the MacBooks shipping on time, with Apple unable to finalize their line until Intel provides the new Ivy Bridge platform. It is also unclear as to whether Apple will run traditional mobile chips as found in the current MacBook Pro or ultra low power chip.

If Apple releases a 15 inch Macbook Air in April, the Cupertino company could be looking at boost in sales. The design of Apple’s MacBook line up has stayed virtually unchanged for the past two generations, aside from a minor update to include the Thunderbolt port.

Apple’s App Store was released to the public in 2008, and started off with only a handful of apps. The App Store has since grown to become one of the largest online services in the world, suppling millions of iOS users with fun and intuitive applications. On Friday, Apple’s App Store finally hit the 25 billion downloads mark, making it the highest number of apps ever downloaded.

The winner of the promotion, who has not yet been announced, will be awarded a $10,000 gift card valid for App Store, Mac App Store, or any other iTunes Store content. Apple has conducted similar promotions in the past, for the App Store and iTunes Store and offered a range of products from iPod touch to Macbook Pro. The prize for 25 billion downloads is a $10,000 giftcard for online purchases with no hardware.

Apple has approved a total of nearly three quarters of a million apps for the App Store, with over 550,000 of them currently available in the store.

After its introduction in 2008, it took roughly two and a half years to reach 10 Billion downloads, and another six months to 15 billion downloads. With the latest 25 billion milestone, the iTunes Store acheived over 10 billion of the 25 billion mark in only 8 months, the fastest downloading period ever for the App Store.

The winner of Apple’s App Store promotion is expected to announced in the coming week once the company has verified the results and contacted the winner.

{via Mac Rumors}

A recent report published by Digitimes suggests that Apple is working on Ultra-Thin 15-inch MacBook, possibly bringing MacBook Air specs up to the level of a full sized MacBook Pro. The report also suggests that components for the new thin device will begin shipping this month, with the eventual mass production and release of the new MacBook in March 2012.

The MacBook Air was refreshed earlier this year, with minor improvements in processor, graphics and storage upgrades. Apple’s expectations for the MacBook Pro seem very likely to follow in the footsteps of the MacBook Air, switching to the use of an SSD as opposed to the current HDD. This is a very interesting move, particularly because of the various screen sizes that customers will now have access to, having the option to choose between four sizes, 11-inch, 13-inch, 15-inch, 17-inch.

In July, it was reported that Apple was finishing up work on a new 15” MacBook, with following reports in October suggesting that the machine was nearing production. With an Ultra-Thin MacBook, closing in on MacBook Air specs, it is interesting to see whether Apple will elimante any of the four screen sizes, or perhaps one of the MacBook lines altogether.

{via MacRumors}

According to a new report published by MacRumors Apple could be working on a 15 inch ultra-thin MacBook Pro model. While the report is not clear whether it would be branded as MacBook Air or MacBook Pro; TUAW claims that it would most probably be a Pro version.

MacBook Air has been a huge success for Apple and the product lineup has been evolving well in terms of price and features. The latest models feature the new Sandy Bridge chips, Thunderbolt technology and even a backlit keyboard. Air is a perfect product for anyone who considers “portability” the most important factor when selecting a notebook.

MacBook Pro models were updated in February to feature new chip and thunderbolt technology too however, the overall design hasn’t seen any changes since the introduction of unibody MacBooks.

Apple has always tried to make its next gen products thinner and more efficient than its predecessor. So, how will Apple change the MacBook Pro lineup? It’s not very hard to guess that the next gen MacBook Pro models could leave behind the optical drive and include flash based memory. This will allow Apple to considerably reduce the thickness and weight of the notebook and even give better performance in tasks like start up and waking from sleep.

MacBook Air now has a large install base and users love the product even though it lacks an optical drive. It’s widely known that Apple considers Air to be the future of MacBooks. As software distribution has become digital for the Mac with Mac App Store and we already buy or download songs from online stores the need for optical drives is greatly declining.

Considering the fact that Air is a successful product it’s very easy to imagine that MacBook Pro without an optical drive wouldn’t be a huge problem. It’s also important to consider that Apple wants to address the “mass audience” and most people would probably have no issues without an optical drive.

With Mac OS X Lion, iCloud and iOS 5 Apple is paving the way for a true digital world where our dependency on physical media is continuing to reduce. Of course MacBook Pro would be able to borrow optical drives of your iMac or you could get an external optical drive.

The new ultra-thin MacBook Pro model could finally bridge the gap between extreme portability and power. Apple can once again prove that thinner, lighter doesn’t mean less-powerful machines and they have already done that with the iPad 2. The new iPad is 33% thinner but still packs in the dual-core A5 chip, two cameras and a gyroscope.

What do you think about the ultra thin MacBook Pro? Would you consider buying a “Pro” product without an optical drive? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

With the introduction of the 2010 Macbook Air models, Apple scrapped the backlit keyboards in order to make the device more affordable. The backlit keyboard will reportedly be making a return to the new 2011 MacBook Air, pegged for a Summer 2011 time frame.

A report from AppleInsider mentions that Apple is planning to bring back the back lit keyboards in the imminent refresh.

According to people familiar with the matter, back lit keyboards will join the string of hardware enhancements planned for the new 11.6- and 13.3-inch notebooks, which are also expected to adopt high-speed Thunderbolt ports, an upgrade to Intel’s Sandy Bridge architecture, and possibly high-speed 400MBps flash memory.

With devices like the Macbook Air, Apple customers are consistently looking for improvement, and more features. Users want a reason to upgrade to the latest iteration of the device. Apple knows this, and is giving them what they want. The backlit keyboard gives illumination to the keyboard in the dark and adjusts to the ambient lighting in the room. The feature is currently available in Apple’s Macbook Pro models, the higher end of the MacBook line.

Part numbers of new Macbook Air models have already been released, and Apple has yet to refresh the online store or announce any event. Apple is likely waiting for the release of Mac OS X Lion in order to release the Macbook Airs as a packaged deal.

{via MacRumors}

Apple on Tuesday released a Thunderbolt cable for faster data transfers and the latest addition to Apple’s online store will cost you $49. The Thunderbolt cable measures 2 meters and supports the next-generation data port found on Apple’s latest iMacs and MacBook Pros.

The cable can also be used in a Target Disk Mode between two Macs or to make a Thunderbolt-equipped iMac serve as a display for a new MacBook Pro or any other pieces of tech that you own that supports the latest technology in data transfer.

Apple also added a number of RAID systems to their store, ranging anywhere from $1500 to $2000. The systems are as follows:

• The least expensive option is the Promise Pegasus R4 with 4TB of data. It features four 1TB 7200-rpm drives delivering over 500MB/s of disk performance.
• For $1,499, the Pegasus R4 can be doubled to 8TB, operating at the same 500MB/s.
• For more speed, Apple offers the Promise Pegasus R6. It includes six 1TB 7200-rpm hard drives that deliver over 800MB/s of disk performance for $1,499.
• Finally, the R6 can also have twice the storage with the 12TB offering, priced at $1,999.

Thunderbolt was introduced with Apple’s new MacBook Pro model and was a jont project between Apple and Intel. Thunderbolt has the potential to be included into new USB, which has had a grim impact on technology (eg. USB 3.0). It could be used to sync iPhones, iPods, and iPads at faster speeds and could allow the iPad to connect to TVs faster through HDMI support.

Currently, Apple’s Thunderbolt cable and RAID systems are the only products supporting lighting fast transfers.

{via AppleInsider}

Intel created the Thunderbolt I/O technology that currently runs in Apple’s iMac and Macbook Pro lines. While Intel is credited for developing the technology, Apple filed did the trademark work for the  I/O name which created some confusion about who actually owned the trademark. According to a recent report published by Bright Side of the News, Intel now has full rights of the Thunderbolt trademark:

As part of our collaboration with Apple, they did some of the initial trademark filings.  Intel has full rights to the Thunderbolt trademark now and into the future. The Thunderbolt name will be used going forward on all platforms, irrespective of operating system.

Intel created the I/O technology capable of high-speed connectivity of up-to 100Gbps using optical cable and originally called it Light Peak. Apple later suggested Intel to replace the optical connection with copper and allow capability of 10 Watts of power, which eventually led to a name change to Thunderbolt I/O.

The high-speed data transfer technology was introduced earlier this year with Apple’s MacBook Pro notebooks and iMac all-in-one computers, and is will likely be made available in the Macbook Air as well as the Mac Mini.