Apple “Let’s Rock” Special Event Wrap-up!

» Apple “Let’s Rock” Special Event Wrap-up!

September 9th, 2008 | Filed in: Apple |

So it’s come to the time when wrapping up the Apple Special Event is in place. I had a really fun time metaliveblogging even though I switched to a better system in the middle which in the end worked really well and much better then before for me. I’ll definitly do it again. So here are the releases summed up

iTunes 8, Genius, HDTV Shows, NBC is back!

Apple released as predicted, iTunes 8 today which features some pretty cool new things. First off we have the new display mode called grid which lets you view your albums and artists in a grid view. In the artist view you can also flick between the albums by the artist like in iPhoto. Then we also have the new genius sidebar that will make playlists with music that "go well" with the music you are listening to. It’ll also show you music from the iTunes store. All this if you opt in.

NBC is now back in the iTunes Store and that with TV series like The Office, Monk and Battlestar Galactica. Also new, HD TV Shows will run you $2.99 and the standard ones $1.99.

iTunes 8 will be avilable on the Apple website today!

iPod Nano 4G

New iPod Nano

The new iPod Nano was released and it’s looking pretty slick. Apple has gone back to the old look and streamlined it a little more in the looks. It’s not just in the outside looks they’ve streamlined a lot. The menu system has gotten partially redesigned and also looks quite a bit better. It’s available in a wide range of colours in both 8gb and 16gb. The 8gb runs for $149 and is available now while the 16gb will be available later this week for $199.

iPod Classic updates

Apple did a little update to the iPod Classic as well. Upgrading the old 80gb model to 120gb and dropping the 160gb was the change in store for the classic this time. It’s going to run for $249.

2G iPod Touch

They refreshed the iPod Touch a bit as well. It now features a little sleeker case. It’s the same screen but with some new additions like on the side volume controls and a speaker. It’s also got built in Nike + receiver so you don’t need to have an external one. All these seems to be some really great updates and of course they have been focusing on environmentally friendly casing and parts. Prices: 8GB for $229, 16GB for $299, and 32GB for $399. Available today as well!

Two new headphones!

Apple also introduced two brand new headphones. Both a new in-ear version and an normal, the in ear runs for $79 and the other for $29. They both feature on-band player controls like volume up and down, play, pause and also a little microphone.

iPhone Software 2.1

Among all the other news they practically had to announce the 2.1 firmware, which they also did. According to Steve Jobs it will be fixing a lot of bugs such as fewer dropped calls, big battery improvement, and faster backups to iTunes. We’ll see if this is going to work out on Friday when it will be released. Sadly no mention of copy-paste but perhaps they’ve snuck that in? It’s a free update.