The Apple iPad tablet is everywhere. Yet another hype?

A few years ago the iPhone pretty much got the same kind of attention the new iPad tablet from Apple is getting these days. And the way the iPhone started a sensitive touchscreen trend, it highly possible that we are witnessing the start of a new one: the tablet frenzy. Even though tablets have been around for a very long time, and some designs are really great, it seams that people needed Apple to give the OK for everyone to say: "Yes man, tablets are great! Everyone should have one!". This is stupid.

Anyway, if you need more info related to the new Apple iPad tablet, and not all of the opinions will be positive (some will even be realistic), check out the links below:

• Hands-On With the Apple iPad - videos
• NotebookReview - pictures and details
• PCWorld.com - not a good opinion
• This one looks a lot better

And that all it's worth mentioning about it. We'll just have to wait and see how many people will encounter problems with this tablet and how well will it rate against other tablets, like the HP Pavilion tx2500z or the Lenovo ThinkPad X200 tablet. But who cares, as long as it's from Apple, right?

LE: a lot more details related to the Apple iPad can be found in this article. CNET's Ina Fried and Josh Lowensohn address various aspects of the design and the overall uses of this gadget and certain things that it lacks or will be added latter on.

Apple's new 27" big screen iMac

Apple Insider posted today a great review regarding the new Apple 27" big screen iMac. The full review can be found here.

Some of the key features for the new model is the fact that iMac comes standard with a wireless keyboard and the new Magic Mouse. Of course there are a lot more, like the fact that the 27" display is equipped with LED backlighting, to push more light through the pixels to achieve the best picture possible. The new 21.5" iMac features 1920-by-1080 HD resolution and the 27" model has a 2560-by-1440 resolution. That’s 78 percent more pixels than the 21.5-inch iMac.

A seamless, precision-forged enclosure makes the back one continuous aluminum surface. And there’s only one cord: the power cord. The wider iMac display allows more room to separate the two hottest components, the CPU and the GPU. This keeps things cool inside the iMac enclosure. Apple engineers also implemented an intelligent control system that monitors temperatures and delivers just the right amount of airflow to critical components.

Be sure to read the full review on Apple Insider. You can also check this beautiful piece of hardware at it's official page on the Apple website.

Apple released iTunes 8.1

Apple announced the release of the new version of iTunes, now at version 8.1, the free application for Mac and PC that plays all your digital music and video, syncs content to your iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV and it’s an entertainment superstore that stays open 24/7.

If you are interested in getting the latest features of this great software, here's a small list that is meant to ignite your appetite. The full article can be found here, along with screen shots and a lot more details. The download links as well, of course.

• Genius Playlists - Play a song, click the Genius button, and iTunes creates a playlist of other songs from your library that go great together. Genius playlists help you discover songs in your library you never knew you had — and rediscover forgotten favorites.
• Genius Sidebar - As you select songs in your library, the Genius sidebar displays songs from the iTunes Store that go great with it. The Genius sidebar won’t recommend songs already in your library, and you can preview and buy recommended songs directly from the sidebar.
• High-quality, DRM-free music. iTunes Plus is the new standard on iTunes. - you can choose from millions of iTunes Plus songs from all four major music labels and thousands of independents. With iTunes Plus, you get high-quality, 256-Kbps AAC encoding. All free of burn limits and digital rights management (DRM). So iTunes Plus music will play on iPod, Apple TV, all Mac and Windows computers, and many other digital music players. It’s also easy to upgrade your iTunes library to iTunes Plus. You don’t have to buy the song or album again. Just pay the 30¢ per song upgrade price. (Music video upgrades are 60¢ and entire albums can be upgraded for 30 percent of the album price.)
• HD TV Shows - Purchase select episodes of your favorite TV shows in high definition for just $2.99. Or get the whole season in HD with a Season Pass. And when you buy HD, iTunes doubles your viewing pleasure: You also get an iPod-ready version with a file size and resolution that's ideal for smaller screens.
• Enhanced Accessibility - Tunes 8 is now screen reader friendly on both Mac and PC. Manage your iTunes library using VoiceOver in Mac OS X Leopard or Window-Eyes for Windows XP and Windows Vista. Or use your screen reader to purchase or download content from the iTunes Store - including iTunes U.
• New Visualizer - Turn on the new Visualizer and lose yourself in a 3D-scape of spheres, ribbons, and lights that pulsate to the beat and tempo of the song you’re playing.
• and last but not least, Faster. Smarter. Better. - a lot of great improvements added to the new iTunes 8.1 along with a speed boost, make this a product worth having. And it's free too

For the full list of features in Apple iTunes 8.1, check out this address. To download iTunes, head on over to Apple.com, download section.

Apple iPhone prices - confirmed to be cut

Article from Macworld.com (visit original article)

O2 has officially confirmed its anticipated £100 (US$200) discount on the 8GB iPhone, offering the device for just £169 until 1 June 2008. The move matches a discount recently initiated by Apple’s German network partner, T-Mobile, but the discount isn’t being applied on sales of the 16GB iPhone, which continues to cost £329. The offer is available from April 16th on all O2 iPhone tariffs and is designed (according to O2) to add momentum to what it calls its “fastest-selling device”.

O2 notes that iPhone users are among its most satisfied customers and declared the aim of the deal is to “bring its benefits to an even greater number of customers”.

“The iPhone has also been hugely successful in attracting new high value customers to O2 who are also more likely to recommend O2 to their friends and family. Sixty percent of iPhone customers are new to O2 while iPhone customers spend on average 30 percent more than other Pay Monthly customers”, O2 explained.

The move - which occurs a little more than a week after O2 said it had no immediate plans to cut iPhone prices - also comes as expectation continues to build that Apple will introduce a second-generation iPhone that supports the fast 3G wireless standard, perhaps as soon as June. The move also seem designed to clear stock of the existing 8GB model, possibly indicating higher capacity models are on the road map. O2 explains its offer to be “subject to stock availability.”