iPod

Apple's customers have wasted no time scooping up its latest smartphone and operating system update.

More than 1 million iPhone 3G S smartphones have sold in the three days since the new model hit the stores Friday, Apple announced Monday. In addition, 6 million people have downloaded the new iPhone OS 3.0 update in the five days since its release.

The sales figure even prompted Apple CEO Steve Jobs to make his first public comment since going on medical leave early this year.

"Customers are voting and the iPhone is winning," Jobs said in a statement. &… Read more

Updated at 10:20 a.m. PDT June 17: The software update is now available.

Many of the iPhone's long-awaited features will finally become reality Wednesday when Apple rolls out iPhone OS 3.0.

Current iPhone owners can download the software from iTunes for free, and iPod Touch users can get it as well, but for a fee of $9.95, just like the last OS update. What time exactly, we don't know yet. Apple will only say iPhone OS 3.0 will come out sometime Wednesday.

The update includes many functions other phones have had for a … Read more

On Thursday night in Manhattan, Mr. Monster himself, Noel Lee, introduced a handful of journalists to his new top-on-the-line in-ear headphones, the Turbine Pro.

I'm a huge fan of Monster's original Turbine at $150. It's easily my pick for the best bang-for-the-buck in-ear. But the new Turbine Pro at $250, due out next month, is better. The Turbine remains in the line.

I was listening to a hand-built prototype Turbine Pro (the builder must have really tiny hands) and I have to say, the new baby has even greater clarity, more accurate bass, and sweeter treble. It'… Read more

In the 1960s, I heard new music on the radio.

The best DJs turned me on to new stuff all the time. Next best source was friends--I'd go over to their house to check out their new LPs. Record reviews in Rolling Stone and The Village Voice flagged intriguing up-and-comers. I used to find new music in record stores, but that rarely happens anymore.

Nowadays it's Sirius satellite radio and Pitchfork. And just snooping around the Internet, including artists' Web sites, I luck onto new music. My latest find: a quirky little band by the name of Clem Snide. … Read more

I know, I know, you don't have room for a decent set of speakers.

I've tried to tell you guys that when it comes to speakers, size still matters. Bigger speakers have tremendous size and performance advantages over pipsqueak models.

But since my pal Brent Butterworth wrote up the new Super Mini Cube speaker for the Sound & Vision Web site I figured something was up. The Super Mini Cube is supertiny; it's less than an inch cube, with a 0.75-inch driver, and better yet, it's powered by a built-in lithium battery. There's also … Read more

Apple is rumored to be working on something bigger than an iPod Touch, but smaller than a MacBook. Past patent applications filed by the company and whispers from contract manufacturers point to a midsize gadget with a screen of 7 to 8 inches in the works, perhaps scheduled to debut early next year. It's been variously described as a tablet-like device, a "media pad," and an iPod Touch on steroids.

But the middle ground between handheld device and traditional laptop has historically been a hard sell to mainstream consumers. Apple has some experience reinventing what were thought to be staid or failed product categories, and is known for its stringent product review process, so if anyone has potential to make something compelling for this "tweener" category, it's the company to do so.

For Apple, this could be its answer to the Netbook craze--20 million of those scaled-down PCs will be shipped to retailers this year, doubling last year's output. Apple has been fairly clear in its distaste for them, using descriptors like "junky," and the average selling price of around $400 wouldn't allow Apple to keep its margins as high as it's used to.

But there is clearly a market, particularly given the current state of the economy, for a device in that middle range between a smartphone and a laptop. Interim CEO Tim Cook recently admitted that Apple has "some interesting ideas in this space."

Let's say it does make one. What exactly should a tablet from Apple do and what kind of features does it need to sport to avoid the pitfalls of every other failed tablet PC, ultramobile PC, and mobile Internet device now gathering dust in the basements and desk drawers of early adopters?

Some suggestions: … Read more

After months of increasingly wild rumors, CNET's Ina Fried got the official scoop yesterday: Microsoft is indeed releasing the Zune HD this fall. The device will feature an OLED touch screen, high-definition video output (with an optional add-on), a version of Internet Explorer (it sounds similar to the version planned for Windows Mobile 6.5, which uses the core IE6 engine but adds Flash support, as well as some technology from IE8 to better support JavaScript), and HD Radio.

I spoke to the Zune marketing team this morning, and they didn't have much to say beyond those points. … Read more

It's been a busy day for Apple.

In addition to quietly updating the consumer-friendly MacBook, Apple on Wednesday also launched an iPod promotion targeted to students.

With the promotion, students, faculty, or staff members can buy a MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, or iMac and get a free iPod Touch. Of course, students and educators can also see if they qualify for additional savings through Apple's education store.

There is a bit of a catch. You have to buy the iPod Touch at the same time as the Mac to qualify for a rebate. After the purchase, you … Read more

The Consumer Electronics Association, which hosts CES in Las Vegas every year, said Thursday that the trade show will expand its Apple section from 4,000 square feet to 25,000 square feet.

It's called the iLounge Pavilion and will be an exhibition area for products related to the Mac, iPod, and iPhone. This year, for the first time, there will also be a section for applications for use on Apple products.

The original 4,000-square-foot space sold out within days of the announced availability to retailers, developers, and accessory makers looking to exhibit their wares and services, according … Read more