nano

The problem when you become a stadium band is that everything seems to be so marketed that the fans don't come to commune with you personally, as much as they come to watch your new movie.

This is Apple's problem. It used to have U2 in its ads. Now it is U2. Its fanboys are older and its myth is a little shakier. Its frontman is now a politician.

It's hard, then, for the people who do Apple's ads. There doesn't seem as much true direction. They're hearing far more voices than they used … Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- CNET iPhone 5 Editors' take

- Apple unveils new iPod Touch with 4-inch screen

- New iPod Nano: Remembering the iPod Mini

- Apple's new EarPods were three 3 years in the making???

- Lightning Cable connects old accessories to Apple's newest port

- Apple reworks, simplifies iTunes… Read more

I can't figure out what Apple wants from the iPod Nano.

The gadget maker introduced the seventh generation of its smallest portable media player this afternoon, and much to my surprise, the dimensions grew to incorporate a larger screen.

All of Apple's products have shrunk over the years -- the iPod begets the iPod Mini begets the Nano, and so forth -- but this year they grew. Indeed, the iPhone 5 grew taller as it grew thinner, echoing past updates to the iPod Nano. (See the evolution below.)

But the Nano model has ballooned and shrunk with each … Read more

The new iPod Nano will please people who've been craving a larger display. But those who want to wear one as a watch are out of luck.

Apple said today that it wanted to "reinvent the product," and it's done just that. The new Nano sports a 2-inch, multitouch screen, almost resembling a traditional MP3 player. The latest model is also 40 percent thinner than the sixth-generation version.

A new volume rocker on the side lets users play, pause, and scroll through the music, while the built-in FM tuner includes a live pause feature.

The new … Read more

I think it's fair to say that the iPod is the most important product Apple ever made. It marked the tipping point between Apple's history as a computer manufacturer and its shift toward mobile consumer electronics. Without it, there would be no iTunes, no iPhone, no iPad -- none of the things people think of when they think of Apple today.

Which is not to say that the iPod is still an important part of Apple's bottom line. It could ax the iPod's whole division and still make more money from the iPhone and iPad than … Read more

With increasing numbers of airbags, side-impact beams, and other safety reinforcements, cars have gained weight over the last 20 years. And with that extra poundage comes decreased fuel economy. Now, as automakers search for ways to comply with new CAFE rules in the U.S. and CO2 limits in Europe, bringing automotive weight back down is one obvious target. GM is looking to a company called NanoSteel, which is developing a new steel alloy that could shave weight without compromising safety.

NanoSteel has developed new iron-based alloys through nano-structuring, and says it can have automotive-grade sheet metal products ready in … Read more

As the leaves change from green to orange and brown, and children go back to school, it could only mean one thing: the iPhone 5 is a-coming. The rumor mill is swirling with speculations of a release date, what it'll look like, and whether it'll be joined by an iPad Mini. Oh yes, the zombie unicorn rumor that never dies.

Recent rumors suggest that an iPad Mini screen is already in production, leading some people to believe that this jibes with a fall release. Who knows! Apple always has tricks up its sleeves.

Also this week, sightings of … Read more

Translated by Google, tech lifestyle Web site nowhereelse.fr (via 9to5Mac) has posted photos of what appears to be the soon to be released iPhone's nano-SIM card tray. The photos come from China where many of the iPhone's parts are manufactured and assembled.

As you can see in the photos, the nano-SIM tray knocks a little off the micro SIM tray's width. In the world of mobile devices, especially ones that Apple produces, every bit of extra space counts.

Though Apple's design for the nano-SIM has been approved for use by ESTI, no official word has … Read more