Apple Releases Aperture 2

Apple® today introduced Aperture™ 2, the next major release of its groundbreaking photo editing and management software with over 100 new features that make it faster, easier to use and more powerful. With a streamlined user interface and entirely new image processing engine, Aperture 2 also introduces new imaging tools for highlight recovery, color vibrancy, local contrast definition, soft-edged retouching, vignetting and RAW fine-tuning, and lets users directly post their portfolios on the .Mac Web Gallery* for viewing on the web, iPhone™, iPod® touch and Apple TV®. At a new low price of $199, anyone can easily organize, edit and publish photos like a pro.

“Many of the most respected photographers on assignment all over the world trust Aperture to organize, edit and deliver their images,” said Rob Schoeben, Apple’s vice president of Applications Product Marketing. “With its simpler interface and lower price, anyone can take full advantage of Aperture’s power.”

“At the end of the day, it’s all about the quality of the image,” said Sports Illustrated contributing photographer David Bergman. “Even before I begin making adjustments, Aperture’s new RAW processing gives me better images with more visible detail and better color rendering than any other program I’ve tested.”

“I used to have so much stress about post-production on a shoot, having to juggle multiple applications to make sure they all worked,” said Bob Davis, PDN Top Knots Wedding Photographer 2007. “With Aperture that’s no longer a factor. I can do everything all in one application.”

Featuring a new, easier user interface designed to be more intuitive and accessible, Aperture 2 now lets users navigate between Viewer and Browser modes with a single key command. Screen real estate is maximized for images with an all-in-one heads up display that allows users to toggle between library, metadata and adjustment controls in a single tabbed inspector. The All Projects view, modeled after iPhoto’s Events view, provides a poster photo for every project and the ability to quickly skim through the photos inside, and the integrated iPhoto® Browser offers direct access to all the events and images in the iPhoto library.

Performance has been enhanced in Aperture 2 so it’s faster to import, browse and search large volumes of images. Embedded previews let photographers caption, keyword and rate images as they are being imported, and with the ability to export images in the background, photographers can continue working while images are processed to JPEG, TIFF, PNG and PSD file formats. Quick Preview allows users to browse RAW images in rapid succession without having to wait for files to load, and the Aperture library database has been re-architected to provide fast project switching and near instantaneous search results, even when working with extremely large libraries of 500,000 images or more.

Aperture 2 delivers powerful new imaging tools for getting the most out of each photograph. Apple’s next-generation RAW image processing is at the core of Aperture 2 offering uncompromising image quality and precision controls that let users fine-tune the image profile for each of their cameras. New tools for improving and enhancing images include Recovery for pulling back “blown” highlights, Vibrancy for selectively boosting saturation without adversely affecting skin tones, Definition, which offers local contrast for adding clarity to images, Vignette & Devignette filters for providing professional visual effects and a true soft-edged Repair and Retouch brush for quickly and easily removing blemishes, cleaning up sensor dust and cloning away problem areas.

Aperture 2 works seamlessly with Mac OS® X, iLife®, iWork™, .Mac and Apple print products, so any image in the Aperture library can be accessed directly from within other applications, such as iMovie®, Keynote® and Pages®, and even from within Leopard™ Mail. Now with .Mac Web Gallery support, Aperture users can publish their photos once to view them on the web, iPhone, iPod touch and Apple TV. Books in Aperture 2 feature new theme designs, layout tools, customized dust jackets (including full-bleed) and foil stamped covers.

Pricing & Availability
Aperture 2 is available immediately for a suggested retail price of $199 (US) through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. Owners of previous versions of Aperture can upgrade to Aperture 2 for just $99 (US). Full system requirements and more information on Aperture 2 can be found at www.apple.com/aperture.

* The .Mac service is available to persons aged 13 and older. Annual membership fee and Internet access required. Terms and conditions apply.

Apple Adds New iPhone & iPod touch Models

Apple® today added new models of the iPhone™ and iPod® touch which have double the memory, doubling the amount of music, photos and videos that customers can carry with them wherever they go. The revolutionary iPhone now comes in a new 16GB model for $499, joining the 8GB model for $399. iPod touch now comes in a 32GB model for $499, joining the 16GB model for $399 and the 8GB model for $299.

“For some users, there’s never enough memory,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide iPod and iPhone Product Marketing. “Now people can enjoy even more of their music, photos and videos on the most revolutionary mobile phone and best Wi-Fi mobile device in the world.”

Both iPhone and iPod touch feature Apple’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ user interface and pioneering software that allows users to find and enjoy all their music, videos, photos and more with just a touch of their finger. All iPhone and iPod touch models include the latest software enhancements announced last month including the ability to automatically find your location using the new Maps application*; create Web Clips for your favorite websites; customize your home screen and watch movies from the new iTunes® Movie Rentals. Both iPhone and iPod touch feature the world’s most advanced mobile web browser in the world with Safari™ and great mobile applications including Mail, Maps, Stocks, Weather and Notes.

Pricing & Availability The new 16GB iPhone is available immediately for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and AT&T retail and online stores. The 32GB iPod touch is available worldwide immediately for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) through the Apple Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. iTunes Movie Rentals are available in the US only. iPhone and iPod touch require a Mac® with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS® X 10.4.10 or later and iTunes 7.6; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows Vista or Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 2) or later and iTunes 7.6.

*Availability and precision of Maps positioning features will vary depending on actual location.

Apple Introduces New Xserve—Most Powerful Apple Server Ever

Apple® today introduced the new Xserve®, a 1U rack-optimized server that is up to twice as fast as its predecessor* and includes an unlimited client license for Mac OS® X Server Leopard™. Starting at just $2,999, the new Xserve has up to two Quad-Core 3.0 GHz Intel Xeon processors for 8-core performance, a new server architecture, faster front side buses, faster memory, up to 3TB of internal storage and two PCI Express 2.0 expansion slots for greater performance and flexibility.

“With the latest Intel processors and no client access licenses, Xserve offers unbeatable server performance and value for under $3,000,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “Xserve’s power, storage and Leopard Server make it ideal for supporting Mac clients and mixed platform workgroups.”

Xserve is configurable with up to two Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5400 series processors running up to 3.0 GHz with 12MB of L2 cache per processor and features a new high-bandwidth hardware architecture, dual-independent 1600 MHz front side buses and up to 32GB of 800 MHz DDR2 ECC FB-DIMM memory for a 64 percent increase in memory throughput**. Two PCI Express 2.0 expansion slots provide up to four times the I/O bandwidth of the previous Xserve to support the latest high-bandwidth expansion cards including multi-channel 4Gb Fibre channel and 10Gb Ethernet cards.

Xserve now includes built-in accelerated graphics to drive up to a 23-inch Apple Cinema Display® and a new front-facing USB 2.0 port. Using Apple’s Server Monitor, an administrator can remotely turn Xserve on or off and manage server software from anywhere on the network. Each of Xserve’s three drive bays can be configured with 73GB or 300GB SAS drives or 80GB and 1TB SATA drives, providing a mix of high performance and vast storage capabilities for a wide range of server applications. Apple offers a hardware RAID card option that delivers hardware RAID levels 0, 1 and 5 with 256MB of cache and an included backup battery for up to 72 hours of cached data protection. The Xserve RAID card delivers up to 251MB/s RAID 5 performance*** for the most demanding server workloads, without using a valuable PCI Express expansion slot.

The new Xserve improves energy efficiency with Intel’s 45 nanometer core microarchitecture technology. The processors draw a maximum consumption of 80W, and drop as low as 4W when idle. Power supplies exceed Energy Star recommendations from the US Department of Energy and Apple’s thermal management technology cools the systems efficiently in a wide variety of environments while reducing power consumption.

Every Xserve ships with a preinstalled, unlimited client edition of Leopard Server software, offering true 64-bit support, easy-to-use management tools and support for Mac®, Linux and Windows clients. Leopard Server is fully UNIX compliant and extends Apple’s legendary ease of use by introducing over 250 new features, including Podcast Producer, the ideal way to automatically publish podcasts to iTunes® or the web; Wiki Server, allowing people to collaboratively create and modify their shared web sites with just a few clicks; and iCal® Server, the world’s first commercial CalDAV standard-based calendar server.

Pricing & Availability
The new Xserve is shipping today and will be available through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com) and Apple Authorized Resellers.

The Xserve standard configuration, with a suggested retail price of $2,999 (US), includes:

• a single 64-bit 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Xeon processor with 12MB of L2 cache and a 1600 Mhz front side bus;


• 2GB of 800 MHz DDR2 ECC FB-DIMM RAM, expandable up to 32GB;


• a single 80GB SATA Apple Drive Module;


• dual Gigabit Ethernet on-board;


• internal graphics;


• two FireWire® 800 and three USB 2.0 ports; and


• an unlimited client license for Mac OS X Server version 10.5 Leopard.

In addition to the standard configuration, Xserve offers numerous build-to-order options and accessories including: dual 2.8 or 3.0 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors; 80GB and 1TB 7200 rpm SATA or 73GB or 300GB 15,000rpm SAS Apple Drive Modules; internal Xserve RAID card; Gigabit Ethernet, 4Gb Fibre Channel and U320 SCSI expansion card options, and a 750W redundant power supply.

*Based on industry-standard SPEC jbb 2005 benchmark tests conducted by Apple in December 2007 using preproduction 3.0 GHz 8-Core Xserve units and shipping 3.0 GHz Quad-Core Xserve units. SPEC is a registered trademark of the Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation (SPEC); see www.spec.org for more information. Performance tests are conducted using specific computer systems and reflect the approximate performance of Xserve.

**Testing conducted by Apple in December 2007 using preproduction 3.0 GHz 8-Core Xeon-based Xserve units and shipping 3.0 GHz Quad-Core Xserve units. All systems were configured with 8GB of RAM. Results are based on the STREAM v. 5.6 benchmark (www.cs.virginia.edu/stream/ref.html) using OMP support for multiprocessor-compiled builds. Performance tests are conducted using specific computer systems and reflect the approximate performance of Xserve.

***Testing by Apple in December 2007 using preproduction 3.0 GHz 8-core Xeon-based Xserve units configured with Xserve RAID card. Testing conducted using Iometer 2006.07.27 with a 30-sec ramp-up, 5-min run, 512KB request size, and 4 outstanding IOs. System configured with the OS and test volume on a single RAID volume. Performance tests are conducted using specific computer systems and reflect the approximate performance of Xserve RAID Card.

Apple Introduces New Mac Pro Fastest Mac Ever—Eight Processor Cores Standard

Apple® today introduced the new Mac® Pro with eight processor cores and a new system architecture that delivers up to twice the performance of its predecessor*. The new Mac Pro combines two of Intel’s new 45 nanometer Quad-Core Xeon processors running up to 3.2 GHz, powerful new graphics and up to 4TB of internal storage to offer the ideal system for creative professionals, 3D digital content creators and scientists. The standard 8-core configuration starts at just $2,799.

“The new Mac Pro is the fastest Mac we’ve ever made,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “With 3.2 GHz 8-core Xeon processing, a 1600 MHz front side bus and 800 MHz memory, the new Mac Pro uses the fastest Intel Xeon architecture on the market.”

The new Mac Pro features the latest Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5400 series processors based on state-of-the-art 45nm Intel Core microarchitecture running up to 3.2 GHz, each with 12MB of L2 cache per processor for breakthrough performance and power efficiency. With a new high-bandwidth hardware architecture, dual-independent 1600 MHz front side buses and up to 32GB of 800 MHz DDR2 ECC FB-DIMM memory, the new Mac Pro achieves a 61 percent increase in memory throughput**.

Every Mac Pro comes standard with the ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT graphics card with 256MB of video memory. The Mac Pro includes a new PCI Express 2.0 graphics slot that delivers up to double the bandwidth compared to the previous generation, and supports the latest generation of graphics cards from NVIDIA, such as the NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT with 512MB of video memory, or NVIDIA Quadro FX 5600 with 1.5GB of video memory and a 3-D stereo port for stereo-in-a-window applications. With support for up to four graphics cards, the new Mac Pro can drive up to eight 30-inch displays at once for advanced visualization and large display walls.

The Mac Pro is the most expandable Mac ever, featuring four internal hard drive bays with direct-attach, cable-free installation of four 1TB Serial ATA hard drives, totaling 4TB of internal storage and support for two SuperDrives. With optional 15000 rpm SAS drives that can deliver up to 250MB/s of RAID 5 disk I/O performance, the Mac Pro is ideal for film and video editors. Combined with SATA or SAS drives, using an optional Mac Pro RAID card offers the ultimate data protection and disk I/O performance on the Mac Pro. The Mac Pro is easily and conveniently accessible in front and back so users can connect external devices with five USB 2.0, two FireWire® 400, two FireWire 800, optical and analog audio in and out, dual Gigabit Ethernet ports and a headphone jack.

Every Mac Pro includes Leopard™, the sixth major release of the world’s most advanced operating system. Leopard is packed with more than 300 new features and introduces a brand new desktop with Stacks, a new way to easily access files from the Dock; a redesigned Finder that lets users quickly browse and share files between multiple Macs; Quick Look, a new way to instantly see files without opening an application; Spaces, an intuitive new feature used to create groups of applications and instantly switch between them; and Time Machine™, an effortless way to automatically back up everything on a Mac. Featuring an improved scheduler and other multi-core technology, Leopard is a perfect companion to the Mac Pro, making applications faster and helping application developers take advantage of multi-core systems.

The new ultra-thin aluminum Apple Keyboard now ships with every Mac Pro and built-in Bluetooth 2.0 makes it easy to reduce cable clutter with the optional Apple Wireless Keyboard and Apple Wireless Mouse.

Pricing & Availability
The new Mac Pro is shipping today and will be available through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com ), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers.

The standard 8-core Mac Pro, with a suggested retail price of $2,799 (US), includes:

• two 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors with dual-independent 1600 MHz front side buses;


• 2GB of 800 MHz DDR2 ECC fully-buffered DIMM memory, expandable up to 32GB;


• ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT with 256MB of GDDR3 memory;


• 320GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm;


• 16x SuperDrive™ with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);


• two PCI Express 2.0 slots and two PCI Express slots;


• Bluetooth 2.0+EDR; and


• ships with Apple Keyboard and Mighty Mouse.

In addition to the standard configuration, the Mac Pro offers numerous build-to-order options including: one 2.8 GHz, two 3.0 GHz, or two 3.2 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon processors; up to 32GB of 800 MHz DDR2 fully-buffered ECC memory; up to four 1TB Serial ATA hard drives running at 7200 rpm or up to four 300GB SAS drives running at 15000 rpm; Mac Pro RAID card; up to two 16x SuperDrives with double-layer support; NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT or NVIDIA Quadro FX 5600 graphics cards; AirPort Extreme 802.11n; Apple USB Modem; Apple wireless Aluminum Keyboard; Apple wireless Mighty Mouse; and Mac OS X Server Leopard. Complete build-to-order options and pricing are available at www.apple.com/macpro.

*Based on estimated results comparing a preproduction 2.8 GHz 8-core Mac Pro with a 2.66 GHz Quad-Core Mac Pro running professional applications like Maya, modo and Logic® Pro.

**Testing conducted by Apple in December 2007 using a preproduction 2.8 GHz 8-core Mac Pro with a 2.66 GHz quad-core Mac Pro. All systems were configured with 4GB of RAM. Results are based on the STREAM v. 5.6 benchmark (www.cs.virginia.edu/stream/ref.html) using OMP support for multiprocessor-compiled builds. All systems were configured with 8GB of RAM. Performance tests are conducted using specific computer systems and reflect the approximate performance of Mac Pro.

AAPL: Apple Inc. and The Beatles’ Apple Corps Ltd. Enter into New Agreement

Apple® Inc. and The Beatles’ company Apple Corps Ltd. are pleased to announce the parties have entered into a new agreement concerning the use of the name “Apple” and apple logos which replaces their 1991 Agreement. Under this new agreement, Apple Inc. will own all of the trademarks related to “Apple” and will license certain of those trademarks back to Apple Corps for their continued use. In addition, the ongoing trademark lawsuit between the companies will end, with each party bearing its own legal costs, and Apple Inc. will continue using its name and logos on iTunes®. The terms of settlement are confidential.

Commenting on the settlement, Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO said, “We love the Beatles, and it has been painful being at odds with them over these trademarks. It feels great to resolve this in a positive manner, and in a way that should remove the potential of further disagreements in the future.”

Commenting on the settlement on behalf of the shareholders of Apple Corps, Neil Aspinall, manager of Apple Corps said, “It is great to put this dispute behind us and move on. The years ahead are going to be very exciting times for us. We wish Apple Inc. every success and look forward to many years of peaceful co-operation with them.”

AAPL: iPod shuffle Now Available in Five Brilliant Colors

Apple® today announced that the world’s most wearable digital music player is now available in five brilliant colors: blue, pink, green, orange and the original silver. A hit with customers since its initial shipment three months ago, iPod shuffle is just half a cubic inch in volume, weighs just half an ounce and features a stunning aluminum design with a built-in clip, making it the most wearable iPod® ever. Based on Apple’s pioneering shuffle feature which lets music fans enjoy a continuous mix of their favorite songs anywhere they go, iPod shuffle contains one gigabyte of flash memory, holds up to 240 songs and is available in all five colors for just $79.

“iPod shuffle is the world’s most wearable digital music player,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of Worldwide iPod Product Marketing. “Music fans can now choose iPod shuffle in one of five brilliant colors, or they can buy one of each.”

iPod shuffle features up to 12 hours of battery life* and lets users shuffle their songs to listen to them in a random order or simply flip a switch to listen to their songs in order, such as when listening to a new album.

Users connect iPod shuffle to their PC or Mac® with the included dock, and iTunes’ innovative AutoFill feature automatically syncs the perfect number of songs from their music library. Seamless integration with iTunes® 7 and the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com) allows customers to choose from a selection of over four million songs from the world’s most popular digital music store.

With Apple’s legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as integrated podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod and groundbreaking personal use rights, the iTunes Store is the best way for PC and Mac users to legally discover, purchase and download music and video online.

Pricing & Availability
The new iPod shuffle is available immediately worldwide through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for $79 (US). iPod shuffle includes an iPod shuffle dock and earbuds.

iPod shuffle requires a Mac with a USB 2.0 port and Mac OS® X version 10.3.9 or later and iTunes 7.0.2 or later; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows 2000 (Service Pack 4), Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 2) and iTunes 7.0.2 or later. Internet access is required and a broadband connection is recommended.

*Battery life and number of charge cycles vary by use and settings. See www.apple.com/batteries for more information. Music capacity is based on four minutes per song and 128-Kbps AAC encoding; actual capacity varies by content.

AAPL: Apple Reports First Quarter Results, Revenue Exceeds $7 Billion; Record Profit of $1 Billion

Apple® today announced financial results for its fiscal 2007 first quarter ended December 30, 2006. The Company posted record revenue of $7.1 billion and record net quarterly profit of $1.0 billion, or $1.14 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $5.7 billion and net quarterly profit of $565 million, or $.65 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 31.2 percent, up from 27.2 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 42 percent of the quarter’s revenue.

Apple shipped 1,606,000 Macintosh® computers and 21,066,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 28 percent growth in Macs and 50 percent growth in iPods over the year-ago quarter.

“We are incredibly pleased to report record quarterly revenue of over $7 billion and record earnings of $1 billion,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We’ve just kicked off what is going to be a very strong new product year for Apple by launching Apple TV and the revolutionary iPhone.”

“We generated over $1.75 billion in cash during the quarter to end with $11.9 billion,” said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO. “Looking ahead to the second fiscal quarter of 2007, we expect revenue of $4.8 to $4.9 billion and earnings per diluted share of $.54 to $.56.”

Apple will provide live streaming of its Q1 2007 financial results conference call utilizing QuickTime®, Apple’s standards-based technology for live and on-demand audio and video streaming. The live webcast will begin at 2:00 p.m. PST on Wednesday, January 17, 2007 at www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/earningsq107/ and will also be available for replay. The QuickTime player is available free for Macintosh and Windows users at www.apple.com/quicktime