At this time of year, Apple makes many changes to its software products as the new hardware continues to filter through, and along with today's big announcements, it looks as though a small, but notable update to iTunes is also in the pipeline. iTunes 11.1.2 should be available very, very soon to everyone around the globe, and with support for OS X Mavericks, bug fixes and enhanced language support, will definitely be worth picking up.
Although Apple's vast array of iTunes Store content is now consumed and accessed predominantly through mobile devices, the iTunes app is still an integral part of the entire infrastructure. It saw some drastic changes with version 10, which has since been fine tuned into a more functional version 11, and today, iTunes 11.1.1 has been released for both Windows and Mac. Aside from a few bug fixes, there really isn't all that much else to write home about, but it's certainly good to see Apple pushing the remedial update now, rather than merely waiting for a more noteworthy release to bundle it into.
As the tech world preoccupies itself with soon-to-be-announced iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S, Apple has just begun rolling out its annual discounts to students preparing to go back to school. The promotion, which runs every year, sees some of the most popular charting albums reduced in price, and while it's not exactly educational, it does enable those with presumably less disposable cash to indulge in some new music.
Apple seems to be busily getting its developer releases out there today after the security breach which resulted in the entire system being dragged offline. Along with the news that iOS 7 beta 4 is finally making its appearance today, iTunes 11.1 has also been released to those registered to Apple's Developer Program. The updated iTunes 11.1 beta 1 is quite limited at this point, given that it only works on the fruit company’s very on OS X, but does include iTunes Radio integration for those living in the United States. More details can be found right after the jump.
Many in the music industry may have hated it back when it launched, and some probably still do, but it's arguable that Apple's iTunes Store actually saved music. It may not have felt like it at the time, but iTunes and its DRM may have been all that stopped music from becoming even more of a piracy black hole than it is today.
Apple's iTunes Music Store has just passed a significant milestone, having sold its 25 billionth song, once again entrenching its reputation as the world's most frequented online music hub. As is always the case when Apple reaches a milestone, the downloader of track #25,000,000,000 - Phillip Lüpke from Germany - has received a very neat prize - in this case, a €10,000 iTunes Gift Card.
iTunes 11 has just been seeded by Apple after a great deal of delay, and naturally, the tech world is busy trying to dissect all of the new features. Among them, arrives the ability to redeem iTunes Store gift / credit cards by simple means of using your computer's camera. Typing in a long alphanumeric can be a pain in the rear, and unless maximum concentration is applied, mistakes are easy to make, rendering the whole process somewhat seamless. With this new camera snapping system working in much the same manner as your typical QR scanner, you can finally let the tech do the donkey work for you.
Apple just pushed out an improved version of its desktop media player / content hub, bringing the version number up to 11. It was originally presumed that iTunes 11 would drop alongside the iPhone 5, iPad mini or the 4th-gen iPad, but instead, it has been released after many delays which we’ve documented quite well here at Redmond Pie. As well as feeling a lot lighter than it has ever done, some work has gone into reshaping the look of the App Store, as well as iTunes itself.
Apple has today announced that iTunes 11 will not release this month as previously expected, with November now the expected ship date. If you're one of the millions who use iTunes as their media hub and central iOS device syncing station, then this news is going to sting somewhat. Having previously promised that the next version of iTunes, version 11, would be available for download some time in October, the company has now confirmed that is no longer the case.
Although I presume most of you consider yourselves to be technology fans, it seems like the majority of us are particularly drawn in by hardware, as opposed to software. While it's the devices that invariably make the headlines, the associated applications play a huge part in their success, and in terms of Apple-designed devices, the iTunes desktop app has played a pivotal role in its success.
