The iPod is now truly a space age gadget. Last week there was a photo released of Endeavour - the space shuttle. There was one special treat in that photo for iPod lovers. A keen blogger noticed in the window console an…iPod!

Using a 400 mm lens an overhead exterior shot of the shuttle was taken. The shot was taken by crew members of Expedition 16 on the international space station. Astronaut Dominic Gorie STS-123 commander did a roll pitch maneouver. This is essentially a back flip which allows the space station crew a proper view of the heat shield of the Endeavour.
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Apple is being sued by ZapMedia based on a claim that the online iTunes store as well as the iPod were infringements of ZapMedia’s patents. Zapmedia claimed that it tried repeatedly to negotiate with Apple and when this failed they filed the suit against Apple.

The suit was filed on Wednesday in Marshall, Texas in the US District Court. According to the suit ZapMedia Services’ property was being unlawfully exploited and they therefore wanted a royalty on this. This was a statement made by Steven G. Hill.
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Recently an Apple iPod shot out sparks and this is being investigated in Japan by government officials. One official from the trade and economy ministry of Japan told AP that this sparking that happened in Kanagawa Prefecture in January was thought to be due to a defect in the lithium-ion battery of the iPod Nano.

The model number of the defective iPod was MA099J/A according to Associated Press. Between September 2005 and September 2006 about 425000 iPods with this number were imported into Japan. This is not the first time problems have cropped up in the Nano. In Douglasville, Ga, last October a Nano reportedly caught fire in a mans pocket.
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The three main businesses of Apple are doing very well. This is not all. According to Tim Cook, COO, Apple, there is a very good growth potential for these businesses in the future.

According to Cook, among all Apple products, the iPhone has received the highest customer satisfaction ratings. This is an achievement for the iPhone since all Apple products are so high on customer satisfaction.
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After taking back broken iPod Touch’s, Apple is finding ways to make good use of them. Apple is refurbishing them and then selling them for less. They are in perfect working condition. The only catch is that the online Apple store was selling only the 8GB model. Now there is a 32 GB model being sold after being redone as well. This is not the best iPod out there but it is definitely very desirable.

Till recently iPod Touch users were installing iPhone apps illegitimately. Now with a new software upgrade iPod Touch users can access iPhone apps legitimately. All new units have this software upgrade. If you don’t want to spend the $20 on the new functionality then the only option is hacking it!
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The future of podcasting hangs in the balance with Apple’s new patent. A few years ago, we witnessed the maturing of podcasting. When Apple added fuel to the podcasting fire with its iTunes store in 2005, the process accelerated. There is now a new patent in line that may change the face of the podcast world.

The patent is titled “Creation, Management and Delivery of Personalized Media Items.” It was filed on Jan 9, 2007. The abstract is a little vague. If this patent goes through, users will be able to choose episodes from podcasts, manually or automatically combining them into content.
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According to an analyst the price cuts in the iPod Shuffle are likely to increase sales across all iPods. This decision by Apple to cut iPod Shuffle prices may help Apple meet shipment forecasts for all iPod models. Shaw Wu, American Technology Research analyst says that this was a development that very positive and due to the low December quarter sale output, this was perhaps needed and in the light of this price cut Apple would reach it’s forecasted sales.

According to Shaw Wu, Apple is a stock to buy. The price target he puts on it is $175 per share. He felt that the right thing for Apple to do would have been to reduce prices in the December quarter. This would have driven incremental demand as newbies to the iPod hooked on to the world of the iPod.
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In an amazing incident that should leave iPhone owners with a sweet taste in the mouth, an iPhone was found to be working even after being run over by a truck! The iPhone has long been a symbol of all that is cool and posh but now it has a new tag attached to it. It is the indestructible iPhone.

Lets go back to when Mike Beauchamp innocently left his iPhone on the trunk of his car. Now his memory did not prove as reliable as the considerable memory of his iPhone. Soon he was up and about on the highway.
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New models of the Apple mobile handset - iPhone as well as the iPod media player have been introduced in the market. These models have twice the memory of previous models. The lineup has been changed the second time in the last 6 months.

The new models include a 16 GB iPhone which will cost $499. There is also a 32 GB iPod also for the same price of $499. There is ample room for songs in the new iPod, seven thousand songs in fact. The iPhone can store about 3500.
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There is good news for iPodders with pacemakers. Well, according to an FDA study portable music devices such as iPods produce magnetic fields, however these do not adversely affect cardiac pacemakers. The claim that Apple iPod magnetic fields may hurt the heart is thus refuted.

Four iPod models were tested by the research team from the Food and Drug Administration and the report on the same is available in BioMedical Engineering Online.
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The iPod Touch, iPhone and Apple TV are greener than ever, radically so after Steve Jobs played up the environmental angle at Apple’s Macworld announcements. It isn’t about super skinny, brominated, flame retardant free notebooks.

Apple TV2 is a produce that has no hardware. If makes digital delivery of TV shows and movies quicker. You won’t need to buy a new iPod Touch for email. Apple TV’s will not be thrown away if people want movie rentals. iPhone owners will have their devices fresh and exciting with new features as well as third party apps.
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There is now remote PC access for the iPhone and iPod Touch courtesy Software company Orb which is a Remote PC access company. Now users of the iPhone and iPod can stream music, TV and movies without being locked into iTunes.

Orb needs to be installed on an “always on” Windows machine. Then it must be allowed to bypass firewalls and AV software. After this the media in the Windows default folders will be displayed (My Music, My Documents, My Photos, My Videos).
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The iPod now has new competition. The Cowon portable media player dubbed the Q5W is now out on the market and ready to woo customers. It is Bluetooth enabled and supports Wi-Fi. In addition it has a 5 inch Hi Res Touch screen. The other software in this device includes Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Adobe’s Embedded Flash Player 7. You have the option of GPS with this device. Other than the Q5W, the P2 was recently released in response to the iPhone and iPod Touch.

The Cowon Q5W is hard disk based an available in two capacities - 40 and 60 GB. There are not many non flash memory based players with touch screens and Wi-Fi.
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Nokia’s new N810 is in direct competition with the latest iPod Touch. They both have features like music and video players, WiFi and a large touch screen. What Nokia’s USP is its GPS and Bluetooth. In addition it allows 45 minutes of music. this has made it a little thicker though.

The big question is will the new features like Navigation and VOIP be enough to beat the iPod Touch in sales? In addition the N810 is able to access the net through Bluetooth even away from a hotspot. To add to that the N810 has a slide out keyboard making it easier to email and IM. So who will win this corporate war? Lets wait and see.

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All iPod Touch/ iPhone maniacs say Hallelujah! The GBA emulator for the iPod Touch and iPhone is here. This GBA emulator riding on a project dubbed Project GpSPhone allows full speed performance of GBA on the iPhone/iTouch.

There are some issues with the compatibility, but most games can be played. Work is still going on in this area. Sound performance features are disabled. You might have to work with manual frameskip. In addition there is still work to be done in the area of GUI and instructions.
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iPod now has a software update for the iPod touch waiting for those who connect to iTunes. The new software (version 1.1.2) can now be had from iTunes. The reason for the software update is said to be bug fixes. In addition some notable add on’s are available with the 157 mb download.

A battery icon will now be displayed in the source list of iTunes next to the iPod entry. The iPhone has a similar icon with the just released software for it. Read more… »

The iPod Touch has a great new accessory. It now has a great Sportsuit convertible case from Marware. It is available at a price of $34.99. This case can be converted from an armband case to a slim profile sleeve and also to a clip on case. You can keep keys or money in the armband case.
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