Today at san Francisco Apple will release to the market their newly unveiled prized possession: tablet-style iPad. Their newest pride will start selling $499.

The seems like a larger version of an iPhone, about six times an iPhone‘s size. Apple will be selling a few iPad models equipped and hooked up with data plans from no other than AT&T. And with no bondage or contract required.

Apple Inc. challenge now is to convince the market and its consumers, most of their target market already have Internet-connected phones, computers and TVs, that they will find worth and will be willing to pay the amount for a device such as an iPad, when there are a lot of handy, lightweight notebooks and “netbooks” that costs lesser.

There rebuttal is that iPad is better for reading books, playing games, and enjoying movies, as mentioned by CEO Steve Jobs. The iPad offers better visual display than either a laptop or a smart phone.

The initial price is expected to drop. The first iPhone sold by Apple was for $599 but it went all the way down to $399 in just a few months, which were of course not good to hear for early buyers.

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It is a fact that the Ipod has taken over the world. But just like any true phenomena, there will always be another that will offer itself as an alternative. What I am talking about now is the Cowon S9. The Cowon S9 is a multi media player that combines state of the art audio quality with ground breaking video playback. This gadget uses BBE+ which is a high tech sound effect that is both delicate and powerful. It has various EQ presets and also comes with a JetEffect 2.0 that supports user defined pre sets. The looks of the Cowon S9 is also mentionable. It is actually sleek with the combination of exquisite curves that make the exterior oh so luxurious. It also boasts of its durability and ergonomic design that allows comfortable grip. The display of the Cowon S9 is a 3.3 inch AMOLED screen which features 16 million vibrant colors that allow videos, photos and games to looks as realistic and clear as possible. The gravity sensor allows the COwon S9 to respond to your tilting for a more pleasant viewing experience as you watch your videos unfold on the wide screen. There is also a built- in Bluetooth capability that will have you enjoy your multi media files without the messy clutter of wires. From a single charge, there will be an available of almost 2 day’s worth of play back (40 hours). And you can even change the fonts as you want. There are 2 available versions of this player, the 8 gb ($ 199.99) and the 16 gb ($ 239.99). If you want to be different from everyone else who already got the ipod touch, this is probably the next best thing. With the design and killer sound and audio capabilities, you will surely get your money’s worth.

Apple’s iPod is gadget, a thing about being hip and cool. But designer Josh D begs to disagree. Showing his nature loving side, he redesigned his iPod mini with a cedar wood case, brass screws and plates. With the iPod mini he redesigned, he shows that you can give trees a handshake while listening to the tunes you go crazy for.

This iPod mini is something beyond retro. What he did was recycled his iPod mini, and completely changed its case to give it a greener appeal. Josh D has created other wooden cases for iPod. But this time, he went a little beyond that. His current iPod mini features wooden clickwheel and wooden iPod dock apart form its wooden cases.

This was a mini project Josh did to transform his somewhat outdated gadget into a natural and woodsy design. With his creativity and little help from his Dremel tools, he was able to use Australian Red Cedar for the case and Camphor Laurel for the clickwheel. As there are already iPods covered with wooden case, the wooden clickwheel is what makes his iPod different from the rest. The circular wooden piece was shaved down to a few millimeters thick to let the iPod’s sensor properly pick up the signal. . According to him, the wooden clickwheel works as good as the original plastic one. No glue at all was used in attaching its wooden parts. All of its parts are put together using brass screws both on top and bottom while its clickwheel is attached to the sensor by a double-sided tape.

To complete the natural aura, a recovered iTrip module in Light Red Cedar and iPod mini dock made from Camphor Laurel come with the iPod mini.

If you think about it, this redesigned iPod gives you the feeling of hugging a tree, aside from the fact that it fits in the palm of your hand. All in all, it is a beautifully finished recreation of Apple’s iPod mini which can probably outlast the plastic counterparts available in the market.

Apple is strongly considering into offensive into gaming industry or highly considering to venture into the gaming market. This information was from Guy Adami of CNBC’s Fast Money. He claims to have heard the company tossing the idea of and “chattering” about acquiring the publishing giant- Electronic Arts (EA)

The former senior director of Microsoft’s Xbox Bsiness for the insights and strategy field, Richard Teversham, has left to join Apple for the week. Bob Drebin was also spotted at Apple’s event, man who was responsible for the graphics processor in Nintendo GameCube. These strongly suggest the bold move, and not to mention major move from iPhonrs and iPods into the gaming business. These are just yet rumors, but if it were to be proven true, Apple’s ambitions appears to be far beyond just the handheld market.

Technology is forcibly getting cheaper and cheaper because of the competiveness of the market, the pace of technology development and the uncertainty of the economic recession. However, one company that refuses to nudge to the flow is Apple. Apple has been known to never sell their products cheap. Markdowns and discounts are unknown to them. However, unknown to many, a place does exist where you can get Apple products (Macs and iPods specifically) at prices as low as thirty percent off the original. Behold, bargain prices at the Apple Refurb Store.
The Apple Refurb Store has been running for years obscurely to most of the public. Only thrifty hardcore Mac fans had known of its existence. The store formerly was opened only on Wednesday, but now its website is open for the entire week. Products are said to be pre-owned but dubbed as “Apple Certified Refurbished Products.” Usually, refurb products served as demo units in Apple Stores or have been returned by previous buyers.
Many consumers are uneasy about buying refurb products believing the product is damaged or of faulty production. Unlike PCs, Mac parts aren’t easily replaced making it a relevant concern for consumers. However, Apple assures its Refurb Store consumers that refurb products have been fully tested and in perfect working condition. Apple says that if any part of the product was found to be defective during the testing process, the part is replaced. Some consumers even claim that they’ve bought Refurb products with parts upgraded.
Some consumers speculate that not all items on the Apple Refurb Store are actually refurbished but instead are brand new. The Refurb Store has been rumoured to be Apple’s distribution site for products lines which have been discontinued or about to be refreshed. Refurb Store customers have good testimonies about their buys, even claiming that the products work as good or even better than new.
Buying products from Refurb Stores can be tricky especially since scalpers are always on the hunt to resell these products on eBay as new. However, a desktop widget is available to keep you posted on the latest bargains. Waiting for a product you want to be on bargain may take patience as sometimes the board is bare. Other times, treasures in the form of iPods, Macs and iPhones will be piling up.