10 features that make Mountain Lion a steal at $19.99

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Features, PC / Laptop, Software,

Mountain Lion has been out for a couple of days, available for just $19.99 on the Mac App Store. Judging by our server logs, many of you have already upgraded to the latest Apple OS. For those still on the fence about what exactly you're getting for your Jackson, we figured we'd explain the top user-facing features of OS X 10.8. Sure, Apple is touting that Mountain Lion includes over 200 new features, but redesigned scroll bars are hardly anything to get excited about. Here are the Mountain Lion features that prove that $19.99 is a steal.

Click to continue reading 10 features that make Mountain Lion a steal at $19.99

Google Fiber to bring 1000 Mbps speeds, TV, free Internet to Kansas City

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Broadband, Corporate News, Google, Home Entertainment, Internet,

Today Google finally took the wraps off of its long-awaited Google Fiber service. Focusing on Kansas City, Google Fiber is both an Internet service and television service, and Google showed off just how awesome the service will be.

First, the Internet speeds. Google Fiber provides gigabit speeds both up and down the pipe. That's 1000/1000 Mbps (which makes our 35/35 connection look atrocious.) The company detailed how far behind the USA is in terms of speed and pricing, and is looking to invoke some major change. Google Fiber Internet will also come with 1TB of Google Drive cloud storage, and there will be no bandwidth caps or overage fees. But that's not all…

Click to continue reading Google Fiber to bring 1000 Mbps speeds, TV, free Internet to Kansas City

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MacBook Air gets update that enables Mountain Lion Power Nap feature

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,

One of the main new features of OS X Mountain Lion is Power Nap. Power Nap allows your SSD Mac to keep itself updated and synced to the cloud, even while it sleeps. While its a highly-touted feature of Mountain Lion, support for the 2011 and 2012 MacBook Air and the new MacBook Pro with Retina display was left out. Today, Apple released a download that enables Power Nap for the aforementioned MacBook Air units, with the promise that an additional download that'll enable the feature on the MacBook Pro with Retina display is "coming soon." You can get Mountain Lion now for $19.99 on the Mac App Store.

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Google Nexus 7 unboxing gallery

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Galleries, Handhelds,

We know that the 16 GB Google Nexus has been hard to acquire, but we've been able to get our hands on one and are working diligently on getting our review posted. In the meantime, as is typical with us, we've put up an extensive Nexus 7 unboxing gallery. As you'll see, the tablet is fantastically built and is a great size for one-handed use. Google has put together a tablet that's a joy to use, but more on that in our upcoming Nexus 7 review. For now, enjoy the photos!

Gallery:

iWork update 9.2 brings iCloud, Dictation, Retina display support

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,

Another major Apple product to get an update today is iWork. iWork Update 9.2 brings with it support for various features of OS X Mountain Lion, which launched this morning on the Mac App Store. What's new? For starters, iCloud integration finally comes to iWork. You can now store documents in the cloud, and keep them updated across your Mac, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, and the web. Dictation allows you to speak words, numbers, and sentences into your documents. Lastly, Pages, Keynote, and Numbers have all been updated to take advantage of the MacBook Pro with Retina display. You can grab the iWork 9.2 update now.

iMovie 9.0.7 released

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,

Following the string of software that Apple has released today, including Mountain Lion and iPhoto 9.3.2, an updated version of iMovie is also available. iMovie 9.0.7 brings with it fixes for a few bugs that users have been experiences. Expect fixes related to third-party QuickTime compenents that would cause iMovie to crash, stability improvements when previewing MPEG-2 video clips in the Camera Import window, and a few audio fixes as well. You can download iMovie 9.0.7 now by launching Software Update on your Mac.

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iPhoto 9.3.2 released with Mountain Lion support

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,

A bunch of Mac apps are being updated today (like Rdio and Fantastical) to support today's release of OS X Mountain Lion, now available on the Mac App Store. iPhoto joins the list with release 9.3.2, which includes support for Mountain Lion and adds sharing options for Messages and Twitter alongside other performance and stability improvements. You can download the update now.

Rdio for Mac 2.08 released with Mountain Lion support

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Music, Software,

Rdio released a small updated for the Rdio for Mac app today, bringing with it Mountain Lion compatibility. In short, the OS X media keys will now perform as expected with Rdio when running the newly-released OS X 10.8. The changelog:

• Media key support for Mac OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion
• Layout bug fixes

If you haven't tried it, Rdio is our pick for the best streaming subscription music platform available in the US. In fact, you can follow the Gear Live Rdio channel for our song picks and recommendations.

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Fantastical updated with Mountain Lion, Retina display support

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Software,

Fantastical, the fantastic calendar replacement app for the Mac, has been updated to version 1.3.2. With that update comes support for the just-released OS X Mountain Lion operating system, as well as enhancements for the MacBook Pro with Retina display. Here's the full changelog:

• OS X Mountain Lion compatibility
• Enhanced for the MacBook Pro with Retina display
• Added support for simple repeating reminders
• Pressing the space bar with a selected reminder now toggles the completion state
• Improved performance for users with thousands of reminders
• Fixed error that could appear when loading reminders
• Fixed a hang when completing certain repeating reminders
• Fixed a problem when setting the next due date of certain repeating reminders
• Fixed a potential problem for iCloud users who have a pre-MobileMe account that was originally set up with mac.com
• Various bug fixes and improvements

If you haven't tried Fantastical, we highly recommend it. You can get a 30-day free trial of the software, and it's selling for 50% off right now on the Mac App Store.

Drobo 5D and Drobo Mini now up for pre-order

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: PC / Laptop, Storage, USB,

The new Thunderbolt-equipped Drobo units will be shipping soon, and today the company announced that the Drobo 5D and Drobo Mini are now available for pre-order.  In case you forgot, the Drobo 5D spots dual Thunderbolt ports and a USB 3.0 connection, while the Drobo Mini supports 2.5-inch drives and is super-portable. Head on over to Amazon where the 5D will cost you $849, and the Mini goes for $649. Both models support SSDs and ship with a Thunderbolt cable included, so you don't have to pay another $50 or more to get one elsewhere.

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