Apple has today announced its new products – an Apple netbook (almost), OS X 10.7,
and FaceTime on Mac.
The first new product to be announced was iLife 11, with "Facebook enhancements" in iPhoto 11 and new full screen modes.
Obviously, Apple is calling it "the best version yet". iPhoto also brings "amazing new slideshow themes", an iPad-like album view, and you can pull in photos from Flickr.
iPhoto now also enables you to select and email photos from inside the app and create virtual books of your photos – which can be displayed in Project View on a rather cheesy looking wooden bookshelf background.
iMovie has had an update, too. iMovie 11 promises better audio editing, according to Jobs. It also offers "one-step effects", a people finder, news and sports themes and movie trailers.
One step effects are explained by Apple dev Randy Ubilous as "allowing you to group a number of changes, edits, and apply them at once."
The audio editing lets you select segments of audio and adjust the levels of that segment only.
Movie Trailers offers 15 trailers: fill in your trailer information, adjust the FPS if you want to, pick a template and then drag and drop your clips into the outline. The trailers feature sounded cringeworthy, but we have to admit, it looks like a very cool and fun function.
Face detection from iPhoto now appears in iMovie.
GarageBand 11
GarageBand 11 was shown by Apple next. Jobs says it has new features to help you fix timing in your music, new effects and new piano and guitar lessons.
The timing fix means that if you play drums but you can't actually play drums, GarageBand 11 will protect your reputation. Until you play live and people throw bottles at you, that is.
"It's like an automatic spellchecker for bad rhythm," says Apple.
The new built-in lessons, in full-screen, now offer a "Why do I suck?" mode. It's actually called How Did I Play? but it gives you the same info.
For more on iLife 11, check out our story Apple launches iLife 11.
FaceTime on Mac
So FaceTime. Want it on your Mac? You got it.
Jobs says it's the number one request Apple has received, and that there's "nothing to set up, there's nothing to configure."
FaceTime for Mac beta is out today.
OS X 10.7 - Lion
The next OS X will be called Lion. Jobs gave a preview. It's "Mac OS X meets the iPad", he says.
This means multitouch and the App Store are headed for your Mac.
"Apps on the iPad autosave... And when you launch apps, they auto resume," adds Jobs. "That'd be great on the Mac, too."
So this stuff is coming "back to the Mac," says Jobs (hence the name of the event).
For the full lowdown on Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, check out our story Apple announces Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
OS X 10.7 release date is "this summer".
New MacBook Air
As expected, there's a new MacBook Air. Apple's "one more thing".
"What would happen if a Mac met an iPad?" said Jobs.
Promising solid state storage, instant-on and great battery life, Jobs went on to say: "What would happen if a MacBook and an iPad hooked up?"
It's the new MacBook Air, which Apple is calling the future of notebooks.
The new MacBook Air is 0.68 inches thick and weighs 2.9llbs. It has a 13.3 inch LED backlit display, Core 2 Duo processor, GeForce 320m, multitouch trackpad and, of course, a FaceTime camera.
Battery life is claimed as seven hours with wireless on - with 30 days standby time.
13.3 inch MacBook Air? Pah, too big!
Apple has also announced an 11.6 inch MacBook Air. So you (just about) have an Apple netbook. We can't wait to get hands on with this.
Both are available today.
New MacBook Air price
The UK prices for the various MacBook Air models are:
11.6", 1.4 GHz, 64GB: £849
11.6", 1.4 GHz, 128GB: £999
13.3", 1.86GHz, 128 GB: £1099
13.3", 1.86GHz, 256 GB: £1349
For more on the new MacBook Air, read New Apple MacBook Air unleashed
