Apple today released iTunes 4.8 which includes new Music Store features and support for transferring contacts and calendars from your computer to your iPod (requires Mac OS X version 10.4 on your computer). Apple’s iTunes web page also notes that “more than 1.3 million tracks and 600 independent labels with 30-second previews” are now available via the iTunes Music Store.
AppleInsider notes, “One feature Apple curiously failed to mention is video support. The new version is capable of not only storing, but also displaying QuickTime video content. New options built into the iTunes “Advanced” preference pane lets users choose whether they want video content to in ‘the main window,’ ‘a separate window,’ or ‘full screen.'” AppleInsider has screenshot links in their full article here.
With iTunes 4.8, if you have Mac OS X version 10.4 or later installed, you can transfer the contact and calendar information on your computer to your iPod or iPod mini to take with you on the go.
For calendar and contact synchronization to work, you need to store your contacts and calendar information in an application that works with Mac OS X synchronization, such as Address Book or iCal. You should sync your iPod with only one computer.
Note: You may have previously used iSync to transfer contact and calendar information from your computer to your iPod. With Mac OS X version 10.4 or later, however, you now use iTunes instead of iSync.
1. Connect your iPod or iPod mini to your computer.
2. Choose iTunes > Preferences and click the iPod button.
3. To set up iTunes to transfer contacts, click the Contacts button, select the Synchronize Address Book Contacts checkbox, and then choose which contact information you want to transfer. You can choose to transfer all your contact information or only selected contacts.
4. To set up iTunes to transfer calendars, click the Calendars button, select the Synchronize iCal Calendars checkbox, and then choose which calendar information you want to transfer. You can choose to transfer all your calendars or only selected calendars.
5. When you’re ready to transfer the information to your iPod, click the OK button in the Preferences window.
It may take a few moments to see the contact or calendar information on your iPod. Press the menu button on your iPod until you return to the main iPod menu, then choose Extras, and then choose Contacts or Calendar.
Your contact and calendar information will be updated on your iPod each time you sync your music (when you connect your iPod or iPod mini to your computer or choose File > Update iPod). If you’ve set up iTunes so that you transfer music manually, your contacts and calendars will be updated only when you choose File > Update iPod.
Macintosh Requirements:
• Mac OS X v10.2.8 or later; Mac OS X v10.3 required for AirPort Express
• 400MHz G3 processor or better
• QuickTime 6.2 required to encode AAC
• QuickTime 6.5.2 and latest iLife updates required to use purchased music in iLife ’04
• 256 RAM recommended
• DSL, cable modem, or LAN-based high-speed Internet connection recommended for buying and streaming music
Windows Requirements:
• Windows XP or 2000
• 500 MHz Pentium class processor or better
• QuickTime 6.5.2 (included)
• 128 MB RAM minimum/256 RAM recommended
• Latest Windows service packs recommended
• Supported CD-RW drive to burn CDs, video display card, soundcard
• DSL, cable modem, or LAN-based high-speed Internet connection recommended for buying and streaming music
More info and download link (11MB) here.
MacDailyNews Take: iTunes’ new ability to store and play QuickTime video content should have alarm bells ringing far and wide. This could be very large. For Apple not to mention it in their notes is very, very interesting. These new QuickTime video abilities are just simply, well, there. As a side note, iTunes 4.8 allows the ability to play full screen QuickTime for free; no US$29.99 QuickTime Pro required for the full screen playback feature. Does this mean that multimedia content (movies, TV shows, and/or more) for sale is coming to the iTunes Music Store? Is this a harbinger of a Video iPod? What do you think it means?
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Cringely: Apple prepping Video iTunes, Video iPod, and setting stage for iPod clones – May 06, 2005
But the BIG question is this – does it FUBAR Real’s Harmony? (Not that I care, I’m just curious…)
FUBAR?
I’m confused. Hasn’t the iPod had Address/Calendar since the 2g? All this means is they’ve moved it from iSync to iTunes… boring.
F*@ked
Up
Beyond
All
Recognition
or for the sensitive types…
Fouled
Up
Beyond
All
Recognition
OK, the PDA stuff is all in place.
Now add the ability to place and receive phone calls and we’re all set–one device does it all, with Apple’s ease-of-use, click wheel, hardware/software integration and form factor.
I could have thousands of tunes and have the incoming call pause the song I was listening to (if I so choose). I can also just click on a contact to place a call. No more manually punching in contact info to my phone. And I can be alerted, perhaps between songs, of an upcoming appointment.
I hate today’s cell phones (poor ease-of-use) and PDAs (too limited!). I’d go for an all-in-one by Apple in an instant, though.
I am not sure I like the idea that iTunes handles so many things beyond music. I just don’t like bloated softwares. Apple should have just developed iSync: Windows to handle calendar/contacts/notes/photos/whatever. Isn’t that the purpose of iSync?
the new iTunes does not come up in my software update! what is wrong?
ok, so iPhoto stores video, iTunes stores video, but iMovie only makes them… makes sense I guess.
Here come the video iPods.
MDN keyword: standard, for obvious reasons.
hmmm … these aren’t the current iTMS videos or movie trailers that get played in a seperate window. That doesn’t seem to happen, not for me at least. But QuickTime videos added from outside iTunes do play in a seperate iTunes window.
ITMS comung to Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland in this round.
Quote from the bottom of the iTunes page:
“iTunes is licensed for reproduction of non-copyrighted materials or materials the user is legally permitted to reproduce. Purchases from the iTunes Music Store are available only in Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. #1 music download store according to Nielsen SoundScan. See Terms of Sale.”
Notice the new countries. I guess Oz and NZ aren’t in this wave. Too bad down under 🙁
MW: Ask as in ask and ye shall receive!
Need a spell checker!
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comung === coming
joe
This way apple can upload your calendar and addressbook without your knowledge
if you have Little Snitch installed, you’ll be amazed how often your Mac calls home
Huh?
I suppose the “video” part is new, but I have saved music videos and such in the current version just fine. It plays the music, though I see no video.
Hmm…download a ton of music videos off the web and make your own Empty-V in iTunes?
I’m not getting it in Software Update, either. I just downloaded the disk image. We’ll see how it runs…
Software Update does not work with Tiger….Beware.
Probably the worst of numerous bugs.
I still have Panther. No Software Update at my house either. I had to get iTunes 4.8 from Apple.com
Do you have .mac Alex? That might explain some things.
Software Update does work with Tiger !!!
I installed Tiger a few days ago and did my first Software Update this morning (Garageband update).
wc
It means these guys are bloody smart and have their sights set on a number of targets that meet the three fundament criteria they see as a prerequisite …
a) definable opportunity
b) few or no valid competitors
c) the solution can deliver excellent fiscal return
Relax people. Software update is always behind the general announcements made on apple.com. Just go to itunes.com if you can’t wait.
Chill about the iTunes updates. The major updates haven’t appeared in their for a while, just the second decimal point ones that break Real’s thing.
I just found “This is how it feels” by the Inspiral Carpets on iTunes. I’d forgotten just how good that song is. “She Comes In the Fall” is also f**king brilliant. I’m back at the Student Union again, headbanging away and spilling my 80p pint.
Now those were the days. I had hair and never got hangovers.
I’m confused…
iSync is capable of syncing contacts and calendars with my iPod and .Mac account (well, not the calendars). How come Apple created iTunes 4.8 syncing and the new .Mac Sync? Something strange is going on. I thought iSync was a one stop app for all your sync needs. Is there a plan to deviate from this?
Apple, please clarify!
I think it’s just a matter of time before Apple starts selling/renting video content on the web. My questions are: 1) When, 2) Will they start with a small selection and gradually build or start with a relatively big selection to make a huge impact, and 3) What will the pricing be?
I think somehere here said the video ipod may just be an iPod photo with a s-video out connection. Perfect for taking to a friends house to watch Monty Python or your latest iMovie creation.
OK – maybe not an s-video connection – but some sort of output to a TV or display.
It even plays streaming vids via reference movies. Cool!
A skype plugin for itunes… and the picture would become clear. Apple, buy’em !
Magic word: common, as in “common sense”
It means they will have movies/shows for downloading coming. Doesn’t mean a video iPod, I dont think. I think the idea will be to have your Mac hooked up to an HD TV set – and you can order your shows from Apple. The Mac mini is going to be the carrier for all of this since it plugs right into an HD set. Goodbye Cable/Satellite TV? Goodbye Blockbuster/Netflix?
Steve did say this was going to be the year of HD!
G Spank – I hope you are right! I think cable is sooo over-priced!
iPod photos already come with video cables and their docks have s-video out. Still, I don’t think it’s just a matter of a software fix to make it play Monty Python’s at a friends house. How would the HD handle under that much continuous accessing? Is it fast enough? Will it wear out and break faster? It was my understanding that the iPod and it’s like works well by not needing to access the hard drive as often as it would if it were video.
Curious, I thought Apple would introduce iTunes 4.8 and QuickTime 7 for Windows at the same time…
Somehow my iTunes 4.8 doesn’t play QT files. It skips it.
AlexD,
I had never heard of Little Snitch before you wrote about it. Thank you, very interesting information.
Do you know if there is an application that tells you when someone is trying to enter your system? Say one of my kids has a p2p music swap app, is there something for that scenario?
Thank you for the information.
isync is dead in Tiger, it makes sense to add a simple function to iTunes. I will appreciate it when I install Tiger later this month, its kind of a pain to run isync and it cuts down on the time we spend doing things. Apple just streamlined the process.
I think iTunes 4.8 is essentially a rough draft of what a future video capable version will look like. I think iPod Photos will replace iPods in the next round of updates (losing the ‘photo’ part of their name when they do) and then they’ll add an iPod video player that won’t play the video on screen but instead will be able to output the video and audio to a tv or other form of projection. It’ll probably start off as a way for you to take your illegal video with you (converting DivX, etc to MPEG 4 h.264 first) which will force movie and tv studios into negotiations to create (drumroll) the iTunes Media Store.
isync in itunes is no big deal, i don’t want itunes to be too bloated though. and i really think a video store would be dumb. who would use an ipod video?
Is (will be) all in one… in a computer
IS (WILL BE) THE NEXT BIG THING
IS (WIIL BE) THE NEW OFFICE
Itunes Norway and several other stores where acsessible a few minutes ago, but when i tried to sign in, I was kicked out and only the 15 or so original countries where there
I probably should’ve mentioned that iTunes will likely want to convert the video quality to SD before transferring it to an iPod Video. Sorry folks but you can all probably imagine how tough it would be to cram a G5 into an iPod to play HD content…
interesting…means Itune can stream video
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to make itune play the movies, select “play in separate window” in the advanced pref panel.
Apple wants the movies to play through iTunes so that all those Wintel users who’ve bought iPods – and who therefore have downloaded and use iTunes – will have a natural segue into using Apple for the coming video products. Pretty smart.
The iPod Video will.. hrmm.. prevent copying that’s it.. how’s that sound? What’s to prevent actual iMovie bought mpegs from being spread on p2p?
You don’t buy movies, you rent them..
That’s why i see iFlicks software as useless, i usually watch a movie once then delete it
iTunes 4.8 is also now set for the iTunes phone. Music (phone playlist), contacts, and calendar simply synced to your new phone.
Forget now that iTunes is music. It’s not anymore. It’s the brand name for online media accessible by handheld devices.
I agree with DavidO.
iTunes is heavily used by PC users. Continuing the trojan horse technique, this will seduce them into buying video from Apple via the iTunes Store without needing to get them to load another app. Plus both audio and video are driven by the same underlying Quicktime layer. And combined with the video-Airport Express, this becomes a sneaky but full-fledged attack on Windows Media Center Edition.
And hey, all movies have tunes in them, even silent movies.
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My one gripe is that iTunes can certainly use many new features to increase usability. See PowerPage for excellent recap of many suggestions – http://www.powerpage.org/cgi-bin/WebObjects/powerpage.woa/wa/story?newsID=14549
a) a motorola/apple cell phone is coming
b) the phone uses iTunes
c) the phone plays video (who cares…but they all do, nowadays)
d) large % of win-doze users have iTunes
= a x-platform tool for syncing music/video/cal/contacts on the new motorola/apple cell phone, as well as iPods?
I am not sure the cal/contact sync makes sense from a x-platform perspective, but the rest fits. A single button to transfer EVERYTHING to my cell would be GREAT!
WOAH!!! OK… to all those who don’t realize how huge this is…
You know the box that shows the album art? Yeah, I’m now watching movies in it. And I can push the full screen or separate window….. its like quicktime…. yet I didn’t have to pay the $20 for pro!!!
THIS IS HUGE! TRUST ME!
Macnut222
No I don’t have mac.
MikeR
Lil snitch is great and very reasonably priced
As far as being able to tell who’s trying to sneak in, I still use Norton’s personal firewall and the list of sites trying is amazing.
Cheers
updated to itunes 4.8, and my 40 gig ipod (not photo) crashes/force closes itunes… my other 20 gig and 4g mini ipod work just fine… what’s up with that??
There already is a Movie Player for the iPod:
http://www.nyko.com/Nyko/Products/?i=36
Looks pretty cool too.
Correction: Make that coming soon.
Still it looks like a winner so far. Have to see what it really is like when it comes out. I would like to see good 3D viewing goggles for the iPod too so you can watch anything, anywhere at full screen.
Okay, just bought the Dave Matthews Band album which included a very nice PDF booklet and a video on the making of the album, all delivered with my album purchase. Seems like PDFs and Videos will be stored directly in the related album folder, which works for me. I had selected the pop-open video into new window option, thinking that it would apply to the music videos available in the iTMS (it doesn’t), but does allow for me to minimize the music player, while watching the video. Also good is Synergy still handles videos as if they were album tracks, so the display information queued and displayed per normal.
Now if they’d just put folders in the d*mn thing, like they did with iPhoto, I’d be happy and content, for a little while
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AlexD
Thank you very much. I’ll check out Norton Firewall.
I appreciate your help.
4.8 also fixes a security issue:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301596
Bugg*r, Just bought Pro to get full screen playback. $30 wasted.