MacRumors

Early this year, Apple acquired popular music plug-in and effect maker Camel Audio, largely known for its Alchemy software, which bundled a range of plug-ins, synthesizers, effects, and sound libraries. Alchemy's powerful audio manipulation tools have now been built into Apple's own music software, Logic Pro X and MainStage 3, via updates that are available today.

Described by Apple as "the ultimate sample manipulation synthesizer," Alchemy introduces additive, spectral, formant, granular, sampler, and virtual analog sound generators, along with 3,000 presets for electronic music ranging from electronic dance to hip hop and rock.

There's a built-in preset browser built around keywords that's designed to let users find sounds quickly, and reshaping them can be done with the Transform Pad. Up to four synth modules can be combined to create multi-layered sounds, and there are 100 modulation sources that can be used to create dynamic instruments. The full release notes for Logic Pro X are below:

What's New
- Introducing Alchemy - the ultimate sample manipulation synthesizer

- Next generation synthesizer plug-in with multiple sound generators including; additive, spectral, formant, granular, sampler, and virtual analog
- Over 3,000 presets for all types of electronic music including electronic dance, hip hop, rock, and sound for picture
- Integrated keyword preset browser for finding the right sounds quickly
- Performance controls like the Transform Pad make it easy to explore and reshape sounds
- Combine up to four synth modules to create complex multi-layered sounds
- Virtual analog oscillators produce authentic recreations of iconic synth sounds
- Wide selection of modeled analog and special effect filters for producing sounds with vintage character and tonal complexity
- Create animated, dynamic instruments using over 100 modulation sources that include flexible LFOs, AHDSR and MSEG envelopes, and step sequencers
- Manipulate and combine samples in new ways using a collection of morphing and resynthesis tools
- Import EXS24 instruments or create your own using a robust set of sampler features
- Apply independent arpeggiators to each of the 4 sound sources to transform simple chords into elaborate performances
- Integrated effects rack with reverb, modulation, delay, compression, and a range of distortion effects

- New tabbed Transform Pad and X/Y Pad Smart Controls for Alchemy instruments
- Share directly to Apple Music Connect
- Adds support for Force Touch trackpad
-Create custom track icons with your own image files
- 1,000 new Apple Loops from a variety of popular instruments and genres including EDM, Hip Hop, Indie, Disco, Funk, and Blues
- Expanded MIDI clock options improve sync compatibility with external MIDI devices
- Multiple additional enhancement and stability improvements

Today's Logic Pro X update also includes support for the Force Touch trackpad in the new Mac models and it introduces tools allowing artists to share their music directly to Apple Music Connect.

Logic Remote, the iPad companion app for Logic Pro X on the Mac, has also gained new smart controls for Alchemy instruments.

Logic Pro X can be downloaded from the Mac App Store for $199.99. [Direct Link]

MainStage 3 can be downloaded from the Mac App Store for $29.99. [Direct Link]

Logic Remote can be downloaded from the iOS App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Michael Stuhlbarg, who plays early Apple employee Andy Hertzfeld in Aaron Sorkin's upcoming Steve Jobs movie, spoke with Collider about his experience shooting the movie and shared some insight into the three-act structure of the film.

According to Stuhlbarg, the Steve Jobs movie was a "very unique project" with a rehearsal process that was split between each of the acts, with the actors spending two weeks rehearsing and then two weeks shooting the movie at each different location where the product unveilings took place. The film is centered around three product launches for the original Mac, the NeXT Computer, and the iMac.

This shooting method, says Stuhlbarg, was "unlike anything I've ever done to this point and probably unlike anything I'll ever do again. He said it brought the actors together "in an extraordinary way."

Also, it kind of gave us something in the telling of the story that you don't often get, which is a sense of momentum of what a story is telling you. He got the opportunity to get the barrage of nonsense that was being thrown at him throughout the entire story. It was just unlike anything I've ever done before.

Stuhlbarg also spoke about the experience of working on a highly desirable Aaron Sorkin screenplay and his take on Andy Hertzfeld's relationship with Steve Jobs, all of which can be read in the original interview on Collider or seen in the video below.

The Steve Jobs movie will premiere at the 53rd annual New York Film Festival on October 3 before seeing a wider release on October 9. The film, which was written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by Danny Boyle, stars Michael Fassbender as Steve Jobs, Seth Rogen as Steve Wozniak, Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman, and Jeff Daniels as John Sculley.

Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly today announced that the company plans to accelerate support for the Apple Watch by having the wearable device be sold in every one of its 1,050 retail locations across the United States "by the end of September" (via Fortune).

The move follows Best Buy's initial plan to deploy retail support for the Apple Watch in just 300 of its stores by the holiday season, but recent strong sales of the device have encouraged the retailer to back Apple in not just Apple Watch support, but with all of the Cupertino company's products.

Currently undergoing renovations at 740 locations in the United States are the Apple branded sections of Best Buy's retail stores, "including new fixtures and more display tables for phones, computers, and tablets." The company has already completed the update at 350 of its stores and has plans to get another 170 completed before the holiday shopping rush coming later this year.

We've also been working with Apple to update the 740 stores-within-a-store that were first implemented in 2007. The stores-within-a-store will have new Apple fixtures and are larger with more display tables for phones, computers, and tablets. We've already implemented approximately 350 of them, and expect to upgrade a total of approximately 520 by the holidays.

The additional display tables are great for the merchandising of Apple Watch, which went on sale at BestBuy.com and in more than 100 of our stores in August. Now, because demand for Apple Watch has been so strong in these stores and online, we are excited to share that beginning September 4 we will be carrying Apple Watch in more than 900 of our big-box stores. Apple Watch will be available in all 1050 of our big-box stores and approximately 30 of our Best Buy Mobile stores by the end of September.

Best Buy began selling the Apple Watch in-store and online in early August, along with a few third-party accessories for the wearable, like charging docks and various bands. The retailer will even begin selling AppleCare and AppleCare+ warranty plans in mid-September, no doubt hitting just in time for the launch of the next generation iPhones. Apple has avoided attaching specific sales figures to the Apple Watch, but Best Buy's doubling down on the company's wearable device is no doubt a sign of the Apple Watch's success.

VMware today launched Fusion 8 and Fusion 8 Pro, the latest versions of its virtualization software for running Windows on a Mac without rebooting. Fusion 8 and Fusion 8 Pro include full support for Windows 10, OS X El Capitan and the latest Retina Macs, in addition to always-on access to Microsoft Cortana.

Fusion 8 and Fusion 8 Pro support DirectX 10 and OpenGL 3.3 for up to 65% faster graphics, alongside compatibility with USB 3.0 and multiple monitors with different DPIs. The virtual machine platform also delivers full 64-bit support with up to 16 vCPUs, 64GB RAM and an 8TB hard drive for a single virtual machine.

Fusion 8 and Fusion 8 Pro are optimized for the latest Macs, including the iMac with Retina 5K Display and 12-inch MacBook. DirectX 10 support enables Mac users to run Windows virtual machines with native resolution on a 5K display, with USB-C support and Force Touch pass-through also in tow for the latest MacBooks.

Fusion 8 Pro has additional advanced features and improvements, including the ability to connect to VMware vCloud Air, IPv6 support for both bridged networks and IPv6-to-IPv4 Network Address Translation (NAT), improved integration with VMware vSphere and support for several new Linux distributions and other operating systems.

Fusion 8 and Fusion 8 Pro are available today for $79.99 and $199.99 respectively through the VMware Online Store, while existing Fusion 6 or 7 customers can upgrade to Fusion 8 for $49.99 or Fusion 8 Pro for $119.99.

Parallels Desktop for Mac users also receive 40% off Fusion 8 and Fusion 8 Pro.

Apple may soon end its $99 "One to One" tutoring program for Mac and iOS users, according to a source that has provided MacRumors with reliable information in the past. Our source says Apple is stopping the program to allow retail employees to focus on hosting a greater number of free workshops, which multiple people are able to attend at once.

One to One is a long-running Apple program that allows customers who purchase a Mac to pay an additional $99 for one year of Mac, iPhone, and iPad instruction from Apple retail employees. One to One sessions include 30 or 60 minute Personal Training sessions, 90-minute Group Training sessions, and 90-minute group-based Open Training sessions.

One to One members can get help with a wide variety of topics, like getting started with an iPhone, iPad, or Mac and using Apple services like iCloud, and iTunes. Training sessions on Apple apps, including Photos, Mail, iMovie, Final Cut Pro, and more, are also included.

One to One will help you do more than you ever thought possible with your Mac. First, we'll set up your email, transfer your photos, music, and other files, and show you how to keep everything in sync with iCloud. Then, we'll work with you to create a curriculum tailored to your goals, learning style, and experience level.

Apple is planning to fold its One to One service into free open workshops, amid some larger changes being made to Apple's teaching methods. In the near future, workshops will be restructured around themes like "Discover" and "Create," and will be more accessible on Apple's main website.

Apple plans to honor existing One to One memberships until they expire, but will not sell new memberships to the program going forward. Customers who need assistance will still be able to sign up for dozens of free, open workshops.

British power technology company Intelligent Energy has developed an iPhone 6 prototype with a built-in fuel cell that supports hydrogen cartridges delivering up to a week's worth of battery life, according to The Telegraph. It also demonstrated a hydrogen-powered MacBook Air.

The patented fuel cell system, reportedly poised for its first major commercial deployment in cell towers across India over the next few weeks, creates electricity based on the chemical reaction of combining hydrogen and oxygen, which produces only small amounts of water vapor and heat as waste.

Intelligent Energy also introduced a hydrogen-powered iPhone charger called Upp based on the same technology last year, but its latest breakthrough has seen it fit the fuel cell portion of the technology alongside an iPhone 6 battery pack without altering the size or shape of the smartphone.

Henri Winand, CEO of Intelligent Energy:

To our knowledge this has never been done before. We have now managed to make a fuel cell so thin we can fit it to the existing chassis without alterations and retaining the rechargeable battery. This is a major step because if you are moving to a new technology you have to give people a path they are comfortable with.

The only cosmetic difference on the iPhone 6 prototype is the addition of rear vents allowing a small amount of water vapor to escape. The Telegraph reports the device it saw at the company's Loughborough, United Kingdom headquarters also had a modified headphone socket for refuelling hydrogen gas, although likely only because it was a prototype.

Intelligent Energy plans to sell a disposable cartridge that will attach to the bottom of a smartphone and provide enough hydrogen-releasing powder "for a week of normal use," and the company's corporate finance chief Mark Lawson-Statham vaguely mentions having a "partner" on board -- speculated to be Apple, although both companies declined to comment as expected.

Nevertheless, the rumours and clues are overwhelming. Apple has a series of patents around fuel cell technology on public record. In recent research on Intelligent Energy, Zeus Capital analyst Dr Tom McColm wrote that he believes it is working closely with Apple.

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are powered by 1,810 mAh and 2,915 mAh lithium-ion batteries respectively.

Apple shares dipped below $100 in pre-market trading today amid a wider Dow Jones and stock market downturn, with AAPL fluctuating around the $98-$100 mark prior to the Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange opening bell at 9:30 AM Eastern. Apple shares last dropped below $100 in October 2014, four months after opening at $92.69 following a 7-for-1 split that took effect in June 2014.

Apple shares closed at $105.76 on Friday and are down over $35 from a 52-week high of $134.54 set on April 28, but many analysts remain bullish about the stock and believe that the current dip presents a buying opportunity for investors. The company is expected to announce new iPhones and iPads alongside the launch of iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan through the end of October.

Last March, Apple replaced AT&T on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which is currently down over 500 points. The Dow Jones provides a price-weighted average of 30 significant stocks traded on the NASDAQ and NYSE, including American Express, Boeing, Chevron, Coca-Cola, Disney, Exxon Mobil, Goldman Sachs, IBM, Intel, JPMorgan and Chase, Microsoft, Verizon and Visa.

Update 6:10 AM Pacific: Apple CEO Tim Cook remains bullish about China in an email sent to Jim Cramer:

"Jim,

As you know, we don’t give mid-quarter updates and we rarely comment on moves in Apple stock. But I know your question is on the minds of many investors.

I get updates on our performance in China every day, including this morning, and I can tell you that we have continued to experience strong growth for our business in China through July and August. Growth in iPhone activations has actually accelerated over the past few weeks, and we have had the best performance of the year for the App Store in China during the last 2 weeks.

Obviously I can’t predict the future, but our performance so far this quarter is reassuring. Additionally, I continue to believe that China represents an unprecedented opportunity over the long term as LTE penetration is very low and most importantly the growth of the middle class over the next several years will be huge.

Tim"

Apple shares opened at around the $95 mark on the Nasdaq today.

Update 8:53 AM: Apple's stock has recovered all of today's losses and is now trading above Friday's closing price, although it remains down significantly from its mid-July peak.

Apple today launched an iSight Camera replacement program for the iPhone 6 Plus, which will see the company replacing the camera module in a small percentage of iPhone 6 Plus devices that have a faulty rear-facing camera.

According to a new support page dedicated to the replacement program, some iPhone 6 Plus units that were sold between September of 2014 and January of 2015 could have a component that can fail and cause photos to look blurry.

iPhone 6 Plus units that are producing blurry photos and have an eligible serial number will get their cameras replaced from Apple at no charge. Replacement units can be obtained through Apple's online support team, an Apple retail store, or an Apple Authorized Service Provider.

iPhone 6 Plus users have been complaining of blurry photos since shortly after the device first launched in September of 2014. As outlined in various reports, the issue prevents the camera from focusing and could be related to the Optical Image Stabilization in the larger-screened device. The iPhone 6, which does not have Optical Image Stabilization, is not affected.

Apple recommends that affected users prepare for the replacement process by backing up their data to iTunes or iCloud. Apple also warns that iPhone 6 Plus units with damage like a cracked screen will need to have those issues solved before the camera can be replaced as the damage could impair the camera replacement process.

The iSight Camera Replacement Program will cover iPhone 6 Plus iSight cameras for three years after the first retail sale of the unit.

Apple recently hired a senior engineer from Tesla Motors, presumably to work on its secret car project. As highlighted by Reuters, former Tesla Motors Autopilot Firmware Manager Jamie Carlson's LinkedIn page says he now works at Apple on "Special Projects."

His profile doesn't go into detail on what he did for Tesla, but he was working on the company's autonomous vehicle firmware project and could be taking on a similar automotive firmware role at Apple.

Reuters also points out several other previously unknown hires with similar expertise in autonomous driving, including Megan McClain, a former Volkswagen engineer, Vinay Palakkode, a graduate researcher at Carnegie Mellon University, and Xianqiao Tong, who developed driver assistance systems for NVIDIA.

On their respecitve LinkedIn pages, McClain is listed as a Mechanical Design Engineer, Palakkode is listed as an engineer working within Apple's Special Projects Group, and Tong is listed as an R&D engineer. Last fall, Apple also hired Sanjai Massey, a Ford engineer who worked on connected and autonomous vehicles, Stefan Weber, a Bosch engineer who worked on driver assistance systems, and Lech Szumilas, a Delphi research scientist with former expertise in autonomous vehicles.

Rumors have thus far disagreed over whether Apple's secret car project includes self-driving technology, but it's possible the company is exploring multiple avenues of development as the project is still in its early stages. A previous report from Reuters citing a source within the automotive industry suggested Apple was working on a self-driving electric car, but a report from The Wall Street Journal stated a self-driving car was not part of Apple's electric car efforts.

Apple is said to have more than 200 employees working on the electric car, under the code name "Project Titan." Apple has been heavily recruiting automotive experts over the past several months, with many members on its team coming from companies like Tesla, Ford, GM, MIT Motorsports, Ogin, Autoliv, A123 Systems, General Dynamics, and more.

High profile hires have included Tesla mechanical engineering manager David Nelson, Tesla senior powertrain test engineer John Ireland, Chrysler Group Senior Vice President Doug Betts, A123 Systems Chief Technology Officer Mujeeb Ijaz, and Paul Furgale, a researcher with a specialization in autonomous vehicles.

With the recent release of the movie Straight Outta Compton detailing Dr. Dre's hip-hop group N.W.A, unsavory moments from Dre's past were unearthed as critics questioned why the movie didn't cover his abuse towards women. During the 1990s, Dr. Dre was accused of assaulting several women, including his girlfriend at the time Michel'le and television host Dee Barnes.

In response to the allegations, Dr. Dre has given a statement to The New York Times apologizing for his actions and saying he deeply regrets what he did in his youth.

"Twenty-five years ago I was a young man drinking too much and in over my head with no real structure in my life. However, none of this is an excuse for what I did. I've been married for 19 years and every day I'm working to be a better man for my family, seeking guidance along the way. I'm doing everything I can so I never resemble that man again."

He added: "I apologize to the women I've hurt. I deeply regret what I did and know that it has forever impacted all of our lives."

Dr. Dre has been employed at Apple for the past year, following the company's acquisition of Beats Electronics and Beats Music, created by both Dre and Jimmy Iovine. Apple also gave a statement to The New York Times, supporting Dr. Dre.

"Dre has apologized for the mistakes he's made in the past and he's said that he's not the same person that he was 25 years ago. We believe his sincerity and after working with him for a year and a half, we have every reason to believe that he has changed."

At Apple, Dr. Dre is working on Apple Music alongside Jimmy Iovine. Though he has no specific title, Dre has been involved with Beats 1 radio, hosting his own weekly show called "The Pharmacy" and has released two albums exclusively on Apple Music, including "Compton: A Soundtrack," the official soundtrack of the Straight Outta Compton movie, and "The Chronic," originally released in 1992.

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