MacRumors

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that an Australian judge has agreed to fast-track Samsung's appeal of an injunction barring the company from selling its Galaxy Tab 10.1 in that country. Samsung had previously said that it would likely cancel the device's launch entirely in Australia if Apple was awarded an injunction, but the company is still pushing forward in an attempt to win the right to sell.

In court today Samsung sought and has been granted an expedited hearing by the Federal Court in Sydney, hoping to overturn the ban before the busy pre-Christmas shopping season.

"I'm quite firm of the view that the matter should proceed on the basis that the lead application be referred to a full court, that it be listed at the same time as any prospective appeal and that the matter be expedited," Justice Lindsay Foster said.

Meanwhile, Apple has also begun going after Internet resellers who have continued to sell the Galaxy Tab 10.1 to Australian customers despite the ban. Two sites, MobiCity.com.au and dMavo.com.au, have acknowledged receiving letters from Apple, but dMavo at least has reported that it will not be responding to Apple's demands. The report notes that while injunctions against individual sellers should be rather straightforward for Apple to obtain given the standing order against Samsung, a number of the resellers are headquartered in Hong Kong and it may take some time to determine whether Australian authorities have jurisdiction over their actions.

Adobe has launched the Universal iOS app and Mac app for Carousel this evening. Carousel is Adobe's cloud storage service that allows you to access your entire photo library from all your devices.

Adobe® Carousel is the only photography solution that gives you access to your entire photo library from all your iPad, iPhone, and Mac—no storage issues, no manual syncing hassles. Enjoy your photos anywhere you are, and make them look terrific using the same powerful photo-processing technology that's used in Adobe Photoshop® Lightroom®, so you get the finest photo-editing results delivered consistently no matter what type of device you are using. Create the ultimate family photo hub by sharing a photo library with family members to contribute shots and weigh in on favorites.

The service was first announced back in September and will support Mac, Windows, iOS and Android platforms.

Beyond just online storage and syncing, the Carousel app also offers photo editing as well. The service is a paid subscription that starts at a discounted $59.99 per year or $5.99 per month. Normal pricing will be $99 per year or $9.99 per month. There is a free 30-day trial offered at launch.

Some of the features listed by Adobe include:

- Simply add photos to your Adobe Carousel photo library on your iPad, iPhone, or Mac, and you’ll instantly have access to them in Adobe Carousel on your other iPad, iPhone, and Mac devices.
- Easily crop, rotate, adjust exposure, and make other corrections, or lend your photos serious style with unique looks.
- Create a family photo library without the hassle of sending emails, handing off drives, and trying to figure out which photos to touch up or use in special projects. Simply invite family members to add photos to your library via their own Adobe Carousel apps, and let them flag their favorites so everyone can quickly find the best-loved shots.
- Share those moments that matter by sending your photos straight from Adobe Carousel to Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.
- Snap new photos right from Adobe Carousel on your iPhone or iPad, and they’ll instantly appear in your photo library on all your devices.

Both the iOS and Mac apps are free downloads in their respective App Stores (iOS, Mac)

Thanks @kvnptrck

CNET reports that LG Display and Samsung are continuing to struggle with production of the display planned for the iPad 3 next year, with both companies trying to tackle the challenge of producing the display in volume. Sources have claimed that Apple is planning a 2048 x 1536 display for the device, double that of the current iPad in each dimension.

But whether manufacturers can make them in volumes that Apple demands is the question. "They have production plans for 2,048x1,536 displays. Starting in November. But those are only plans at this point," said the source, referring to LG and Samsung.

"It's not a question of making just one. That, of course, can be done. The challenge is making lots of them," the source said. "This is a quantum leap in pixel density. This hasn't been done before."

Some reports had suggested that Apple was hoping to release the iPad 3 late this year, but by August reports were suggesting that the launch had been pushed back to 2012, if it had ever been targeted for 2011 in the first place. Display production was identified as the major stumbling block at the time, but The Wall Street Journal had noted that trial production of the display was planned for October.

Curiously, CNET's report claims that Apple is also considering a 1600 x 1200 display as a fallback option for the iPad 3 if the higher-resolution display proves to not be ready in time. Such a move would seem to run counter to Apple's strategy for increasing display resolution, as it would not be a clean multiple of the current 1024 x 768 display and would thus cause issues for developers who have already produced apps for the current iPad models.

When Apple transitioned to the Retina display on the iPhone 4, it doubled each dimension of the previous 480 x 320 display to reach the new 960 x 640 resolution. That exact doubling in each dimension allowed the Retina-capable iPhone 4 to easily display content intended for the original lower-resolution display. Over time, many developers have updated their apps to specifically support the Retina display, providing higher-resolution graphics within their apps.

Apple today released a series of firmware updates for its 2011 Mac lineup, addressing several issues to increase the stability of the systems. But the iMac EFI Update 1.7 goes a bit further, bringing the Lion Internet Recovery feature to the current generation of iMac models. The iMac update also specifically addresses several Thunderbolt performance issues.

About iMac EFI Update 1.7

This update enables Lion Recovery from an Internet connection and includes fixes that resolve issues with Apple Thunderbolt Display compatibility and Thunderbolt Target Disk Mode performance on iMac (early 2011) models.

Internet Recovery launched as part of OS X Lion in July, allowing users to easily install the operating system on a blank hard drive, a feature that is handy for users who are replacing their hard drives or for whom the recovery partition included on their Lion system becomes inaccessible. Internet Recovery functions by adding a minimal bootable install onto a machine's firmware to allow it to connect the Internet and download the full Lion operating system for installation.

Internet Recovery initially debuted on the MacBook Air and Mac mini models that were released alongside OS X Lion, but was extended to the Early 2011 MacBook Pro line last month. With the addition of the iMac, all of Apple's current Mac models with the exception of the Mac Pro are now capable of accessing Lion Internet Recovery. The Mac Pro has not been updated since mid-2010, and delays in Intel's chip production appear to have pushed any refresh into next year.

In addition to the iMac EFI firmware update released today, Apple also pushed out MacBook Pro EFI Firmware Update 2.3 for Early 2011 models, MacBook Air EFI Firmware Update 2.2 for Mid 2011 models, and Mac mini EFI Firmware Update 1.4 for Mid 2011 models.

iOS developers TwoLivesLeft have just released an interesting new app called Codify, which brings touch based programming to the iPad.

The app allows users to create their own programs using the Lua programming language by typing code directly on your iPad. Also included are various assets and programming examples to be used in your creations:

Apps such as Codify are now possible since Apple relaxed their App Store rules that originally prohibited interpreted code in iOS apps. Apple now does allow for interpreted code to be run in-app, but still prohibits the download of such code. As noted by TouchArcade, this means that anything you create in Codify can't be exported (or imported).

I've heard more than a few developers attempting to create similar tools for the iPad, but all of them have hit various roadblocks in the Apple approval process because they all (in one way or another) allowed you to get code and assets onto the device and execute it. Codify sidesteps this by coming with a wide variety of assets, but unfortunately all of your creations will be trapped on your own device.

The developer has already submitted an update that allows sharing, but the developer isn't certain if Apple will allow it.

Due to the limited nature of the environment, the tool is mostly useful for experimentation and prototyping, as you won't be able to send your creations to anyone else. Still, it's an interesting idea and pushes the iPad into more content creation areas.

Codify is iPad only and is $7.99 in the App Store.

Apple has sent an email out to developers informing them that iTunes Match music libraries in iCloud will once again be wiped on Thursday, October 27th. Apple instructs developers to turn off iTunes Match on their computers and iOS devices during that time.

The wipe may be in preparation for the public launch of iTunes Match. The service was originally to be launched alongside iOS 5 but was pushed to the "end of October". iTunes Match remains in beta testing with developers, and there's been evidence that Apple has been quietly preparing for its public launch.

Last week, an iTunes Match toggle has appeared in the iOS 5 Music Settings pane, which directs users to subscribe to the service using iTunes. Apple has not yet publicly released an updated version of iTunes that allows users to sign up for this feature.

iTunes Match is a $25/year subscription service that will match your existing iTunes library with 256-Kbps versions in the iCloud. These songs will become available for download on your other Macs or iOS devices through iCloud.

Here’s how it works: iTunes determines which songs in your collection are available in the iTunes Store. Any music with a match is automatically added to your iCloud library. Since there are more than 20 million songs in the iTunes Store, most of your music is probably already in iCloud. All you have to upload is what iTunes can’t match. Which is much faster than starting from scratch. Once your music is in iCloud, you can stream and store it on any of your devices. Even better, all the music iTunes matches plays back from iCloud at 256-Kbps AAC DRM-free quality — even if your original copy was of lower quality

Apple today filed its 2011 annual report with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and the document reveals a few interesting tidbits of information:

- Apple now has 60,400 full time equivalent employees, up from 46,600 last year. The company also went from employing 2,800 full-time equivalent temporary employees and contractors to 2,900. 36,000 employees are in the retail division, up from 26,500 last year.

- Apple went from 317 stores at the end of fiscal 2010 to 357 stores at the end of fiscal 2011, an addition of 40 stores. The average number of employees per store also grew from 83.6 to 100.8.

- Ad spending grew from $691 million to $933 million, while dropping as a percentage of revenues to 0.8% from 1.0%. Research and development expenses were up 36% to $2.4 billion -- however, as a percentage of revenues R&D fell from 3% to 2.2%.

- As this document is designed mainly for prospective and current investors in the company, Apple also lists a number of risk factors that could affect investments in the company. These include "if [Apple] is found to have infringed on intellectual property rights", "support from third-party software developers", "the Company’s ability to obtain components in sufficient quantities", and numerous more.

- "As of September 24, 2011, the Company owned or leased approximately 13.2 million square feet of building space, primarily in the U.S., and to a lesser extent, in Europe, Japan, Canada, and the Asia-Pacific regions. Of that amount approximately 7.0 million square feet was leased building space, which includes approximately 3.0 million square feet related to retail store space. Of the Company’s owned building space, approximately 2.6 million square feet that is located in Cupertino, California will be demolished to build a second corporate campus. Additionally, the Company owns a total of 584 acres of land in various locations."

- Finally, "the Company anticipates that for the foreseeable future it will retain any earnings for use in the operation of its business" rather than paying any dividends or stock buybacks.

Tributes to Steve Jobs have been plentiful in the weeks since his death and his authorized biography by Walter Isaacson has revealed a number of new details about his life, but a new documentary from PBS set to premiere on Wednesday, November 2nd appears to offer insights from some unique people associated with Jobs.

Featuring interviews with, among others, Ronald Wayne, co-founder of Apple with Jobs and Steve Wozniak; Ross Perot, who invested in NeXT Computer when Jobs was running out of money; Walt Mossberg, principal technology columnist for The Wall Street Journal, who interviewed Jobs every year from 2003-2010; will.i.am, frontman and producer for The Black Eyed Peas, whose “I Gotta Feeling” currently ranks as the most downloaded iTunes song ever; Dean Hovey, designer of the original mouse for Apple; Robert Cringely, writer and host of the PBS series TRIUMPH OF THE NERDS: THE RISE OF ACCIDENTAL EMPIRES; Robert Palladino, calligraphy professor at Reed College, whose classes Jobs credited with inspiring his typography design for the Mac; and Bill Fernandez, who introduced Jobs and Wozniak in Sunnyvale, where the three hung out in his father’s garage and tinkered with electronics.

The documentary will also include clips from a "never-before-broadcast" 1994 interview with Jobs in which he shares some of his thoughts on life.

The documentary examines Jobs' life from the perspective of understanding the influences that "shaped his character" and enabled him to revolutionize numerous industries. Steve Jobs - One Last Thing will premiere next Wednesday, November 2nd, at 10:00 PM on PBS stations around the United States.

Nokia today announced the launch of its first two smartphones to be based on Microsoft's Windows Phone platform, marking a milestone in the collaboration between the two companies that will see Nokia shift away from its Symbian operating system and the transitional MeeGo platform. The shift comes as Nokia tries to rekindle interest in its phones amid a rapid rise in the popularity of Apple's iOS and Google's Android platforms.

The high-end Lumia 800, available in black, cyan and magenta, features a 3.7-inch 800x480 AMOLED screen and a 1.4 GHz Snapdragon processor, along with 16 GB of storage and an 8-megapixel camera. The Lumia 710 offers the same 3.7-inch screen and 1.4 GHz processor found in the Lumia 800, but contains only 8 GB of storage and a 5-megapixel camera. The device is available in black and white, with changeable back covers available in an assortment of colors. Both handsets run the latest Windows Phone 7.5 Mango operating system.

The Lumia 800 will initially launch in a number of European countries next month, with availability set to expand to several more Asian countries and Russia by the end of the year. The Lumia 710 will debut alongside the Lumia 800 in that device's Asian launch countries and Russia later this year, with both handsets set to expand to additional markets beginning early next year.

Nokia's plans for the United States remain unclear, as the company's press release notes only that it will be bringing a "portfolio of products" to the U.S. early next year. The company is so far only promoting the Lumia 710 on its U.S. site.

Earlier this week, we reported that Apple was planning to launch a pilot program that would allow customers placing orders through the company's online store to pick up their orders at their local Apple retail stores. Following a maintenance period that took the online store offline earlier today, in-store pickup is now available for Apple's three retail stores in San Francisco.

Users adding products to their shopping cart are now presented with an option of whether to have their order shipped or made available for pickup. Customers can search for their closest Apple retail stores based on zip code, although options are obviously limited with the pilot program currently including only three stores: San Francisco flagship, Stonestown, and Chestnut Street. Apple promises that more locations will offer in-store pickup in the near future, with 9to5Mac indicating that other Bay Area locations may join the program in as little as a few days from now.

Testing of the new in-store pickup shopping method suggests that delivery may be slightly slower than for direct shipment, as evidenced by a sample order for a custom-configured iMac that was offered a pickup date of November 3rd. Direct delivery of the same order was pegged within a window of October 29th through November 2nd.

It is possible, however, that in-store pickup dates may simply be conservative estimates based on the worst-case direct delivery estimate plus one day for processing at the store. Consequently, orders may arrive at stores ahead of their estimated availability date, with customers being emailed when the orders are ready for pickup.

Orders for standard items stocked by Apple retail stores will indicate same-day availability for the three San Francisco locations, allowing customers to place their orders online and simply visit the store for immediate pickup.

The Charlotte Observer reports that Apple has begun work on a solar farm adjacent to its massive new data center in Maiden, North Carolina. The new solar farm will likely generate a significant amount of power for the facility, although Catawba County officials have yet to see building plans for the facilities.

Apple has quietly begun work on a solar farm that apparently could help power its sprawling data center in southern Catawba County.

Permits issued by Catawba County show that the Cupertino, Calif., company has been approved to reshape the slope of some of the 171 acres of vacant land it owns on Startown Road, opposite the data center, in preparation of building a solar farm.

Permits issued so far only address grading and erosion control on the site, but Apple has disclosed in those permit applications that it intends to build a solar farm on the site.

The Hickory Daily Record adds some detail to the situation, noting the plot of land is indeed across the street from the data center and that nearby residents have been upset by the smoke from fires set to help clear the land.

That smoke is Apple clearing more than 100 acres of land across from its data center, which opened earlier this year at 5977 Startown Road. It was reported earlier this year that the data facility will be a cloud-computing center for Apple.

Across the street, at 6028 Startown Road, Apple has filed a soil erosion permit with Catawba County for about 170 acres of land. Apple applied for the permit on Aug. 9, and the county reviewed and approved it on Aug. 10.

In the application, Apple described the work as “Solar panel farm A” for the 170.99 acres of land.

The erosion control permit (PDF) indicates that Apple has pieced together three separate parcels of land for the solar farm, with the most recent addition coming just last week. An initial 70-acre parcel at the project address was identified as having been bought by Apple last October, but it is unclear what constitutes the remaining 100 acres of the project site.