MacRumors

IDG News Service reports that China Unicom has sold out of its initial shipment of nearly 100,000 iPhone 4s in the four days since the device launched in that country. With the company having taken 200,000 pre-orders for the iPhone 4, the carrier has been unable to meet demand and has stopped taking new online reservations as it awaits a second shipment due to arrive by the end of the week.

The massive demand for the product outpaces last year's official launch of the iPhone 3G and 3GS in China. During that period, it had taken over a month before China Unicom had announced it sold 100,000 iPhone units.

The iPhone 4 was officially launched in China last Saturday, with the popularity of the device causing retail outlets in the country to sell out of the product.

While a launch performance of 100,000 units is far short of the 1.7 million handsets shipped on the iPhone 4's initial launch weekend in the U.S. and four other countries in late June, it still marks a substantial improvement over earlier launches in the country.

The report also notes that China Unicom has announced that it has 10 million 3G users, compared to 150 million subscribers on its 2G network. That data indicates that China Unicom's customers are only beginning to move to the more advanced 3G network and handsets such as the iPhone, but with its 3G subscriber base growing by nearly 12% in August alone, China Unicom appears poised to experience an explosion in the adoption of the iPhone and other data-intensive smartphones.

The Wall Street Journal reports on an interview it conducted with Dell executive Amit Midha, who revealed that the company plans to launch a new 7-inch tablet device within "the next few weeks", with a 10-inch model set to follow in 6-12 months. The company also plans additional devices in the 3-inch and 4-inch range, all set to join the company's recently-launched 5-inch Streak tablet.

He said Dell will launch "a whole slew" of new products in the next 6-12 months, including additional three-inch, four-inch and 10-inch devices.

"In fact, very much in the near future we'll be launching the seven-inch tablet as well as the additional three-inch product," he said.

According to Midha, Dell's 7-inch tablet will run Android, with other models planned to offer Microsoft Windows and the company considering whether to adopt Chrome OS as a third platform.

Coming on the heels of Research in Motion's introduction of its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet device earlier this week, Dell's plans reveal that high-profile companies are finally gearing up to compete head-to-head with Apple's iPad, which has essentially had free rein over the tablet market since its launch earlier this year. Most of the larger tablets from competitors are not set to launch, however, until sometime next year, meaning that they will be competing against the second-generation of the iPad rather than the current model, making feature comparisons somewhat difficult at this time.

With several announced tablet devices such as the BlackBerry PlayBook, the Samsung Galaxy Tab, and now Dell's new offering all set to come in with 7-inch displays, Apple's iPad appears set to continue to stand out in at least the size department for the time being. Apple has been rumored, however, to be preparing a 7-inch tablet of its own.

The teardown experts at iFixit have gotten their hands on the new Apple TV and have already begun opening the device up to have a look at what's inside. Regarding the most crucial piece of information, iFixit has already discovered that the device carries 8 GB of onboard NAND flash storage, an important piece of data that Apple has chosen not to speak about publicly, as the device's focus is on streaming rather than storing content. The new Apple TV also offers 256 MB of RAM, the same as the iPad and iPod touch but less than the iPhone 4's 512 MB.

The Apple TV's onboard storage is notable in part for those who are seeking to bring new functionality to the iOS-based device through the jailbreaking process. And with Steve Jobs having noted that Apple could launch an App Store for the Apple TV when the time is right, limited onboard storage will obviously play a role in determining what types of applications could make their way to the device.

Update: Some other interesting items of note from the teardown:

- The new Apple TV's core internals seem to bear the most similarity to the iPad, including the same A4 system-on-chip package and Broadcom Wi-Fi chip.

- There is an empty spot next to the 8 GB NAND flash chip, possibly designed to accommodate a second chip had Apple decided to offer significantly more storage.

- The power supply rating comes in at a minuscule 5.95 watts.

PCMag has posted a review, hands on video and unboxing slideshow of the new Apple TV which should be arriving in customer's hands this week.

Their hands on video shows the new Apple TV's interface which looks much like the existing previous model. It shows the speed of renting movies and TV shows, flickr, as well as the Netflix interface:

In the end they describe the new Apple TV as an "excellent option" for iTunes and Netflix users.

Apple today seeded the second beta version of iOS 4.2, along with the associated software development kit (SDK) and Xcode 3.2.5, to developers. The company has also pushed out a beta version of iTunes 10.1 for developer testing.

We've yet to hear word about specific changes available in the new releases, but we will provide more details as the information surfaces.

iOS 4.2, which will finally unify the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch on iOS 4 when it is publicly released in November, saw its first beta version seeded to developers nearly two weeks ago.

Update: Slightly updated multitasking animation. Better video embedded (via MacStories):

In a blog post published today, Mozilla effectively announced that it has no plans to bring a full-fledged standalone browser to the iPhone, preferring instead to focus on its Firefox Home application designed to integrate the browsing experience among desktop and mobile environments.

No Firefox Browser for the iPhone

We are working to bring as much of your Firefox experience as possible to Firefox Home. People have asked about adding more browser-like features to Firefox Home, but there are technical and logistical restrictions that make it difficult, if not impossible, to build the full Firefox browser for the iPhone. We are focused on building Firefox Home as a rich, cloud-based application and making it a valuable product that people will continue to love and use.

Based on user interest, Mozilla is exploring whether to tackle and iPad-specific version of Firefox Home, although that would offer limited functionality similar to the iPhone version of the application.

Apple's iPhone and other portable iOS devices of course ship with versions of Apple's own Safari browser optimized for the respective devices, and for the most part there has been little interest from major players in creating third-party browser applications for the platform. One exception, however, is Opera, which launched its Opera Mini browser earlier this year, offering features such as server-side compression to speed page loading.

Roku and TiVo today announced that they are bringing support for Hulu Plus subscriptions to their set-top boxes, leading to speculation that a similar deal could eventually be struck for the new Apple TV. The service, which requires an additional $9.99-per-month subscription, will launch on Roku and TiVo Premiere boxes within the next few months.

Hulu Plus offers one of the deepest offerings of current TV shows on a streaming platform to subscribers in the U.S., including every episode of more than 45 current hit programs from ABC, FOX and NBC like Modern Family, Grey's Anatomy, Glee, Family Guy, The Office and 30 Rock. In addition, TV lovers with TiVo Premiere DVRs will be able to enjoy full series runs and numerous back seasons of dozens of classic shows like The X-Files, Law and Order: SVU, Arrested Development, Saturday Night Live, Miami Vice, Ugly Betty, Quantum Leap, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Roswell and Ally McBeal.

Hulu Plus launched on the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch earlier this year, and so it seems reasonable to speculate that a version for the iOS-based Apple TV could be in the works. While Apple's AirPlay technology set for public release with iOS 4.2 in November will allow users to stream video content from their portable iOS devices to the new Apple TV, it is unclear whether Hulu, which has been selective in the platforms on which it allows its content to be used, will be compatible with AirPlay. Regardless of Hulu's AirPlay compatibility, however, native support for Hulu Plus on Apple TV would be a significant feature addition for the new device.

A couple of AppleTV firmware findings has raised some interesting possibilities with regard to Apple's new Apple TV and AirPlay streaming service. With the news that AppleTV was iOS based, everyone quickly jumped to the natural prediction that we will be able to run iOS apps on the Apple TV. But the converse to that is also true. Since the Apple TV is just an iOS device, users should be able to eventually run the Apple TV experience (called Lowtide.app) on an iPad. It seems Apple is already putting these pieces in place.

TUAW notes the Apple TV interface application has settings that indicate compatibility with the iPad as a hidden service.

Because of this setting, Lowtide would probably be run as silent service, presenting its interface only when its features were requested. The iPad's camera connection kit software works very much in this way, opening only when a DCIM camera is attached. The iPad would likely respond to streaming Airplay requests by opening Lowtide, if a future version of its OS included the application.

This means that you may eventually be able to start watching videos on your Apple TV or iTunes, and then finish watching it on your iPad. The Apple TV interface also allows you do to something new on iOS devices -- stream content straight from the iTunes Store. This streaming-only requirement of the new Apple TV was one of the big changes over the previous model. And given all the talk of Apple moving into cloud computing, it seems that this could naturally extend into remote wireless (3G) streaming. TUAW notes that the full Lowtide.app can't run on existing iOS devices due to missing frameworks, but one user has managed to install the Apple TV's airtunesd (AirTunes Daemon) component onto his iPhone 4, allowing him to stream audio to his phone from Airfoil or iTunes.

According to a pair of reports from MacStories, several European countries have seen the debut of iPhone 4 commercials centered around the device's FaceTime video calling capabilities. The four new commercials are all set to Louis Armstrong's "When You're Smiling" and contain no voice-over text, making them appropriate for airing in multiple countries. The new commercials also close with carrier-specific branding in each of the countries where they have appeared, which include at least the UK, Italy, and Spain.

- Lion
- Football
- Wedding Dress
- Mum's Birthday

Meanwhile, users in the Middle East are finding issues with FaceTime in their countries. The controversy began there last week when it was discovered that Apple had removed some FaceTime-related promo materials on its localized sites for several countries in the region, suggesting that the feature may not be making a debut there.

At the present time, there appear to be mixed reports about the status of FaceTime functionality in many countries in the region, with some reports indicating that FaceTime is functional out of the box but that it becomes disabled upon updating to iOS 4.1. Other users have reported mixed results with a variety of methods for trying to get FaceTime working on their phones.

The reason for the apparent lack of FaceTime functionality is unclear at this time, with one rather confusing report claiming that Apple removed the feature based on a mistaken assumption that it wouldn't be permitted due to restrictions on VoIP services common in the region.

As predicted, Apple has updated their Remote app that allows iOS users to control iTunes and their Apple TV from their devices. The app hadn't been updated for nearly a year, but has finally received a 2.0 update that brings support for the iPad, Retina display and new Apple TV. New features listed include:

- Designed for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad
- Optimized for Retina displays and large screen real estate on iPad
- Support for Shared Libraries on iTunes and new Apple TV
- Bug fixes and compatibility with iTunes 10 and the new Apple TV

The new Apple TV has begun shipping already and should arrive in customer's hands later this week.

Microsoft today announced that Office for Mac 2011 will launch on October 26th, with pre-orders available through Amazon beginning today. The company also posted one final behind-the-scenes video from the Office for Mac team, highlighting speed improvements, dynamic reordering of layers in documents and presentations, and full screen view improvements.

Macworld has already published reviews for the new versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, finding the suite to be a significant improvement over Office for Mac 2008, although not without a few issues.

Word for Mac 2011 brings more than 30 new features and improvements, with Macworld finding that it offers the same look and feel as its Windows counterpart, but "more refined and better organized". A solid implementation of the Ribbon toolbar, new enterprise tools, Spotlight integration, the return of Visual Basic for Applications, and speed enhancements all contribute to a vastly improved experience.

The bottom line is this: Microsoft Word for Mac no longer feels like a second-string word processing program in the Microsoft Office suite. It is in fact a powerful tool for creating all your personal and business documents and for collaborating with others. More importantly, Word 2011 now makes it possible to insert a Mac into nearly any business environment and offer Mac users the same set of features found in Word for Windows, without compromise.

Macworld calls Excel for Mac 2011 a bigger step forward than either the 2004 or 2008 version, with the shift to the Ribbon toolbar, macro support, sparklines, conditional formatting improvements, table improvements, and new sharing and protection features all making a significant difference for many users. Macworld did, however, find some uneven performance, particularly some slowness in scrolling, although Microsoft claims that the slowdown was intentional due to complaints from users about it being too fast in earlier versions. Excel 2011 also departs from the traditional Mac experience with its uses of custom dictionary and thesaurus, lack of support for Services, and other minor inconsistencies.

Should you upgrade to Excel 2011 if you're using an older version? I definitely think so. The new interface and improved functionality make short work of even large projects, while the protection and sharing features make it easier to work with others - both on the Mac and on that "other" platform. There are only a few negatives with Excel 2011. I feel scrolling has been overly slowed down, the live window resizing is jumpy, and the lack of support for Services is troubling, as that's an OS X feature that I rely on daily. However, these things are not big enough issues to really affect Excel's performance and features - the program just works, and has many new features and improvements that spreadsheet users have been asking for. Excel 2011 is a solid program for anyone whose work involves a heavy dose of spreadsheet duty.

Finally, PowerPoint for Mac 2011 is again seen as a significant improvement over its predecessor with the Ribbon toolbar, dynamic layer ordering, and enhanced media options making their debut. Animations now offer new features such as motion paths, but lack an advanced timeline for coordinating multiple animations and fail to offer several useful animation options found in Apple's Keynote.

PowerPoint for Mac 2011 boasts more than a handful of worthwhile improvements, including greatly enhanced support for QuickTime movies, path animations, features for sharing and collaboration, and an improved interface. Despite a handful of miscues, it's Microsoft's strongest upgrade of the program since 2004. If you're using an earlier version, updating to PowerPoint 2011 should be an easy decision.

Pre-orders for the various versions of Office for Mac 2011 are available now through Amazon:

- Microsoft Office for Mac Home and Student 2011 - Single License ($119.99)
- Office Mac Home and Student 2011 - Family Pack (3 Licenses) ($149.99)

- Microsoft Office for Mac Home and Business 2011 - 1 Pack ($199.99)
- Office Mac Home and Business 2011 - 2 License Pack ($279.99)

Note: Pre-order purchases through these links financially benefit this site.

Update: This ongoing MacRumors thread has reader reactions, screenshots and impressions to Office 2011.

Business Insider relays a rumor that Apple COO Tim Cook could be leaving Apple for the CEO spot at HP. Business Insider tracked the source of the rumor as investor gossip site Fly on the Wall.

The rumor seems to have emanated from Fly On The Wall, a site that serves up gossip to the investing community.

Therefore, we aren't buying this one just yet.

The rumor has affected Apple's stock price causing a $20 drop at the opening of the market today. Tim Cook has been considered one of the possible successors to Steve Jobs for the CEO position at Apple.

Cook took over duties CEO duties from Steve Jobs in early 2009 during Jobs' liver transplant and subsequent recovery.

Update: Barrons reports that Gleacher & Co.s Brian Marshall actually spoke to Tim Cook this morning and Cook denies the rumor:

Tim Cook will not be going to HP, he loves Apple, Marshall tells me Cook told him.

With the first wave of orders for the new Apple TV on their way to customers, initial reviews of the device are beginning to appear. The first one comes from FoxNews.com's Clayton Morris, who calls the revamped device "very promising" with the potential to be a "quiet hit", but only if Apple puts some of its marketing effort behind it.

I've been testing the new Apple TV, and I think Apple may have a quiet hit on its hand. By quiet I mean there won't be long lines of rabid, un-showered fans camped outside Apple stores to buy the new gizmo, but Apple may slowly win people over with the new version.

While most of the features of the Apple TV have already been discussed, Morris offers a bit of hands-on perspective with observations such as much faster connections to networked iTunes libraries than the original Apple TV, and a unique Netflix streaming interface that is fast and easy to set up.

Morris reports that he has been told by Apple that it has opened up its AirPlay functionality for streaming content from other iOS-based devices to the Apple TV to third-party developers, although it is unclear exactly what is meant by this statement. Users currently testing iOS 4.2 have already reported that a variety of third-party applications that utilize the built-in iOS video player already seem to be AirPlay-compatible, so it is not clear if Apple's comments are simply referring to this capability or if they are moving to open AirPlay up for other implementations from developers.

Morris uses the example of his mother, an iPhone user and occasional Apple Store visitor, as the prime potential customer Apple should be courting by pushing the new Apple TV for its Netflix streaming and AirPlay capabilities, as well as the greatly-reduced price point compared to the original version. But to reach that customer, Morris argues that Apple will have to make the new Apple TV much more visible than its predecessor.

The new Apple TV is very promising, but it won't amount to hill of beans if Apple markets it the same way they did the last one -- basically not at all. Apple can jokingly call it a 'hobby,' but if the company wants it to be a successful hobby they need to educate consumers the same way they did with the iPad.

With Apple also having posted the Apple TV's version of iOS 4.1 for download, users have been poking through the operating system for hints and clues about its functionality. In particular, a forum user at Australian site MacTalk discovered a new icon for Apple's languishing Remote application, suggesting that an update bringing features such as support for Retina displays and iPad, as well as Apple TV control, might be coming in the near future.

An assortment of other hints, such as references to FaceTime, external storage and DVD player support, have also been discovered in the Apple TV's iOS 4.1, although it is unclear exactly what some of the functionalities are meant to be and whether they may simply be part of the shared iOS codebase or are in fact Apple TV-specific.

TechCrunch reports that Apple has approved Google's official Google Voice application for the iPhone. The Google Voice app was originally submitted to Apple back in 2009 but was rejected for "duplicating features that come with the iPhone". The rejection became the subject of an FCC investigation regarding Apple's App approval process.

Apple has since published new review guidelines which streamline the approval process. The changes have allowed many developer's apps to finally see approval. Apple has already approved 3rd party Google Voice apps, but the official client from Google should be coming shortly. Despite already being approved, Google is holding back the release in order to revamp the app to support the latest SDK changes including iOS multitasking.

Google Voice is a free phone service that allows U.S. customers to manage incoming calls:

Users may select a single US phone number from various area codes. Incoming calls to the number may ring simultaneously any of the user's configured phones or the account's Google Talk feature. Based on the calling number, or contact group (e.g., Family, Friends, Work), or on time of day, e.g., disabling a home phone during business hours and routing calls to mobile or business number, individual numbers may be configured to ring. The service also features voicemail with indexable automated voicemail transcription, accessible via a web browser, e-mail, or by phone. Google Voice provides automatic blocking of known numbers, e.g., telemarketers, the ability to switch lines in mid-call, differentiated voice mail greetings based on caller, SMS forwarding, and call recording.

Apple posted the new AppleTV2,1 Firmware (Build 8M89) to their servers this evening. The AppleTV firmware appears to be a version of iOS version 4.1 and can be downloaded here:

AppleTV2,1_4.1_8M89_Restore.ipsw

The firmware is of no use to anyone just yet, except perhaps those looking to jailbreak the Apple TV. But with the new Apple TV already shipping to customers, those individuals should be able to restore their Apple TVs to a factory fresh state using this firmware. Existing Apple TV owners are unable to take advantage of the new firmware due to fundamental differences in the hardware between the devices.

Given the shared codebase as iOS, many are expecting that the AppleTV will be jailbroken in time, opening the door to 3rd party applications and other hacks. Steve Jobs has said that they could open the door to an Apple TV App Store when the time is right.

Apple recently posted a support document acknowledging an issue with ATI X1900 XT graphics cards that shipped with Mac Pro systems between August 2006 and January 2008. (via ZDnet and forums )

If your Mac Pro experiences distorted video and has an ATI X1900 XT card in it, you will need to bring your computer's serial number and the graphics card itself into an Apple Authorized Service Provider or an Apple Retail Store location for verification and to exchange the affected graphics card for a new one. Affected graphics cards have "V6Z" in the last part of the card's serial number.

This program covers affected ATI X1900 XT video cards three years from the original date of purchase or until January 31, 2011, whichever provides longer coverage. The ATI X1900 XT issues have been well documented and the subject of many support discussions on our forums and others. So, if you are affected and can dig up your old graphics card, Apple has an exchange or refund waiting for you.

Goldman Sachs analysts are claiming that Apple's 2nd generation iPad will come with a camera, mini USB port and a lighter/thinner design in the second quarter of 2011:

Apple Inc. may introduce its second-generation iPad in the second quarter of 2011, said Henry King and Kevin Lu, analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, in a report dated 27 September. The new 9.7-inch iPad is targeted to be thinner and lighter, with an embedded camera and mini USB, according to the report.

It seems almost certain that the next iPad will include a front-facing camera as Apple appears to be standardizing FaceTime across their iOS devices. Supply chain reports have already described production ramp up for the first half of 2011. The Goldman Sachs analysts, however, don't believe the rumored 7" iPad has been finalized and does not expect that model to launch ahead of the new 9.7" model.

Incorporating a Mini-USB connector, however, would be a surprising move from Apple who has developed an entire eco-system around its proprietary 30-pin dock connector. In the meanwhile, Apple may already be forced to adopt Micro-USB connectors on future iPhones due to recent regulation standards implemented in Europe for 2011. This would make the adoption of Mini-USB on the next iPad even more puzzling. The Goldman Sachs analysts Henry King and Kevin Lu haven't had much of a record for Apple-related predictions in the past.