The Green Room

As promised, here is the archive of our live blog of Apple’s “Let’s Rock” event held September 2008.
- r.

September 10

4:08AM: That’s it from me, and don’t forget to comment. Hope it was worth you getting up at 3:00AM. See you for Macworld. – r.

4:06AM: And that’s it. Steve thanks everyone for coming. Everyone is on the edge of their seats for a ‘One More Thing’, knowing it’s never going to happen.

4:02AM: Wait… 2nd song.

4:01AM: Jack’s thanking everyone.

3:58AM: If that’s it for Apple, this has all been disappointing if you ask me. Still, nice to have Jack Johnson there.

3:55AM: Jack Johnson is performing live – #1 male artist in iTunes history.

3:54AM: Looks like this is a wrap.

3:52AM: iPhone 2.1 – No app crashes, Fewer Dropped calls, performance enhancements, – Free, available to download on Friday.

3:50AM: Showing new ad, US prices: 8GB – $229, 16GB – $299, 32GB – $399.

3:49AM: Steve reckons it’s the funnest iPod ever. 2.1 Software is free if you have iPod touch 2.0 – includes Nike+, Genius. US$9.95 if you’re stuck on 1.1.4.

3:48AM: Chrome sides for iPod touch by the way.

3:47AM: NFS comes in November. That’s a wrap for apps, back to iPod touch. 36 Hours Music, 6 hours video, also has new nano headphones.

3:46AM: Need For Speed: Undercover – Demoing. Graphics are nice. Don’t know if it’s any better than Asphalt though.

3:44AM: Going through all sorts of pretty neat options – country, team etc, Phil is now playing

3:41AM: Game #2 – Real Soccer 2009, out today.

3:39AM: Steve is off, Phil Schiller is on. Discussing iPhone/iPod touch games. Demoing Spore Origins also talking about some upcoming games

3:37AM: iPod touch is more rounded, following iPhone 3G design.

3:35AM: App Store – 100 million downloads in 2 months.

3:33AM: iPod touch redesign: much the same, except physical volume control buttons, built in speaker, genius playlists… and Nike+iPod BUILT IN – no receiver is necessary

3:31AM: Nine colours! Ad now showing off colours, genius, cover flow etc. It’s a pretty slick production.

3:29AM: all models available by next week, microphone included with nano earphones (almost the same as iPhone headphones) for US$29 + new in-ear headphones for US$79.

3:27AM: Environmental checklist – most environmentally friendly iPods ever made, Colours – blue, orange, purple, green, pink, $149 for 8GB, $199 for 16GB

3:25AM: Battery life? 24 hours music, 4 hours video.

3:24AM: Shake to shuffle – Shake your iPod nano, it’ll shuffle for you

3:24AM: Black at top/bottom, dark silver front & back.

3:23AM: Still the same click wheel – black with silver words

3:23AM: Voice recording included – when microphone is attached

3:22AM: New interface, incredibly thin, genius feature included, new pop up menu, cover flow, photos, video in widescreen

3:20AM: There you have it – new nano, taller, thinner, oval shaped, same tall-ness as 2G nano

3:18AM: iPod classic – 120GB for US$249, 160GB discontinued

3:17AM: iPod has 73.4% market share in July 08.

3:16AM: Enough about iTunes, onto the iPod.

3:14AM: Available today at Apple’s website (free).

3:13AM: Genius playlists come with fancy artwork (that looks like Magic Garageband genres) according to the genre of music you purchased e.g. Alternative – 46 Albums

3:12AM: You can also ‘Genius’ your movies & TV shows.

3:11AM: Demo now. Good ol’ Aretha Franklin has made the same song (R.E.S.P.E.C.T.) into the same event two years in a row.

3:09AM: Genius Sidebar recommends songs from the iTunes Store while you’re listening to a song, if you decide to make a playlist (20, 50, 75, 100)

3:08AM: Logo looks an awful lot like the Genius Bar logo. No surprises there.

3:08AM: Steve says Genius lets you: “Automatically make playlists from songs in your library that go great together – with just one click”.

3:06AM: iTunes 8 today. New method of browsing (grid view), Genius.

3:05AM: NBC is back on iTunes – in Standard Def & HD – US$2.99 for HD TV Shows.

3:03AM: Now talking about iTunes, discussing #1 music retailer stats, 3,000 Apps on the iTunes Store now.

3:02AM: Music focused event today.

3:01AM: Steve is walking on stage to thunderous applause. – r.

2:59AM: Here we go. Hope you enjoy the show. – r.

2:55AM: Ok folks, 5 minutes to go. Apple seems to be fulfilling their “Let’s Rock” promise with their pre-show music selection. – r.

2:49AM: Most people are inside now. – r.

2:45AM: Down to 15 minutes. – r.

2:38AM: The Apple Store website is down (All countries) – r.

2:33AM: 27 minutes to go. – r.

2:21AM: Switched so that new posts appear first. – r.

2:15AM: 45 minutes to go. – r.

2:09AM: It’s a little cloudy in San Francisco. – r.

2:06AM: Hello everyone, we’re almost ready to go – jut 53 minutes left. – r.

September 9

7:52PM: Anyone excited? – r.

5:36PM: Sorry, I have made an error in local times for the event. The actual time is 3:00AM (AEST). – r.

5:24PM: In Pictures: Preparations For Apple’s “Let’s Rock” Special Event – Cult of Mac – r.

5:16PM: Hello everyone, the blog will begin at about 2:00AM. – r.

1:15PM: 14 hours, 45 minutes to go. – r.

7:12AM: 20 hours, 47 minutes to go. – r.

September 7

6:03PM: Banners Up for Apple’s Let’s Rock Media Event on September 9th – MacRumors – r.

5:12PM: Be sure to bookmark this page for live coverage of Apple’s “Let’s Rock” event, starting September 10th, 2008 at 3:00AM (AEST). – r.