What's included?

General

* Includes recent Apple security updates.
* Addresses stability issues with video playback, processor core idling, and remote disc sharing for MacBook Air.
* Addresses an issue in which some Macs could unexpectedly power on at the same time each day.
* Resolves a stability issue in TextEdit that could be found when accessing the color palette.
* Improves Spotlight indexing performance.
* Fixes an issue in which contacts might not sync properly with PalmOS-based devices.
* Improves iPhone sync reliability with iCal and Address Book.
* Includes improvements to Active Directory (see this article for more information).
* Improves Speech Dictionary.
* Fixes Kerberos authentication issues for Mac OS X 10.5 clients that connect to certain Samba servers, such as Mac OS X Server version 10.4.
* Includes extensive graphics enhancements.

Address Book

* Addresses stability issues that may occur when creating a Smart Group.
* Resolves a printing issue with address cards containing information that spans more than one page.

Disk Utility and Directory Utility

* Improves reliability when rebuilding a software mirror RAID volume in Disk Utility.
* Improves reliability of server status displayed in Directory Utility.

iCal

* Updates iCal to more accurately handle repeating events.
* Improves performance when choosing meeting attendees.
* Resolves an issue in which the "Refresh All" option may be dimmed ("grayed out") in the contextual menu for certain calendars.
* Fixes issues with read-only calendars.
* Addresses an issue that prevents an invitee from moving an event to a different calendar.
* Resolves an issue with syncing published calendars.

Mail

* Addresses performance issues related to displaying IMAP messages.
* Resolves an issue with SMTP settings for AIM, Compuserve, Hanmail, Yahoo!, and Time Warner Road Runner email accounts.
* Addresses stability issues that may occur when dragging a file to the Mail icon in the Dock.
* Addresses an issue with the "Organized by Thread" view in which the date does not appear when the thread is collapsed.
* Resolves an issue in which RSS feeds could temporarily disappear from the sidebar.
* Improves Mail robustness when sending messages.
* Improves reliability when saving drafts that have attachments.

MobileMe

* Improves overall sync reliability.
* Improves Back to My Mac reliability.

Time Machine

* Improves Time Machine reliability with Time Capsule.
* Addresses performance issues that may affect initial and in-progress backups.
* Fixes an issue in which an incorrect alert message could appear stating that a backup volume does not have enough free space.
* Time Machine can now back up iPhone backups that are on your Mac, as well as other items in (~/Library/Application Support).

New features:

Windows Mobile 6.1
HTC Home Screen
Video Share Calling
Threaded SMS
MS Voice Command
OneNote Mobile
Remote Desktop Monitor
Enroll Domain
Managed Programs
PTT Button now available
for reassignment under
Start>Settings>Buttons.

Our own Jason Chen also noticed a surprise when he docked his iPhone this morning—this big fat ad for MobileMe in iTunes under the "Summary" tab for his phone. No code installed here, but getting spammed for a service that's had hiccup after embarrassing hiccup over the last several weeks is not the best way to keep those already in your customer base happy. Tsk tsk Apple. [Computerworld]

There's no further info or pricing specs, but the fact that Apple's SDK limitations prohibit applications from running in the background isn't brought up anywhere in Fonix's release. Even the recent announcement at WWDC of a helper app that third-party apps can hook into for network notifications isn't quite the same as keeping a voice-dialing application running in the background. We'll see how they manage to pull the app off with these limitations. [Fonix via TUAW]

[Kotaku, Playstation Blog]

As has been reported on many gaming blogs and websites, we have temporarily taken Firmware v2.40 offline. We’ve received a limited number of calls from consumers experiencing an issue with installing the system software update on their PS3. While our consumer services department has seen a low volume of calls on this topic, we are committed to providing the PS3 community with XMB access features delivered in the v2.40 update. We are working diligently to isolate the problem for those few consumers and to identify a solution before we put the firmware back up.

We’ll provide further information as necessary here on the Blog.

* Capture videos using the new video mode
* Playback from the SD card or email attachments using the media player
* Share videos via email, Picture messaging, and Bluetooth
* Listen to songs or videos using a stereo Bluetooth device
* Send and receive photos, videos, or music via Bluetooth
* 3 IM clients & enhancements to AIM® and Yahoo!® Messenger
* Create and join group chats
* See who is logged into IM from the address book or email and instantly start a conversation
* Set a custom status message then keep chatting
* Search for friends in a buddy list
* Got more buddies than you can keep track of? See who’s online right from the address book or email, and search for friends in your buddy lists
* Select how Web pages are displayed based on preference
* PC-like, full-size layout to pan & scan while reading o Standard Sidekick screen-size layout to simply scroll down the page to read · Mini Page to zoom out on an overview of an entire Web page
* Save images from Web pages to the SD card Personalize the way you want to surf
* Device does not restart after a download. Just install an item, and it’s ready to use
* Capture videos and share them directly from the Camera app
* Video integration for playback, send, and save to gallery
* QuickFind: search for keywords across applications to find messages or information
* Spell Checker

If you don't recall, Windows Home Server is Microsoft's solution for housing all of your media, data and backups in one network-accessible place. Since Power Pack 1 is a minor update, don't expect as many new features as you'd get in a major update that will be (according to the schedule) released late in the year. Still, having your data not become unreadable is a pretty awesome feature. [Technet]

Other cool social stuff:

• Xbox Live-ish icons on your Zune Card that are like achievements, awarding people who listen to an artist the most or passing a total number of song plays.
• Dynamic friends' list that shows what everyone's listening to. Find out about the band Tokyo Police Club from your buddies.
• Windows Live Messenger "now playing" integration
• Album reviews! Tell everyone what you think about so-and-so's latest album, because the world needs to know.

But the big thing is the video store, which comes now with 4,800 music videos and downloadable TV episodes for $2. Their current partners are NBC, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and Cartoon Network. There's going to be future Zune Social integration for video, but nothing yet. Microsoft's also leaving the door open for original content and programming as well, but there's no video sharing/squirting as of yet on the hardware devices.

Other changes to the player include:
• Auto Playlists (smart playlists) are back! They're not as powerful as they were before—or as iTunes is—but they're automatically updating playlists that you can have based on your criteria.
• Gapless playback. Finally.
• Easy drag-and-drop song metadata editing.

The update should go live somewhere between 10PM PDT and 4AM PDT tomorrow.

Before the update, Safari's marketshare on Windows was a barely detectable 0.07 percent at its peak, with basically flat growth for nearly a year. Then BOOM, there's a huge spike post-update shenanigans. Wonder if it'll correspondingly drop as people rip it out of their computers (or not, if they actually like it) since it's got its own pane in Software Update now. [Net Apps via Gadget Lab]

After installing iTunes and updating Apple Software Update to 2.1, it gave us the image above. The checkbox is still checked by default, BUT the difference now is that it's under "New Software" instead of "Updates". A distinction that should make it more clear that you're installing a new piece of software instead of updating something you've already installed previously. [Apple]

Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) today announced that the next system software update for PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) system, slated for release next week, will add DTS-HD Master Audio™ and DTS-HD High Resolution Audio, enabling consumers to enjoy Blu-ray movies with studio-quality, high-definition audio. The technologies, from DTS, Inc. (NASDAQ: DTSI), provide PS3 users with the complete high-definition Blu-ray movie experience, matching the format's crisp visuals with rich, lifelike sound. In addition to the new audio capabilities, the free system software update (v. 2.30) will allow PS3 owners to access the revamped PLAYSTATION®Store, as previously announced.

DTS-HD Master Audio brings Blu-ray movies on PS3 to life, delivering everything from explosive sound effects to intricate orchestral scores with pure, high-quality audio that is bit-for-bit identical to the original studio master. DTS-HD Master Audio has the capacity to deliver audio at the incredibly high variable rate of 24.5 mega-bits per second (Mbps) on Blu-ray disc, a rate significantly higher than standard DVDs. DTS-HD Master Audio also offers 7.1 audio channels at 96k sampling frequency/24 bit depths. More than 100 Blu-ray movies and concert videos featuring premium DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks are available.

Additionally, the DTS-HD High Resolution Audio codec allows content creators to deliver uncompromised, high-definition audio on Blu-ray, while requiring less disc space than DTS-HD Master Audio. DTS-HD High Resolution Audio streams audio at a high constant bit rate of 6.0 Mbps on Blu-ray discs, and is also capable of up to 7.1 audio channels at 96k sampling frequency/24 bit depth resolution, thereby producing outstanding sound quality.

Beyond enhancing PS3's audio capabilities, installing the latest system software update will also enable users to seamlessly access the new, more dynamic interface and enhanced navigation of the PLAYSTATION Store. As part of a revamp, the PLAYSTATION Store will transition from an integrated online storefront to an application living natively on PS3, enabling customers to more easily and quickly locate and purchase games, and download demos, game videos, Blu-ray movie trailers and other game-related content for PS3.

Update: We've found that XviD playback does work, but only on burned DVDs and external hard drives. See here for an update and a workaround.

DivX and WMV play back fine. Just as they claimed, the PS3 now can play back DivX files and WMV files. No problemo.

XviD does not work. Again, no XviD support at all. You'd be surprised how many of your files are actually XviD and not DivX, especially if you've been "obtaining" TV shows and movies over the years. Often times the files aren't labeled with the codec type in the name, so you'll have to try and play it back to know whether or not it's supported. If it's not, the file name will change to "Unsupported Data." [Some readers are reporting that XviD support works. Others have written us saying that some files work, others don't. Jason has tried this with a few XviD files and none of them worked. -JD]

Streaming only works off of Windows Media Player 11 shares, not Windows Media Connect or SMB (regular Windows folder sharing). This one could be a biggie. The PlayStation 3 doesn't actually support SMB network shares, which is the default Windows folder sharing network protocol that both Linux and OS X understand. This means you're going to have to install Windows Media Player 11 (or something similar, like Orb) in order to stream video from your home computer. Windows Media Connect, which sits on our Windows Home Server that housed most of our video files, didn't work. WMP11 did.

You can play files off a burned CD/DVD. If your PlayStation 3 isn't connected to a network, or if it's hooked up to a Wi-Fi network that's too slow to stream big files without dropping out, you can burn your flicks to a DVD. This is a hassle, but ensures that your movie experience won't be interrupted by someone microwaving popcorn.

The quality is pretty good. When we got the network streaming to work and found a compatible DivX file out of all our XviDs, playback was smooth and (for the most part) artifact free.

Video dimensions stretch well. The PS3 knows exactly what aspect ratio your files are and stretches them to fit your screen without distortion. The 360 couldn't quite handle that without a little coaxing.

The first time you play back a WMV file, you need to activate WMA playback first. Not a huge deal, but kind of a pain that you have to go to the System Settings screen and activate WMA playback before you can watch any WMV file that uses the codec.

Playback controls are gimpy. This isn't the fault of the new DivX support, but of the way the PS3 handles all video playback. It's usable, but it's not as polished as the Xbox's (which wasn't all that great to begin with.) UI isn't Sony's strong suit.

It's not all bad news though, as the PS3 is actually entirely DivX certified—unlike the Xbox 360. This means that the console natively supports the codec, so games can play back DivX files as their in-game cut scene movies. However, this fact doesn't help out the rabid downloader that's expecting it to play back most of his media files—like the Xbox 360 does. If you're looking for a machine to replace that aging Xbox Media Center (XBMC), the 360 is the current winner.

AirPort

* Allows password-protected accounts on AirPort Disks to show up on in the Finder's Shared Sidebar.
* Resolves an issue with saved passwords for wireless networks.

Back to My Mac

* Improves the reliability of Back to My Mac-enabled Macs appearing in the Finder's Shared Sidebar.
* Improves compatibility with D-Link NAT gateways.

Disk utilities

* Restores the functionality of the progress bar during permission repairs in Disk Utility.
* Addresses an issue that could produce an alert when creating disk images using Disk Utility or Terminal.
* Improves disk partitioning when multiple RAID sets are created on the same disk.

iCal

* iCal alarms are now more reliably delivered via email.
* Resolves an issue when inviting attendees via a CalDAV account.

Mail

* Improves stability when resizing columns in the message viewer or switching between Stationery templates in email messages.
* Addresses an issue in which attachments enclosed inside an HTML link may not be clickable in email messages.
* Fixes an issue with email accounts added using the "Simple Setup" feature in which messages cannot be sent due to an SMTP connection failure.
* Improves Smart Mailboxes compatibility with .Mac Sync, and addresses an issue with To Do's disappearing when using Smart Mailboxes.
* Resolves an issue with syncing Mail accounts with .Mac in which multiple On My Mac folders appear in the Mailbox pane.

Networking

* Addresses an issue in which Microsoft Windows shared folders may be read-only when connected via SMB.

Printing

* Resolves an issue in which user-selected values on Paper Feed PDE are reset to default while saving a custom preset.

Security, Firewall

* Addresses a code signing issue; third-party applications can now run when included in the Application Firewall or when whitelisted in Parental Controls.
* In Security preferences' Firewall tab, the "Block All" option is now called "Allow Only essential services"
* Includes recent Apple security updates.

System and Finder

* Addresses a potential data loss issue when moving files across partitions in the Finder.
* Resolves an issue with login after turning off FileVault for a specific user account.
* Improves compatibility with Adobe Flash-based uploaders used by .Mac Web Gallery and certain other websites and applications.
* Resolves a potential text drawing issue with certain Adobe Flash-based websites and applications.

Time Machine

* Addresses formatting issues with certain drives used with Time Machine (specifically, single-partition MBR drives greater than 512 GB in size as well as NTFS drives of any size and partition scheme).
* Resolves an issue in which files restored in Time Machine may be restored to the backup hierarchy rather than the folders to which they belong.

Check out this installation window, telling you about the new features such as Windows Vista compatibility, iPod friendliness and support of DivX and XviD codecs. Eh. Download it here. [TiVo, via Zatz Not Funny] (Thanks, Dave!)

new widgets, peer-to-peer applications (chat, picture messaging, social networking), location-based services, MMS support, home networking, and possibly some integration with Mac OS X Leopard.

Of course, all of that is unconfirmed since it came from analysts, not Apple. These analysts also claimed that both lower priced ($349-$399) and higher priced (something more than $599) iPhone models are coming, differentiated not by features, but on storage. The one thing we do know: the software update is coming soon. [Apple Insider via Wired]

In WirelessInfo's informal poll, over 60% of users responded that their iPhones had the same problem. Apple's PR says the UI bug will be fixed in a future software update. When the update is coming is still unknown, but for now, check the small upper-right icon to see whether or not your battery's fully charged. [Wireless Info]

Bluetooth •Addresses an issue in which a Bluetooth headset may show up as an available device for sound output in the Sound preference pane after it had been removed from Bluetooth preferences.

Third-party
•Adds RAW image decoding support for the following cameras: Panasonic DMC-LX1, Panasonic DMC-LX2, Leica M8, Leica D-LUX 2, Leica D-LUX 3, Fuji S5 Pro, Nikon D40x, and Canon EOS 1D Mk III.
•Resolves an issue in which some DNG images may appear tinted or distorted.
•Improves compatibility of Mathematica 6 with 64-bit Macs.

USB
•Improves reliability when using the IR remote control after waking from sleep.
•Improves reliability when mounting external USB hard drives.
•Resolves an issue in which a TomTom GO 910 may not be recognized when connected via USB to an Intel-based Mac.

Other
•Improves responsiveness when using the Control-Eject key combination to display a shutdown dialog.
•Addresses a specific issue in which users importing video from a DV camera may experience dropped frames.
•Includes recent Apple security updates.
•Addresses issues with calendar calculations in certain applications.
•Addresses issues when rounding decimal numbers for display in certain applications.
•For Motion, addresses an issue in which some texture corruption could appear in Motion if VRAM is full.

About the Mac OS X 10.4.10 Update (delta) [Apple via MacRumors]

Other items of note are energy saver settings, fast forwarding through music, CD information, password protecting accounts, and some backward compatibility changes. The update should hit relatively soon, but we'll let you know when it's up. – Jason Chen

PlayStation 3 Firmware v. 2.00 Update Details [PSU]