Apparently, cutting in line to get a bite out of the new Apple product isn’t gonna fly in Las Vegas.

Gizmodo reports the Situation wanted to get his greasy hands on the new iPhone 4S but went home empty handed instead, after an employee told him to GTFO and threw him out. Ouch!

Yo, Sitch, I dunno how they do it in Jersey, but elsewhere, we all patiently wait our turn to buy things. Things like iPhones, tanning oils and hoochie looking girls.

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Google is unveiling a digital music service without any licensing deals after proving unable to come to an agreement with major labels, reports Billboard.

The service, which was introduced during a keynote today at a conference in San Francisco, will allow users to upload their music library to a personal online storage locker, where they can stream and download files from Internet connected devices.

This is pretty much the same as Amazon’s Cloud Drive, but with a few differences. Google’s service is available on a limited, invite-only basis limited to U.S. users and those wanting to use the service will have to request an invite at music.google.com, with priority given to those with the Motorola Xoom tablet and to attendees of the conference.

Additionally, Google is also limiting the number of songs that can be uploaded to the music locker to 20,000. The service is free while in beta, and the company would not comment on what future pricing options it may have planned.

“We’ve been in negotiations with the industry for a different set of features, with mixed results,” Google director of content partnerships Zahavah Levine says. ”[But] a couple of major labels were less focused on innovation and more on demanding unreasonable and unsustainable business terms.”

Seems like a cool idea. People definitely like fast technology, so this whole streaming and downloading thing sounds promising. But the idea also has some flaws. It’s limited availability is definitely not going to help them – people want things while its hot, and if they wait too long, nobody will want it in a couple months when it’s widely available.

Google has been really pushing forward these days, though. First the Android getting really great reviews and now this. Does Apple have some competition?

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Just another reason to love Apple.

Apple has released an ‘It Gets Better’ video on YouTube, aiming to seek equality for the LGBT youth and community. The video, which can be viewed below, has employees speaking of their upbringing and experiences where they’ve been discriminated and victimized for their sexual orientation.

I love when corporations do good, which Apple often does. A lot of today’s mega businesses are just out to make money, but Apple often takes the time to slow things down and focus on what needs to be done in society. They’ve focused on environmental issues, donated money to charity, and are now focusing on social equality. Props to them!

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For the past several days, iTunes featured a massive advertisement on their template that warned music fans everywhere the company would shortly be making a massive announcement. The dorks on macrumors.com and other Apple tech forums thought the announcement was undoubtedly going to be about Apple’s new software storage mega-computer, the Cloud.

Long story short, the dorks were wrong. It’s not some hocus-pocus, metaphorical computer-cloud. It’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band!

That’s right. iTunes finally announced on Tuesday that The Beatles’ catalogue is now available for purchase for the first time.

I know what you’re thinking: Who in their right mind was waiting for iTunes to sell Beatles music so it could be incorporated it into their library? Were their really people out there before yesterday who sat around twiddling their thumbs just saying to themselves “Man I wanna listen to Revolver right now but I sold my record player and iTunes doesn’t sell it.”  NO!  There weren’t! My theory is that this is iTunes telling us we finally had time to isolate the most bland 30-seconds of every Beatles song so you can be turned off of their music forever. Thanks!!!

In 1968, The Beatles founded Apple Records. In 2010, Apple’s records finally found The Beatles.

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When we visited CES in January 2010, a new area was announced to showcase Apple based products and peripherals because of a recent change to the annual Macworld show. While there were some great new products being debuted, we noticed one type of product that was abundantly available, iPhone cases.

After visiting more than 30 booths with iPhone cases, we noticed only a handful of companies were innovating beyond the basic silicon skin case. One of those companies was iFrogz.

We really like what we saw with the iPhone Frosted Luxe cases. Available in several colours, the two piece case slides together, providing protection from scratches and drops. The case also extends a few millimetres above the screen, which would prevent the screen from making contact with the ground, should you drop it.

The case provides access to all buttons and with a larger opening around the headphone jack, it can fit all types of headphones. Featuring a velvety ‘soft touch’ feel and the option to swap colours if you have multiple cases, you’ll always have a phone that can match your outfit.

You can buy the case online at ifrogz.com for US$29.99 or browse their site for more iPod, iPhone, iPad or Blackberry cases.

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Rapper Eminem’s music publisher, Eight Mile Style LLC, settled a lawsuit with Apple for copyright violation. The publisher was going after the iTunes company regarding the unauthorized sale of 93 tracks on the music downloading site, Perez Hilton reports.

While the terms of the settlement have not been released, a lawyer for Eight Mile Style LLC said “the case was settled to the satisfaction of all parties.”

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CNBC is reporting that Steve Jobs is taking a leave of absence from Apple until June, citing health reasons.

Rumors of Jobs’ ailing health have been in an upheaval since the announcement that he would not deliver the annual Keynote address at MacWorld conference and expo this past January 5th, as he had done since returning to the company in 1997.

In 2004, Steve was treated for a rare case of pancreatic cancer.

Story is still developing.

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As we wait for Phil Schiller to get on stage and deliver what will be the last MacWorld keynote from Apple, you can get live updates from:

Macrumors
Engadget
GDGT

You can also follow me on Twitter with live updates @daniellevine

Apple is expected to update a range of products at this last MacWorld, including iWork, Mac Mini, iMac and possibly more.

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You bought your iPhone and you probably purchased a case for it at the same time. It’s still worth taking a look at this one. Out of Canada, making some pretty interesting products for the iPhone is Helium Digital. While there are many iPhone cases on the market, Helium’s Leather Back Flip is one of the best I’ve tried. The case is smart looking and features a leather flip top with magnetic closure, offering good protection and direct access to all iPhone functions. You’ll have to pick up a clear screen protector separately however, because Helium does not include one with this case, but for $24.99 CDN this case is still a bargain and you will enjoy using it on your new iPhone 3G. Maybe one day Helium will make a case for the iPod Touch, but for now you can slide a slim piece of foam you can trim off from the packaging materials to retrofit this handsome Leather case for use with your 2G iPod Touch.

Helium also stocks a 3 pack silicone case set for the iPhone (HD-020). Most notably, these silicone cases include screen protectors and the price for the set is only $19.99 CDN. Order Helium products online from the website or visit such retailers as The Source by Circuit city and Wal Mart.

Helium Digital

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Apple has quietly announced on Tuesday that this year will be their last as exhibitors at MacWorld (Jan 5-9), the annual conference and expo held in January at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The conference is organized by IDG World Expo.

This year will also mark the last Keynote presentation, an event marking the beginning of the conference, where Apple CEO Steve Jobs traditionally announces updated and new products to much fan-fare.

This year, Phil Schiller, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing will have the stage.

Full press release from Apple, Corp. below:

CUPERTINO, California—December 16, 2008-Apple today announced that this year is the last year the company will exhibit at Macworld Expo. Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, will deliver the opening keynote for this year’s Macworld Conference & Expo, and it will be Apple’s last keynote at the show. The keynote address will be held at Moscone West on Tuesday, January 6, 2009 at 9:00 a.m. Macworld will be held at San Francisco’s Moscone Center January 5-9, 2009.

Apple is reaching more people in more ways than ever before, so like many companies, trade shows have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers. The increasing popularity of Apple’s Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways.

Apple has been steadily scaling back on trade shows in recent years, including NAB, Macworld New York, Macworld Tokyo and Apple Expo in Paris.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

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QuickerTek, a company specializing in wireless networking for Apple products, recently released a new external battery compatible with a variety of Apple products. The iPod, iTouch and iPhone 3G can get up to three times the battery life by connecting to the new external battery pack from QuickerTek.

The battery simply attaches to the device it is powering. The battery also features a retractable USB charging cable, making it easy to recharge from any laptop or desktop computer.

The battery charger is backed with a one-year warranty on parts and labour. For additional information on the product, visit .

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Apple is selling the iPhone 3G on the Apple Store website in Hong Kong, citing that the phones “can be activated with any wireless carrier,” reports Macworld.com.

The Apple Store in Hong Kong is retailing 8GB and 16GB iPhone 3G devices for approximately $700 – $800 U.S., according to Macworld. The article also reports that the store is advertising that the phone is compatible with any carrier: “Simply insert the SIM from your current phone into iPhone 3G and connect to iTunes 8 to complete activation.”

Macworld reports that the iPhone 3G was available in Hong Kong on July 11, and is supported by Hutchison Telecommunications. The least expensive monthly plan rate offered by Hutchinson Telecommunications is HK$2,938 for the 8GB model and HK$3738 for the 16GB model, both on which include a two-year contract at HK$188 per month, reports MacWorld.

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Research firm iSuppli has discovered the iPhone 3G costs just $174.33 in pure manufacturing costs, less than what it look to build the original first generation iPhone, according to an article that appeared on appleinsider.com.
In fact, according to iSuppli, the iPhone 3G cost Apple $53 less to manufacture than the last version of the iPhone, despite the inclusion of chips for 3G data and GPS capabilities.

The cost of materials does not include shipping the phone, selling it, or creating the software for it, but iSuppli said that the cheap design is part Apple’s short-term goal to establish a large market share early in the iPhone’s history, according to Apple Insider.

The new iPhone 3G has many of the same parts as the previous model, including the Samsung processor. Apple also saves money by using one durable circuit board versus the two tightly connected ones featured in the old iPhone, according to the article.

About $50 in licenses for patents and intellectual property is factored into the price, as well as an assumed unsubsidized cost of $499 for an 8GB model of the phone.

Apple, however, is thought to be getting as much as $300 in subsides from AT& T (the service provider for the iPhone in the United States) for every costumer that buys the device for the $199 price. That works out to about 55 per cent profit margin before accounting costs for marketing and software, according to Apple Insider.

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Rogers Wireless reported the best sales weekend in it’s history with the launch of the much-hyped Apple iPhone. The Canadian telecom giant confirmed that tens of thousands of iPhones sold out in many of the launch centres across Canada.

The news is sure to bring a sigh of relief to Rogers CEO Ted Rogers, who faced a wave of criticism for the iPhone’s expensive monthly rates. Almost 60,000 people signed a petition against Rogers, vowing to take their business elsewhere unless changes were made. Apple was rumoured to have cut back on iPhone shipments as a form of punishment for the abnormally high rate plans.The backlash, it appears, did little to stop the surge of sales.

The second shipment of iPhones is set to arrive at Rogers retail centres tomorrow.

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Maybe she bought a PC?

Kathy Griffin and her billionaire boyfriend, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, have broken up.

“He is an awesome guy, but I have to say he is in the friends category now,” she told Usmagazine.com. “As a matter of fact, I got an email last week from him, and he is going to marry someone else… I think he might be married. I don’t really know that for sure, though.”

Fans will be able to see the relationship that was on the new season of “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.” “He is really cute and funny on it,” she said, “He’s totally a life-long friend.”

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Neil Aspinall has died in hospital at the age of 66, after a battle with lung cancer.

Aspinall was called “The Fifth Beatle.” As a childhood friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, he was the band’s first tour manager and continued to work with them throughout their careers. According to the BBC, Aspinall “remained fiercely loyal to the group, looking after their business interests and taking legal action on their behalf.”

Aspinall was a chief executive of Apple from 1970-2007, ensuring that the Beatles continued to make money.

He played various instruments in songs like Magical Mystery Tour, Within You Without You and Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite, and created the albums Beatles Anthology and Beatles One.

In a statement, Ringo Starr said that, “I’ve known Neil many years and he was a good friend. We were blessed to have him in our lives and he will be missed.”

Aspinall has five children with wife, Suzy.

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Despite forecasting a quarterly profit below analysts’ expectations, due largely to disappointing holiday-season iPod shipments, and thereby sending its shares down by 11% earlier this week, Apple was still doing well enough to offer several senior executives 2007 cash bonuses that doubled their salaries ($600,000 range).

The poor man of the group? CEO Steve Jobs, who maintained his annual pay of $1 and took no additional compensation. “In fiscal year 2007, Mr. Jobs’ entire compensation consisted of his $1 annual salary,” Apple said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

It almost sounds like a gimmick. At the very least, it’s really good PR. But don’t feel too bad for Jobs; he’s still the highest paid CEO in America according to Forbes. Though his annual base salary has been $1 since 1997, he currently holds about 5.5 million shares of Apple common stock, trading around $130 per share after this week’s disappointing posting. You do the math.

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Macworld is definitely the place to be to both witness, and contribute to, all Apple-related, cutting-edge inventiveness. And Apple wouldn’t be a very good host if it let its guests do all the work, which is why it opened its Mac-bazaar by introducing Time Capsule, a backup appliance that automatically and wirelessly backs up everything on one or more Macs running Leopard, Apple’s latest operating system release.

Built to work seamlessly with the Time Machine automatic backup software, Time Capsule lets users wirelessly back up all of the data on their Macs, find lost files and even restore all of their software. In the event a file is lost, users can wirelessly search back through time to find deleted files, applications, photos and other digital media and then instantly restore the file.

Doubling as a full-featured Wi-Fi base station with the latest 802.11n technology, Time Capsule comes in two models, a 500-gigabyte model for US$299 and a whopping 1-terabyte model for just US$499, and will be available in February through the Apple Store, at Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers.

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In a Super Bowl commercial four years ago featuring the music of Green Day, a promotion between the major record labels, PepsiCo and Apple was unveiled to give away 100 million songs through a then-fledgling iTunes. Now, four years later, the Pepsi promotion is back and they’ve dropped Green Day and Apple in favour of JT (Justin Timberlake) and Amazon.

As reported by Jeff Leeds of The New York Times, “the switch is an indicator of the continuing tension between the music industry and Apple.” Pepsi’s previous Super Bowl ad encouraged music fans to ditch their pirating ways in favour of legal purchases and led to iTunes’ eventual dominance as the leading digital-music store. In a twist of irony, however, the music industry has taken a liking to Amazon’s rival music service, introduced in September, and is teaming up with Pepsi to shake the scene up a bit.

All the controversy surrounds DRM, or digital rights management software. Though it was Apple CEO Steve Jobs who, in February, called on the industry to drop its perpetual insistence that the software be used citing DRM’s failure to rein in piracy, the major record companies still require Apple to sell their music wrapped in the software. Amazon’s service will gain an enormous edge: the companies have agreed to offer their music catalogs for sale in the MP3 format, without the digital locks that restrict users from making copies of the songs.

DRM has been accused by some consumers of creating confusing problems, such as a lack of compatibility between most songs and the devices sold by Apple and Microsoft. Apple sells all single tracks for 99 cents, while Amazon sells them from 89 cents and up.

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Apparently the techno-giant is making a crack at the movie rental business and just when you thought Apple’s innovation-savvy had peaked.

As reported by both the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal, Twentieth Century Fox Films has reportedly signed a deal with Apple to allow iTunes users download new movies and keep them for an unspecified, but probably short, period of time. The deal could be announced shortly, as both reports state that Apple CEO Steve Jobs will declare this news as part of his ‘Macworld keynote’ on January 14.

Rumours of such a move have been floated for some time now, with its comparative lack of success in the per-video pricing strategy that has worked so well for Apple in the music business. Moreover with the unveiling of the iPod touch, a new line seemingly designed to make it easier to watch videos, adding Fox’s movies at low rental prices would be a welcome service for tech-heads and movie-buffs alike.

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