After a September 2011 no-show from the annual iPod Nano range update, it now seems as if Apple is ready to reveal the next generation of its bright, mini MP3 players, with one very special feature...

A number of images that were leaked onto the web this week purportedly of the seventh generation iPod Nano show both the rear clip AND video camera that had been dropped after the 5th generation of the device to scale it down even further.

The camera is said to be 1.3MP, but reportedly has significant problems holding it back. According to MicGadget, its auto iris is causing images to blur, as well as capturing "overexposed photos".

It's not like Apple to release something with these notable problems, but as the blog states it's just a two-month old prototype, it's likely these issues will be ironed out before any kind of release later in the year.

That is, of course, providing that the leak is the real deal. Apple is rumoured to be re-launching the Nano in the Spring and we'll have to wait and see whether that includes a camera or not.

[Via Tech Digest Via 9to5 Mac]

We were all secretly hoping for it to be revealed last year, but could it really be that the iPhone 5 is set to launch this summer? We have no idea at all, but there's an interesting new iPhone-related rumour doing the rounds this week that's believed to have originated from a Foxconn manufacturing plant employee.

The employee has revealed that his company has begun production of new Apple goods that will be added to the next iPhone 5 handset. Given the 6-month production schedule given the iPhone 4S from April 2011 to October 2011, that would put the new handset on track for a June/July 2012 launch.

There have also been claims that four possible handset designs are in the running, each slightly different, but all boasting a display of at least 4 inches in size. None are said to look like the iPhone 4 or 4S, which have shared a design over the past two generations of Apple smart phones.

However, if there's no finalised handset in place, how can the plant be preparing to produce it? It's an exciting rumour we secretly hope is true, but unfortunately seems a little too unsubstantiated right now...

[Via Tech Digest Via 9to5 Mac]

Apple has launched a new digital platform called iBooks 2, which aims to reinvent our notions of the traditional textbook and instead provide students and teachers all over the globe with educational resources straight to their iPads.

The iBooks 2 platform (a revamped version of Apple's eBook reading app for iOS devices), will allow students of all levels to browse through content, access glossary definitions, view embedded 3D animated models and add enhanced interactive gallery features to books. They'll also be able to take in-app notes and follow links back through to the iBooks store to get more resources (and keep Apple rich).

The iBooks 2 platform is an interesting yet predictable move from Apple and the idea of browsing through materials solely using an iPad is far far more appealing than flicking through dirty textbooks that were probably bought back in the 60s. However, many are now questioning whether it will really change the way we learn in the future or whether the new platform will be a privilege reserved for those with the cash to splash on iPads and shiny new digital textbooks. So for now we're not expecting the death of the textbook as we know it, but we can see these kinds of content-rich resources being a valuable addition to all kinds of classroom over the next year.

The iBooks 2 app will be hitting the iTunes store today and although it's free the books themselves (quite obviously) aren't.

As well as introducing iBooks 2, today Apple also introduced the iTunes U application, which provides teachers with a way to deliver content straight to university students who own iPads and iPhones. Full courses including video, documents and books can be delivered and important information about assignments and the syllabus can also be accessed too, a little like the student portals you get at most universities. Users will also be able to access free educational content from top establishments, like Cambridge and Harvard. How fancy.

[Image via CNET]

Despite the fact a growing number of brands (hello Samsung, RIM and Nokia) are offering devices which are more than capable of competing with the iPhone in the fancy smart phone stakes, it seems many are still drawn to the magical power of Apple, as the average young Brit owns three products from the brand according to recent research.

The study carried out by discount website MyVoucherCodes polled a total of 1,896 people aged between 18 and 30 in order to try and find out how popular Apple products really are amongst the younger generation living in the UK.

More than 75% of those polled said they owned at least one Apple gadget, with the majority owning three and a further rich and lucky 5% owning four or more. This comes as no surprise as many Apple fans often stay loyal to the brand regardless of which kind of product they need, venturing into its spacious and energetic doors for phones, tablets, computers and music players.

Kids just love gadgets, maybe it's because they're shiny or because we pay far too much attention to them. Either way, they'll do anything to get their sticky little fingers on that clean and scratch-free screen. However, instead of trying to hide your iPhone or iPod Touch from toddlers and kids who want to play Angry Birds or Talking Carl, then try and protect your device in a much more child-friendly way. That means you don't have to say no AND you can have peace of mind when they run off with your beloved iPhone all afternoon.

Griffin already has a very popular Woogie device which basically looks like a big green stuffed starfish. But now the brand has brought out the Woogie 2, a squishy and huggable case for your iPhone and iPod Touch with legs in both pink and blue, which keeps your device safe while your kids play with it.

The Woogie 2 has an Integrated pocket which you can seal shut with velcro, as well as a touch-through screen so you don't lose any functionality even though your iPhone is all wrapped up. Its little legs also means it can stand upright or lay on a child's lap, which makes it less likely for them to want to prise it out!

It's the ideal solution to ensure no smashing, grabbing or throwing of your favourite Apple products when you're around little ones.

Available in blue or pink for the iPod Touch and iPhone from Griffin for $19.99 / £12.95.

As it's the iPod's 10th birthday week this week (check out our gallery tribute to the little guy), it's the perfect time to clean up your iTunes a little and Rinse is probably the best way we've found to do it.

Rinse is a brand new service which will clean up your iTunes music library with just one click, think of it as throwing your music collection into a shower and giving it a good scrub. If you look through your iTunes tracks right now you're very likely to have duplicates, the wrong artwork and untitled songs here and there, so Rinse will aim to sort all of that out for you.

The tool cleans everything up by finding audio tracks in the Gracenote music database and correcting any mismatched details. The database currently holds more than 100 million tracks in its catalogue, so unless your taste is VERY obscure it should be able to do the job.

Rinse is obviously only for those with an extensive iTunes library, so don't even think about trying it out if you've only got one or two albums on there and rely on the likes of Spotify or Deezer the rest of the time.

You have to pay a one-time payment of £30 to clean everything thoroughly, or start small with a free trial that'll sift through 50 over your tracks to see if it's worth it.

Visit rinsemymusic.co.uk to try it out.

Many of those who have already managed to get their hands on an iPhone 4S have been raving about just how good the camera is. But are the results REALLY that different in comparison to the images produced by the iPhone 4?

Well, instead of just comparing the difference between the 4 and the 4S, Lisa Bettany the co-creator of the popular iPhone application Camera+, has conducted a bit of an experiment with all of the iPhone models over the years to see just how their cameras compare and most importantly how the new iPhone 4S camera measures up in relation to its predecessors. She's published all of the photos in a post over on Camera+ and then Petapixel has placed them side-by-side so you can properly compare the results.

The final images are really interesting, just LOOK at the difference between the first generation iPhone camera and the camera the iPhone 4S now boasts. Admittedly, the iPhone's original camera was only added as a nice to have feature to match up to other handsets on the market, but the difference is still pretty immense.

Interestingly, Bettany also compares the iPhone cameras with the results from actual cameras, and although it's no surprise the DSLR isn't beaten, the photo captured by the iPhone 4S does look just as good as the point-and-shoot she chooses to match it up against.

[Via Gizmodo Via Petapixel Via Camera+]

Despite many Apple fans being a little disappointed at the lack of an iPhone 5, the iPhone 4S has still proved to be extremely popular and one of the main reasons is Siri, the voice recognition assistant we tried out a few weeks ago and were pretty impressed with.

So, you'd expect whoever has been behind Siri from the start to be feeling pretty smug now, right? Well, according to an exclusive report by All Things D over the weekend, Siri's co-founder, Dag Kittlaus, has left Apple already. Now admittedly the departure has allegedly been amicable and sources have cited family reasons and new business ventures as two of the many reasons Kittlaus has decided to leave. However, it's still left many wondering if any other factors were at play, as it seems strange Kittlaus would part ways with Apple just as Siri is becoming SO popular.

For those who've been thinking the name Siri rings a bell, Apple actually acquired the voice recognition company back in 2010 and Dag Kittlaus had been its CEO since 2007.

So what do you think the reason behind Dag Kittlaus' departure is? Maybe he feels like Siri is safe in the hands of Apple now? Or that he's done all he can now it's been integrated into the latest iPhone 4S? Who knows. But we're intrigued to see which projects he gets involved in next...

[Via All Things D]

If you haven't upgraded your Apple software yet, we recommend you do it RIGHT NOW. It does take 20 minutes or so, but it means you'll have access to a lot of new features, like iMessage, deep Twitter integration and a slicker camera interface.

Instagram's latest update lets you take advantage of this deeper Twitter integration a little, by allowing you to share any user's photo with your Twitter followers instantly.

First, you need to make sure that you're signed into your Twitter account. So go to Settings, find Twitter, log-in and then make sure it's synced up to the Instagram app.

So the option should be set to "on" like this:

Once that's sorted you can just browse Instagram like usual. Then, when you find a photo you want to share (whether it's one of yours or someone else's), simply click on the "..." button that you can see under a user's photo and then select tweet.

Here's a screenshot from the Instagram blog to show you how:

You can then tweak everything a little, so you're not just sending a random photo to your Twitter followers. You can add usernames and more details, like this:

Your tweet will then look a little like this:

We know this isn't a big update, but it is good to see Instagram, Twitter and the new iOS 5 working together in harmony to make sure discovering and sharing great images is as easy and streamlined as possible.

[Via the Instagram Blog]

To celebrate Instagram week we're running an easy to enter mobile photography competition with our friends at Orbitsound. All you have to do is take a photo with an Autumnal theme and share it on Twitter along with the hash tag #ShinyAutumn. It can be of a leaf or a Halloween costume, we really don't mind. The winner will get a fabulous T12v3 speaker bar from Orbitsound and 19 runners up will get random iPhone related goodies.

Visit the #ShinyAutumn competition post to find out more.

The iPhone 4S goes on sale today, in fact serious Apple fans will have already got their hands on one along with a high five and a clap from some VERY enthusiastic Apple employees earlier this morning.

Shiny Shiny and Tech Digest went along to Apple's flagship Regent Street store to see what all the fuss was about.

There are many subtle differences between the iPhone 4 and the iPhone 4S, but really we were most interested in Siri, we wanted to see if it lives up to the hype, could be our personal assistant 24/7 and most importantly whether it'll understand our regional accents.

The verdict?

After a quick hands-on with Siri we were pretty impressed, it understood our voices (mostly), gave us some tips and enabled us to open up emails, messages and reminders all with our voices.

However, according to Cnet, Siri here in the UK is yet to be able to give us local information other than bits and pieces about the weather. Apparently this is due to the fact Apple hasn't committed to any deals with local UK providers, whereas over in the US Yell is powering all of that kind of information. So, it was a shame to not be able to trial whether Siri could tell us good restaurants or cinema information nearby, but from what we can tell that kind of knowledge won't be too far off. We hope.

When it comes to the nuances of voice recognition there'll obviously be a few teething problems to start with, it kept thinking "email" was "ring Mary" but I'm happy to write that off as an issue with my accent for now.

The only piece of advice we'd give is, don't start trying to sweet talk Siri. It knows it's special but clearly just wants to be your personal assistant and nothing more.

Earlier this week we wrote about ION Audio's Piano Apprentice learning system, which essentially turns your iPad into a keyboard so that you can learn how to read music and play certain songs. Well now an inventor and electronics engineer in the US called Harvey Starr wants to be able to turn our favourite little Apple tablet into a guitar.

The iTar device, which is currently seeking funding on Kickstarter, is designed for all kinds of musicians and hackers and consists of a button-based guitar fretboard integrated with a dock for the iPad.

However, it's not just about turning your iPad into only a guitar, iTar can be used with all kinds of applications to allow you to use the multi-touch screen to strum on a guitar, tap on keys, bang on drums, the list is endless.

The iTar is currently on Kickstarter with 54 days to go.

Apple's new OS, iOS 5, was made available to the general public yesterday and comes with all the features that we were expecting after they were officially revealed at the iPhone announcement a few weeks ago. In our article iOS 5: Everything you need to know we discussed some of the new changes such as new reminders, Twitter integration, Reader feature, game center update and iMessage.

iMessage is basically a new system which lets people with other iOS devices communicate quickly and easily with one another through short text-like messages. In many ways it's very similar to the BBM service all BlackBerry users know well, but there are some subtle differences, like the fact iMessage relies on Apple's push notification system.

1. It's integrated into Messages, so there's no separate app for iMessage, it just shows up in the same place your texts do.

2. It's free. Yup, completely free, think of it a bit like WhatsApp but integrated into your iOS device instead of sitting as a standalone app. Although this is great news for users, there are obviously a lot of implications about whether Apple is going to get in a lot of trouble for this in the coming months.

3. You can send photos and videos like you would when you send an SMS or MMS.

4. You can disable it whenever you want. If for some reason you wanted to stop getting iMessages (or just messages, we're not sure what we're calling them yet) then you can and although we can't see why you'd want to do that, it's good to have the option.

5. Integration across devices, the fact iMessage works on all iOS devices means you can carry on that conversation you were having on your iPhone over on your iPad. If you're lucky enough to have both that is.

According to most of the online tech press today iOS 5 could well be launching in the next few hours, but in the mean time Apple has launched its official iCloud website.

You can currently log-in with your Apple details, but the only thing you're able to do at the moment is locate your phone (I found mine within seconds, which is handy/creepy).

All of the other highly anticipated cloud features we've been waiting for, like iWork and Mail, Contacts and Calendar are only available once you've updated to iOS 5 and at the moment when you try and do that you just get a broken link.

But, it seems we won't have to wait for long with some blogs claiming it'll be available any second now...

Facebook finally released its official iPad application earlier in the week and so far users seem to be pretty impressed with what it has to offer, such as a focus on chatting, a new slick sidebar and big 'swipe-y' photos.

In the excitement many people also seem to have overlooked the fact that all of the new and exciting changes we're seeing in the Facebook iPad application have also been made to the mobile application too (it's obviously just geared up for a smaller mobile screen), so be sure to upgrade if you haven't already.

We had a play around with the new iPad application and realised just how great the interface looks on the big, multi-touch screen, so here are our first impressions.

Side Menu Bar

One of the things that first strikes you about the iPad application is the dark grey side menu bar on the left of the screen. It contains all kinds of bits and pieces, like pages, groups you've signed up to, messages and apps you've added as well as all of your usual privacy and account settings under the little cog at the bottom.

The great thing about the menu bar is it contains everything you could possibly need, BUT it can so easily be hidden away by hitting the button in the top left hand corner with three horizontal lines across it if you'd rather just browse status updates and save the more complicated bits and pieces for the web version. It also stays static too, so if you want to leave it up while you're whizzing through your news feed it'll stay put.

News Feed

The news feed looks like it does on the web, click on videos and they play instantly, click on photos and they're blown up to the full size of the iPad screen.

Chatting

For me, Facebook Chat is a feature that I only use occasionally which sits at the bottom of my screen and often gets forgotten about. However, with the new iPad application the chat functionality plays a much more central role. It sits as a sidebar on the right of your screen (if you want to be online that is) and looks really integrated into the overall Facebook experience - much more than it does on the web.

If you start chatting with someone it sits at the side as you browse too and the conversation shows up like iPhone text messaging in little bubbles.

Location

When you're browsing through your friends you can click on the 'nearby' option and you're presented with a Google Map full of your friends faces, which is a lovely feature even if it does seem a little bit stalker-ish.

Photos

It seems the app has been specially made to really make the most of photos, allowing you to view them as a big grid, then click on one and it fills your screen and swipe through the rest of the album too.

Profiles

Profiles don't look vastly different (we were half expecting a much more timeline-like interface), but they're kept very simple with the static default photo and various links to photos and info on the left and a continuous feed of information from the user's profile on the right.

Verdict

The interface is slick and intuitive, making it really easy to flick between pages and the different sections of the app. Also, EVERYTHING just looks great on the iPad, doesn't it?! However, for me the most notable feature is Facebook Chat, which feels like a much more prominent part of the experience than ever before.

It'll be really interesting to see whether things get tweaked a little once more and more people trade in a personal profile for a timeline or once we all get used to the news ticker a little more, but we don't expect huge changes to be made only a few months after the initial launch, so only time will tell...

Our little minds were blown away when we heard about the phone in a glass trick to act as a make-shift speaker. Yes the sound is a bit tinny, but put your phone in a big glass, play music and it's a LOT louder. Ahh simple things.

Well, this iPad 2 stand from Thumbs Up! is similar, amplifying the sound from your iPad without the need for a bulky speaker, just a simple little horn. It acts as a stand too, so prop your iPad 2 up horizontally or vertically and turn your music of choice on. The horn then collects the sound from the speakers and projects it into the room, boosting it by around 15 decibels.

Not only does it work well, but it looks simple and stylish too, so it's ideal for those who need a break from cutesy speakers and just want something that makes your iPad a bit louder without bulk or fuss.

From Thumbs Up! the iPad 2 Horn Stand is available from Play.com for £16.99.

The size and shape of the iPad really lends itself to "learn the piano" apps, which teach you the basics and get you playing Three Blind Mice non-stop. But ION Audio has taken it one step further, so instead of banging around on virtual keys from within an app, you can hook your iPad up to an actual keyboard, which feels much more professional and real.

The lightweight Piano Apprentice learning system has 25 touch sensitive keys and built-in stereo speakers, so it sounds much more like a traditional piano (OK, keyboard) than the run-of-the-mill apps too.

Alongside the Piano Apprentice app, you can learn how to read music and how to play some basic pieces too. To make it even easier the keys light up as you're learning, spoon feeding you music basics more than ever before.

The actual piano bit is available from ION Audio for $99.99.

The app is available from iTunes for Free.

A new browser for OS X devices called Raven has been launched today and it stands out from the likes of Internet Explorer and Google Chrome because it turns your favourite sites into easily accessible, dedicated apps. We can't work out whether this will be really useful or a little unnecessary quite yet.

You start off by visiting Raven's built-in app store and install the apps you use the most, so there are a few samples to choose from at the moment, like Facebook, Twitter, New York Times and Flickr. These then appear in your sidebar and clicking on them reveals shortcuts to specific areas and pieces of content.

A lot of effort has clearly been put into Raven's unique user experience and basing everything on apps is an interesting approach I'm sure some people will love. But, is it a little too different to convert the masses?

Download Raven.

Whether you're going to stick with the iPhone 4 or upgrade to the 4S, it's always nice to have a shiny new case beaming up at you rather than a grubby lime green one you got as a freebie from a magazine.

Here's our pick of four designer cases for your iPhone 4 or 4S.

We've covered 12 of our favourite iPad apps and games for kids in the past, but now we really want to focus on three brilliant applications that require a LOT of hands-on interaction with the help of a few special accessories.

Readers in the UK this morning will be waking up to the extremely sad news that Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple and long time leader of the company, has passed away aged 56.

All kinds of tributes are being left in memory of Steve online and offline, flowers in front of Apple stores, a take-over of Apple's home page and moving words from other tech luminaries and leaders across the web.

Apple has asked that those wishing to pass on their condolences do so at the email address remembersteve@apple.com.

When Steve Jobs retired in August we collected together five of his most inspirational moments and feel that right now would be a good time to share them with you again as our thoughts go out to the Jobs family, his friends and his colleagues.

Commencement speech at Stanford 2005

Still a rallying cry for creatives and mavericks - Steve gave this moving speech to the freshmen in Stanford talking about his personal history and the upsets he overcame to make Apple.

Youtube comments include this kind of thing: "I watch this at least three times a year when I need the kick in the pants to stay on track with my dreams."

Apple WWDC '97 Steve Jobs Closing Keynote

At one hour long, this is one to watch in bits, but my god, it's worth it. Take tips about leadership, public speaking, and pulling back from a crisis.

It's a barnstorming hour where Steve answers questions from a crowd of developers at a time when Apple was at one of its lowest ebbs. He takes taunts, valid questions and comes back with honest but rousing answers. Oh and some sharp put-downs. This guy is in control. Great takeaway: "Focus is saying no".

Steve Jobs:You have to think Differently
[MacWorld Congress 1997]

Want to know why you still feel smug buying an Apple computer? This is why. The computers are different. You are different. This is how to make someone want something.

"You always had to be a little different to buy an Apple computer. You had to think differently[...] They are the creative spirits in this world"

Unveiling the first Apple Macintosh
[1984]

He only pops a floppy into a Mac, but listen to the screams, Steve is driving the audience crazy. Okay - it's first Mac - ever. But for some lessons about showmanship - watch and learn.

Steve Jobs burning Bill Gates

Yes, it's a catty joke, but this is a guy who believes in what he does. It reminds us of how Steve told the NY Times that he made Apple so innovative - by hiring people who wanted to make the best things in the world.

For the fuller and more enlightening version look at the whole video from the AllThingsD double interview with Bill Gates: