Apple has published a minor update to the Take 2 software for the AppleTV. As sometimes happens with oh-dot-one releases from Apple a fix list is not available at this time. You can get the update by going to the “Settings” menu, then choosing “General” and “Update Software.” After the update your ATV will restart and you will be presented with the welcome movie.

One obvious feature that users have noticed is the addition of a “Genres” tab to the My Movies list. Some users at the Apple support forums have reported issues with wireless after upgrading to 2.0.1. It seems to primarily affect users that are running 802.11n on the 5GHz band. Switching to 802.11b/g compatibility mode seems to have taken care of the issue for some users but if you’re loving your n-wifi you may want to hold off on the update.

Matt Brinkhoff

According to the folks over at LoopRumors Apple may be planning to throw the current Mac Mini design into the dryer and run it a little too long.

According to this new information we received, the Mac mini will see a dramatic change in its form factor, with a design that is ‘less than half the size’ of the current offering. The mini will also see modest speed increases, with significantly larger storage.

This seems a bit excessively rumour-y to me but hey, they have “reliable sources” so there must be something to it right? At least some of the peeps over at the MacRumours forums seem to think so. I’ve been inside my Mini(s) a few too many times to recount and I’m not sure they could shrink the thing that much without taking something out that differentiates the Mini from the AppleTV (like oh, I dunno - the optical drive maybe???)

Matt Brinkhoff

Sonnet has a super-svelte mounting solution for your Mac - the MacCuff Mini! The MCM provides a variety of mounting solutions including the ability to affix your Mini to the back of your flat panel. It also includes a 1-foot DVI to VGA cable to help minimize cable clutter.

MacCuff mini features a rugged steel frame with a refined platinum finish and durable plastic coating to prevent scratching. With VESA mounting screw locations, you can easily install your Mac mini to VESA compatible LCD displays to create a sleek and minimal workspace.

Or to help eliminate desktop cable clutter, attach your Mac mini under a desk or shelf using the provided drill template and screws.

The price is right at $49.99 so if you are looking for a cool Mini-bracket the MCM might be the one for you.

Matt Brinkhoff

Why it seems as if it was only yesterday that we were discussing the possible demise of our beloved mini, now the very source of that rumor seems to have done a complete about-face and is now proclaiming that the mini will get an overhaul in the form of a 2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duowith 3MB of shared L2 cache and the GMA X3100 integrated graphics processor.

For the first time in nearly a year, however, people familiar with the matter tell AppleInsider there’s new life in the Mac mini department, where a small team of engineers have recently been tasked with gutting the diminutive desktop and applying fresh internals.

Hey obviously this is good news all around but I can’t help but wonder if this is all Apple has in store for the mini or is this just a taste of what’s to come? Who knows, maybe the something along the lines of a max-mini?

B.Greenway

Yeah as if we aren’t bombarded by enough distractions during the course of a normal day already, once this is available I may have to get time management counseling. LEGO Touch for the iPhone is (apparently) an un-launched project from Nicholas Panas of play/nyc and may very well be the iPhones first recreational killer app.

There are several different play methods within LEGO Touch, including an architect mode, games mode which includes build-offs, pals mode where you can build your own LEGO pal which serves as your avatar, a share mode that allows you to share your creations with friends and a brick-bin feature that allows you to view, add or customize all of your building blocks.

This is just off the chart on the cool factor if you ask me. Now if I could just get that pesky not having an iPhone problem out of the way. Ah well it looks like I have time before LEGO Touch is available.

B.Greenway

I ran across this over at Gizmodo but on the off chance anyone missed it the first go-round, I thought it was interesting enough to share again. In a nutshell Touchpad.app allows you to use your iPhone or iPod touch as a touchpad to control a networked windows/linux or mac computer.

I’d love to try this out but as I don’t have a iPhone or iPod touch; I’ll just have to live vicariously through you, in comments, below, go ahead, I won’t bite. btw be sure not to miss the “detailed mac instructions“

B.Greenway

Well things are really progressing nicely on the XBMC for Mac front, it was just a week or so ago that we first got word of the project and they’re already on version 0.1.2 of the software, and custom Apple TV’esque skins for the project have already surfaced.

First about that 0.1.2 update, it includes better dual-core support allowing for much smother 1080p playback with MPEG4 sources and various other bug fixes. Head on over to XBMC on OS X for more on the project.

The Apple themed skin for XMBC on OS X can be found here. From the screen shots it really looks like the artist did a great job on the skins, be sure and let us know how they look once installed. Oh and if you’re having trouble installing the skins on your freshly update XBMC on OS X; this post in the Xbox Media Center forums should help.

B.Greenway

Just a quick update for you codec freaks today, Perian (The Swiss Army Knife for QuickTime, not to be confused with the St. Bernard for Windows Media Player) released version 1.1 of their handy dandy little video codec application last week, some of the improvements and or additions to Perian 1.1 included:

• Major performance improvements
• TrueAudio, MP1, and DTS audio support
• Slice-based multithreaded decoding for MPEG-1/2/H.264
• Apple H.264 now handles AVCHD/interlaced video
• Compatibility fixes for QuickTime 7.4 and Leopard
• Objective-C GC compatibility
• Fixed a crash in Toast
• Better subtitle rendering
• Subtitles play during MKV loading
• Snow support
• Miscellaneous bug fixes

Excellent news on the performance improvements and DTS support as well as AVCHD/interlaced video, sounds like a nice addition to the arsenal, swing on by and check it out.

B.Greenway

Yeah I was just as surprised to read that as you likely are. According to an interview with one of the projects programmers an early demo is already available for download and already supports MP3, OGG, AAC, FLAC, MPC, Project M support for audio visualization and playlists on the audio front and full-screen 1080p pass through with AC3/DTS digital pass through.

Some of their goals for future updates include: Port of Python scripting support, adding official OS X port remote control options/support, AC3/DTS mix-down support and a Port of XBMC Virtual File System features (SMB, FTP, UPNP, etc.). I’m not sure where all this will lead but the project does appear to have the kind of community support a media center front-end needs to be successful, with the Official XBMC OS X user and developer forums receiving over 50,000 page views since mid December of last year; it’s clear we’re not the only ones interested in the project.

B.Greenway

So by now I’m sure many if not most of you have read AppleInsider’s pontifications on the possibility that Apple may be about to shelve the mini, color me unconvinced. Obviously anything can (and usually does) happen with regard to Apple product cycles but I believe there’s a little life left in our favorite miniaturized desktop, but of course I/we can’t discount the possibility that Cupertino may not share our enthusiasm for the mini, AppleInsider cites lower margins from the units compared to iMacs and MacBooks.

If and I do stress if Apple decides the put the mini out to pasture; that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I firmly believe the mini fills rung on Apple’s product ladder that isn’t likely to disappear even if the mini proper does. Perhaps the mini could be combined with the A/V centric AppleTV transforming it into a TV Plus or maybe even a completely different, slightly more powerful SKU altogether. Who knows, but I would be surprised if Apple abandoned the $599 to $799 market altogether, we’ll see.

B.Greenway