For its first year anniversary, Amazon gave its Kindle an all around hardware upgrade that has turned the quirky, cheap looking appliance into a streamlined and slick looking device. Will it be enough for Kindle 2 to hit a mainstream audience? [Discuss]

After a false start two years ago, Apple has released a new set of in-ear buds that are finally worth trading up to from the company's own pack-in models and which may well compete against third-party earbuds that are significantly above its price class. We explain why. [Discuss]

Apple's first major update to the Cinema Display line brings a much greener design and a raft of welcome feature updates, especially for MacBook owners. At the same time, a partial shift away from Apple's mainstay professional crowd makes one wonder where the company is going and whether it hasn't lost focus. [Discuss]

Standing as the single largest change to an Apple portable in recent history, the 13" MacBook completely overhauls the system with a switch from plastic to a strong, thinner aluminum shell and a totally new platform that puts it into a new performance category -- albeit with key sacrifices to meet its goals. [Discuss]

Apple's newly redesigned 15" MacBook Pro improves upon the graphics, RAM, and CPU performance of the previous generation while adopting the strong lines and unibody construction of the MacBook Air, the keyboard of the 2006 consumer MacBook, the environmentally friendly design of last year's iMac, and the iPhone's headphone mic, resulting a strong package of cross pollination across Apple's various branches. [Discuss]

The 2008 iPod touch inches closer to the iPhone line while retaining its iPod branding. It gets new audio input and recording features, volume controls, a speaker, and a full assortment of bundled apps, including Nike+ support. [Discuss]

For its third anniversary, the highly portable 4G iPod nano gets a new tall and slim design, Genius Playlists, audio recording and other new software features, twice the storage at the same price, and a new array of colors. It continues to offer high quality audio, and plays video games, podcasts, TV and movie downloads, and movie rentals. Apple still refuses to give it a capital n, however. [Discuss]

Here's a look at how Apple transformed its .Mac service into MobileMe and why the launch failed so spectacularly. In a followup segment, we'll dive deeper into how MobileMe works, how it compares to competing services, how the service delivers push messaging to the iPhone 2.0 software, and whether it's worth the annual subscription price. [Discuss]

The long wait for official third party apps on the iPhone is over. From the moment the original iPhone was released, critics complained about Apple's closed platform and insisted that it could not meet their definition of "smartphone" because it couldn't run software created by other companies. In this segment, we'll take a look at the Apple's iPhone software development kit, the App Store, and iPhone 2.0's third party apps themselves. [Discuss]

As described in the previous segment introducing iPhone 2.0 software, Apple's latest mobile operating system reference release delivered a range of major and minor new features, but not without failing to address some long standing issues. Even worse, the initial version of the new iPhone 2.0 has eroded away the facade of near flawlessness Apple rolled out with the original iPhone last year, resulting in a product that is simply harder to be unreservedly enthusiastic about. This segment will compare the features exposed and architecturally available in the iPhone OS, and how it stacks up against other smartphone platforms. [Discuss]

With the iPhone 3G hardware, Apple significantly improved upon last year's original iPhone. It also extended many of the benefits of its newest model to existing users in the form of the iPhone 2.0 software update (which is also available to current iPod touch users for a nominal $10 fee). This segment presents what's new in the 2.0 software, what hasn't changed, what's missing, what's wrong, and how it compares to other smartphone software platforms on the market. [Discuss]

As detailed in the previous segment introducing its hardware features, the second generation iPhone 3G catches up with two of the largest competitive features offered by other higher-end smartphones: faster 3G network access and GPS. Here's a look at how Apple's smartphone compares in other areas, as well as how it stacks up against the original iPhone. (Comparison chart on page 3). [Discuss]

Apple has significantly improved upon last year's original iPhone while extending many of the benefits of its newest model to existing users in the form of the iPhone 2.0 software update. AppleInsider's week-long "Inside iPhone 2.0" series will present a detailed analysis and review of the iPhone 3G, the 2.0 software, the App Store, and push messaging. This first segment looks at the iPhone 3G hardware itself, what's new and different, what's bad, and what's missing. A followup segment on hardware will look how the new iPhone 3G compares to other smartphones, and whether it's worth the upgrade for existing iPhone users. [Discuss]

Roku's new dedicated box for streaming content from Netflix's Watch Instantly service offers a fairly large but somewhat eclectic variety of decent quality movies and TV programs at a very reasonable price, particularly for existing Netflix subscribers. While frequently pitted against Apple TV, the two products are actually more complementary than directly competitive. Here's how they stack up. [Discuss]

Time Capsule expands the wireless base station into a file and printer sharing solution and Time Machine target. This segment, the last of six exploring Time Capsule in depth, provides a review of its features and limitations as a wireless file sharing and backup appliance, along with comparisons to alternative products and previous AirPort models. [Discuss]

The most obvious new feature of Apple TV is its ability to rent iTunes movies, including a new selection of HD flicks that turned up on the iTunes Store in the last 48 hours. Here's a look at how Apple's rental solution prices out against rival services in terms of prolonged cost, as well as a comparison of picture quality of Apple's HD downloads when viewed side-by-side against other high-def content sources such as HD Cable and Blu-ray. [Discuss]

Apple is keeping itself busy. Along with the 10.5.2 update to Mac OS X Leopard and a new reference release of Aperture 2.0, the company quietly made available the free new "Take Two" software upgrade for Apple TV on Tuesday. Here's a look at how Apple TV compares as a living room media player and source of HDTV content, what's new in the software upgrade, and how well the device achieves its goal of bringing iTunes media to home theaters in its second try at inventing itself. [Discuss]

Prior to completing our look at the MacBook Air, we asked readers to contribute questions and concerns about the new model in "What's wrong with the MacBook Air?" The response was overwhelming, and helps underscore the fact that the Air has captured the attention of customers both with its new form factor and with its controversial design tradeoffs engineered to deliver its thin profile and light weight. [Discuss]

This year, Apple gave the iPhone and the new Classic, Touch, and Nano models improved TV out features while harmonizing the AV cables used by its entire product line. Here's a look at what's changed, a review of Apple's recently released AV Cable kits, why the invented controversy about Apple's new cables is simply misinformed, and how using an iPod for video output compares against Apple TV. [Discuss]

Amazon's new Kindle ebook reader is billed as the iPod for digital reading. Will it inspire a new era of mainstream electronic reading, just service a dedicated niche of hard core readers, or simply fizzle out into failure? We put the new device through its paces to find out. [Discuss]

In addition to the ultra-thin aluminum keyboard Apple unveiled for the iMac last month, a similarly proportioned Bluetooth wireless version was also introduced. Here's a setup and unpacking tour, paired with a look at its features, an operational mystery, and a tantalizing future potential. [Discuss]

The iPod Touch delivers an advanced new generation of the iPod using technology developed for the iPhone. However, it's not an "iPhone without the phone," and that reality is likely to upset lots of users who want it to be. For everyone else, the new Touch is an amazingly thin and sexy new media playing, web browsing, photo viewing, widescreen, multi-touch member of the iPod family that simply changes the game in handheld media players. [Discuss]

Released alongside the all new third generation iPod Nano, the new iPod Classic offers a refined all-metal case, the same new graphical interface of the Nano, and the most battery and storage capacity of any iPod model (thanks to its hard drive and hefty battery). However, as outlined in this review, the Classic may signal the end of the road for hard disc drive-based iPods, as Apple aggressively moves its entire media player lineup to Flash memory storage. [Discuss]

The new third generation Nano has the same small and ultra thin form factor as previous Nanos and similarly occupies the same sports-centric product position in the Apple's iPod line. However, it adds full video iPod features on a screen smaller than the existing 5G video iPod. How well does it deliver? [Discuss]

XtremeMac's four port HDMI switcher is designed with the Apple TV in mind, but works with any game consoles, cable and satellite set top boxes, DVD and HD disc players, and other equipment supporting the High Definition Multimedia Interface port. XtremeMac's switch is well built and value priced. [Discuss]

In this second installment of our iPhone Review Series, we compare the Apple iPhone to the Palm Treo 650 from the perspective of a former Treo 650 user, providing a look at how the two platforms compare, what the iPhone offers for current Treo users, and a few things it doesn't yet do. [Discuss]

The mid-2007 overhaul of Apple's iconic desktop is the first true evidence of a switch in Apple's design direction since the company's switch to Intel processors. But while it represents two steps forward in terms of ergonomics and performance, pro users may find the iMac taking one step backward. [Discuss]

Apple's first accessory for the iPhone is its minimalist Bluetooth headset. It's light, simple, and attractively designed, but also lacks features of comparably priced devices and fails to deliver the full potential of the iPhone. [Discuss]

Conceived as the the one phone to rule them all, Apple's iPhone represents one of the most valiant first-time efforts in the history of the mobile handset market. And while it may not trump all existing handsets with utmost precision, the iPhone presents itself as a serious contender to nearly all traditional handsets and some high-end smartphones. In this first installment of our iPhone Review Series, we compare the new Apple handset to the BlackBerry 8703e, weighing whether it is compelling enough to sway prospective buyers and fence sitters. [Discuss]

While the iPhone is primarily marketed as a mobile phone, it's also the latest generation of iPod, a handheld computer with a web browser, an organizer, a note taker and a camera. Are all of its features worth its $500-600 price, particularly in view of criticisms lodged against AT&T's service and the missing features in the device itself? [Discuss]

Apple TV offers a way for consumers to unlock the videos, music, and photos on their computer for use in the living room on TV. The new device competes against a series of other products, including the least expensive option of simply running a long video cable from the computer to the television. Whether Apple TV is worth the price will depend a lot upon on how much users like iTunes already, and how they plan to make use of the Apple TV. [Discuss]

Apple's revised AirPort Extreme, introduced at Macworld Expo in January, offers several new features and significant improvements in wireless networking speed and reliability. Whether it is worth the upgrade price to move on up to the new 802.11n wireless technology depends upon the specific needs of potential buyers. Read all about it in our 4-page in-depth review. [Discuss]

Want to watch DVDs on Apple TV? On May 8th, Roxio will introduce a new application called Crunch designed specifically to convert a variety of different video formats for use with iPods, Apple TV, and the soon to be released iPhone. Check out how Crunch stacks up against the existing video conversion alternatives in our exclusive 3-page review. [Discuss]

Apple surprised more than a few industry pundits when it snuck out a rainbow of iPod shuffle colors at the end of January. Ever since it first hit the streets in 2005, the shuffle has been seen as the runt of the litter in Apple's music player line, a cynical ploy to make the more expensive models look that much better. [Discuss]

I hadn't planned on buying a new desktop computer until the fall, but Apple's iMac update caught me off guard. Suddenly, Apple was selling a computer that seemed to offer the right balance of performance and value to meet the needs of the average "prosumer." By today's standards, I'm not a particularly demanding user. I don't edit videos in Final Cut Pro; I don't even use iMovie. I like the occasional game, but primarily I use my computer for Internet-based work. The applications that run constantly on my machine are Safari, Mail, Adium X, iTunes, NetNewsWire, Photoshop, Transmit, and TextEdit.

So we've been toying with Apple's new Mighty Mouse for about a day now. Being on the east coast this Tuesday, we were lucky enough to be one of the first to grab one of these puppies, long before Apple's retail stores opened in California. Each Mighty Mouse comes packaged in a square black and white box, which flips open like the cardboard housing of a New York style cheesecake. Compared to the AirPort Express or iPod, the Mighty Mouse packaging materials are far less enchanting.