New MacBook Pros on Tuesday, June 5th

We’ve heard many reports that Apple will introduce new MacBook Pros during Steve Job’s Keynote on June 11th. Now Mac4ever.com posted the following statement, translated from French by MacRumors:

There’s some news. We’ve just ordered the new MBP ! Launch expected for next tuesday… But Apple didnt’t say anything about the specifications. We have to order blind-eyed… If i’ve got some other news, i’ll keep you informed.

Yes, we know… VERY suspicious. Why would Apple want to release a new product just one week before the big event? Well, MacRumors speculates that Apple’s Educational Back to School Program, which launches next week, might have something to do with it. But who really cares about one week anyways, right?

YouTube For Apple TV Will Use H.264 Codec

Apple Vice President of Worldwide Mac Hardware Marketing David Moody confirmed to iLounge, that YouTube is currently in the process of converting its entire video library from Flash to H.264 for use on the AppleTV.

The YouTube update will take place in stages, beginning with the free software update for Apple TV owners in mid-June. At launch, “thousands of videos designed for Apple TV” will be available, with additional thousands added weekly until the entire YouTube library becomes accessible to Apple TV users this fall. When asked what “designed for Apple TV” meant, Moody said that YouTube will soon be encoding videos in the H.264 streaming-efficient compression format preferred by Apple TV, and that all new videos submitted to YouTube as of the mid-June launch of the AppleTV update will be playable by the device.

What is all of it to us, the consumer? Probably not much, however, it would be interesting to find out if YouTube had planned H.264 encoding all along, or if this is yet another Apple Exclusive deal. Also, the iPhone will support H.264 right?

Even though no launch window has been determined, Engadget believes that AT&T’s close relationship as of late is indication enough for this service to appear rather sooner than later. No further details are provided.

Customers who previously complained about the lack of a PVR in the Apple TV will obviously welcome this news. However, it remains to be seen if Apple is truly willing to share its iTunes delivery service with another company.

Are AT&T and Apple the next Google and Apple? What’s next? AT&T CEO Randall L. Stephenson will join Apple’s Board of Directors? We’ll see…

In addition to the free software update that will enable YouTube video support on the Apple TV in June, Apple also announced the immediate availability of a built-to-order 160GB hard drive option for the device in their Press Release.

Apple TV with a 160GB hard drive will be available tomorrow for a suggested retail price of $399 (US). The YouTube feature for Apple TV will be available as a free software update in mid-June.

The current Apple TV will continue to sell at $299 for the 40GB model.

Mac Desktops

When asked if the name change from Apple Computers Inc. to Apple Inc. is the company’s gradual exit out of the computer business, Steve Jobs denied the rumor. “If you come to WWDC we’re rolling out our new version of OSX — massive investments in desktops. You’ll love it.”

iPhone Runs OSX

Mossberg goes on to inquire about the iPhone. “It doesn’t REALLY have the whole OS X operating system on there…” the tech guru teased. “The answer is: yes it does!” Job’s retorted. “The entire Mac OS is gigs, a lot is data. Take out the data — every desktop pattern, sound sample — if you look at Safari it’s not that big. It’s REAL Safari, REAL OS X. We put a different user interface on it to work with a multi-touch screen… it’s an amazing amount of software.”

YouTube on AppleTV

In addition, Steve Jobs went on to announce a cool new feature for the AppleTV after some prodding by Mossberg. “What we’re going to do today is introduce something really cool. People want to buy a lot of video… wouldn’t it be great if you could see YouTube on your Apple TV… it’s available as a free software upgrade available in a few weeks. Normally I wouldn’t announce it early, but hey, it’s D.” [Edit: A Demo is available at the Apple website.]

The Interview in it’s entirety is available as a transcript over at Engadget. Later tonight, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates will meet for their once in a lifetime interview together on one stage. Stay tuned for more details.

Now let me part with my favorite ’snarky’ Steve Jobs Quote of the day:

Mossberg: How many copies of iTunes are out there?

Jobs: 300m or more.

Almost all are on Windows computers?

Statistically yes.

Statistically? In reality? In this dimension? So that makes you an enormous Windows software developer.

It’s like giving a glass of ice water to somebody in hell!

The summer launch of the HD channel around July will be a test for a better lineup set to be released in September. Some of the shows that will be featured on ABC online during the summer in HD are Lost, Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy, and Ugly Betty.

It is fair to assume, that ABC’s entrance into the HD streaming market will finally make way for iTunes HD content to follow. The Apple TV, which enables users to watch iTunes content on their living room TV sets already supports HD resolutions up to 720p, but has remained largely unused, due to the virtually nonexistent HD content on the iTunes Video Store. Steve Job’s Apple TV had to stomach some negative reviews due to this fact, and therefore, it would be a blessing for the company to finally offer a high quality HD lineup for their infant device.

ABC Television is owned by the Walt Disney Company, of which Steve Jobs is currently the largest shareholder. With ABC taking the first step to offer some of their shows in High Definition it shouldn’t be too long now until we see some of that goodness showing up on iTunes as well.

So, AppleTV users rejoice, and get ready for your fair share of Bree Vandecamp’s Close-Up in 720p.