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 Apple today announced a significant update to .Mac, the membership-based online service with the power of the Internet to facilitate group communication and make sharing, storing and protecting digital photos and videos easier than ever.
New features include: .Mac Groups, a service that helps members communicate, coordinate schedules and stay in sync with private groups of friends or colleagues; an updated version of .Mac Backup software that makes it easy for members to archive their iLife and other important files; a four-fold increase in combined iDisk and email storage to 1GB for individuals and 2GB for families; and full French and German localization.
".Mac provides the simple and elegant online experience consumers
expect from Apple," said Rob Schoeben, Apple's vice president of
Applications Marketing. "By tapping into the power of the Internet from
within the applications they use the most, .Mac members around the
globe have discovered a better way to experience the Internet."
New .Mac features include:
.Mac Groups: .Mac members can now easily create private, ad-free online
communities that make it easy for family, friends and private groups to
communicate, coordinate and share digital media. With .Mac Groups,
members can send emails to the entire group using a single address;
post files, pictures and movies with a common group iDisk; publish
group web pages and post links to other sites; and keep up-to-date with
the latest group events with a shared iCal calendar.
Backup 3: .Mac Backup has been redesigned from the ground up resulting
in easier setup, quicker backups and the ability to seamlessly automate
the process so users don't have to remember to run a backup. New
features include the ability to automatically back up iLife content,
Home folder, iTunes purchased music, and other Mac essentials.
Built-in Mac OS X "Tiger" Spotlight search capabilities make it easy
to select specific files to backup, while incremental backups help to
save time and media costs.
Increased Online Storage: .Mac members now have four times more online
storage space than before to host their email messages, documents and
digital media files. Storage for individual members has increased to
1GB of combined email and iDisk space, .Mac Family Pack customers now
receive 2GB of combined storage. Members can utilize their storage any
way they choose dedicating more or less storage space to email or their
iDisk. Individuals or Family Pack members can optionally purchase an
additional 1GB of storage for $49.95 (US) annually.
French and German Localization: In addition to English and Japanese,
localized versions of the .Mac website are now available in French and
German. In addition to these new features, other .Mac services include:
HomePage, for simple yet attractive personal web sites with just a few
clicks; iDisk, a virtual hard drive in the sky for providing access to
files from anywhere at any time; .Mac Sync, which keeps Safari
bookmarks, iCal calendars, Address Book information, keychains
(passwords), and Mac OS X Mail preferences up-to-date across multiple
Macs and available via web browser when users are away from their Mac;
.Mac Mail, a world-class, ad-free email service; and Learning Center,
featuring tutorials for popular Apple software applications.
Enhancements to .Mac take online communication and sharing to the next
level by opening up HomePage, iDisk, Mail and iCal to groups of
friends, colleagues and acquaintances, providing members with more
online storage space to house their increasingly growing digital media
assets, all while making the process of backing up their valuable
memories easier than ever.
Pricing & Availability
.Mac is available as a subscription-based service for $99.95 (US) per
year for individuals and $179.95 (US) for a Family Pack which includes
one master account and five sub accounts. Customers save $30 (US) on
either the individual subscription or the Family Pack when purchased
with a new Macintosh (terms apply) and anyone can sign up for a free,
60-day .Mac trial from www.mac.com.
Recommended browsers include Safari 1.2 or later or Firefox 1.0.1 or
later (Macintosh) and Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or later or
Firefox 1.0.1 or later (Windows). Recommended systems include Mac OS X
v10.3.9 or Mac OS X v10.4.2 or later with a minimum of 128MB of RAM.
Internet access requires a compatible ISP; fees may apply. Broadband
Internet connection is recommended for Mac and Windows users.
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