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Apple AirTunes Remote Imminent?

May 17, 2005

It’s either a sign of a step in the direction I suggested the other day, or much ado over nothing, but HypnoticNetwork has found a possible precursor to an upcoming remote for Apple Express AirTunes.

If a firewall is configured, the first time the iTunes 4.8 loads up, a new message pops up. It tells you “…using a firewall software prevents you from… using a remote control for AirTunes.”…

…This is obviously a slip to the next upgrade to Airport Express, which will obviously contain a remote control — as this message didn’t pop up in the previous version of iTunes. Since nothing solid exists right now as an official Apple product (really, would Apple add this message in just for one kinda functioning third party remote?) — we know what’s coming shortly. In checking our connections on the sale’s floor, Airport Expresses have been in limited availability the last few weeks — meaning an upgrade is probably around the corner.

Well, maybe. The message would also be meaningful for users of the KeySpan remote (which functions more than “kinda”, at least for me) — whether Apple would bother adding such a message for the first time in 4.8 and for a third-party product probably depends a lot on how many support calls roll into AppleCare about the issue.

If it’s more than a couple, it’s cheaper to add the error message.

Which is not to say that a genuine Apple remote isn’t very likely to show up at some point, of course. This just may or may not be a sign of it.

(via Engadget)

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Written by Chuck Lawson · Filed Under Tech 
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One Response to “Apple AirTunes Remote Imminent?”

  1. MP3 Player News on May 18th, 2005 9:53 am

    Engadget

     [ Mediacentric] …This is obviously a slip to the next upgrade to Airport Express, which will obviously contain a remote control — as this message didn’t pop up in the previous version of iTunes. Since nothing solid exi…

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