FutureFive New Zealand - Consumer technology news & reviews from the future
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News: Apple fined, iOS apps on Apple TV, Mac version of The Old Republic important, and more!
Tue, 3rd Jan 2012
FYI, this story is more than a year old

Apple has been fined $1.2 million for misleading Italian consumers on the warranty period of their products, says Ars Technica.

There's a law in Italy that guarantees consumers a two-year warranty period on all products they purchase — including Apple products — and apparently, Apple hasn't been clear enough about that with Italian Apple enthusiasts, leading to two fines; one for violating the consumer law by only providing a standard one-year warranty period, and another for leading consumers to believe they needed to purchase an AppleCare Protection Plan in order to extend their warranty.

Some intrepid developers have successfully ported iOS apps to the Apple TV, paving the way for more progress in this area. It's taken a little work, but developers Steve Troughton-Smith and a developer going by the name of TheMudkip have re-written parts of the Apple TV software in order to allow iOS apps to be run on the platform. It's by no means a complete implementation, but is definitely a step in the right direction for iOS apps on the Apple TV.

Star Wars: The Old Republic is the new MMO on the block that is seeing a whole new generation of gamers get into a sprawling multiplayer world, but the only thing holding it back is the fact that it's only available on PC. However, Bioware agree that a Mac version is important — but I wouldn't hold your breath for a Mac version.

An app that is available on both Mac and PC is Fireplace, an app that can only be described as "a controlled pixel art fireplace for your computer".