Apple Expo yields .Mac update, but no new Macs

The .Mac update combines the Macintosh experience with the power of the Internet to facilitate group communication and make sharing, storing and protecting digital photos and videos even easier.

The new version includes features such as .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."

.Mac is available as a subscription-based service for $100 per year for individuals and $180 for a Family Pack which includes one master account and five sub accounts.

Both the .Mac update and Backup 3.0 software had been predicted in previous reports.