Thursday, October 29, 2009, 04:00 pm

iTunes 9.0.2 connects with Apple TV 3.0, kills Palm Pre sync

By AppleInsider Staff

On the heels of the Apple TV 3.0 software update Thursday, Apple also updated iTunes to version 9.0.2, bringing compatibility with the updated set top box and again nixing sync capabilities with the Palm Pre.

With the latest update, iTunes will be able to communicate with the new Apple TV 3.0 software update for both Windows and Mac users.

The new iTunes update also adds an option for a dark background for Grid View, and improves support for accessibility. The 88.5MB update is available via Software Update or direct from Apple. It requires Mac OS X 10.4.11 or later, Windows Vista 64, Windows XP SP 2 or later, and Windows 7.

Continuing the back-and-forth battle between Palm and Apple, the latest update also reportedly disables the ability of the Pre to sync with iTunes, according to Precentral.net. With the latest update, iTunes will allegedly launch when a Pre is connected to a computer via USB, but the handset does not show up as a device in the sidebar.

Apple and Palm have battled for months in a cat and mouse game, as Palm has updated its phones to trick iTunes into syncing music, and Apple has updated iTunes to disable it. Both have released numerous updates since the Palm Pre was released this summer.

Palm believes that Apple's prevention of non-sanctioned devices from communicating with its iTunes media software is unfair, and it appealed to the USB Implementers Forum in an effort to have the iPhone maker's practices reversed. But the USB-IF instead sided with Apple in September, noting that iTunes' method of identifying Apple devices was within the consortium's rules.

The USB-IF also reprimanded Palm for violating the group's rules by improperly using Apple's USB vendor ID to have iTunes recognize the Pre as an iPod.

"Under the Policy, Palm may only use the single Vendor ID issued to Palm for Palm’s usage," the USB-IF said in a letter to Palm. "Usage of any other company’s Vendor ID is specifically precluded. Palm’s expressed intent to use Apple’s VID appears to violate the attached policy."