Due to the fact that I’m home sick (though this should be the last day of that…), I actually have the rare opportunity of being home during an Apple Event. This doesn’t mean much, but it does mean that I’ll be able to keep this blog post lively updated with new information as I read it elsewhere, making for a neater kind of coverage from my blog than ever before of these Apple Events. Below the line is going to be the quick notes, newest always on top! Enjoy, Alex.

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iTunes 8 available as standalone download from iTunes website.

Supports iTunes 8.x.

A Front Row Update (v2.1.6) is out.

A QuickTime Update (v7.5.5) just showed up.

New products clearly marked at the top.

Apple Online Stores back on-line.

iTunes backups of iPhones and iPods much faster.

Free for all 2.x users, $9.95 for 1.x users.

Firmware 2.1 for iPhone and iPod Touch.

About 700 games on App Store, half are Sudoku.

App Store in 62 countries.

App Store users have downloaded 100 million apps.

Genius playlist built-in (software?).

Nike+ built-in to Touch (software?).

Integrated volume controls.

Built-in speaker.

Same display, thinner.

Made from polished steel.

Same shape as 3G.

New Touch.

Headphones cost $79.00 available next month.

New headphones have thing on cable, double-click to go to next song, single-click pause, tripple-click previous song.

Starts at $149.00.

Shake to shuffle.

Voice recording feature when microphone is detected.

Accelerometer, turn sideways to see full-sized album art, photos in landscape mode, video.

4th Generation Nano: Thinnest ever, oval-shaped.

No more 160 GB model

New iPod Classic, 120 GB for $249.00.

iTunes 8 available later today for free.

Graphical browsing of albums.

Genius, technology to sugest new songs. 25, 50, 75, or 100 recommendations.

iTunes 8, both SD and HD content on the Mac as well as Apple TV.

NBC shows back on the iTunes Store.

It has now been noticed by others and double-checked by me that the Online Apple Stores worldwide are offline.