Applelinks Tech Web Reader Laptops Edition - May 29, 2008
Intel Centrino 2 delay, Apple impacted?
Intel Faces Long Not Very Hot Summer - Centrino 2 [Montevina] Starts Looking Like A Mirage
What Drives Mac Speed? Hard Disks!
Next Generation 15-inch LCDs: 15.6 inches and 16 x 9
Traveling With a MacBook Air
Lose the Optical Drives in Laptops
My 4 Favorite PowerBooks
MacBook Pro: Sleep issues with NitroAV 2-port FireWire 800 card
Laptops for College Grads
Intel Centrino 2 delay, Apple impacted?
9to5Mac's Andy Space reports:
Apple's MacBook upgrade plans may have hit an obstacle, with news that Intel will delay the release of its new Centrino 2 platform for laptops by nearly two months.
Intel's delaying the release in order to address problems related to the chipset and the antenna used with the wireless chipset. Centrino 2 is the latest version of Intel's laptop platform and was originally scheduled to ship in June. The impact of the delay means computer makers - potentially including Apple, should it make good on long-standing rumours claiming it has chosen Centrino 2 for its next scheduled MacBook release - will now have to delay the launch of any new machines.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.9to5mac.com/macbook_delayed
Intel Faces Long Not Very Hot Summer - Centrino 2 [Montevina] Starts Looking Like A Mirage
The Register's Joe Fay reports:
Intel will leave its OEMs facing a summer drought of new mobile chips after admitting its Centrino update, Montevina, would not appear till August at the earliest.
The update to the vendor's mobile laptop chip range, also know as Centrino 2, was originally due this month, but was pushed back to late June a week or two ago. This would still have brought it in the H2 time frame it had originally been scheduled for.
However, it has emerged that a brace of problems means that the complete Centrino 2 package will now not appear till August. The vendor is having problems both with the chipset for the platform, and with the wireless platform's antennae. The platform is supposed to support both Wi-Fi and Wimax.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/28/centrino_delay/
What Drives Mac Speed? Hard Disks!
bmighty.com's Alan Zeichick says:
I had the opportunity last week to work with a new MacBook Pro, one that's about year newer than mine. Performance on the new model was much faster. Why? Because of the hard drive's speed. That's one place where you should choose carefully.
I've been writing on this topic since last September, but have become more convince than ever that drive speed is a killer feature. Think about the areas where modern desktops get their performance boosts from. The ones that get talked about the most like processor speed, aren't the most important in the real world.
For the full commentary visit here:
http://www.bmighty.com/blog/main/archives/2008/05/what_drives_mac.html
Next Generation 15-inch LCDs: 15.6 inches and 16 x 9
MacObserver's John Martellaro reports:
LCD panel makers are pushing for a slight adjustment to the 15-inch class LCD used in notebook computers. Instead of 15.4 inches and 16 x 10, the new panels scheduled for late Q2 or early Q3 will be 15.6 inches and 16 x 9, according to DigiTimes on Wednesday.
The primary advantage is the geometry and costs of the LCD displays which are cut from larger fabricated panels. The 16 x 9 aspect ratio is also the same aspect ratio as HDTV. The disadvantage for customers will be slightly fewer pixels.
For the full report visit here:
http://www.macobserver.com/article/2008/05/28.11.shtml
Traveling With a MacBook Air
PCWorld's James A. Martin reports:
If you're single and looking for love, here's a tip: Buy an Apple MacBook Air and start hanging out at Internet cafés.
Apple's 3-pound, ultra-thin portable is bound to draw people to your table. Even in some San Francisco Internet cafés I've visited, where Mac laptop devotees outnumber Windows users, the Air I was testing rarely failed to attract longing glances, followed by questions from other café denizens.....
But I'm not here to provide dating tips, of course. I'm here to tell you what it's like to use and travel with an Air.
Recently, I used the Air in San Francisco, where I live, and took the laptop on a cross-country trip to Atlanta and back. I used it in-flight, in airport departure lounges and business centers, and in Internet cafés. My goal: to determine if this much-hyped laptop is a worthy computer for business travelers. The answer? I love the Air and I think many other mobile professionals will too, though it's not for everyone.
To read more, click here:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,146157-c,macnotebooks/article.html
Lose the Optical Drives in Laptops
PCMag's Lance Ulanoff says:
No one needs an optical drive in a laptop. I know, you think you do. We all think we do, but it's an illusion.....
We don't need optical drives in laptops. The sooner we accept that, the sooner manufacturers will get the message and stop trying to satisfy our irrational longings. I think that Dell , Fujitsu, Lenovo, and other companies already know this, but they simply don't know how to deliver this message to consumers—at least in a way that will convince them. Think of the possibilities if we let go of the optical drive. PC makers can use that space for more graphics power, bigger batteries, and memory card readers, or they can simply build more portables like the MacBook Air.
Our letting go could lead to the true golden age of laptop technology
For the full commentary visit here:
http://Www.pcmag.com/Article2/0,2817,2309779,00.Asp
My 4 Favorite PowerBooks
Low End Mac's Carl Nygren says:
Now it's time to talk about the portables, or at least some of them - the best ; ) (This article would be way too long if I went over them all, so I chose to talk about my four favorites instead)
These are all PowerBooks (no Mac Portable in my collection - yet!) using 680x0 processors, with the exception of one, which uses a PowerPC chip.
PowerBook 150
PowerBook 165c
PowerBook 100
Lombard
Although I have some other PowerBooks (160, 1400, 145b), I find these to be my absolute favorites.
For the full commentary visit here:
http://lowendmac.com/myturn/0805my/nygren-powerbooks.html
MacBook Pro: Sleep issues with NitroAV 2-port FireWire 800 card
A new Apple Knowledge Base article says:
If a NitroAV 2-port Firewire 800 card is installed, MacBook Pro computers may have issues waking from sleep mode.
Products Affected
MacBook Pro, NitroAV 2-port FireWire 800 card
Resolution
If this occurs, waking the computer from sleep mode requires shutting down and restarting.
In order to avoid this issue, remove the NitroAV 2-port FireWire 800 card before allowing the computer to sleep.
To read more, click here:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1562
Laptops for College Grads
PCMag's Brittany Petersen says:
If you're headed toward a specific career—or even a slightly vague career (we know how it goes)—you may need a laptop with particular capabilities. A tough laptop would be more useful for a chemistry major dealing with toxic substances in a lab than for a graphic arts major, who might prefer a tablet. And the large hard drive and multiple video outputs that would be great for a film graduate probably wouldn't help a journalism graduate, who needs a lot of battery life and an Internet connection.
We looked at the whole gamut of laptops, from ultraportables to desktop replacements, to find those most suited to a range of careers. We took into account processor speed, screen size, portability, and all sorts of features and capabilities and came up with suggestions for 12 major-specific laptops that every recent grad (and current student) should know about. Whether you majored in economics or leisure studies, we've got the laptop for you.
You can check it out at:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2309810,00.asp
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