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Apple's Ebay Store Offers Better Refurb iPad And MacBook Prices Than apple.com
Apple's Secret Affair With eBay
Apple Certified Refurbished Products From eBay Outlet Worth Consideration
Apple Aces LAPTOP Mag's 2013 Best And Worst Notebook Brands Survey - Again
MacBook Pro Reigns Supreme In PCMag's 2013 Top 10 Best Laptops Ratings
Windows 8 No Better Than Vista, Says Samsung Chip Boss
The $4.99 Utility That Might Just Have Saved Windows 8
Fan Speed Issue Crops Up In Early 2013 Retina MacBook Pros Succumbs To Fan Speed Issue
Mid-2011 13-inch MacBook Pro Cable Failure Weakness Identified
Seagate Unleashes Storage for Creativity at SXSW 2013
Device Convergence, Next Generation Displays are Featured Topics during Taiwan FPD Conference
Apple's Ebay Store Offers Better Refurb iPad And MacBook Prices Than apple.com
DigitalTrends' Gloria Sin notes that Apple rarely ever discounts its products, but there are deals to be had if you don't mind buying refurbishd and from Apple's unofficial eBay store, with some items listed on eBay now cheaper than refurbished units on Apple's own online store.
A caveat: MS. Sin notes that Apple doesn't charge online customers sales taxes, but eBay does for residents of Washington DC, Indiana, Nevada, New Jersey, Texas, and California.
For the full report visit here:
http://goo.gl/Vqmyu
Apple's Secret Affair With eBay
Motley Fool's Evan Niu says good luck getting Apple to admit it, but the Mac maker is having a secret affair with eBay.
Niu notes that last October, a mysterious new shop got set up on eBay's auction site, simply under the username "refurbished_outlet," selling Apple Certified Refurbished (ACR) products at "Buy It Now" pricing.
Niu suggests that there's a very high likelihood that Apple directly operates this refurbished outlet, which he says has conducted nearly 11,000 transactions in less than six months. All ACR items carry the same terms as refurbished products sold directly by Apple, such as a one-year warranty and thorough physical reconditioning. He notes it's highly doubtful that anyone other than Apple could get their hands on this sheer quantity of gear to shift, and that the eBay outlet provides Apple with a backend route to clear out refurbished inventory.
For the full report visit here:
http://goo.gl/DcZ3R
Apple Certified Refurbished Products From eBay Outlet Worth Consideration
The likelihood that Apple is running its own eBay store for Apple Certified Refurbished products is great news for cost-conscious Apple hardware fans. Your editor's last two anchor Mac laptops have been ACR units, and both have been excellent. My current main Mac - a late 2008 aluminum MacBook - is now four years old and the best Mac I've owned in 21 year on the Mac platform.
All Apple ACR products feature:
• Full one-year warranty (upgradable to three years of AppleCare coverage)
• Returned to like-new condition
• iPads/iPods include a new battery
• Received complete burn-in testing
• Original OS re-installed
• Repackaged with manual and cable
• Final quality inspection by Apple
You can check it out at:
http://stores.ebay.com/Refurbished-Outlet
Apple Aces LAPTOP Mag's 2013 Best And Worst Notebook Brands Survey - Again
LAPTOP Mag has posted results of its Best And Worst Notebook Brands Survey for 2013, with Apple king of the hill for the fourth year in a row, taking top honors in five of eight evaluation categories, including reviews, design, keyboards and touchpads, display and audio, and software, as well as taking second place in the tech support category - trailing only in not having an entry in the low-cost laptop space. LAPTOP's editors think Apple could use a notebook under $800 given that the average laptop price is around $500 and even cheaper Chromebooks are taking off, but affirm that Apple laptops continue to epitomize the best of the best.
They note that Apple simply offers the best keyboard and trackpad experience around, even beating out perennial favorite of Lenovo this year. Apple's 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pros feature the highest resolution displays available in a notebook, with 226 and 217 PPI, respectively, and unlike Windows machines that have full HD resolutions, Apple didn't make desktop icons so small you need a magnifying glass to discern them.
Lenovo finished in second-place finish for the third year running, taking the top spot for value and selection as well as innovation.
Rounding out the top three ASUS leap-frogged from last years fifth-place finish to third, having made major strides in keyboards and touchpads this year while sharing the top spot in innovation with Lenovo.
For the full reports visit here:
http://goo.gl/J9L1l
and here:
http://goo.gl/r9shW
MacBook Pro Reigns Supreme In PCMag's 2013 Top 10 Best Laptops Ratings
PCMag's Laarni Almendrala Ragaza says that with the advent of Windows 8, figuring out what laptop to buy is more complex than ever, so the editors hive winnowed down your options to the 10 best laptops available today.
Ragaza suggests that if you're on a limited budget, you'll want to consider anything under $500 that offers at least a Core i3 CPU and 4GB of memory, but if you can afford it, Apple's new 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro takes top spot.
PCMag editor Joel Santo Domingo says if you absolutely must have a display with greater-than-HD resolution and you need to take that show on the road, you want Apple's MacBook Pro with Retina display, which is thinner than the old-school 13-inch MacBook Pro but still feels sturdy in your hand. He notes that the new MacBook Pro uses flash storage instead of a spinning hard drive so the system boots up and launches apps much more quickly, enables Apple's Power Nap feature that updates social media, email, contacts, and location tracking over Wi-Fi even while the laptop is asleep, and the review model's 256GB of flash storage is quite usable even for users who need to run Windows through Boot Camp or other virtual environments like Parallels Desktop. You can forgo half the storage (128GB) to save $300, or up the total to 512GB (for $500) or 768GB (for $1,000). You can also use the built-in SDXC card slot for extra storage.
The Top Ten Laptops For 2013 are:
• Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch (Retina Display)
• Asus VivoBook S400CA-UH51
• Asus Zenbook Prime Touch UX31A-BHI5T
• Dell Latitude 10
• Dell Latitude 6430u
• Dell XPS 10
• Lenovo ThinkPad X230t
• Microsoft Surface Windows 8 Pro
• Origin EON17-SLX
• Toshiba Portege R935-P322
For the full reports visit here:
http://goo.gl/0xtPp
and here
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2411425,00.asp
Windows 8 No Better Than Vista, Says Samsung Chip Boss
AllThingD's John Paczkowski reports that president of Samsung's memory chip division Jun Dong-soo says he doesn't expect the PC industry to rebound anytime soon, and if and when it does, the rebound won't be driven by Windows 8, which Mr, Jun declares to be no better than the reviled Windows Vista platform, also noting that Microsoft's Windows Surface tablet is experiencing lackluster demand and vigorous pitches by Intel and MS for thinner ultra-books simply failed, which he attributes to the less-competitive Windows platform.
For the full report visit here:
http://goo.gl/shmyw
The $4.99 Utility That Might Just Have Saved Windows 8
The Register's Andrew Orlowski reports that Stardock has provided Microsoft with an elegant way to escape its Windows 8 dilemma, noting that Redmond foisted its new and radical touchscreen-driven user interface on a desktop PC market that was already in a once-in-a-generation slump - and both consumer sales and enterprise interest have been dire, with the new operating system proving too radical a departure from the tried-and-true for enterprises with limited training budgets, and most consumers put off by the thought of having to learn a new OS.
Stardock's solution is a utility that allows "Modern Style" apps to be run in a traditional Windows window, resized and pinned to the Windows 8 task bar, making them easier to manage and not requiring the user to adjust to a strange, differently scaled environment and offers a face-saving retreat for Microsoft for just $4.99, with a free trial.
For the full report visit here:
http://goo.gl/TG3F6
Fan Speed Issue Crops Up In Early 2013 Retina MacBook Pros Succumbs To Fan Speed Issue
Geek.com's James Plafke warns early 2013 Retina MacBook Pro owners that you might have a fan speed issue with your shiny new laptop. Plafke notes that according to YouTube user Oyinko, as well as a host of people posting on official Apple support forums, the fan in these MacBook Pro model can develop a glitch causing its coolong fan to ramp up its speed to a potentially problematical or even damaging level regardless of the unit's temperature.
It's speculated that the problem is atributable to Apple swittching the SSD from a Samsung to a Sandisk, and the new Sandisk creates a conflict in fan management - possibly curable with a SMC update from Apple.
For the full report visit here:
http://goo.gl/MRpH0
Mid-2011 13-inch MacBook Pro Cable Failure Weakness Identified
Macworld's Chris Barylick reports that some mid-2011 revision 13-inch MacBook Pro notebooks apparently were made with a bad batch of hard drive cables that failed after about a year.
Barylick cites diagnostic and repair procedures.
[Editor's note: maybe better to avoid this model if you're shopping Apple Certified Refurbished or used. Ed.]
You can check it out at:
http://goo.gl/tnP4D
Seagate Unleashes Storage for Creativity at SXSW 2013
For the 7th consecutive year, Seagate Technology plc will be all over the annual South by Southwest Interactive, Gaming, Music and Film festival (SXSW). Storage is the founding technology that has enabled so many innovative advancements in entertainment, business and beyond, where creative minds of all sorts find Seagate at the heart of so many of their projects.
At the Tradeshow:
From Sunday, March 10th to Wednesday, March 13th, Seagate will demonstrate the company's award winning products for Video, Photos and Music. Come by the Seagate booth at the Austin Convention Center (#1307, #1309, #1406 and #1408). On Tuesday, March 12 at 4:00 pm make sure to come by the booth for the block party. Have a snack and a cold beverage on the house and check out these Seagate Wireless Plus, Seagate Central and Seagate Backup Plus in action.
The following is a list of products to be showcased during the festival:
• Seagate Wireless Plus, an industry first, provides mobile storage for smart phones and tablets without wires or the web.
• Seagate Central is the first networked home storage solution to feature a Smart TV app for enjoyment of files from the big screen while delivering automated backup for the entire home and access to movies, music and photos from networked devices, as well as remote access.
• Seagate Backup Plus external storage provides simplicity and elegance in a direct attached backup solution, which enables one-click backup of ones system and automated backup of Facebook and Flickr albums.
House of Vans at the Mohawk:
Seagate is proud to join Vans as the streaming sponsor for the House of Vans at the Mohawk. Four days of non-stop live music will be streamed live from Vans.com powered by Seagate. With a line-up of legendary acts such as The Specials and Iggy and the Stooges, the House of Vans at the Mohawk is sure to be one of the must-see events during the week at one of Austins most beloved and eclectic music venues the Mohawk at 912 Red River St. (at 10th Ave.). See the complete lineup at:
http://vans.com/sxsw
Win Some Epic Gear:
To commemorate the week of technologys convergence with the arts, Seagate is hosting the House of Vans Sweepstakes, where you could win a mobile music production package an iPad, a Seagate Wireless Plus, an Apogee Electronics MiC iPad microphone, and ten music production Apps along with the complete House of Vans SXSW VIP Pack which includes a pair of custom Vans!
The sweepstakes runs through March 18, 2013. To enter, visit Facebook.com/SeagateCreative and click the House of Vans Sweepstakes Tab, or enter here: Seagate House of Vans Facebook Contest.
For more information, visit:
http://www.seagate.com
Device Convergence, Next Generation Displays are Featured Topics during Taiwan FPD Conference
As smart devices continue to become immersed in our lives, and consumers demand simplification of an increasingly device-centric lifestyle, NPD DisplaySearch has announced that device convergence will be the focus of the keynote addresses during the Taiwan FPD Conference (http://goo.gl/b4ERu) on March 28 29, 2013 at the Taipei International Convention Center.
Kicking off the first day of the conference, the keynotes will be given in four parts. David Hsieh, Vice President of NPD DisplaySearch will give the first keynote, a general overview of the FPD industry in 2013 with an emphasis on opportunities and challenges. Michael Tsai, the VP and GM of AUOs Video Solutions Business Group will give the second, presenting a global TV market outlook from a panel makers perspective. Alan Eusden, the Chairman and President of Corning Display Technologies Taiwan will present the third keynote on the integral role glass plays in the development of next-generation displays. Finally, Oshima Hiroyuki, Deputy Chief Technology Officer for Japan Display Incorporation (JDI), will address the future of mobile display technology.
The conference will also address product strategy, the supply chain matrix, and the evolution of applications. According to NPD DisplaySearch, the FPD industry's market drivers include new technologies in touch and materials; new opportunities such as larger panel size lineups and higher cutting efficiencies; and the fast growing AMOLED and touch panel application markets.
"In a multi-screen era, content, connectivity, and usage will be key differentiators that dictate form factors and product design, drive how consumers interact with products, and influence the entire value chain," says David Hsieh(http://goo.gl/yVPBk), Vice President of NPD DisplaySearch. Conference presenters will cover a wide array of smart display topics, from TVs, tablets, and notebooks to the technologies and system designs needed to enable smart displays. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the status and direction of this segment.
The Taiwan FPD Conference (http://goo.gl/91aa7) will feature an impressive line-up of speakers representing key participants in the FPD industry supply chain, including LCD panel makers, TV brands, component suppliers, mobile PC and desktop monitor companies, OEMs, touch panel suppliers, and LED backlight and lighting experts. In addition to expert analysis from NPD DisplaySearch, there will be presentations by AMS, ARM, AUO, Corning Display Technologies, Henkel, JDI, KDX, Merck, Microsoft, Panasonic LCD, ST, and Taitra.
To view the full agenda and register for the Taiwan FPD Conference (http://goo.gl/fGKIo) visit:
http://www.displaysearch.com/taiwanfpd").
For more information, visit:
http://www.displaysearch.com
Read the blog at:
http://www.displaysearchblog.com
Follow on Twitter at:
http://twitter.com/DisplaySearch
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