Compiled by Charles Moore
and edited
by Dan Knight
- 2006.10.06
This Week's MacBook, PowerBook, and iBook News
All prices are in US dollars unless otherwise noted.
General Apple and Mac desktop news is covered in The Mac News Review.
News & Opinion
Reviews
Tech Tips and Info
Products and Services
Software
News & Opinion
Don't Ignore Laptop Battery Recalls
MarketWatch's Marshall Loeb says:
"Gone are the days when a computer virus was your sole PC worry.
Now a more pressing issue has notebook users in hot water - the
spate of laptop-battery recalls due to fire hazards in recent
weeks. Dell, Toshiba, IBM/Lenovo and Apple are among the computing
giants that have issued recalls affecting a total of 7 million
batteries - maybe more - around the world.
"Consumers are urged to take these recalls seriously, but 'so
far, there have been very few people who have actually taken
advantage of the recalls,' says David Milman, founder and CEO or
Rescuecom, a national computer repair and services company."
Link:
Don't Ignore Laptop-battery Recalls
Fuel Cells: Perfect Replacement for Lithium
Ion?
PC Magazine's Lance Ulanoff says:
"Lithium ion batteries' time is almost up. A moment of silence,
please.
"This is not shocking news when you consider the history of
battery technology. Many of the battery types we use today were
invented at the dawn of the technology, but not all were
commercially viable options from the start. Typically, new options
have supplanted old in the marketplace. First, there were standard
dry-cell batteries. Then came alkaline, followed by nickel cadmium
rechargeable, and, eventually, lithium ion. Lithium ion batteries,
in particular, pushed out a whole generation of NiCds, but now,
this relatively efficient technology has reached its limit. Recent
events shed a none-too-flattering light on just how hard and far
we've pushed the technology.
"Just when we thought the hysteria surrounding Dell's exploding
laptop batteries and Apple's (and Toshiba's) subsequent laptop
battery recall had subsided, Sony announced a recall of its battery
packs, and some of the aforementioned companies doubled their
recalls. Is this all an overreaction? After all, only a handful of
Dell laptop batteries ever ignited, and all that the Apple laptops
reportedly did was get awfully hot. (Come to think of it, those
sexy portables still get mighty hot.) On the other hand, the
reasons cited were disturbing: crumbling metal, contaminated
battery connections, and spontaneous combustion."
Link: Fuel Cells:
Perfect Mobile Energy?
Core 2 No Big Deal for Notebooks
SpyMac's Michael Simon reports:
"In case you didn't notice, Apple's special event at Photokina
this past Monday came and went without any mention of Core 2 Duo
processors - and that includes the system requirements for Aperture
1.5....
"Naturally, forums are filled with disgruntled posts, but in
this case, '2' might not be that much better than one:
"PC World tests indicate that you shouldn't sweat
it too much. Whereas Core 2 Duo desktops racked up dramatically
higher test scores than their Pentium D-based counterparts,
notebooks got only a small performance boost from the mobile Core 2
Duo... The biggest performance increase over laptops with
same-speed Core Duo CPUs was 7 percent - enough to shave a few
seconds off day-to-day business operations, but nothing more."
Link: Waiting for
Pro: This One Goes Past '2'
Flash-based MacBook in the Works?
The Apple Core's Jason D. O'Grady says:
"At the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in March Intel mentioned
that they plan to add flash memory support to their Santa Rosa
notebook platform which is due in the first half of 2007.
"The report echoes what I wrote in November 2005 about how
Intel's Robson technology integrates NAND flash into 'instant-on'
computers. In December 2005 I wrote about a flash-based diskless
PowerBook (well, MacBook) that could further reduce the footprint
of a notebook computer."
Link: Flash-based
MacBook in the Works?
Ultramobile MacBook or Tablet in 2007?
T3
says:
"Could a slinky Apple tablet, or UMPC [Ultra-mobile PC], inject
new life in to the portable PC market?"
"That's according to rabid Apple fansites spanning the interweb.
They all seem to think we'll get our hands on an ultra-portable
from the Mac makers of Cupertino at some point next year.
"According to popular conjecture, the fat free portable will use
flash memory to start up in a jiffy, and run a cut down version of
Apple's OS X."
Link:
Apple Prepping Micro Mac Portable?
Laptops: The New Pen and Paper
The BG News's Janeen Morgan says:
"Professors aren't fans of Macintosh computers and PCs in the
classroom - which are becoming the next modern day 'notebook.'
"But it appears laptop usage in classrooms at the University
isn't very prevalent. Seventy-two percent of students on campus
have laptop computers, according to Information Technology
Services.
"This is an increase of 19 percent from last year. Even though
there are no figures available on the number of students who type
notes while in class, computers are essential tools when it comes
to education in this modern world, according to Mike Hachtel,
assistant director for information technology in the Office of
Residence Life.
"'We don't track that information as far as to the percent of
students who actually take their laptops to class, and I can't
think of any other office on campus that would track that
information,' Hachtel said.
"Those students who do take their laptops to class say it can be
very helpful - contrary to what most professors think."
Link:
Laptops: The New Pen and Paper
Reviews
Is the Black MacBook Apple's Best Laptop
Yet?
T3 says:
"The MacBook can do pretty
much everything the MacBook Pro does but for less money.
Bargain!
"It's back, it's black and it's baaaaad! Apple's best-value
laptop ever shoehorns Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a Webcam video conferencing
software and a dual-core Intel processor into a no-flab
package.
"OK, that this costs £130 more than the next model down -
a white 'Book with an identical spec apart from a 20GB smaller hard
drive - is ridiculous. But when has buying an Apple ever been about
logic?...
"...Macs are never much cop for TV-viewing (no built-in tuner)
or gaming (er, no games), but who cares? There's nothing better
than a Mac for organising your digital life, and there's never been
a better time to buy a Mac."
Link: Apple
MacBook (Black)
Tech Tips and Info
PowerBook G4 and 30" Cinema Display
Resolutions
A new Apple Knowledge Base article says:
"When you connect an Apple Cinema Display (30-inch DVI) to a
PowerBook G4, you may find that the highest available resolution is
1280 x 800, even though the optimum resolution for the display is
2560 x 1600."
Link: PowerBook
G4 and Apple Cinema Display (30-inch DVI) Resolutions
Products and Services
Amplifier Doubles Wireless Range for
MacBooks
PR: More than double the wireless range and signal
strength available to MacBook
users - without any wires! You don't have to open the MacBook case
to run a cable from the internal AirPort card. MacBook Connect does
the wireless boosting unlike any other product available. The
Connect is available from QuickerTek and its dealers for
$199.95.
The Connect productboosts the signal between the internal AirPort card and the AirPort
and AirPort Extreme Base Station or other 802.11 wireless access
point from vendors such as Belkin, dLink, Linksys and others. This
signal boosting then doubles the wireless range of the MacBook -
and maintain fast and satisfying network speeds.
The MacBook Connect can be setup using any web browser and since
there's no wires, you don't need an engineer to install it. Of
course it can't violate your AppleCare warranty since you're not
mucking around inside the case. MacBook Connect is powered from
either a USB connection or AC adapter and can be attached to the
MacBook case or simply rest it on the desk. Connect users access
wireless networks no differently than using a standard MacBook.
Connect also works with any Mac OS X operating system.
Generating five times the standard wireless range of the stock
MacBook is made possible with a 200 milliwatt repeater. RF power is
the rating for wireless products and a stock MacBook has less than
50 milliwatts. Improving the RF rating from 30 to 200 milliwatts is
what delivers extra wireless range and speed. You can even move
your Connect from the MacBook to any other WiFi-ready computer -
Mac or Windows - and it will work similarly.
QuickerTek's MacBook Connect combines a more powerful 2dBi
external antenna with a design that does not require opening the
MacBook case. Later, when you want even more power, you can add one
of QuickerTek's higher power antennas.
An Apple AirPort Express and MacBook Connect appear to operate
similarly, however they are very different in capability and
performance. AirPort Express has a smaller data buffer which limits
wireless performance. AirPort Express can only be powered from AC
adapter which severely limits mobility. MacBook Connect accepts a
variety of external antennas through the included antenna
connector, unlike the AirPort Express where there's no access to
the RF connector. The Connect generates four to five times more RF
output and has a more sensitive receiver than the AirPort Express
so that users get greater range, doesn't require alot of extra
steps to change networks and it works on all 802.11b/g wireless
networks, Mac or Windows.
Like most QuickerTek products, MacBook Connect is backed with a
one-year warranty on parts and labor.
QuickerTek has been a recognized leading innovator of antennas
and RF products for Apple Power Macintosh G4, G5 as well as Intel
models; iMac PPC and Intel; PowerBook; iBook and MacBook computers.
QuickerTek products can be purchased online and from authorized
dealers.
Link: MacBook
Connect
Price of XT-Stand Folding Laptop Stand
Reduced
PR: GJB Enterprises' George J Baker tells me that the
collapsable XT-Stand laptop stand as of 10/01/2006 has been reduced
in price from $59.95 to $39.95.
Designed as a true Road Warrior accessory, the folded XT-Stand
can be stored and transported in its own multi-usage plastic case,
which, along with the stand, is designed to accommodate the four
most popular types of digital camera memory cards. The case can
store up to 22 of these cards (5 M5 cards, 4 XD cards, 4 CFcards,
and 9 SD cards). The box is claimed to be made out of bulletproof
material.
Software
Free Focused Scroll Trackpad Driver
PR: Free Focused Scroll is a project to implement an open
source driver for Apple PowerBooks. The project was started as an
alternative to SideTrack (which isn't free) and an improvement upon
iScroll2. It achieves its advanced features by running the trackpad
in what is called "absolute" mode. This means that the driver can
tell exactly what part of the pad your finger is touching. The
Apple driver (and iScroll2) both run the pad in "relative" mode,
and while that facilitates a simpler driver because the pad does
most of the work, it is very limiting of what you can do.
Most notably running in "absolute" mode allows the driver to
support:
- Two-finger scrolling like the new Apple laptops with the new
USB trackpads;
- Linear scroll regions that can be placed anywhere. This adds
the functionality of a scroll-wheel;
- Hotspots to bind taps in the corners of the trackpad to
alternate mouse buttons;
- Ability to remap the physical button to perform any type of
mouse click.
Free Focused Scroll should work on all Apple laptops that have
an ADB contolled trackpad, including most recent PowerBooks and
iBooks. It should not work on the latest Apple PowerBooks that have
a newer USB trackpad and support all that fancy two-finger
scrolling stuff.
The driver is entirely based on the original Darwin ADB trackpad
driver with the information for how to activate `absolute' mode
taken from the ScrollPad project. The preferences daemon and the
two-finger scrolling code is taken from the iScroll2 project as we
didn't really want to reinvent the whole wheel. At some point we
intend to remove the iScroll2 scroll code, though. We believe it is
possible to make the code much better if it utilises absolute
coordinate information instead of just relative movement.
Don't worry about installing this driver, though. The installer
will only allow it to be installed on compatible Macs and the
uninstaller is pretty foolproof. Plus it's small!
New in version 0.63:
- Updated the installer quite a bit. It now looks a lot more
pretty! The error messages should work now to tell you exactly why
it thinks it can't install.
System requirements: Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later.
System Support: PPC/Intel
Free
Link: Free Focused
Scroll
Bargain 'Books
Bargain 'Books are used unless otherwise indicated. New and
refurbished units have a one-year Apple warranty and are eligible
for AppleCare.
There are two different versions of WallStreet running at 233
MHz, the cacheless MainStreet
version and the later Series II
with a level 2 cache. It's not always possible to determine from
the vendor's listing which is being offered, so we've included
links within this paragraph to the two models. The same goes for
the PowerBook G4/667 (VGA) and
G4/667 (DVI), the titanium vs.
aluminum 15" PowerBook G4 at 1 GHz, and 1.25 GHz to 1.5 GHz 15"
PowerBooks.
PowerBook, iBook, and MacBook profiles linked in our Portable Mac Index.
All include Mac OS 9.2.2, OS X 10.2.8, and Apple's standard
iBook software bundle.
- 12" iBook G3/500, 320/10/CD, $199
- 12" iBook G3/500, 320/30/CD, AirPort, $319
- 12" iBook G3/600, 256/30/CD, AirPort, $359
- 12" iBook G3/600, 256/40/CD, AirPort, $369
- 12" iBook G3/700, 256/20/CD, AirPort, $399
- refurb 12" iBook G4/1.2 GHz, 256/30/Combo, APX, $719
- refurb 1.83 GHz MacBook, white, 512/60/Combo, $949
- refurb 2.0 GHz MacBook, white, 512/60/Combo, $1,099
- refurb 2.0 GHz MacBook, black, 512/80/Combo, $1,299
- refurb 15" 2.0 GHz MacBook Pro, 512/80/SD, glossy or matte,
$1,699
- refurb 15" 2.16 GHz MacBook Pro, 1024/100/SD, $2,149
- refurb 17" 2.16 GHz MacBook Pro, , 1024/120/SD, $2,399
- refurb 12" PowerBook G4/1.5 GHz, 512/80/SD, APX, BT 2.0,
$1,199
- refurb 15" PowerBook G4/1.67 GHz, 512/80/SD, APX, BT 2.0,
$1,349
- refurb 17" PowerBook G4/1.67 GHz, 512/100/SD, APX, BT 2.0,
$1,799
TechRestore is offering a $25 discount to 'Book Review readers
off any PowerBook or iBook in stock. Just enter the code CWM during
checkout when ordering online. The coupon code is valid from now
through 2007.12.31.
- 12" iBook G3/700, 256/30/Combo, $469.99
- 12" iBook G3/900, 256/30/Combo, $479.99
- 12" iBook G4/1 GHz, 256/30/Combo, 3-Month Warranty, 30-Day
Refund, $679.99
- 15" PowerBook G4/1.33 GHz, 512/60/Combo, 3-Month Warranty,
30-Day Refund, $1,249.99
- 12" iBook 500, 10/192/CD, $329.99
- 12" iBook 600, 15/192/CD, $399.99
- 12" iBook 700, 20/192/Combo, $469.99
- 12" iBook 800, 30/256/Combo, $399.99
- 12" iBook 900, 40/256/Combo, $489.99
- 14" iBook 800, 30/256/Combo, $479
- 14" iBook 900, 40/256/Combo, $529
- 12" iBook G3/600, 256/20/Combo, $319
- 12" iBook G3/800, 256/30/Combo, Scratch & Dent, $349
- 12" iBook G3/700, 256/20/Combo, $349
- 12" iBook G3/800, 128/30/Combo, $369
- 12" iBook G3/800, 640/30/CD, Scratches, $419
- 12" iBook G3/700, 256/20/Combo, $439
- 14" iBook G3/600, 256/20/Combo, $349
- 14" iBook G3/800, 128/40/Combo, $449
- 12" iBook G4/1 GHz, 256/30/SD, AirPort, Scratches, $649
- 12" iBook G4/1 GHz, 256/40/Combo, AP, $659
- 12" PowerBook G4/867, 256/40G/ SuperDrive, $599
- 12" PowerBook G4/1.33 GHz, 256/ 60G/ SuperDrive, AirPort, BT,
$899
- PowerBook "Kanga" G3/250, 160/5/CD, floppy, $119
- 12" iBook G3/700, 256/20/CD, $325 (add AirPort for $99)
For deals on current and discontinued 'Books, see our 13" MacBook and MacBook Pro,
MacBook Air, 13" MacBook Pro, 15" MacBook Pro, 17" MacBook Pro, 12" PowerBook G4, 15" PowerBook G4, 17" PowerBook G4, titanium PowerBook G4,
iBook G4, PowerBook G3, and iBook G3 deals.
We also track iPad,
iPhone, iPod touch, iPod classic, iPod nano, and iPod shuffle deals.
