Compiled by Charles Moore
and edited by
Dan Knight
- 2006.12.22
It's been a slow week for Mac news - and next week will be even
slower. Low End Mac will be closed between Christmas and New Year's
Day. Publication will resume on Tuesday, January 3, 2007.
The biggest news is that Apple is gaining Mac users in droves.
Apple sold a record 4.7 million Macs in 2005, is on target to sell
7.7 million (a 60% gain!) in 2006, and is being projected to sell 9
million in 2007. It's hard to believe that ten years ago everyone
was wondering if Apple was even going to survive!
See you in 2007! Dan Knight, publisher, Low End Mac
PowerBook, iBook, MacBook, and other portable computing is
covered in The 'Book Review.
All prices are in US dollars unless otherwise noted.
News & Opinion
Products
Software
iPod
News & Opinion
9 Million Macs in 2007?
moldova.org reports:
"In January, the Mac will be exactly 24 years old. Named after
the McIntosh Apple, the original Macintosh computer was released on
January 24, 1984....
"Last week, Gene Munster from PiperJaffray said he expects that
Apple will keep growing in 2007 due to improved availability of
Macs, the expanding customers footprint and, of course, the new
ability of Mac OS X to run Windows on Apple computers."
"If Apple keeps growing this way and achieves an average of 3.5
percent for the next year, the sales will go up to 9.01 million
units...."
Editor's note: According to Jeremy Reimer's Personal Computer
Market Share, Apple sold 4.7 million Macs in 2005, accounting
for 2.4% of the worldwide personal computer market. Apple is
expected to sell 7.7 million Macs in 2006, which is roughly 3% of
the world market. dk
Link: 9 Million Macs in
2007?
Frustrated Windows Users Eye the Mac
The Houston Chronicle's Dwight Silverman says:
"If you talk to a hard-core techie who's a user of the Linux
operating system or one of the zealots who worship Apple's
Macintosh, you won't hear many nice things said about
Microsoft.
"For many of these folks, Microsoft is the enemy, an evil
monopolist, the Dark Side of the Force, the Borg collective. An
example: Slashdot, the Linux advocacy and tech news site, has a
feature called 'Ask Slashdot,' and recently ran an item headlined
'Why Does Everyone Hate Microsoft?'
"The answers were alternately predictable and thoughtful....
"These responses, of course, are from geeks. For the most part,
the average user doesn't even think about Microsoft - he or she
just fires up the PC and gets to work or play.
"But that may be changing.
"Increasingly, I'm hearing real discontent from the masses about
Windows, and it doesn't have much to do monopolistic practices,
ripping off ideas or a lack of innovation.
"It's malware...."
Link: Frustrated
Windows Users Eye Apple's Mac
Products
QuikDrive USB Flash Drive
PR: QuikDrive by US Modular is a portable flash storage
drive which allows you to easily store and transfer files via the
USB port on any computer. QuikDrive is proudly assembled and
packaged in the USA, and is Windows and Mac compatible.
Imagine
having your hard drive from your personal computer with you on the
go, in the palm of your hand. You could store, transfer, and carry
your data with you wherever you go!
Once plugged into the USB port, US Modular's QuikDrive is
detected by any computer and recognized as a removable disk. You
may start saving/transferring your business or personal data just
like your computer's own hard drive. No external power supply is
needed.
Capacities: 64 MB, 128 MB, 256 MB, 512 MB, 1 GB, and 2 GB
Features:
- Hot Plug and Play
- Compact size and light weight
- Supports USB 1.1 and 2.0
- LED indicates power and busy
- Full compliance with Universal Serial Bus Specification
v2.0
- USB 2.0 data transfer rate up to 480 Mbps at "High Speed" (USB
2.0 is 40x faster than 12 Mbps USB 1.1)
- Speed: Read 8 Mbps, Write 6.4 Mbps (max)
- USB self-powered, no external power required
- Plug it into any USB port, it looks and functions just like
another hard drive
- No driver needed for Windows ME/2000/XP (needs driver for
98/98SE), Linux kernel version 2.4.10 or above, Mac OS 9.x
- More than 10 years data retention
- Lifetime Warranty
Specifications:
- Size: 0.63" x 1.02" x 3.42" (16mm X 26mm X 87mm)
- Weight: 0.67 oz (19g)
- Operating Temperatures: 0° C to 50° C
- Storage Temperatures: - 20° C to 80° C
- Storage Humidity: 5% ~ 85%
- Sequential read/write: 915 KB / 613 KB
- Vibration resistance: 15G
- Shock Resistant: more than 1000G
No driver is required for Windows XP/ME/2000, Mac OS 9.0, and
Linux 2.4.2 or Later.
Link: QuikDrive USB
Flash Drive
Iomega Expands Capacity of 2 Mac Storage
Products
PR: Iomega Corporation has announced new versions of two
of its versatile storage products: the high-end Iomega UltraMax
Desktop Hard Drive with expanded capacity to a towering 1 TB,
and a new stylishly black small form-factor Iomega dual interface
Portable Hard Drive with 120 GB of storage capacity.
Iomega UltraMax Desktop Hard Drive
Designed for Mac OS X users, Iomega's popular UltraMax Desktop
Hard Drives deliver secure, high-capacity storage in a rugged
enclosure that complements the Apple Mac Pro and Power Mac series
of computers. With RAID 1 and a built-in FireWire and Hi-Speed USB
(USB 2.0) hub for future expansion, Iomega's UltraMax Drives excel
in digital content creation, graphic design, and other
disk-intensive tasks.
"Apple's Mac Pro is a thoroughbred personal computer that needs
an external storage system that can keep pace," said Peter Wharton,
Vice President of Marketing, Iomega Corporation. "With FireWire
800, the Mac HFS+ file system, and RAID 1 performance, Iomega's new
UltraMax drive has incredible power right out of the box, and its
interface choices and RAID options will enhance your workflow
whether you're connecting it to Mac Pro, an iMac, or a
MacBook."
In addition to the default mode of RAID 0, which stripes data
across the UltraMax drive's two 7200-RPM SATA hard drives, other
drive settings include RAID 1, 'spanned' (both hard drives are
treated as a single volume), and 'simple' (each hard drive is
treated as its own drive letter). For ease of use, the new Iomega
UltraMax Desktop Hard Drive has a manual RAID switch, allowing the
user to turn off the RAID configuration and use the drive
configured as JBOD.
The Iomega UltraMax Hard Drive is preformatted with Apple's HFS+
file system for Mac OS X users. HFS+ makes more efficient use of
large hard drives and supports journaling under Mac OS X, which
makes it easier to recover data in case of a problem.
The stackable UltraMax drive enclosure complements the new Mac
Pro series of Apple computers as well as the older Power Mac
series. The enclosure is metallic grey with a mesh grill, an echo
of the Mac Pro computer's industrial design. Its three interfaces
include FireWire 800, FireWire 400, and Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0), and
it provides users with a three-port Hi-Speed USB hub for easy
expansion. Cables for FireWire 800, FireWire 400, and USB 2.0
operation are included with the drive.
Iomega Black Portable Hard Drive
Fashionably thin at just 0.5 inches (12.7 mm) and an incredibly
light 5.8 oz.(163 g), the Iomega Black Portable Hard Drive 120 GB
Hi-Speed USB 2.0/FireWire is packed with ideal features for mobile
users. It is the perfect storage companion for your Mac notebook,
including host-powered operation and Drop Shock technology. The
drive's 2.5" hard drive delivers fast 5400 RPM performance and
comes with both FireWire 400 (1394a) and USB 2.0 cables.
"Host-powered products are great for mobile users because they
eliminate the need to bring along a power adapter and find a wall
outlet for it," said Wharton. "The Iomega Black Portable Hard Drive
gets all the power it needs from the USB or FireWire cable. Choice
of connectivity combined with 120 gigabytes and a stylish little
package make the new Iomega Black Portable Hard Drive an ideal
portable hard drive for road warriors and others that need more
freedom and versatility in their storage products."
Other travel-friendly features include the use of
industry-leading EMC Retrospect Express backup and disaster
recovery software for improved data security. In addition, Iomega's
Drop Shock technology provides enhanced durability by helping
protect both the drive and its data from unexpected bumps and
jolts.
A single Iomega 120 GB Dual Interface Black Portable Hard Drive
can hold up to 480,000 photos, 2,220 hours of music, or 180 hours
of video***.
Included Software
For secure storage and worry-free backup and disaster recovery,
Iomega also includes EMC Retrospect Express software with the new
UltraMax Drive and the new Black Portable Hard Drive. Retrospect
Express delivers automated, reliable, cost-effective protection for
Windows and Mac users. Its award-winning design makes it easy to
set up and manage highly efficient backups on any personal
computer, greatly simplifying disaster recovery. Users can back up
open files, verify backup integrity during the backup, have
scheduled backups proceed even without logging in, and recover
individual files or a complete system to any point in time.
Operating System Compatibility
The Iomega UltraMax Desktop Hard Drive 1 TB Triple
Interface is compatible with Mac OS X 10.1 or above on Apple
computers with an Intel processor or G3 processor or higher. The
UltraMax Drive can be reformatted to NTFS or FAT32 for use with a
PC (instructions included), making it compatible with Microsoft
Windows 2000, Windows XP Home and XP Professional editions, as well
as the upcoming Windows Vista. FAT32 format allows cross-platform
use.
The Iomega Portable Hard Drive 120 GB Hi-Speed USB 2.0/FireWire
is compatible with Mac OS X 10.1 or higher, as well as Windows 2000
Professional/XP Home/XP Professional and the upcoming Windows
Vista.
Price and Availability
The Iomega UltraMax Desktop Hard Drive 1 TB FireWire
800/FireWire 400/USB 2.0 with Hub is available now for $499.95. The
Iomega Portable Hard Drive 120 GB Hi-Speed USB 2.0/FireWire is
available for $189.95. Both products are currently available
worldwide.
Link: Iomega
Iomega Increases Capacity of MiniMax Drive for
Mac mini
PR: Iomega Corporation has enhanced its external storage
solution for Apple's Mac mini computers by doubling the capacity of
the Iomega MiniMax Desktop Hard Drive USB 2.0/FireWire from 250 GB
to 500 GB*.
The stackable Iomega MiniMax Drive keeps the same great
features that endeared Mac mini users to the original MiniMax
Drive, including a three-port USB 2.0 hub, three FireWire ports, a
smart power switch that powers up and down in tandem with the Mac
mini, and an interactive cooling system with thermal probe that
automatically regulates fan speed.
The Iomega MiniMax 500 GB Drive measures 6.5 inches square and 2
inches tall. It has the same footprint and matches the industrial
design of the Mac mini. Its 7200 RPM hard drive with 8 MB
cache adds 500 GB of storage to the Mac mini's internal 60 GB or 80
GB native capacity. And with Dantz Retrospect backup software
included, Mac mini users get hassle-free backup and data recovery
to secure their files, photos, songs, and other data. A single
MiniMax 500 GB drive can save up to 2,000,000 photos, 9,250 hours
of music, or 750 hours of video**.
"Iomega's MiniMax Drive is a fun, useful addition to the Mac
mini that instantly improves data security along with data storage
capacity," said Peter Wharton, vice president of marketing, Iomega
Corporation. "The 500 GB MiniMax complements the great features of
the Mac Mini and creates a versatile platform that can organize and
protect any user's digital movies, photography and music. And
that's what Mac users really want - more capacity, more security,
ease-of-use and a visually attractive product. The new 500 GB
MiniMax delivers on all of those user preferences."
Compatibility
The Iomega MiniMax 500 GB Desktop Hard Drive is compatible with
Macintosh G3 or greater (blue and white G3 only), iMac or Mac Mini
computer with built-in USB connection and Mac OS 10.2 or above.
The Iomega MiniMax 500 GB Drive can also be reformatted for use
with Microsoft Windows 2000/XP Home or Professional; instructions
included.
The Iomega MiniMax 500 GB Desktop Hard Drive is available for
$279.95 from iomega.com and select online and Web retailers. The
product is currently available in Europe, as well.
Link:
Iomega MiniMax
Software
Docx Converter Converts Office 2007 docx Files
for Use on Mac
PR: Microsoft introduced a new file format in Office 2007
called the Microsoft Open Office XML Format (.docx). This format is
not compatible with older versions of Microsoft Word or with
alternative operating systems like Linux or Mac OS X. Nor is
it compatible with other word processing applications like
OpenOffice, Lotus 123, or NeoOffice.
The Docx Converter dashboard widget allows you to convert files
right from your desktop. Simply drag the .docx file you want to
convert into the drop area of the widget (click to drag, push F12,
drop), and the widget will automatically convert the file and save
it to the location of the original file (with a .htm extension) and
(optionally) open it in your browser. Best of all, any updates or
feature additions to the website will automatically be reflected in
the widget!
New in this Version
- Support for formatting
- Save converted File to HDD
- Open in browser after conversion (optional)
System Requirements: Mac OS X 10.4 or later
Freeware
Link: Docx Converter
Desktop Mac
Deals
Low End Mac updates the following price trackers monthly:
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.
