Compiled by Charles Moore
and edited by Dan Knight
- 2006.02.16
This Week's Macintel News
Apple
has begun shipping the Intel-based MacBook Pro - and at higher
speeds than originally announced. Graphics problems with some Intel
iMacs, USB 2.0 problems plague Core Duo under Windows, OS X
hacked to run on regular Intel PCs, and looking ahead at future
Intel CPUs. All this and more in this week's news roundup.
PowerBook, iBook, and other portable computing news is covered
in The 'Book Review. General
Apple and Mac desktop news is covered in The Mac News Review. iPod news is covered
in The iNews Review.
The Macintel Transition
Intel News
The Macintel Transition
Apple's Intel Era Expands with MacBook Pro
TheStreet.com's Troy Wolverton reports:
"Apple Computer is rolling out its first notebook computers
using Intel processors just when it said it would....
"Apple said Tuesday that it has begun shipping units of its new
MacBook Pro line of laptop
computers targeted at the professional market. When Apple announced
the MacBook Pro line in January at the Macworld conference, CEO
Steve Jobs projected that the company wouldn't begin shipping the
computers until sometime in February - rather than immediately -
but didn't give a specific date.
"Some analysts were concerned about the effect the delayed
launch would have on Apple's overall computer sales. Last month,
Apple itself predicted a soft quarter, relative to analysts'
expectations, in part because of the delay in shipping the new
notebook line. As it stands, the company is starting to ship the
notebooks about halfway through its fiscal second quarter.
"Even if the shipping date wasn't much of a surprise, Apple did
have some good news for customers. It is upgrading the chips in all
models that it is shipping to faster processors...."
- Link: Apple's
Intel Era Expands
Graphics Problem Affecting Some Intel
iMacs
CNET News.com's Ina Fried reports:
"Apple Computer said Friday that it is looking into reports that
a video problem with the new Intel-based iMac is preventing some
graphics from displaying properly.
"The issue, which has been the subject of a number of reports on
Apple discussion forums, is particularly noticeable after launching
Front Row, Apple's remote-controlled media software."
- Link:
Display Problem Affecting Some Intel iMacs
USB Can Sap Core Duo's Power (in Windows)
Processor IT Hub's John Spooner reports:
"Intel's Core Duo processor, the company's dual-core Pentium M
replacement, has been in the news this week.
"The chip, which came out last month with a new Centrino
platform that Intel calls Napa, has been working its way into the
market. To-date big-names including Apple Computer, Gateway, Lenovo
Group and Toshiba have announced plans to offer Core Duo in their
business-oriented notebooks. Expect Dell and Hewlett-Packard to do
so as well, later this quarter.
"But not all of the news has been good. TG Daily reports its
sister publication, Toms Hardware Guide, has discovered a glitch in
one Core Duo/Napa system that suggests machines based on the
platform might see unexpectedly short battery life, when operated
on battery power with USB 2.0 devices are attached to them.
"The issue TG Daily says it found relates to the intricate way
in which USB 2.0 devices interact with the ACPI or Advanced
Configuration and Power Interface drivers included with Microsoft's
Windows XP Service Pack 2."
- Link:
USB Could Sap Core Duo's Power
OS X 10.4.4 for Intel Hacked for PCs
osx86project.org reports:
"The hacking guru has announced preliminary patches for Apple's
latest release of OS X for Intel, version 10.4.4. According to
his website....
"This is a preliminary release of my Patch Solution for the
official Mac OS X on the Intel platform. Ultimately, it would
allow you to run this Mac OS X release on a generic x86
computer (SSE2 required)."
- Link:
OSx86 10.4.4 Security Broken
Contest: Run Windows Concurrently with OS
X
PR: Independence of OS choice is the main idea of this
contest. The host is a stable, simple, accessible and secured
platform (Mac OS X on new Intel Mac). Guests are a broad
choice of operating systems from Windows to Linux. The result is an
increased in inter-working and performances to go.
Indeed, why being satisfied running Windows on Mac, when Windows
and Mac OS X can cohabit together? The slight loss of performance
being balanced by an operational momentum.
Today using Aperture, Keynote or iMovie at the same time as
AutoCAD or TM1 is technically possible as long as the become of
certain editors is mapped to the future of Redmond. A
virtualization application is a solution.
The person who will develop this application before June 17 will
win the lolly. And you, generous donator, open (or deepen) your Mac
wisdom without losing your reason. Donate! Thank you for him or the
UNICEF (cf. the rules).
Regards,
Emmanuel
- Link: Run Windows in Mac
OS X for Intel Contest
Intel News
Intel's 'Conroe' to Blur Dual-core, Single-core
Distinction in Q3
The Register's Tony Smith reports:
"Intel's next-generation architecture-based 'Conroe' desktop
processor will ship as the Core E6000 series, the latest desktop
roadmaps to leak out of the chip maker reveal, and finally begin to
blur the distinction between single- and dual-core processors. The
chips will debut, as expected, in Q3, at speeds of up to 2.66
GHz.
"The roadmaps come courtesy of Japanese-language site PCWatch,
whose prognostications usually prove highly accurate. According to
a report today, Q3 will see the debut of Conroe as the E6700,
E6600, E6400 and E6300, clocked at 2.66 GHz, 2.40 GHz, 2.13 GHz and
1.86 GHz, respectively. The first two parts are dual-core, with a
total of 4 MB of L2 cache; the second pair are single-core,
2 MB L2 chips. All four will support a 1066 MHz frontside bus
speed."
- Link:
Intel's 'Conroe' to End Dual-core, Single-core Split
Intel Moves Mobile 'Merom' Back to Q4
The Register's Tony Smith reports:
"Intel's next-generation architecture-based 'Merom' notebook
processor will not ship until Q4, leaked roadmap documentation
suggests, lending weight to recent claims that 'Santa Rosa', the
next generation of the chip maker's Centrino platform, will not
debut until March 2007.
"According to a report on Japanese-language website PCWatch,
Merom will launch as the 2.33 GHz Core Duo T7600 and the 1.83 GHz
Core Solo T5600 in Q4. The two parts will be accompanied by the
2.16 GHz T7400 and the 2.0 GHz T7200.
"In light of Intel's apparent decision to stop making it
immediately obvious which desktop chips contain two cores and which
have just one - a move expected to take place with the launch of
'Conroe' in Q3 - Merom-based chips may lose the 'Duo' and 'Solo'
tags and rely instead on their respective numbering schemes."
- Link:
Intel Moves Mobile 'Merom' Back to Q4
Intel Previews 'Clovertown' Quad Core
CNET News.com's Michael Kanellos reports:
"Just as the bragging rights for dual-core chip supremacy are
dying down, Intel gave the first glimpse of a quad-core chip coming
next year.
"Clovertown, a four-core processor, will start shipping to
computer manufacturers late this year and hit the market in early
2007. Clovertown will be made for dual-processor servers, which
means that these servers will essentially be eight-processor
servers (two processors x four cores each)."
- Link:
Intel Shows Off Its Quad Core
