Compiled by Charles Moore
and edited by
Dan Knight
- 2006.10.16
Last week's biggest Mac peripheral news? Probably the iMage webcam, a USB 2.0 device that works with
OS X without special drivers. No more need to buy Apple's $149
iSight or drivers for a third-party webcam. No, it's not as
sophisticated as Apple's offering, but it sells for just $60 and
works with iChat and other Apple apps.
On the peripherals fron, Key Ovation has released a white ergonomic keyboard designed for the Mac. And for
those who want to plan ahead, OWC's
Mercury Elite Pro supports Apple's traditional FireWire, the
newer USB 2.0, and the current eSATA interfaces in a single
aluminum enclosure.
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
iPod Accessories
Software
News & Opinion
Intel Road Map Clear; Apple's Hazy
BusinessWeek's Stephen H. Wildstrom says:
"Unlike every other computer maker, Apple refuses to discuss
plans for incorporating new processors as they become available.
Now that Macs include Intel chips, Apple finds itself on the same
Intel road map as other computer makers. I hope that means Apple
will be more forthcoming. But I'm not going to bet on it.
"For now, all I can do is offer some guesses, based on what
other laptop makers are doing - and Intel's announced plans. Intel
began shipping the Core 2 chips for notebooks this summer and they
are becoming available in all but the smallest. My best guess is
that the MacBook Pros and
perhaps the MacBook and
mini will be refreshed using
the new Core 2 Duos sometime in November. (The iMac has already
moved to the Core 2. The Mac
Pro uses workstation-class Xeon chips)."
Link:
Apple's Mysterious Chip Moves
24" iMac's Crisp Picture Shames TV; Speed Also
Impressive
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Melissa L. Jones reports:
"Computer companies are doing their best to invade the living
room, replacing the old television with full multimedia
systems.
"Apple Computer Inc. is among those companies trying to offer
full entertainment packages in one device. It recently introduced a
computer that, frankly, puts my 25-inch living-room television to
shame - the 24-inch iMac."
Link: 24-inch iMac's Crisp
Picture Shames Old TV; Its Speed Is Also Impressive
Adesso to Distribute Cirque's Desktop
Touchpads
PR: In an effort to improve overall market penetration,
Cirque Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Alps Electric Co.,
Ltd. and a leader in the capacitance technology industry, today
announced it has entered into a licensing agreement with Adesso
Incorporated.
Under the terms of the agreement, Adesso will assemble, brand,
and distribute the Cirque Smart Cat and Cirque Smart Cat Pro
desktop touchpads in professional retail packaging. The products
will then be available to the market through its extensive
distribution network.
"This is an exciting announcement not only for Cirque and
Adesso, but also for our other partners who will benefit from the
improved sales activity brought about by the increased exposure our
desktop touchpad line will be receiving," said Ken Tolman, sales
manager, desktop products for Cirque. "In addition, Adesso will
offer the product in professional retail packaging that will be
more appealing to the consumer."
"The introduction of Cirque's desktop products into our retail
channels, in conjunction with the larger marketing effort, will
improve public awareness of the touchpad products," said Allen Ku,
CEO of Adesso. "We're enthusiastic about the opportunities this
agreement gives us to grow the marketplace and help put Cirque
touchpads on more desktops around the world."
Products
iMage Driverless USB Webcam for Mac
PR: Ecamm Network and Pico Instruments
Tuesday announced the immediate availability of the iMage USB
Webcam. The lightweight, portable webcam delivers high-quality
video to any popular Mac video application, including iChat AV,
Yahoo! Messenger, Skype,
and Photo Booth.
The Pico Instruments iMage webcam delivers high-quality 640 x
480 video to your favorite Mac apps, including iChat AV, Yahoo!
Messenger, Skype and many others.
Apple is bringing about a video conferencing revolution. There's
no reason why you can't join in with your PowerBook, iBook, or
desktop Mac, just because there's no built-in camera. Just plug the
iMage webcam into your USB port and start enjoying video chat
within seconds.
Employing USB video standards, the iMage webcam requires no
device drivers to be installed prior to use with Mac OS X or
Windows XP. Ecamm includes special iMage Plugin software to provide
complete iChat compatibility.
"Our goal with
the iMage is to provide an affordable end-to-end video solution for
Mac owners who don't have a built-in camera," says Glen Aspeslagh,
Ecamm Network's Vice President of Product Development. "Whether
it's a PowerBook, iBook, Mac Mini or Mac Pro, this camera completes
the video chat equation."
The webcam's unique industrial design is the product of Pico
Instruments' consumer electronics expertise. iMage requires no
special fittings or attachments to be mounted above a notebook
screen, sit on a desktop, attach magnetically or mount on a
standard camera tripod.
Features:
- Driverless technology. No driver software is needed.*
- Mac and Windows compatible.
- Lightweight, portable design.
- Mounts on PowerBook or iBook screen. (See photo above.)
- Built-in magnetic mount.
- Threaded screw hole for tripod mount.
- Screw holes for wall mounting.
The iMage USB Webcam is available from Ecamm Network for $59.95
with shipping in the US.
For a limited time, Ecamm Network is including their Conference
Recorder for iChat and Call Recorder for Skype software and
offering free shipping within the United States.
Key Ovation Goldtouch for Mac Keyboard
PR: Key Ovation, manufacturer of the industry-leading
Goldtouch line of ergonomic products, announced today the
availability of its first Apple-compatible Keyboard - Goldtouch for
Mac.
"Apple
customers rely heavily on their computer and its peripherals to
deliver state of the art graphics and other products," said Key
Ovation General Manager Stephanie Gilbert. "They have high
expectations around the use of their Macintosh, and they shouldn't
have to temper those expectations when it comes to their keyboard,
either."
In fact, it was Apple's internal use of the standard Goldtouch
line that sparked demand for the Goldtouch for Mac line when it
became available.
"That was tremendous validation for the keyboard," said Gilbert.
"Making that kind of purchase sends a message to Apple's millions
of customers."
Christopher Lowe, Director of Sales, added: "That, plus the
general trend of many F1000 companies to identify the Goldtouch as
the preferred alternative keyboard, really brought home the
importance of providing both Mac and PC users a solution for
working more comfortably."
The
Goldtouch for Mac, which sells for $139.95, can be purchased at the
Key Ovation website or through select resellers.
Among the keyboard's features is the ability to adjust the two
alphanumeric sections both horizontally and vertically to suit the
individual's body requirements. "This helps you to assume a more
natural posture," notes Gilbert.
Features include:
- USB connector
- Adjustment for wrist splay in the horizontal plan:
0°-30°, continuously variable
- Adjustment for wrist pronation - vertical tenting
0°-30°, continuously variable
- Easily adjusted, locking ball and socket latch mechanism
- Small, space saving foot-print to bring your mouse inside your
ergonomic "comfort zone"
- Editing key layout for left-right work distribution
- Large space bars for easy thumb use
- Full size, full travel, tactile feedback keys with soft
end-stop
- Low noise key actuation
- Standard alphanumeric key layout (QWERTY)
Apple Key Features:
- Apple Control Key
- Right and Left Apple and Option Keys
- CD Eject
- Mute and Volume Control
System requirements: Mac OS X 10.4 & Newer
All in One Drive Has USB 2.0, FireWire, and
eSATA
Extremetech's Loyd Case says:
"Normally, users of external hard drives are faced with a
limited set of choices. Some products offer dual interfaces,
typically FireWire 400 and USB 2.0. Some drives, like Seagate's 300
GB eSATA external drive, give you the speed of a 3 Gbps SATA
connection, but you need an eSATA port on any system you want to
use it with.
"Other World Computing (OWC) is a reseller mainly focused on the
Apple Macintosh peripheral market, but the external drive works
with both Mac OS, Windows, and (with the right drivers) Linux. You
can buy a fully configured drive direct from OWC in capacities
ranging from 250 GB to 750 GB. Or you can just buy the enclosure
and add your own drive. We tested a 320 GB version that OWC sells
for $230."
Affordable Logitech X-540 Speakers Deliver
Matrix Surround Sound
PR: Logitech has announced the Logitech®X-540 speaker
system, an affordable surround-sound system designed for gamers,
which solves two distinct problems. The X-540 system enables people
to enjoy the experience of surround sound even with two-channel
audio sources, by including matrix surround-sound technology. And
for those playing games using a flat-panel display with no
convenient place to set a center-channel speaker, Logitech's
patent-pending integrated center-channel clip gracefully and
securely attaches the speaker atop the monitor, saving desk
space.
"Over the past five years, Logitech has achieved market
leadership in the multimedia speaker category with our bestselling
X-series speaker line, by delivering great performance, style and
value," said Jef Holove, Logitech's vice president of product
marketing for audio. "The X-540 system leaps beyond that to provide
more pragmatic innovation, offering matrix technology and the
innovative center-channel clip. It is sure to be a hit with gamers,
and our customers can rest assured that, for baseline audio
performance, this system outclasses the competition in its price
range."
Matrix Surround Sound
Audio sources - including many games and nearly all digital
music - are coded only for stereo sound, limiting the purpose of
having a 5.1 system. The Logitech X-540 speakers, the company's
first to offer matrix surround-sound technology at a price under
$100 (U.S.), split an audio signal to create five channels of sound
from common two-channel stereo sources - and without distorting the
audio quality. For convenience, the matrix button is located on the
control center, along with the power button, volume controls and a
headphone jack.
Center-Channel Satellite Clip
Many gamers today are using flat-panel displays - however,
unlike traditional CRT monitors, these displays don't offer a flat
place on top for a center channel speaker to rest. Logitech solves
this with its patent-pending center-channel clip, another company
first. The clip securely fastens the center speaker to the back of
the display's top edge. For gamers who still prefer CRT monitors,
the center-channel clip also acts as a speaker stand that can sit
atop the monitor or in front, on the desk.
Great Performance, Edgy Design
With a dedicated center channel and acoustically matched front
and rear satellites, the Logitech X-540 system produces balanced
surround sound. The X-540 speakers use Logitech's Frequency
Directed Dual Driver" technology. This technology helps the speaker
system produce richer sounds by having two drivers in each
satellite speaker. It also overcomes high-frequency overlap that
leads to uneven sound - a major barrier to dual driver speakers in
the past. The result is uniform, intense sound from any place in
the room.
The combination of five satellites plus subwoofer delivers 70
watts of power using the audio industry's official RMS (Root Mean
Square) measuring system. The system also includes a down-firing
subwoofer and a dynamic, real-time equalizer that maximizes bass
while minimizing distortion.
When compared to Logitech's other X-series speakers, the X-540
speakers feature a new industrial design that adds more angles and
style to the five satellites. Durable metal grilles protect the
satellites and a down-firing design shields the subwoofer driver.
With a convenient headphone jack built into the control center,
people can also enjoy their games or music privately.
The Logitech X-540 speaker system is expected to be available in
the U.S. and Europe beginning in November. Its suggested retail
price in the U.S. is $99.99.
Link: Logitech
World's Smallest Desktop Color Laser Printer
Available Nationwide
PR: Samsung, the world's second largest laser printer
engine manufacturer, announces that its breakthrough CLP-300 Series
color laser printers are now shipping and available. These powerful
yet affordable new solutions are ideal for customers who want the
benefits of color printing but do not have the space for the
typical color laser printers in this class. The CLP-300 and network
ready CLP-300N are the smallest color laser printers in their
class, weighing only 30 pounds and featuring a compact footprint of
15.4" w x 13.5" d x 10.4" h.
The CLP-300 printers are suited for a wide variety of customers
including home users, small businesses and even students who may
currently use an ink jet printer for their everyday printing. With
the CLP-300, customers can print their projects quickly and
affordably.
Both of these new printer models are not only are compact in
size, but also feature easy to install toner bottles, instead of
larger unwieldy cartridges, allowing for a footprint small enough
to fit on most any desk. These stylishly designed two-tone printers
deliver beautiful color prints along with quieter operation with
the same exclusive NO NOIS" print engine you'll find in Samsung's
high end color laser printers. Additionally, getting the printer up
and printing is simple, with as few as four clicks of the
mouse.
The CLP-300 printers offer print speeds of up to 17-ppm in black
and white, and 4-ppm in color. Sharp documents result from the 600
x 600 dpi optical resolution which can be enhanced up to 2400 x 600
dpi. The unit also boasts a competitive 24,200 pages per month duty
cycle. The high speed USB 2.0 interface makes setup and
connectivity simple and the 150-sheet cassette tray enables a
hectic workflow to keep flowing. Easy to access toner and paper
sources means it's easy to replace supplies and handle paper jams.
Also, the number of supply items is minimized for easy replacement
and cost-efficiency.
"The CLP-300 series not only provide customers with high-quality
output, quickly and affordably, but can deliver these results
without sacrificing desktop space," said Tony Venice, senior
solutions product manager, Samsung Electronics Information
Technology Division. "Additionally, there has become a frustration
factor for the typical ink jet customer who is now finding that
replacing multiple ink cartridges can be cumbersome and expensive.
These new models from Samsung provide a compelling color printing
solution that saves the average customer money, time and
frustration."
The CLP-300 series comes with a high-speed USB 2.0 interface and
is compatible with Windows, Macintosh and various Linux operating
systems.
The CLP-300N adds a built-in 10/100 Base TX network card,
allowing the printer to be shared. The CLP-300 and CLP-300N are
currently available for estimated street prices of $299 and $349,
respectively and can be purchased through retail, resellers,
dealers and distribution partners.
Link: Samsung
iPod Accessories
Proporta USB Mobile Device Charger
PR: Problem...
Battery life of new power-hungry mobile devices has a lot to
answer for. We all know how annoying it is when your device runs
out of battery when you need it the most - the phone call you had
to make, the 3 hour journey you are on with no book to read, or
that deal breaking email that you had to send. Proporta have come
up with the answer.
Solution...
The Proporta USB Mobile
Device Charger allows you to charge any device, whether it be your
PDA, mobile phone or MP3 player when you are nowhere near a wall
socket, laptop or PC.
How it works...
The Proporta USB Mobile Device Charger charges from any standard
USB port (so it works with all Proporta power/charging products in
your car, home, office) and stores an impressive 3400 mAh of power
for when you need it.
This means that you have the ability to charge your device
several times from this emergency store. Cables are supplied with
standard USB and mini USB connectors - and also a cable to fit your
iPod.
Features...
Charge anywhere, recharge anything - standard USB input and
output
Compact, slim and lightweight (measures just 100 x 62 x 15mm or
3.9 x 2.4 x 0.6 inches and weighs 120g or 4.2 oz)
Impressive 3400 mAh storage (recharge your devices several
times) Powerful 5v, 700mA output (enough for even the most
power-hungry mobile devices)
Environmentally friendly (rechargeable) LED charge and discharge
indicator
Microswitch on/off selection
These chargers are ready to order now, and will be shipping from
the middle of this month
Price: £25.49
Worldwide shipping: $4.95
Link:
Proporta USB Mobile Device Charger
Software
Run Windows Applications Seamlessly with 2X
Application Server
PR: Publish any Windows application onto a Mac desktop
with 2X ApplicationServer's Mac client
Mac OS X users can now run Windows applications seamlessly on
their desktop with 2X ApplicationServer's Mac client. 2X
ApplicationServer is available for free for up to 5
connections.
Until now, Macintosh users could only run Windows applications
using Windows simulation software (e.g. Virtual PC). This type of
software is typically difficult to configure and only works with a
limited number of applications. With 2X ApplicationServer, however,
any Windows application can be tunneled from a Microsoft Terminal
Server via RDP onto a Mac desktop.
"With the 2X ApplicationServer Mac client, we want to address
all those companies that use Apple Macintosh PC's as part of their
IT infrastructure and need to run Windows applications on those
machines. Now they can continue to use Windows applications which
are not available as Mac versions," said Nikolaos Makris, 2X
CEO.
2X ApplicationServer tunnels any Windows application onto remote
desktops, including Mac and Linux desktops, without the need to
install the application onto each user's machine. This saves
significantly on administration and support.
2X is offering a free 5 application license of 2X
ApplicationServer for Windows Terminal Services available
online.
Organizations can install applications onto one central server
and use 2X ApplicationServer to seamlessly tunnel up to 5
connections per server onto remote desktops.
Link: 2X
Deep Sleep 0.7
PR: An hibernation Dashboard widget for Mac OS X 10.4.3
and above
Deep Sleep is a simple Dashboard widget which allows users to
put their computer into hibernation mode, also sometimes called
software suspend mode. This widget only works on a limited number
of Apple computer models.
The default behavior of Mac OS X is to put sleeping computers in
"hardware suspend" mode, during which the RAM is still powered on.
This widget allows the computer to enter 'software suspend' mode.
Software suspend is a feature similar to what windows call
'hibernation': the computer consumes no power while sleeping,
however the wake up process takes more time to complete.
Hibernation is made possible by the Mac OS X Tiger 10.4.3
update. This operating system version is required.
Only the computers with "safe sleep" feature are officially
supported. For now, the only computers with this feature are the
PowerBook "HD" line of Apple laptops. Please read the included
documentation for more information, including the possibilty to use
this widget on unsupported computers.
New in version 0.7:
- The widget will detected unexpected crashes during sleep, and
fix their consequences
- Added a workaround to prevent widget messages from not showing
up in special circumstances.
- Added the detection of systems running FileVault.
System requirements: Mac OS X 10.4.3 or later.
System Support: PPC/Intel
Free
Link: Deep Sleep
Smart Scroll X 2.0b2
PR: Smart Scroll X brings new scrolling options and
enhancements to Mac OS X:
- Super Wheel - smoother, more comfortable scroll wheel
action.
- Grab Scroll lets you scroll by clicking and dragging anywhere
in a window. Currently for Cocoa applications.
- A "High Gear" for your scroll wheel, so you can have super-fast
scrolling when you need it.
- Universal Scroll Keys to scroll without having to reach for the
mouse. Scroll keys are the same in every application, giving you
fast & dependable scrolling right from the keyboard.
- Adds Scroll wheel support to FileMaker Pro 6 and 7 (as well as
live scrolling).
- Adds Live Scrolling and proportional thumbs to AppleWorks
6.
Grab Scroll
Grab scroll works with any mouse or pen or trackpad, etc. It is
essentially the same feature as the hand tool available in many
graphics programs, but now you can use it for scrolling in any
Cocoa application (support for Carbon applications is
forthcoming).
- With a single-button mouse, a scroll key lets you turn the
cursor into an open hand: hold the first key and tap the second
one. To scroll, click and drag with the mouse. Grab scroll mode
ends when you release the first key (the 2nd key is used to
activate grab scroll, and also to scroll faster when you
want).
- With a multiple-button mouse, you just press one of the buttons
(select one) to grab the page and slide it inside its window.
- With a graphics pen, you'll probably want to setup the extra
buttons so that the first one does a middle-click (so you can use
it to grab scroll) and the 2nd one does a right-click. Since the
pen lets you move the cursor farther with less effort and more
precision than a mouse, you can keep the normal speed at 1x for
maximum control and set the other speeds to some high value.
Two extra scrolling speeds are available, in addition to the
normal speed. One by holding a user-selectable key while dragging,
and the second by starting to drag near an edge of the area to
scroll.
Faster Scroll Wheel
You can make your scroll wheel faster when you hold down a
user-selectable key, up to 12 times faster. In addition, the speed
multiplier you choose is applied on top of the acceleration already
provided by the Keyboard & Mouse preference pane: this means
you keep the same level of control as you have now, but you can
scroll farther and without having to spin the wheel nearly as
much.
Universal Scroll Keys
A welcome alternative to always having to reach for the mouse,
Scroll Keys are a real time saver for anyone who types a lot!
With automatic scroll focusing, all you do is press a Scroll Key
and Smart Scroll X automatically selects and scrolls the correct
pane. Scroll Keys also feature their own adjustable scrolling
speed, with optional progressive acceleration, so that you can
easily scroll multiple pages simply by holding down a key.
Scroll Keys are the same across all applications: no need to
remember different keys for each app. Because of this, and because
Scroll Keys are conveniently located in the corner of the keyboard,
you can even scroll without having to look at the keys.
Scroll Keys are made possible by the new kind of keyboard
shortcut used in Smart Scroll X, which doesn't involve hitting
letter keys (hence avoiding conflicts with existing key
combinations). Instead, you hold down one of the four corner keys
and you scroll by hitting one of the others (some keyboards have
these keys on both sides, letting you scroll with either hand)
:
FileMaker Pro & AppleWorks enhancements
Smart Scroll X brings scroll wheel support and live scrolling to
FileMaker Pro 6 and 7. You can now use your scroll wheel mouse for
scrolling FileMaker Pro documents. Note: With some layouts you may
need to click one of the scroll bars once before the scroll wheel
works. A fix will be available in the next version of Smart Scroll
X.
AppleWorks 6 users get live scrolling and proportional thumbs,
as well as scroll wheel support.
Live scrolling updates the document while you drag the scroll
bar thumb. Proportional thumbs show how much of the document is
being displayed, and they make it easier to see which part you are
viewing. They are also easier to grab with the mouse.
Scroll Next
If a window has two or more scrollable panes, it is the one
under the mouse pointer that scrolls. Automatic scroll focusing
will select one of the panes for you when you press a Scroll Key to
start scrolling, but chances are it won't be able to guess the
correct pane every time. To let you scroll another pane without
reaching for the mouse, Smart Scroll X adds the Scroll Next
feature: hold down Control and hit Shift to select the next pane in
the window for scrolling. The mouse pointer jumps to the selected
pane too, providing visual feedback.
Scroll Next is quite useful in applications such as Mail for
example, where one often wants to alternatively scroll the list of
messages and the text of an email.
Note: In the current version of Smart Scroll X, scrolling in
Carbon applications only works if the mouse pointer is above the
pane to scroll. An upcoming version of Smart Scroll X will remove
this limitation, and also enable the Scroll Next feature for Carbon
applications.
Other features of Smart Scroll X
Finally, Smart Scroll X lets you select a comfortable scrolling
speed for Scroll keys (including optional acceleration), and offers
a larger selection of scrollbar arrows positions (still useful from
time to time, although with Grab Scroll and Scroll Keys you won't
need to click on arrows very often anymore). You do not need to
restart applications for these changes to take effect.
New in version 2.0b2:
- The Smart Scroll X Installer should now open correctly on all
systems. Thanks to Fernando Bracho for reporting this!
System requirements: Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later.
System support: PPC
$19 shareware
Link: Smart Scroll X
Desktop Mac
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